G'day all.

You know .. what I miss using the Manfrotto 523PROi (or any LANC fixed on top of the pan handle) is being able to turn and lock the handle up the other way in the rosette of the tripod head .. so I can hold it from underneath.

Old habits die hard, holding it from underneath makes for much smoother wide pans imo.

Cheers.

You wanna run that by us just one more time?

I'm sure it made sense to someone, but this 'ol timer is just like, er, what?

Are you referring to something, long expired, that did the Lanc thing better?

Do tell.


CS

You mean like this now-all-but-expired Lanc?

LOL not an English Avro LANC Col it's an Italian Manfrotto. Ha sounds like a Schneider Trophy entry.

Guys as you know most pan bars (handles) have a slight angle and you can lock them to the video head rosette, so they point up or down. When I lock the 523PROi in position on top of the bar, it has to angle down so I can use my thumb on top to operate the LANC.

Without the LANC I like to angle the pan bar up so I hold it from underneath. I've got better control with my wrist straight and the wide pans are smoother.

Cheers.

Sorry about that, Allan, I knew it wasn't that sort of LANC (honest!) but thanks for the clarification.

The reason I went for the 521Proi rather than the 523 (which has extra functionality with rec review IIRC) was to give more freedom in where and how it is attached to the tripod. I thought the fixed position of the controls on the 523 arm would be too restrictive sooner or later. The smaller 521 can be fiddly to attach firmly but I find it's worth the extra time for the flexibilty in mounting.

Good points Col. If I'm going to be wide panning a lot, I occasionally unplug the LANC and turn the bar up the other way.

I'm slowly refining my act to video our Lockheed Constellation taking off. As it passes L>R at 90d in front of me, I aim to have zoomed into the co pilots window while he smiles at the 20:1 lens, then back out as it passes and lifts off.

I'm using a Miller Compass 15, the 523PROi, the Canon AIs LCD with a hood on it. It only happens about once a week so I'm practising with other a/c. The weather has been rubbish too, but wish me luck. :)
Cheers.