attaching a 400 f/2.8 to a monopod - HELP!

i rented a 400 and just pulled it out of the box...the way this lens foot is set up is different from the 300's i've rented, and i have no clue as to how to attach this to my monopod. unfortunately, the rental store is closed on weekends, and i really should have just gone through this when i picked it up last night, but i didn't think to.

here are a couple of photos:

mounting foot of the lens (with a plate screwed on to it):

It's set up to use in an Arca Swiss compatible clamp. That makes sense for a wide variety of reasons.

You could try removing the plate, and seeif you can mount your plate on there. You'll probably have to muck about a bit looking for the "sweet spot" for balance though.

yeah...i should have thought this through a bit more last night when i picked it up...i did bring my tripod head and the shop guys thought it would be fine. maybe they didn't realize the lens had a plate installed?

it does seem rather flimsy to rely on this little screw to secure the weight of this beast:

narlus wrote in post #14061308
yeah...i should have thought this through a bit more last night when i picked it up...i did bring my tripod head and the shop guys thought it would be fine. maybe they didn't realize the lens had a plate installed?

You're probably right about them not being aware the plate was already installed. But it's just a couple hex screws to remove it, so ...

narlus wrote in post #14061308
it does seem rather flimsy to rely on this little screw to secure the weight of this beast:
...

Remember that "wide variety of reasons" I mentioned earlier?

well i took the plate off and the tripod plate connection seems pretty secure. i'll put it through some test runs. thanks for the help/.

narlus wrote in post #14061554
well i took the plate off and the tripod plate connection seems pretty secure. i'll put it through some test runs. thanks for the help/.

Stop fretting, it will be fine with your own plate. Its odd in fact to see two attachment screws on something as small as the 400. They are often only one anyway.

well there are longer lenses, but at 12 lb it weighs more than the 500 f/4.


one thing that's odd (and i think i noticed this too w/ the 300 rental) is that the lens/camera mount has a bit of play in it...is that normal?

Depends on how much, but some is normal.

narlus wrote in post #14061308
yeah...i should have thought this through a bit more last night when i picked it up...i did bring my tripod head and the shop guys thought it would be fine. maybe they didn't realize the lens had a plate installed?

It's common that people who rent lenses and cameras forgets to remove their private plates when they return the lens/camera.

pwm2 wrote in post #14062611
It's common that people who rent lenses and cameras forgets to remove their private plates when they return the lens/camera.

That's why all my plates have my business name and phone # on them

Echo63 wrote in post #14066878
That's why all my plates have my business name and phone # on them

At what these things cost, that sounds like a darn good idea if you're renting lenses.

Hey,

I see you're in MA. Can't help you with the mounting of a tripod, but if you need to borrow a monopod that will work with the lens, give me a PM..I'm in the city.

scotteisenphotography wrote in post #14066998
Hey,

I see you're in MA. Can't help you with the mounting of a tripod, but if you need to borrow a monopod that will work with the lens, give me a PM..I'm in the city.

Now there's a super-nice POTN member!

Bryan

I'm also assuming you're photographing Van Halen with that at the Garden tonight? If thats the case then definitely PM me and you can swing by and grab the monopod

Lowner wrote in post #14061623
Its odd in fact to see two attachment screws on something as small as the 400. They are often only one anyway.

Something "as small" as the 400/2.8? It's one of the biggest/heaviest lenses there is.