The Swiss Pagoda

The object in the heading image is not a refugee from a Transformers movie. Nor is it  the main mast from a Japanese battleship. It is a European tripod head that is constructed in the grand tradition of trying too hard to go too far.

Those of you who remember the advertisements for large format cameras made in Europe will recognise the principle. Make a piece of mechanics hinge upon itself in 14 different ways and then bend them all on for the publicity shot. Never mind that you only ever move the thing in very small increments in the studio or out in the field - it is a game of advertising excess to compete with other machine shops.

Notwithstanding the above, this is a superb tripod head. It tilts, pans, swivels, and then twirls around for panoramic pictures. It clamps onto Arca mounts...not surprising because it is made by Arca Swiss. It is terrifyingly adjustable for friction and position. First-time users will be lost in a minute and even old hands will spend time over-correcting themselves.

It is possibly the most precise head generally available and would suit everything from a mirrorless to a monorail. Indeed, with a fully-configured monorail large format camera the photographer would not even need to use film or make any exposures - their entire studio time could be devoted to adjusting the movements until their subject died, rusted, or blew away.

More practical landscape workers could eliminate the wretched ball head and substitute this for far more control - it would make sunsets mellower and rocky shores more rocky...

Cubists Of The World - Unite! You Have Nothing To Lose But Your Ballheads!

At long last the Arca Swiss Cube has arrived and we can throw away our ancient three-way heads that have been sitting on the studio tripod since Fox Talbot was a kitten. This device has been advertised on our window for months...with never a sniff of the real thing. Well, the real thing is here and it is wonderful.

Please note that I am not restricting the sales pitch to studio shooters; landscapists, architectural photographers, and panoramicists will also benefit from this piece of gear. It is simply the most precise way to orientate a still camera on the top of a tripod that I have seen.

I use a Gitzo tripod in the studio - it has either a Linhof pan and tilt mounting or a Gitzo 3-way head on the top, but neither of these alternatives come close to the Arca Swiss.

The Cube has precise rack control of two axes, and a positive lock mechanism for tilt. It has variable pressure for the knob controls, so that you can match the effort needed to move the camera with the weight of it. It has a precise panorama turntable at the top of the totem pole...so you can level everything before you spin around in the pano shot.

It is well-built. The Swiss are like that. Their cheese may have holes in it but their camera gear is pretty solid!

Who The Heck Would Buy One Of Those?...Zeiss

Hey, look over here, Fred! There's a bunch of lenses that don't have any autofocus. And they don't have any automatic stabiliser switch. And they don't have a zoom. And they don't even have a rubber ring around the lens. Who the heck would buy one of these?

Well, professional architectural photographers for one. Professional landscape photographers for another. People who carefully construct images - or carefully observe them - and who can evaluate the focus before they press the button. Slow workers.

Then there are the photographers who are making images for fussy clients - clients who demand the utmost in resolution for their advertising images. Clients who demand the absolute minimum of chromatic aberration in the product.

People who shoot Nikon, or Canon, or Leica , or....Zeiss Ikon cameras. Note that the last named are becoming rare and are film cameras.

Sometimes Zeiss lenses are used by careless and forgetful clients. NASA left a number of their Zeiss lenses on the moon back in the last century and this was taxpayer's money too...

Well, apart from governmental agencies, scientific workers, and advanced enthusiasts, I guess that's all. Can we sell you a lens, Fred?

You Have The Power - With Godox

Today is Earth Day. You all know what that means. Time to have your wall sockets and extension cords checked by a qualified electrical contractor.

While you are thinking electrical, consider the Godox power inverter. We have the LP 800-X model in stock right now and the price has dropped from $ 995 to $ 895.

Do you have studio flashes that are locked into your studio? Or a computer that needs mains power to run? Or  hot lights that need 240VAC to operate? Are you sick of having to unreel 25 kilometres of extension cords from your house to the beach for a location shoot - and then having to reel them back up again to go home?

Here is where the Godox inverter is your frend. There are three standard AC sockets on one side and three USB sockets sockets on the other - see images. The power inverter locks onto the top of the dedicated rechargeable battery and pumps out 750 watts continuous or 800 intermittent power. You can draw off 110VAC 60Hz or 240 V Ac 50Hz. There are overload and short circuit protectors in operation. There is even a low voltage alarm to let you know when it is time to change batteries.

The change-over couldn't be simpler - just unclip four safety locks at the sides of the inverter and lift it off the battery. There are spare batteries available and as it only takes three hours to trickle charge one, you can have a spare ready to go.

This is the type of solution that means you can have studio flash power and effective light shaping wherever you have a location shoot - and you don't have to change over your current equipment.

Current equipment. Earth Day. Ooh, they're coming thick and fast today...