Leofoto G2 Geared Pan Head review: Level up with this streamlined geared head

I’ve tested a fair few Leofoto products recently, including the rather fabulous Ranger LS-365C carbon fiber tripod legs and a variety of ball, tilt & pan and gimbal heads. It’s become clear to me that Leofoto specializes in high-end supports and accessories for professional and enthusiast photographers. The name trips easily off the tongue, arguably more so than the registered company name of Guangdong Laitu Imaging Technology Co. Either way, the outfit has been making high-quality photographic accessories in China since 2014. The Leofoto G2 that I’m reviewing here aims to be one of the best geared heads on the market. Let’s see how things pan out, so to speak.

Leofoto G2 Geared Pan Head: Specifications

Leofoto G2 Geared Pan Head: Price

Think of a tripod manufacturer and Manfrotto is a name that night well spring to mind. I’ve been impressed by the Manfrotto 410 Junior geared head, which costs $299 / £285 / AU$575, less so by the technopolymer (plastic) Manfrotto XPRO geared 3-way head, at $249 / £179 / AU$476. The Leofoto G2 is competitively priced at $199 / £200 / AU$319, but is actually very different to both of these Manfrotto heads in design. It’s more reminiscent of the Novoflex Qube Goniometer Head Pro-Kit, which retails at $1,750 / £1,250 although the Novoflex is rather more compact and very much more affordable, making it look rather a bargain at the price.

Leofoto G2 Geared Pan Head: Design & Handling

If you’re familiar with geared heads, you’re probably conjuring thoughts of tripod heads that sprout big knobs which stick out at various angles for adjusting tilt, swivel and pan. Each of the 3-way adjustments typically has its own control knob that operates with micrometric precision for really fine and precise adjustment. A whole 360-degree turn of each knob is generally required for just a few degrees of adjustment, and there’s usually a release clutch to enable speedy course adjustments. Okay, now you can forget all of that! The Leofoto G2 is completely different by design, more akin to the Novoflex Qube Goniometer Head Pro-Kit, which costs around six to nine times as much to buy in various regions around the world.

The G2 doesn’t aim to give the generous range of movement that’s available with typical 3-way heads. Instead, it’s geared (literally) to small and precise adjustments over a much more limited range. Typical scenarios include architectural and landscape photography, where you want to get things precisely on the level, as well as extreme close-ups for macro shooting where tiny adjustments make a big difference.

With the small but precise range of tilting adjustments firmly in mind, the head features two control knobs, one nominally being for forward and backward tilt, the other for side-to-side tilt. Both of the main control knobs work in exactly the same way. You simply turn the knob one way or the other for up to 10 degrees of maximum tilt in the respective direction. Each axis has a calibrated scale marked in 2-degree increments, and there’s a subtle click-step in the central position.

Glaring shortcomings in the design are that, with such a small range of tilting adjustments, you can’t shoot vertically downwards or at any extreme angles. And you also can’t shoot with the camera in portrait rather than landscape orientation. But don’t worry, there are easy fixes.

The base of the head isn’t the regular circular affair but instead has an Arca-Swiss type dovetail. You can therefore mount the head on top of a regular ball head or 3-way head. You can then use the bottom head to get your camera into the right ballpark position, before using the G2 head up on top to make fine adjustments. Indeed, the Arca-Swiss dovetail comes complete with security pins fitted and if you want to use the G2 on its own (I generally would) you need to remove the two pins with the supplied hex key.

Naturally, if you’re using the G2 in combination with another regular 3-way or ball head, that puts portrait orientation shooting on the menu as well. However, with the G2 putting the center of gravity of your camera even further off-axis from the tripod in portrait orientation, it’s far less than ideal. I’d use an L-bracket instead, so that you can quickly and easily swap between landscape and portrait orientation while maintaining a good balance for your camera on the tripod.

While the range of tilt is fairly limited in both axes, panning is comparatively generous with a full 360 degrees of rotation being available. To keep you in control when accessing all areas of adjustment, there’s a separate locking lever for panning, and you can pull it out on a spring-loaded mechanism, rotating it on its shaft so that sits at its most convenient orientation.

Leofoto G2 Geared Pan Head: Performance

Performance is excellent, as far as it goes. Although the range of tilt is limited to +/-10 degrees on either of the dual-axis mechanisms, that’s plenty for precisely positioning your camera to make it absolutely level. You can then ensure that your horizon is perfectly level in landscape photography, and that your walls are perfectly upright when shooting architecture. The bubble level featured in the top of the head is helpful to some extent, although it tends to be partially obscured by the Arca-Swiss profile quick-release plate. I prefer to use the artificial horizon in the viewfinder or rear screen of my camera anyway, as I find it’s more precise for leveling that a bubble level or a pair of spirit levels.

Tilting adjustments are really smooth and precise in both directions, which is exactly what I need from this type of head. Setup is quick, easy and highly effective. What’s more there’s no unwanted sag or flexing when adjusting the head, which I certainly can’t say about many ball heads on the market. It counts for a lot when precision is the key element to successful shot.

What came as more of a surprise to me during testing is the smoothness and delightfully fluid feel of the head’s panning mechanism. This puts shooting video as well as panoramic sequences of stills on the agenda. I really like that the panning mechanism is at the top of the head rather than at the bottom. The big plus point is that you can use the two tilting adjustments to ensure that the upper platform is completely level, then pan to your heart’s content, safe in the knowledge that your horizon will remain level and your buildings will remain upright through an entire 360 degrees. That wouldn’t be the case if the panning section was at the bottom of the head, and panning would run the risk of wonky horizons.

Leofoto G2 Geared Pan Head: Verdict

I feel that the Leofoto G2 is entirely useless if I want a geared head with full 3-way movement that can take extreme angles and portrait orientation shooting in its stride, without the aid of any additional kit. But that’s not what this head is all about. I love its fine and precise 2-way tilting for keeping my camera dead-level for landscape and architectural photography, and it works really well for macro shooting as well. I’m happy to use an additional head if I want to shoot vertically upwards or downwards, as well as using an L-bracket for portrait orientation shooting. Ultimately, the head works supremely well for leveling and the smooth, fluid feel of its panning mechanism for video or stills is the cherry on the top.

Alternatives

The Manfrotto 410 Junior geared head is a top-selling geared head from the legendary Italian tripod manufacturer. It feels really solid and enables a full range of movement, with a very conventional design, and costs around $299 / £285 / AU$575 to buy.

The Novoflex Qube Goniometer Head Pro-Kit works in a broadly similar way to the Leofoto G2. This time, however, it’s a modular kit with interlocking sections which you can buy separately or all together, with individual sections for tilt in either axis, and panning on the top. The complete Pro kit costs around $1,750 / £1,250.