[creampuff]

But they don't have "PENTAX" embossed in the leather...

Who cares... leather is nice but will smell over time with sweat... vinyl leatherette is far more practical and washable. I can get 5 for the price of one of the Markins or Camadapter hand grips.

http://markins.com/2.0/eng/products/accessories/hs.html

[Ratmagiclady]

Who cares... leather is nice but will smell over time with sweat... vinyl leatherette is far more practical and washable. I can get 5 for the price of one of the Markins or Camadapter hand grips.

This doesn't bother me, though it is a concern with leather that some may not know of in a modern time, ...that it retains moisture, (also doesn't accumulate it on the surface like when you have leatherette in contact with skin for a long time) so you need to be careful about it in any gear cabinets you may have, depending how you go about things.

I think I might have gone and bought one of the Camdapter pieces if you could still seem to get a selection of leather, though. I'd really like a nice brown or something.

[jem]

Who cares... leather is nice but will smell over time with sweat... vinyl leatherette is far more practical and washable. I can get 5 for the price of one of the Markins or Camadapter hand grips.

Markins.com

Actually, I do. I’ve tried a couple of the inexpensive vinyl leatherette grips and they itch and irritate my skin. Not everyone can deal with vinyl. Plus the stuff tends to crack and scratch over time. As to smell of leather, simple care and cleaning solves that problem. Otherwise my truck seats would kill a horse after 9 years of use. Periodic cleaning is necessary anyway. After all, hand sweat and goo also sticks to the camera. As to price – for me – irrelevant that they are so cheap. You get what you pay for. By the way, I don’t have the Camdapter strap - only the plate. I use the USA Pentax WebStore version of the strap which I like a lot and for me is worth the $30 USD. Anyway, thanks for your opinion – I’ve tried your style of straps – doesn’t work for me. Glad it does for you.

[heatherslightbox]

The RRS K20 L bracket has the ability to use the cable release while the camera is mounted vertically. The screw that secures the camera to the bracket is on a track, and you can slide the camera over to allow space for having the door open and a remote cable on it. The bracket has two center line indicators on it - one that shows the center of the lens when the bracket is mounted normally and one that shows the center of the lens when the bracket has been moved to accommodate the cable release. I don't have a picture of the camera mounted in that configuration, but here's one showing the two center line indicators, showing how much off-set you have. There's no requirement to buy a spacer or anything else.

Thanks for the pic and info--both put my mind at ease about the RRS bracket. If I'm going to get a dedicated bracket, the RRS would be the one.

Even though the RRS dedicated bracket is a lot cheaper than the Arcatech Universal bracket--$140 vs. $230, I'm still drawn to the Acratech for the simple fact that I can mount the camera onto it with the QR plate on it, as opposed to having to completely remove the QR plate to mount the L-bracket. In defense of the dedicated bracket, it doesn't look like it makes the camera that much bulkier, though.

I've got plenty of time to decide, though.

Heather

[mtngal]

I'm not quite sure I understand your comment about completely removing the QR plate to mount the L-bracket. I leave the QR plate permanently on the tripod and the L-bracket more or less on the camera all the time. In my picture you can see the quick release lever - it sort-of wraps around the plate very nicely, not sticking out at all. You just "flick" it to release the camera - the plate stays on the tripod. Or am I mis-understanding your comment? Or are you saying that you'll leave the QR plate attached to the bracket so that it stays attached to the camera? I admit, I'm easy to confuse and am not quite getting it.

Here's another shot that shows the indent in the bracket that the QR plate clamps onto:



From the picture of the universal bracket - it looks like it works the same as the RRS ones, though it's quite a bit bulkier.

[heatherslightbox]

This is what I'm getting at:

I currently have this QR plate mounted onto the underside of my K20:



With the RRS L-bracket, I'll have to remove the above QR plate to use it. Whenever I want to use it on a tripod with the cable release and assuming that the RRS bracket will live on my K20, it appears that I'll still have to loosen it in order to move it over to accomodate the cable release.

If I got the Acratech L-bracket, the QR plate that I have currently attached wouldn't need to be removed at all, as the camera will easily mount on and off of the L-bracket just as if I was mounting it directly onto the ballhead itself.



At any rate the QR clamp on the ballhead wouldn't be affected at all.

I think what it boils down to in the end as to which one would work best for any given photographer is how much time s/he uses the camera on a tripod or monopod vs. handheld. If you find yourself using the tripod or monopod more often than not, the RRS bracket would most likely be your best bet. OTOH, if you don't use a tripod or monopod so much, then the Acratech bracket would work, for the ease of mounting and removing the camera from it.

Another thing to take into consideration is how often you tend to buy and sell bodies. If you have a tendency to buy a new body every time a new one comes out and sell the old one, then you could potentially save a lot of money over time by buying the universal bracket.

HTH,
Heather

[jon pafford]

i have the Manfrotto 323 RC2 Rapid Connect Adapter with 200PL-14 Quick Release Plate - Replaces 3299 (Black) from amason.

[MSM]

I'm not quite sure I understand your comment about completely removing the QR plate to mount the L-bracket. I leave the QR plate permanently on the tripod and the L-bracket more or less on the camera all the time. In my picture you can see the quick release lever - it sort-of wraps around the plate very nicely, not sticking out at all. You just "flick" it to release the camera - the plate stays on the tripod. Or am I mis-understanding your comment? Or are you saying that you'll leave the QR plate attached to the bracket so that it stays attached to the camera? I admit, I'm easy to confuse and am not quite getting it.

Here's another shot that shows the indent in the bracket that the QR plate clamps onto:



From the picture of the universal bracket - it looks like it works the same as the RRS ones, though it's quite a bit bulkier.

Mtngal: I think the confusion is in that what you are calling a QR plate is actually called the QR Clamp. The plate is the small flat piece Heather posted above that attaches to the base of the camera. One can either buy a simple body-specific plate or buy the L-bracket as you have. They both have the dove tail ends that the QR Clamp clamps onto.

[Jonson PL]

This is what I'm getting at:

I currently have this QR plate mounted onto the underside of my K20:



With the RRS L-bracket, I'll have to remove the above QR plate to use it. Whenever I want to use it on a tripod with the cable release and assuming that the RRS bracket will live on my K20, it appears that I'll still have to loosen it in order to move it over to accomodate the cable release.

If I got the Acratech L-bracket, the QR plate that I have currently attached wouldn't need to be removed at all, as the camera will easily mount on and off of the L-bracket just as if I was mounting it directly onto the ballhead itself.



At any rate the QR clamp on the ballhead wouldn't be affected at all.

I think what it boils down to in the end as to which one would work best for any given photographer is how much time s/he uses the camera on a tripod or monopod vs. handheld. If you find yourself using the tripod or monopod more often than not, the RRS bracket would most likely be your best bet. OTOH, if you don't use a tripod or monopod so much, then the Acratech bracket would work, for the ease of mounting and removing the camera from it.

Another thing to take into consideration is how often you tend to buy and sell bodies. If you have a tendency to buy a new body every time a new one comes out and sell the old one, then you could potentially save a lot of money over time by buying the universal bracket.

I've been looking at this set-up as well