flash bracket suggestions

[perfectpixel]

Hi All,
I'm thinking of getting a flash bracket to keep the 420EX off the body. I looked on line and there seems to be no end to manufacturers and price points.
Any recommendations would be appreciated.
cheers!

[DAMphyne]

don't forget, you need the extender wire too. $50

[robertwgross]

Two bracket manufacturers that come to mine are Stroboframe and Stratos. There are some simple brackets that I would not recommend. One feature that you want is the "flip" capability. It holds the flash unit horizontally when your camera is horizontal. Then when you tilt the camera to vertical, the end of the bracket can be flipped over so that the flash unit is reoriented for vertical.

Some brackets have a fixed distance for the flash unit to be separated from the lens axis. On the better ones, it is adjustable. I don't think adjustability is too important if you were shooting long, but if you were cramped up into a macro situation, you might want to make adjustments.

---Bob Gross---

[DAMphyne]

I use a Stroboframe, costs about $70

[DaveG]

unstuck wrote:
Hi All,
I'm thinking of getting a flash bracket to keep the 420EX off the body. I looked on line and there seems to be no end to manufacturers and price points.
Any recommendations would be appreciated.
cheers!

I use the Storboframe Pro-T with a 550EX flash. It's light, strong and holds the flash over the camera when the 10D's vertical grip is being used. I should point out that this will not be the case when using the smaller Press-T.

One thing to keep in mind is how heavy some of these brackets can be, especially the camera rotaing, rather than flash flipping kind.

Make sure that you get the specific anti-twist plate for your camera as well. Without it the bracket is just about useless.

[robertwgross]

DaveG wrote:
One thing to keep in mind is how heavy some of these brackets can be, especially the camera rotaing, rather than flash flipping kind.


Exactly! The first time I shot a wedding with all of this stuff, I had sore forearms for a day. You get used to it if you shoot one wedding per month. You get Popeye arms.

---Bob Gross---

[perfectpixel]

DaveG wrote:

I use the Storboframe Pro-T with a 550EX flash. It's light, strong and holds the flash over the camera when the 10D's vertical grip is being used. I should point out that this will not be the case when using the smaller Press-T.

Make sure that you get the specific anti-twist plate for your camera as well. Without it the bracket is just about useless.

Well I can't find the press-t and the pro-t pix don't really give me an idea of what it's like with the camera on it.
One thing though, the pro-t is ~$80, and then there is the "quick release" for another ~$60. Is that what you meant by the "anti-twist plate"?

[slin100]

In addition to Stroboframe, the other two popular, and more expensive, choices are Custom Brackets (http://www.custombrackets.com) and Newton Brackets (http://www.newtoncamerabrackets.com). They are both available at B & H Photo (http://bhphoto.com) and Adorama (http://www.adorama.com).

[DaveG]

unstuck wrote:
DaveG wrote:

I use the Storboframe Pro-T with a 550EX flash. It's light, strong and holds the flash over the camera when the 10D's vertical grip is being used. I should point out that this will not be the case when using the smaller Press-T.

Make sure that you get the specific anti-twist plate for your camera as well. Without it the bracket is just about useless.

Well I can't find the press-t and the pro-t pix don't really give me an idea of what it's like with the camera on it.
One thing though, the pro-t is ~$80, and then there is the "quick release" for another ~$60. Is that what you meant by the "anti-twist plate"?

Have a look at the B&H site. They will have information on both the Pro-T and Press-T.

The bracket is attached to the camera using the tripod socket. If you just used that the screw to attach the camera, the screw itself would act like an axle and the camera would rotate (twist) around that axis.

The Anti-Twist plate is a device that goes between the camera and the bracket to prevent this camera rotation. They are camera specific. The one that I use with my Mamiya Pro-TL has two pins that fit into holes in the bottom of the Pro. The pins go in to the holes and the camera can't rotate at all. With the Canon BG-ED3 vertical grip, the anti-twist plate is flat (no pins) with a curled lip at on side of the plate that holds the plate and won't allow twisting.

There might be a different plate for the 10D, when used without the BG-ED3 since I think that the bottom of the 10D is more narrow than the bottom of the BG-ED3. Your retailer should be able to tell you what plate you'll need.

There is a cork pad that is self adhesive, comes with the Pro-T bracket, and is a "universal" anti-twist device. But as I said before, it doesn't work worth a damn. The Stoboframe plates are about $13.00 US from B&H.