Bracket - What Am I Looking For?

[timm]

I have a new Canon RF100-400mm lens with my R100 body. The lens does not have a tripod mount, and when I use the mount on the camera body with my simple tripod, the lens's weight makes the combination very unbalanced. The weight of the lens wants to pull the camera forward and tilt it down.

Here is a crude sketch of a bracket that would effectively shift the balance point forward. My searches have turned up nothing so I am thinking what I refer to as a balancing bracket is not the correct term. Any suggestions?

I know the proper solution is really a better tripod. I'm using a cheap Amazon tripod I was gifted.

 

[ShipleyNW]

You could use something like a nodal or slider plate (like the example below.) You can probably find them for less, and you can certainly pay much more, but they all kind of look like this. They come in different lengths, so you should figure out where the balance point is on your setup and get one long enough for that.

As you can see, it has Arca grooves on the side to fit your tripod, and an Arca receiver on the end for your camera.

Amazon.com : Camera Rail Nodal Slide 150mm Quick Release Plate Clamp Compatible with Arca Swiss Tripod for Garmin Xero C1 DSLR Tripod Monopod Ball Head for Panoramic Close-up Photography : Electronics

Amazon.com : Camera Rail Nodal Slide 150mm Quick Release Plate Clamp Compatible with Arca Swiss Tripod for Garmin Xero C1 DSLR Tripod Monopod Ball Head for Panoramic Close-up Photography : Electronics

www.amazon.com

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[David Berry]

Timm…

I suggest that you look for a collar and foot to attach to the lens itself, rather than an extension attached to the camera body.

The photo below is the first that showed up when I searched for "RF100-400 tripod collar", so please treat this as example rather than a recommendation.

Note the Arca-Swiss groove in the foot (also shown in Shipley's photo above) which will allow quick attachment to your tripod (duly fitted with an Arca-Swiss quick release — more expense!).

… David

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[StevenAunan]

I have this iShoot RF140 lens collar and it works great. All the lens buttons are accessible.

https://www.amazon.com/iShoot-Compatible-100-400mm-Arca-Swiss-Dovetail/dp/B0C9CDGCWQ

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[jcass]

I'm in the same situation with the RF 28-70mm F2, but a gimbal head. Similar situation though. I prefer to use a nodal slider mounted to the camera rather than a 3rd-party clamp that may not fit the lens securely. Find the balance point and mark with a silver sharpie or piece of tape. Not all companies use the term "nodal slider".

 

[timm]

I'm in the same situation with the RF 28-70mm F2, but a gimbal head. Similar situation though. I prefer to use a nodal slider mounted to the camera rather than a 3rd-party clamp that may not fit the lens securely. Find the balance point and mark with a silver sharpie or piece of tape. Not all companies use the term "nodal slider".

Jim --

Could you share a photo of your setup?

Tim

 

[BishopBeans]

Switch to a geared head for much better support, no drifting and improved composition for all your lenses. I use a Benro and will never go back to a ball head.

 

[timm]

Thank you, everyone, for the suggestions. I ended up with the iShoot bracket recommended by Stephen. The R100 camera and lens combo balances very well on my also new Oben travel tripod.

The bracket is nicely made and fits the lens perfectly. The soft insert should prevent any scratching, though I can't imagine wanting to remove it, and it will be some time before I will likely sell the lens and worry about resale value. One minor nit-pick is I might have preferred a hex or torx head screw for the ring tension instead of the big knob. My Oben travel tripod mounts it perfectly with the Arca-style attachment.

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[Grandadfatboy]

Thank you, everyone, for the suggestions. I ended up with the iShoot bracket recommended by Stephen. The R100 camera and lens combo balances very well on my also new Oben travel tripod.

The bracket is nicely made and fits the lens perfectly. The soft insert should prevent any scratching, though I can't imagine wanting to remove it, and it will be some time before I will likely sell the lens and worry about resale value. One minor nit-pick is I might have preferred a hex or torx head screw for the ring tension instead of the big knob. My Oben travel tripod mounts it perfectly with the Arca-style attachment.

View attachment 37357

I would be very interested to read about your experiences with this bracket, as I feel it might aid me when I need to shoot from my monopod.

 

[timm]

I would be very interested to read about your experiences with this bracket, as I feel it might aid me when I need to shoot from my monopod.

I have used the lens/bracket combination several times around the rural area where I live. I have an Oben portable tripod. The bracket makes a massive difference in framing a shot because the camera/lens combination is balanced very well. I have not specifically tried it with my tripod in the Monopod configuration, but as nose-heavy as the camera/lens was with a tripod attached to the camera, I am pretty confident it would help. Disclaimer: I have minimal experience using a monopod with longer, heavier lenses.

 

[Grandadfatboy]

I have used the lens/bracket combination several times around the rural area where I live. I have an Oben portable tripod. The bracket makes a massive difference in framing a shot because the camera/lens combination is balanced very well. I have not specifically tried it with my tripod in the Monopod configuration, but as nose-heavy as the camera/lens was with a tripod attached to the camera, I am pretty confident it would help. Disclaimer: I have minimal experience using a monopod with longer, heavier lenses.

I currently have an old Slik 88 tripod, which is quite heavy, but stable, so I anticipate no issues with using the collar on that set up. Because I suffer with arthritic shoulders, hands, and fingers, continually holding my camera takes its toll on those joints, so my wife treated me to the Sirui SVM Rapid System One Step Height Adjustment Monopod. I've only used it a couple of times so far, but the results have been very promising. I do need to get a race track and out into nature to see how it is with photographing racing cars and wildlife respectively.

Thank you for your feedback.