Manfrotto 482 Micro Ball Head

by Bogen

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4 x 4 inches ; 2.9 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00009R6ME
• Item model number: 482
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: August 28, 2005

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Tiniest in the Manfrotto range of Ballheads, the 482 Micro Ball Head replaces the 3434 Micro Ball Head and 3009 Mini Ball Head. An all-purpose ball head designed for use with compact, 35mm and small digital cameras, the 482 stands at just over 2 inches tall and is rated to support loads over 4 pounds! This head is ideal for the 3007 Table Top Tripod, 3292 Car Window Clamp, and Monopods such as the 3006. It has a single indexed ratchet locking knob for 360-degree pan and a double groove for +90 to 90 degree tilt movements. Camera attachment is via a 2-inch platform with a 1/4-20-inch male thread, and head to tripod attachment is 1/4-20-inch and 3/8-inch female.

Features include:

• Sturdy all-metal construction.
• The double 90-degree groove (one on each side of the head) means switching from landscape to portrait is convenient however you're set up.
• A repositionable ratchet means that the locking lever's action will never be blocked either open or closed by interference with the camera body, tripod shoulder, etc... simply pull the lever outwards and it's free to be positioned more comfortably without affecting the locking mechanism. Then you can continue tightening or loosening the knob.
• A convenient single locking mechanism blocks or frees movement on all axes for greater speed of use.

Product Description

All-purpose ball head designed for use with compact, 35mm and small digital cameras. This head is ideal for the Table Top Tripod 209, car window clamp 243 and monopods such as the 276. It has a single indexed "ratchet" locking knob for 360° pan and +90° -90° tilt movements. Camera attachment is via a 50mm platform with 1/4â? male thread. Head to tripod attachment is 1/4â? and 3/8â? female. All aluminium construction and black finish.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good value, few features, October 1, 2005

By 

Stephen W. Hinch "hiker and author" (Santa Rosa, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Manfrotto 482 Micro Ball Head (Electronics)

This is the Bogen/Manfrotto 482 Ball Head. I use it on a monopod with my Nikon 35mm and digital SLR cameras so I can get moderate adjustments without tilting the monopod at an awkward angle. It works well up to a 300mm f/5.6 lens.

There is only one lever to adjust both tilt and pan, but of course on a monopod, that's not really a problem. You need to make sure you cinch the locking knob down tight, as there is no adjustable friction, so once it is loose it is very loose. For tripod use, note also there is no separate knob to adjust pan, making it a bit tricky to create a set of shots you want to later stitch together into a single panorama.

Manfrotto ball heads certainly don't have all the capability of much more expensive heads from Arca or Gitzo, but they do the job well and you can't beat the price. If you are looking for a tripod-mounted ball head for use with a digital SLR such as the Nikon D70, I would suggest the next size up, the 484, which Amazon calls the Manfrotto Mini Ball Head. You can get it with or without a quick release plate.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect for travel tripod, October 10, 2007

By 

d80shooter - See all my reviews

This review is from: Manfrotto 482 Micro Ball Head (Electronics)

I have a small Slik Sprint Pro tripod that came with a small ball head. The Slik head wouldn't keep my DSLR with a medium zoom locked, so I replaced it with this head. The 482 works great and is the perfect head for this light tripod - certainly not as stable as a larger head and tripod but the combo works great when weight is a premium.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Ball head works great with monopod, June 28, 2008

By 

M. Lewis (Utah) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Manfrotto 482 Micro Ball Head (Electronics)

Bogen-Manfrotto 482 Micro Ball Head
(5 stars for my purposes, 4 stars over-all)
I found this ball head to work great with my monopod (Manfrotto 790B, giving a high degree of flexibility and stability in low/lower light situation. It allowed me to take good pictures of frogs and other Costa Rican wildlife behind glass and during night hikes using just a (good quality) LED flashlight for lighting (better than flash). It allowed me to prop against walls, ground, etc. for good stability in many different angles and position, even without tightening down the ball. It is also compact enough to not get in the way when hanging the monopod on my arm or using the monopod for a walking stick at other times. The quality is much better that other small ball heads I looked at. It was perfect for my uses with small to medium sized equipment (12x optical w/ IS), but would probably not be suitable for lager bodies and lenses. For those I would use a tripod and a larger ball head. But I value the ease and flexibility in wild life situations, such as rain forests, where shot opportunities are often fleeting and lighting is often low (even during the day). It is very easy to spin off & on my camera ( w/ monopod & head in vertical position) with the extra bulk and expense of a quick release head.