This is without a doubt our favourite size. It is essentially just a downsized LH-55 and still features all the individual controls in the form of large, ribbed knobs that can be easily controlled even by someone with stubby fingers. It is a nice fit on 36, 32, and 28 series tripods, but starts looking a touch oversized on 25 and under. It weighs 540g, making it equivalent to a Kirk BH3 or Gitzo GH1382QD, but at R3299, it wins the price battle by a million miles.
This head is ideal for full frame cameras with lenses up to a 300mm f/2.8 or 400mm f/5.6.
Specifications
- Weight: 540g
- Max Load: 20kg
- Height: 85mm
- Ball Diameter: 40mm
- Base Diameter: 57mm
- Plate Model: QP-70
*Minor variations with clamp variants
Clamp Types
The LH-40 is available in 2 different clamp types.
Screw Clamp Standard | E.G LH-40
This is the standard and most affordable option and what you’ll get when purchasing a tripod kit containing an LH head.
Lever Release Clamp Standard | E.G LH-40LR
Anyone who was spent a long day shooting with a screw-clamp tripod will know the effect it has on your fingers – loosening and tightening a screw clamp too many times can be tedious and painful. A lever release clamp makes life a lot easier, but the majority of manufacturers shy away from it for one reason – price. The lever has to be made from a much harder alloy like stainless steel, as aluminium and normal steel bends under the pressure that the lever is subjected to. Similarly, the flex provided to the hinge of the lever has to be from a brass bushing as rubber simply doesn’t last.
A lever release clamp is an absolute pleasure to use, but it costs an average 25% more. Fortunately, due to Leofoto’s amazing pricing, an LH-40LR at R4 799.00 still costs far less than competing heads like Kirk’s BH3 (R5 999) or Gitzo’s GH1382QD (R5299).
About Leofoto LH (Low Profile) Ballheads
Leofoto’s low profile ball heads feature the latest in tripod head design combined with premium materials and precision manufacturing to offer a powerful, ergonomic and easy to use tripod head. A cup machined from aircraft-grade aluminium holds a hollow-core ball made from the same material, while Japanese ball bearings ensure smooth panning control and gaskets on all control-knobs keep out dirt and moisture. A low-friction Delrin sleeve is used between the cup and the ball to ensure smooth drag. This combination of cutting-edge design and premium materials puts Leofoto’s products far ahead of most manufacturers in the market, which are still making conventional heads.
Low profile ball heads offer several advantages over conventional ball heads -
- The camera sits closer to the apex, which has several benefits like improved stiffness and a lower center of gravity.
- The cup has a much larger contact area with the ball, allowing greater grip.
- The lower profile design allows the use of a much bigger ball without making the overall head too large. Larger ball = better grip.
- A simpler design means a longer lifespan and better durability in testing conditions.
- Less material and a simpler design means it is lighter and cheaper than a similar-sized conventional ball head.
Want to know more about Leofoto's LH Ballhead range?
This article goes through all the options as well as clamp types.
Do you have the item in stock?
Products are either in stock, out of stock (sold out) or special order.
- In stock: We have stock at our local warehouse. You can see how many we have in stock, add these products to your cart and check out.
- Sold out: We usually carry stock of this item but it has sold out. Please get in touch to get an ETA and reserve and incoming product. Or use the "Email me when available" button to get an email when new stock arrives.
- Special order: We don't carry local stock of this item. Get in touch to confirm stock availability and ETA to place an order.
Delivery options and what they cost
We pride ourselves on lightning fast shipping, FREE on all orders over R1000. For orders under R1000 a courier fee of R120 will apply. Apart from large f-stop gear orders and large tripods, most of our items ship overnight and the daily cutoff is 13:00. You can read more on the deliveries page.
Can I collect my parcel?
Yes, you can collect your order from our warehouse in Saxenburg Park, Blackheath (08:00 - 14:00). Just choose the collection option at checkout- we'll follow up with the specifics. Please note that we are very strict about payment if collecting. We will not release any goods if we are not 100% comfortable about payment. We accept the following as payment confirmation in order to release the goods.
- Payfast Card Payment (any customers, new or returning)
- EFT from FNB to FNB, pending fund clearance (any customers, new or returning)
- Normal EFT from other banks to FNB (return customers only)
- Instant EFT from other banks to FNB, pending fund clearance (Any customers, new or returning)
- Cash (any customers, new or returning)
What payment options are available?
What is your policy on returns and or exchanges?
We are more than happy to exchange any product for something else or a full refund* if you feel that the item you chose isn’t quite right for you. See our Return Policy page for more.
*If paying with any card, 4.5% of the transaction value goes to the credit card payment facilitation company. "Full Refund" means that we will return the full amount we received after the credit card service fees. If you are at all unsure that what you're buying is ideal for you, rather opt for EFT payment to be safe.
Where is my order? How can I track my order?
You will receive an email with your tracking number once your order has been collected by our couriers. You can also find tracking number for your orders under "My account"
Shop 5 Roeland Square, Cnr Roeland and, Upper Canterbury St, Cape Town
0214653573
Victorian Towers, 2 Palm St, Bellville, Cape Town
Fritz, 0219101380
Boskruin, Randburg
Deon Truter, 0823148308
Stonemill Office Park, Greenstone House
300 Acacia Rd, Johannesburg
Wilhelmus Möller, 0118802885
28 Pearce St, Berea, East London
043 726 2200
Kloof, Durban
Emil, 0844849959
Shop 5 Roeland Square, Cnr Roeland and, Upper Canterbury St, Cape Town
0214653573
Victorian Towers, 2 Palm St, Bellville, Cape Town
Fritz, 021 910 1380
Kloof, Durban
Emil, 0844849959
Durbanville
Bernard Kotze - 0727156743
Ivan Fourie - 0825290593
1032 Silvergrass St, Montana, Pretoria, 0182
Wayne Lesch – 0798834407
Damien Bradshaw
Eastern Cape (Hunting Products Only)
0835749134
Approved Arms
Pretoria
Dirk Pio – 0730556726
We have a no-nonsense approach. If a product breaks due to a manufacturer defect, we will replace it without asking any questions. If we have any reason to believe that the product was put through unreasonably heavy usage, we will have to follow the manufacturer's standard warranty procedure.
Leofoto
The manufacturer offers a 10-year limited warranty on all products and we extend that warranty to our customers. Please read the below very carefully, so you understand your position when something breaks or doesn’t work ideally anymore.
It is critical to understand that this warranty only applies to factory faults and not to standard wear and tear. Tripods are subject to a lot of gray areas in this regard as tripods used outdoors, particularly in sand and sea water, are subjected to extreme wear and tear. We will e.g. replace the affected part of your tripod if a carbon tube snaps or cracks without much pressure applied to it or if the apex breaks. We will not replace your tripod or the affected part if e.g. a joint locks up due to sand or salt build up or if a hinge becomes corroded or stiff/floppy and unserviceable due to corrosion or salt build up.
In sum, if we see that you took good care of your tripod and something went wrong, we will go out of our way to fix or replace it for you. If we see that you dragged it through the mud (literally or metaphorically), then we are unlikely to fix/replace it for you. How you handle your tripod and take care of it, is all the difference between 3- or 20 years of service.
The best of tripods will not last longer than 2/3 years if used regularly in the sea, INCORRECTLY, and never serviced. Always make sure to extend the lowest leg section first, so you keep the joints out of the water/sand. Always rinse with freshwater after use in the sea, wipe down with a wet cloth, leave extended to dry and ENSURE YOU KEEP THE HEAD AND APEX DRY. If your tripod’s joints start feeling sandy/gritty, open them up, give them a proper clean and lubrication and fine-tune the tension on the joints.
If travelling on dirt roads, ensure that your tripod is in its carry-bag when not in use.
Your tripod will not take care of itself – it is up to you to do so. All our tripods ship with an info-sheet on taking care of your tripod. We also offer a full tripod disassembly and service for R1000, including shipping both ways.
