I’m very interested in the Jr. 3 and a top mount flash bracket. The thing I’m wondering about is if I will need any kind of special plate to mount a Canon flash to the top of the bracket. Can’t seem to find that anywhere. I think I only need one plate for mounting the lens and flash bracket to the head but not sure about the flash. Thanks for any help.

Hi Jerry,

You are correct the bracket just has a proper notch and captive knob with threads to mount the off shoe camera cord. This mount is the normal size to fit the flash shoe or more often an off shoe camera cord so you can trigger and your camera can communicate with the flash.

I can send me an email I can reply with a close up photo.

Robert

Jerry

…… the Jobu Head looks interesting. My only concern is that it does not seem to have any vertical adjustment of the lens platform which would seem to make it impossible to centre the lens body on the axis of rotation and so make the achievement of a truly ‘weightless’ neutral balance (without any drag dialled in on the knob) unachievable and thus losing one of the prime benefits the gimbal design. …..Can the Jobu do that. If it can, then I am interested.

The Jobu Jr 3 will balance perfectly with a 500/4 with or without a convertor or extender in place with a low profile QR foot. Unfortunately I cannot say if the 600/4 is balance-able for sure or not and since the 6 is much taller you might have to set up the head in side mount configuration to achieve neutral balance. I wish I had a 600/4 here to try for you but I don’t have access to one right now. Give me some time perhaps and I can let you know later.

Also you might want to look at the jobu head that is one size up from the Jr 3, the HD MkIII: http://www.jobu-design.com/catalog/item/2588354/6844286.htm. At 2 lbs 10 oz it is a lot lighter than the Wimb I but is not as compact or light as the JR 3. I actually have a MKIII here to test so I will let you know what I find and give me some time to see if I get a chance to test a 600 on the JR 3.

Thanks for the interest.

Robert

The RRS quick release is in a class of its own. Screw knobs are always slow and a sure fire way to lose shots especially when combined with side mounting (painful!). If the photography is fairly static eg set up and wait for the birds to turn up, then it’s OK but in the bush, wild animals do not hang about waiting for their pictures to be taken so you have to be able to mount/ demount your big lens like greased lightening. Very often if you don’t get your shot within 30 seconds of arriving on a sighting, it’s too late and the chance is lost. I have seen so many guys on safari fumbling and cursing trying to get big lenses mounted while the object of their desire disappears over the horizon.That’ where a good quick lever release matched to a plate from the same manufacturer comes into its own. No contest.

As a professional photographer I have been a Jr. 3 user since early 2011. Jobu has been very helpful by offering my workshop participants, show participants and blog readers a 15% discount (checkout code: robert). This year I will be field testing some new Jobu equipment and posting my findings and observations here.

Let me know if I can help answer any questions.

Thanks for taking time to comment.

I am trying to put together a package to use with either a monopod ( and I will also get this from Jobu ) or my tripod ( Which is a Flashpoint – 1428 ) but purchasing several dedicated heads becomes rather expensive. I am using a Canon 40D with an L plate from RRS and a RRS BH – 40 LR ballhead . My largest lens, so far, is a 100 – 400 Canon lens. I also purchased a lens plate from RRS for this lens. My walk around lens is a Canon 28 – 135 and am looking hard at a Canon S series wide angle 10 -22 lens. Will this gimbel work with what I have or do I need something in addition?

The JR. 3 gimbal would work very well for your set up and the Canon 100-400. Really the JR. 3 is the perfect for travel since it is so lightweight and compact.

You would be better off hand-holding the shorter lenses instead of using them on a gimbal head. You can use them on a gimbal head but you would need to buy an adapter.

What do you think about using a gimbel on a monopod? I should also say that I am a beginner very late in life. I have on my bucket list an African safari dedicated to photographers and so am trying to purchase equipment and learn to use it properly before any major trips and without breaking the bank and with a view to multiple uses.

Yes, I have used the Jr. 3 on a monopod and found it to work very well. The head is light enough not to add much additional weight but it makes the monopod easier to use with the tilt and pan controls.

Thanks for writing. Let me know if you would like to purchase one.