Very High Quality! Very strong and secure. The stacked leaves are ingeniously designed for locking into positions. It is where "form verses function" has become art and a tool. It is simple to use and lighter than you would think. Made in the US but looks like it was made by a high quality European manufacturer. Comes with a lifetime warranty and very nice people that talk to their customers. The wood tripod is absolutely stunning on it's own. Ries is the company that originally invented the first camera head in the first place. Their wood tripod is absolutely stunning on it's own.

No weaknesses in the head. Definitely high quality in the manufacturing.

At first look I was a bit thrown off because it does not look like the standard mainstream head. Although, it is a definitely awesome design.

I purchased the head and a tripod from the Reis website and have never seen one in person. I wish I could have seen one in my local camera store as it would have made my search easier. Their website could really use some updating. To get the student or school discount, or even knowing their is one, you have to contact them directly.

This head for my Mamiya 645DF and, unexpectedly, a Nikon D7000 along with assortment of long and heavy lenses and accessories. I have been using the head on my Bogen and Ries tripods for about a year now and find it to be my first to grab because it is so stable and simple to operate, especially if you are making a lot composition adjustments throughout the day. I am a semi-professional shooting architectural and product photography as a second career. The work my customers demand are very high and I only get one chance, so confidence in my equipment is important. I also have the easel accessory made by Ries which simply attaches to the head to allow me to use my wooden tripod to display my work at trade shows. Very striking and appealing.

The Ries company is apparently like the Rolls Royce or Bentley in the industry. They don't seem to advertise much because I simply stumbled upon them while surfing Google images. I have never seen them in a store that I can remember but I have been told other photographers that used them is schools that they are sold in stores around the world. They are very popular among fine art photography and wedding photographers. They have been around a long time and have quite a following with the master artists. I was very impressed to see Ansel Adams and Cole Weston in their customer page. Their success has mostly to do with vibration damping which they seemed to engineer into their products as I have noticed in my own work with noisy environments.

Customer Service

Lifetime warranty and a stellar personal customer service. Student discounts only if you contact them directly.

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I borrowed a Gitzo GH5750QR head from my friend while shooting in California. For it's size and weight it is disappointing compared to the Ries head.