Versatile Ballhead Alternative. Here’s something a little different, but quite useful. The Novoflex MagicBall 50 is sort of an upside-down ballhead: The base has a 3/8-inch female thread to mount to a monopod or tripod, and a 1/4-inch top screw to mount to a camera or lens’s tripod mount (we include a pair of 3/8-inch to 1/4-inch adapters so it will work with any size). It does not have a quick-release plate; the lens or camera is mounted and dismounted by the thumb wheel.

Flexible, Easy-to-Control Monopod Head. We don’t particularly consider it a ballhead replacement, although it certainly can be used as one. It makes a superb and extremely flexible head for a monopod, giving you a lot more flexibility than simply tilting this way and that. Its handle—which is also the friction-lock lever—makes it much easier to control on a monopod than a standard ballhead.

Looks Super Cool. OK, we also like it because it looks really cool. Chances are you’ll be the only photographer around to have one. But the more we use it around here the more we like it.