[Yes] Though a bit pricey, it is good.

[1.43 lb] best ball head ever if you ask me

[Yes] I have used gimbal heads for my wildlife photography, and still do. But for my smaller, micro four-thirds gear, even a small Jobu gimbal proved problematic in some situations, especially when I used my oddly shaped, bottom-heavy Olympus OM-D-EM1x with its built-in, non-removable battery grip. Meanwhile, I have used the Uniquball ballhead for my larger gear in some situations. This is (or was) a revolutionary two-ball design that provides pan-and-tilt precision with a ballhead. The disadvantages are two: that a loosened ballhead is still subject to flop due to imbalance, and that when fully tightened there is considerable shifting upwards of the field of view, which for some kinds of photography is really annoying.


Enter the Flexshooter series, which incorporate a spring-loaded (?) design that counterbalances the weight of the camera-lens rig to provide the same 'weightless' performance of a gimbal. When the rig is properly balanced within the clamp, this works really, really well. The only very slight annoyance is that you must situate the foot of the (telephoto) lens just so to get fully satisfactory balance without the lens shifting upwards or downwards when you release the ball lock. One does get used to this, and I will add that for a gimbal to operate fully weightlessly no matter whether a telephoto is pointed upwards, level, or downwards, one has to similarly fuss with the height of the cradle on the gimbal.


This particular model is ideal for smaller format gear, like the m43 cameras and lenses I mostly use these days. It definitely can support just about any full-frame rig you can place on it, but for larger-sized gear the Flexshooter Pro is a better match that costs not much more.

[Yes] I bought the FlexShooter Pro ball head to reduce the weight and size of my tripod with a gimbal head. I replaced an Open gimbal head and leveling base and reduced the weight by more than 66%. The size and packability is much better. The steps for use are simple. 1st - level the outer ball. 2nd - mount your lens. 3rd - adjust the silver knob for the amount of resistance you want for pan and tilt. Done.

[1.43 lb] I use this exclusively to shoot off my Lenscoat beanbag and it works like a charm from my Wrangler window. Reviews as always are mixed and normally negative reviews are caused by inexperienced photographers. I had been using a larger PMG Katana jr gimbal but it became a bit cumbersome for this purpose. This product solved all of those problems and more. I am extremely happy with it!

[Ball Head] For big lenses a gimbal used to be required, but this is lighter and more compact and works VERY well, keeping big lenses flexible and stable, especially for bird photography. Also, this ballhead can be used for regular lenses too, so no need to carry a separate gimbal and ballhead.

[Yes] I am so impressed with this bullhead. It is much lighter than either my regular bullhead or my gimbal head. It works quite well, is well designed, and well made. I highly recommend this to anyone seeking a quality combination unit.

[6.3 x 6.1 x 5"] Change from full frame gear to Olympus last year. Smaller lighter cameras & lenses wouldn't balance correctly on my old gimbal. So replaced it with Flexshooter Mini. Works perfectly and is more flexible shooting than with the gimbal I used for years. Once set up and balanced , the camera & lens stay right where it is pointed. Yet it's easy to move and track subjects. Just what I needed; complements the camera & lens Stabilization system - just getting more shots and carrying a whole lot less weight around!! Quicker set-up too.

[Yes] It takes a little to get used to but I really like this ballhead. Its build quality is great and it's pretty small and lightweight. I have used it with my Sony 200-600 and it handled that weight very well.


Ideas for improvement:
- Tightening up the lock handle requires a lot of force
- Releasing the quick release requires a lot of turns. It would be good if this could be done quicker.


Overal a great product.

[Yes] After reading both the pros and cons of the FlexShooter Mini and Pro models online by owners of this head, I was not sure what to expect. For the past several years I have been using a Gitzo GHFG1 Gimbal Fluid Head and it has become my absolute favorite among the many Gimbal heads I have owned, including the Wimberley and Jobu heavy duty models, particularly for shooting birds in flight. I purchased both the Flexshooter Mini and the heavier Pro model to try out. I found both of them easily handled my Canon R5 camera + 600mm F4. My copies of the Flexshooter Mini and Pro panned and tilted silky smooth. Although completely different to operate than a standard Gimbal head, the instructions included with these heads is straight forward and easy to understand. So it did not take long before I was completely comfortable with both of them. The FlexShooter heads provide the same functionality as a standard gimbal head and more. The Flexshooter heads also include a built in leveler, which is something a standard gimbal head does not provide. The only functional differences I found with these heads is that they require increasingly more force when raising the lense to a high vertical angle. This is due to the spring loaded design of these heads. In this regard, I found the resistance in the FlexShooter mini to be considerably less than the larger Flexshooter Pro model I received. However, I did not find the resistance in either model to be a significant issue to me (I am 5'-6, 145lbs and 81yrs old). With the additional advantages of reduced size and weight compared to standard gimbal heads, I think you owe it to yourself to try out one of the Flexshooter heads. I plan on keeping both of the models I received.