pan and tilt camera test

checking out new gear inside, on a rainy night.

first use of the manfrotto 701hdv fluid head, seeing what it does. it's basically a small, lightweight fluid head, but it's a MASSIVE improvement over my old $20 Sunpak tripod that I've been using the past 4 years. the pan feels stiffer than the tilt action, but both are silky smooth with my camera set up. because drag is not adjustable, it seems like there's a certain amount of skill to be learned to get the best results. i'm fine with that; it's part of the process. i would recommend this as a good starter head.