Kirk L-brackets question

[reisenberger]

I'm thinking of switching from a tilt/pan head to a ball head for

greater freedom and I read almost everywhere that a combination like

the Arca Swiss is the way to go and that Kirk's or RRS's L-brackets

allow you to mount your camera vertical with the weight of the camera

directly over the tripod.

 

My question: When you have a Kirk L-bracket fixed to your camera, is

it still reasonably ergonomic to hand-hold or do the L-brackets get

in the way of the hand-hold/make it awkward at all?

 

(I shoot a mixture of landscape, architectural and travel stock and

change frequently from tripod-mounted to handheld in the course of a

day. Concerned just if the L-bracketed cameras were awkward to hand-

hold as this might be a minus for me) (or it might be fiddly screwing

the L-brackets on and off frequently)

[erik_loza]

Which bodies do you use? I own both Kirk and RRS L-brackets for several of mine. I

don't find them awkward, but am accustomed to them, so maybe I have forgotten about it.

If you do lots of static shooting with wide lenses, than it is definitely worth it. If you do

mostly handheld work, then just the simple plate might be easier. I use the the F5 on a

tripod most frequently with the 17-35mm and have the newer, contoured RRS plate. It's

great and as as unobtrusive as an L-plate could be. The N90 that is my walking-around

body rarely sees a tripod, so I just keep the little baseplate on it. An L-plate would be

pointless, then.

 

One quick note: I have the older, "cage style" L-bracket on the D1. It definitely pokes me in

the ribs when walking around. If I carried it more and wanted a true L-bracket, a

contoured style would be preferred. Regardless of which way you go, both companies

make excellent gear and it's money well-spent with either. Good luck.

[dennisprice]

I would say it depends on which camera(s) you use and the size of your hands.

 

I have Kirk L brackets for my Nikon D2H and D70. Although I usually remove the brackets for extended handheld use, they do not get in the way or make it awkward to hold the camera(s).

 

In fact, when I use the D2H for handheld vertical shots, the L bracket provides a nicely located palm swell. And they are designed so you can replace cards and batteries, with no need for removal.

 

IMO, there is nothing "fiddly" about attaching/removing the brackets. The screw is captive, and the plate is virtually self-locating.

 

Mounting/dismounting is even easier if you use a straight hex driver (with a short screwdriver handle) rather than bothering with the supplied hex angle wrench.

[stemked]

Actually I use a 'L' plate as my main handle on a Pentax 67 medium format camera! Don't know how that translates to 35mm though.

[reisenberger]

Many thanks all. It sounds as if everyone so far is confirming that the cameras with brackets on are still basically unproblematic to handhold.

 

(This is really important to me as after dawn scenics, I tend to shoot a lot handheld, eg markets/candids etc during the course of the day, but if there was a real ergonomic fault with these brackets and handholding I guess it would have come out on one of the forums by now - many thanks to all for your confirmations.)

 

Erik/Dennis: the cameras are a Nikon F5 and D70, although I may change the D70 up to the D200. I'm guessing that the D70-specific and D200-specific brackets can't be interchangeable because of differences in the base camera body shape, so that would be another expense if I change, but I'm also assuming the camera-specific brackets are a better/firmer hold on the cameras than the generic L-brackets? (would be grateful if anybody could confirm/deny any of these assumptions!)

 

Many thanks to all

[dennisprice]

Dylan, IMO, custom brackets are the way to go, so yes, it's $$$ for each separate camera model.

 

Kirk does offer a "universal big-L" bracket. I don't have one, but it appears to be nowhere near as ergonomic as the custom builds.

 

Check out the assortment and prices here:

 

http://www.kirkphoto.com/lbrackets.html

 

Also consider Really Right Stuff:

 

http://www.reallyrightstuff.com/body_plates/index.html

 

To start, you may just want to get a L-bracket for your most-used tripod camera. If you don't shoot a lot of verticals, a custom base plate will work just fine at lower cost.

 

Of course, when you use telephotos with built-in rotating mounts, the L bracket is unnecessary.

[rayliguori]

I hand hold quite a bit and don't even notice the L-brackets anymore. The only minor annoyance is that it adds weight to my already heavy D2X.

[mlfly1]

I have an L bracket on one camera and two regular plates on the other. I don't even notice when I switch. I suggest in time you will come to get used to what you have. And, don't forget, tripod collared lenses don't require a bracket on the camera - they will rotate thru the tripod collar). If your camera is quite heavy, having the center of gravity over the center of the head/tripod is a good thing. Having said that, I have used a PX 67 flopped over on an Arca Swiss B1 and a 320 Gitzo (later, a 1325 Gitzo) with no vibration problems (mirror locked up).

[HuskyMason1]

Dylan...I have a universal L bracket from RRS and it fits almost every camera I own...I've used it on an F3, F4, F4s, D70, and D200...I agree it doesn't get in the way but makes the camera a little heavier...no big deal for my habits... Mike

[reisenberger]

Many thanks again to all for all information!

[joseph_wisniewski]

If you don't mind a conflicting answer...

 

I find the L bracket so annoying that I usually refer to it as the hel-l bracket.

 

First, it adds a length of thin metal (6 inches, and pencil thin at points) between your camera's tripod mounting screw and tripod's head when you're using the vertical position. This is bad, for the same reason that extending the center column is bad: increased vibration.

 

Second, yes, they often do press uncomfortably into your hand, at least into my hand. Had one on a borrowed D2X once that I didn't have the wrench to remove, and was stuck with it all weekend. I swear the pressure on one nerve numbed my thumb for days.

 

And third, they have the release plates "sideways" relative to the plates on your longer lenses, large format gear, Novoflex bellows, etc. That's why I prefer the Markins plates for my cameras, with single fore-aft rails, instead of Kirk or RRS L brackets or single rails (even the single rails are sideways). Those who know me, know that I almost always "root for the home team". When I do something as radical as recommending Markins Korean machinists over Americans like RRS and Kirk, there's a reason.

 

With the camera plate and the lens plate running in the same direction, you've got all sorts of tricks available. The tripod and mount become a "third hand" to help you change lenses, instead of something you fight with. Say you're shooting your 70-200mm, and you decide that the scene needs the "magic" of the 85mm f1.4. Grab the big zoom firmly with one hand, release the Arca clamp with the other, and slide the 70-200mm out of the clamp, and the camera's plate into the Arca clamp, will holding everything by the lens. Lock the arca clamp, hit the lens release button on the camera, and dismount the lens. You've never changed your grip on the lens, and there's the camera, level, pointed in the right direction, all ready for you to twist and lock the 85mm f1.4. Takes about 15 seconds for the whole changeover.

 

Try that with the camera bracket sideways, and you add a dismount the lens, walk around the tripod to where you can slide the camera into the clamp sideways, walk around again to dismount the lens, then reposition everything to set up the shot again.

 

I won't reproduce all my longwinded hel-l bracket tirades here, if you want to read them, here are some old posts:

 

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1021&message=16346066

[Ed_Ingold]

The Kirk (and RRS) dedicated L-brackets extend over the bottom and left side of the camera, and do not affect the right hand grip which bears most of the weight when hand-holding. The bracket adds only about 1/4 inch to the bottom of the camera, which has little effect when holding the camera either horizontally or vertically. It is somewhat difficult to access the cover for the AC power connection with a Nikon D1 or D2 camera.

 

These dedicated L-brackets are meant to be left in place, much as the standard Arca-style plates. I have no difficulty fitting cameras so equipped into my existing bags.

 

The universal brackets are indeed bulky. I have one of the older RRS versions which has a build-in clamp, for use with lesser-used equipment (like a Nikon F3HP). It is a hunk, and must be removed before putting the camera in a bag. In fact, it's hard to find a place to carry this bracket. The new versions are screwed in place, but are much bulkier than dedicated brackets, and must often be removed to change batteries or get to the accessory ports.

[kari_karhu1]

Bought an RRS L-plate for Nikon D300 and was unhappy. The camera vibrated a lot. The

reason is that the plate attaches to the body at one point only. Actually, there is no

metal/metal contact at all since the tripod mount on D300 is lower than the rubber plate

around it.

 

I removed the rubber plate that is attached by thin double sided tape (and put aside if I

ever sell the camera) and added an aluminum extension to the short hand of the plate so

that it leans tightly against one of the eyelets for the neck strap. Much better but still not

good enough for macro work.

 

Finally I had to file off 0,4 mm from the tripod mount, yes, of my brand new D300. Now

the L-plate has a large direct contact to the bottom of the body and a separate contact as

wide apart as possible. Before the conversion, macro work at 85 mm was a pain, the

object easily disappearing from the live view at any higher magnification. Now the system

is rock solid.

 

For my D3 I'm going to buy Kirk's version since in pictures it seems to have the second

contact point. (It would be nice if someone could confirm this!) I don't know yet what I'll

do with the stupid rubber bottom. I would say that removing rubber from the tips of my

Gitzo tripod legs and on top of the Gitzo leveling base and from the bottom of the D300

gave me increase in rigidity corresponding several stops.