I’ve been using the Zacuto EVF for a while now and find it to be a very welcome addition to my regular shooting kit with the Canon 5DmkII. Originally I had it mounted on top of the camera with the supplied hotshoe adapter but very quickly found this to be an inconvienient location because there was then nowhere to place my microphones when running and gunning. I have since constructed a bracket using some parts from Really Right Stuff and an Ultralight arm that allowed me to place the EVF on the side of the 5DmkII. This frees up the hotshoe again and places the EVF in a good position on the side of the camera to allow for a more ENG style of shooting – better balanced with the camera offset when mounted on a chest or shoulder support rig. Crucially for me this setup allows me to keep the EVF as part of the camera as I move from Redrockmicro running man rig chest rig, to full shoulder rig, to tripod and to my camera bag – all without needing to dissassemble the EVF setup. My solution is fine but a bit expensive, somewhat of a cludge and a little heavy.
Enter Zacuto with their own custom solution which looks to be lighter and more flexible than my setup. The EVF mount is based on the company’s Gorilla plate system for DSLRs. It too offsets the EVF to the optimal position without adding too much bulk to the camera. There is also a quick release to allow rapid detachment of the EVF.
For me I could see myself using this setup almost without a support rig at all for some shoots, just holding the EVF to my face and gripping the camera in the other hand. Also launching soon is the Zacuto’s universal cable Pincher which will neatly hold HDMI cables in place and provide strain relief.
The EVF Gorilla plate bracket is $240 US and available now from Zacuto’s web store, it requires the use of a $69 Gorilla plate if you do not own one already.
Disclosure – This website recently joined the Zacuto affliate sales program but this in no way affects this website’s many and diverse bloggers who are free to talk about any gear they use.
