Driving A Camera With A Clutch

on July 02, 2020
Most of us have gotten used to using cameras that are pretty well automatic - even the Leica M users with their manual focus drop into the automatic slot as soon as they press the shutter release - the camera has measured the light to a precise degree and will do all the mathematics and electronic wizardry from that point on. Unless we are using the M1 to M4 cameras and then we have more tasks - and the users of the O-produkt are right back in the era of the starter handle and the mechanical brake. And loving it. Still, we need to learn how to use a Clutch...in this case the camera hand strap from Peak Design. It is designed to mate with nearly any DSLR or mirror-less camera to provide a really secure single-hand grip. I've seen these products from other makers before - no names, mind - and not been impressed. They have been either simple or complex and sometimes both at the same time - and in many case have been so specific that they would fit only one camera body in a maker's range. Worse, some have been so un-intuitive and ill-shaped as to prevent actual use. The anatomy of the human right hand is pretty standard, whether it is small or large, but it defied some of the designers. I always wanted to buy some of them but I cooled off after I tried to get my hand into and out of them easily. Peak Design seem to have done the trick - the grip attaches to the neck strap loop at top and to a special plate on the underside of the camera at the tripod screw. It is adjustable for the bulk of the hand while having a large enough outer pad so that it is not digging into your mitt. Best of all, there is an additional outer metal clip that can take take a lanyard. The idea of a lanyard or wrist strap is no joke - I have made three of them for my Fujifilm bodies and they act as security whether I'm toting the camera or it is attached to a tripod. The attachment point on the bottom is an Arca Swiss mount - you can get other variants as well. And as the design works with the Peak Design Capture Clip system as well, you may be able to ditch the neck strap altogether.
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