Some advice sought for full Wimberley / Nikon 600VR

[CactusD]

Hi all,
Here's a humble qu for those who are far more experienced than I am with this setup; I acquired my WH-200 this week, and am getting to know it.
I'm wondering if people could share their experiences concerning when to use the different VR settings, and when to lock down fully; I'm guessing that it will really depend on shooting conditions (BIF or not, etc.). But how often do people find themselves fiddling with the control knobs on the head, and the VR settings on the lens? Any thoughts most welcome.
All best,
Dave

[E.J. Peiker]

You really don't need to adjust the VR settings as the VR on that lens will sense when it is on a tripod and locked down.

[CactusD]

Well, there are two settings, one 'normal' and one 'tripod'; just wondering about others' experience of their usage.

[amp5213]

I have the 500m VR lens and usually set it to tripod rather than normal. When it was changed to normal, I have noticed no difference from the tripod setting when shooting on a tripod.

[E.J. Peiker]

I leave it in normal mode becaue I rarely tighten a Wimberley down hard in all axis. The Nikon manual says that one should use normal except when tightened down.

[George DeCamp]

I leave it in normal mode becaue I rarely tighten a Wimberley down hard in all axis. The Nikon manual says that one should use normal except when tightened down.

What E.J. said!

Always in Normal Mode here. In all the time I've had it I am not sure I used tripod mode more than once or twice to see if it worked.

[CactusD]

That's great, and most helpful; I'd read the Nikon manual, and wanted to know how the recommendations worked in practice with the Wimberley. Question now answered: many thanks!

[NNL33543]

I just spent the last six months sorting out my 600mm VR. Could not get sharp pictures. Turned out there were several things. The supplied screws for the replacement foot was too long, I ended up using the Nikon screws. The tripod setting was the best one. I spoke to Nikon and they said to read the manual and it says to use no VR, Normal mode or Tripod mode, see page 30 of the manual. Essentially use what works. I am happy with the tripod mode. I am using a Gitzo 1548 and the manual also states that VR may introduce shake if it finds none. There is at least one other report on the net that mirrors my experience

[E.J. Peiker]

I'm thinking of trying Tripod mode as well. the first shot in any sequence is always soft and I spent a little time just pushing the shutter button halfway without taking any shots and it takes a long time to settle down - WAY longer than the Canon IS does and there is a bit of creep over time. I am wondering if that is solved by tripod mode.

The manual doesn't exactly say what the Nikon person told you but could be interpreted that way I guess.

[CactusD]

Interesting. Practice makes perfect, I guess.