I'm about to purchase the Arca-swiss Z1, but do not want to purchase the specific camera plate like those from RRS/Kirk, etc..., just want a general purpose plate for now.
I have a 1ds Mk3, which general plate should I buy? Please BE SPECIFIC about the model # since the Arca-swiss has a few plates and I'm not clear which one I need. Also, looking at Wimberley P5, which seems like what I want, however, someone raises an issue that the safety screws do not work with the Z1 screw-type QR clamp. Is this important?
i love commitment. you are not getting the full benefit of of the system if you get a generalized plate for you camera body vs an L. the ability to go from landscape to portrait w/o having to go through a complete realignment is a big step foward. in addition the loading on your tripod is still centered over the central axis off the legset. flopping sideways throws things off just a bit. if you shoot macro you have further improved capability in the you can adjust from the side and go off axis with certain pripods and do some great manouvers with it. moving your plate(s) around is also going to get real old real quick.
arca swiss plates are fairly bulky and weighty in relationship to the rest of the makers
You will want the proper plate for rigidity and support. I have the RRS standard plate and the Kirk L bracket. They both work fine with the A-S ballhead.
For a general generic plate I would go with Acratech because they are cheaper for the same quality. For the L-Brackets I prefer RRS because they include a loop to hook your strap to. None of my Kirk or Acratech plates had this. This helps keep your strap out of the way when you go with a vertical composition.
I saw new Arca-Swiss plates and heads and cameras at PhotoPlus Expo back in late October, they are less bulky than they used to be. they are even coming out with "L" plates. If you have a lever actuated clamp on your Z1 I recommend you bite the bullet and get Arca-Swiss plates.
While the Kirk, RRS, Wimberley, Foba, Graf, Markins, Acra-Tech, Induro, PlotoClam, Novaflex, etc. all base their QR system on the Arca-Swiss design their are slight differences between them all regarding "foot" width and bevel angle, and this applies to everyone's clamping mechanism as well.
So if you go with a lever actuated clamp instead of a screw clamp get your plate from the same clamp maker if you want to avoid headaches. There are probably exceptions where say RRS and Wimberley use the same specs but check for compatibility first. .
dionysis wrote:
For a general generic plate I would go with Acratech because they are cheaper for the same quality. For the L-Brackets I prefer RRS because they include a loop to hook your strap to. None of my Kirk or Acratech plates had this. This helps keep your strap out of the way when you go with a vertical composition.
You take the strap off the camera and put it on the bracket? I guess one could do that...but my L-Bracket is on my camera far less than on it so that would a pain to redo the strap every time. Not sure what benefit that gives over just leaving it on the camera.
The RRS L-Bracket for the MkII or the MkIII does not have this anyway so there is no advantage to RRS for that...maybe there are loops on the brackets for cameras that are not 1D series.
MSC, Nikon Cameras don't have that extra loop on the bottom of the grip. I think it is a Canon only feature. This is probably why RRS does this on plates for Nikon cameras.
dionysis wrote:
MSC, Nikon Cameras don't have that extra loop on the bottom of the grip. I think it is a Canon only feature. This is probably why RRS does this on plates for Nikon cameras.
Lars Johnsson wrote:
But he like to have a plate for Canon 1Ds3
Yes, I didn't know that RRS didn't put those mounts on Canons. I thought that they put them on all of them. I had also forgotten that 1DMk3's had that loop by default not requiring a manufacturer to add that feature to their plates. Sorry for the confusion.
Nov 12, 2009 at 04:07 PM
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dionysis wrote:
Yes, I didn't know that RRS didn't put those mounts on Canons. I thought that they put them on all of them. I had also forgotten that 1DMk3's had that loop by default not requiring a manufacturer to add that feature to their plates. Sorry for the confusion.
I do need a universal plate anyway for a different purpose (a smaller camera and lenses... and don't want to buy one for each). However, the L-bracket is very attractive, however, I haven't had time to do research yet that is the reason why I'm not thinking about it, but I'll be getting it after getting the Z1 and the universal plate.
I do appreciate all comments and advises though and surely will have more questions about them.
Oh, I forgot to add that the Z1 that I order will be a screw-in clamp, not the flip-lever clamp. However, when I look at MSC setup, his Z1 clamp is not a double-deck but the picture on B&H is double-decker.
I have the RRS standard plate and the Kirk L bracket. They both work fine with the A-S ballhead.