Heavy Duty Pano Setup

[sjd996]

Figured it was time to sort out a decent multi-row panoramic setup to use on upcoming trips. Here is a first attempt:

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The Multiflex works brilliantly as the leveling/panning base. The Hejnar PHOTO rails/clamps/90 degree block are also more than up to the job too. The current weak point is the RRS Panning Clamp - works fine with smaller lenses, but the panning part doesn't grip nearly well enough to support this load...

 

[RFCGRAPHICS]

The mutliflex looks awesome ! Nice setup

 

[Fishbait]

That's quite a setup! How stable is it with all those moving parts?

 

[mdnativ]

Let's see some results!!! :smile:

 

[O2zi3]

You could take the grip off..that would move the COG closer

 

[sjd996]

The mutliflex looks awesome ! Nice setup

I'm still in the "I think I like it" Phase with the Multiflex... my son thinks it's the All-Spark from the transformer movie and is quietly hoping Optimus Prime will show up to retrieve it. It does it's job very well, and I think I like it.

That's quite a setup! How stable is it with all those moving parts?

Apart from the RRS Clamp, very. I had a Nodal Ninja to review a couple of months back, and this setup overall feels a lot stronger/more stable. The lock on the panning mechanism on the RRS clamp isn't strong enough to support this load though. With a smaller lens like the 24-70mm (shown below) it is a very, very good setup. Even with a 70-200mm lens it is still very good and very usable. The 200-400mm is too much for the panning clamp though.

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Let's see some results!!! :smile:

I'll post some in a few weeks once I've been somewhere to take some decent pano's. Unfortunately the setup pictured is too heavy, it'll have to be with a shorter lens unfortunately.

You could take the grip off..that would move the COG closer

Good point, I think I can live without the 8 f.p.s. for Pano's :biggrin: However that still probably wouldn't be enough - even with the panning lock really cranked down, the panning clamp can barely support the weight shown above. I think 70-200mm f2.8 is going to be the max with that setup unless I can find a much stronger panning clamp.