[newmikey]

As I started shooting infrared with a newly converted K-5 I noticed that using live view is an absolute must in order to nail focus with most lenses. Of my whole bag, the only one which plays "nice" with regular phase-detect AF under IR is the 16-85 but all the others benefit from contrast detection AF. In anything else than a moody or cloudy day, the LCD becomes very hard to see and holding the camera at arms length doesn't do much for stability either, decreasing sharpness even further.

On my (non-IR) KP at least I can angle the LCD so I can take away some of the glare but on my newly acquired infrared K-5 I had no such luck. I did come across some options for LCD hoods, some from Hoodman, but the cost was horrendous! I finally got myself a Meike knock-off. A Chinese brand I remember from some aftermarket grips for the K20D and K-5 many years ago. They tend to be very light plastic and not very well constructed but do the job.

I found this a rather bulky but indispensable attribute to shooting my IR camera. It fastens securely to the tripod mount, is adjustable so it probable fits any DSLR and while not very pretty, it does the job. It allows me to hold the camera at eye level with the soft rubber eye cup against my eye, leaving my left hand free to focus or support the lens. There is no light leakage as the edges which contact the LCD frame on the camera also are some soft rubbery material and the image is really bright, clear and enlarged. It allows manual focus (or moving the AF indicator around for precise AF) and is really great to nail composition and avoiding wonky horizons (the bane of my shooting in general).

Downsides are some distortion of the image due to the el-cheapo lens in the eyepiece (but that of course does not impact the image) and the fact you can actually see the insides of the thing - somewhat distracting. As I stated before, it is bulky as hell but you can flip the eyepiece up and out of the way. I do need a longer camera strap to allow for the added bulk on the back of my camera and still carry in comfortable. I'm also wondering how long it will take me to break it but at roughly €40 I'm not complaining.

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[GUB]

I am a LCD viewfinder user as well. If you wish to nail focus with wide open lenses then this is the way to go.
My Chinese brand of choice is Swivi. My Swivi S3 looks identical to your viewfinder. I find it is just a mm or two too small for the K-1 screen. But you soon get used to that.
I have just bought the S5 model which covers the LCD nicely. A bit bulkier and it has a mirror option to view from above. But it doesn't flip up like the S3 to view the lcd directly and I am missing that ability a bit.
Yes viewfinders are bulky and harder to pack but they have the advantage of protecting the screen from scratches.

[reh321]

As I started shooting infrared with a newly converted K-5 I noticed that using live view is an absolute must in order to nail focus with most lenses. Of my whole bag, the only one which plays "nice" with regular phase-detect AF under IR is the 16-85 but all the others benefit from contrast detection AF. In anything else than a moody or cloudy day, the LCD becomes very hard to see and holding the camera at arms length doesn't do much for stability either, decreasing sharpness even further.

On my (non-IR) KP at least I can angle the LCD so I can take away some of the glare but on my newly acquired infrared K-5 I had no such luck. I did come across some options for LCD hoods, some from Hoodman, but the cost was horrendous! I finally got myself a Meike knock-off. A Chinese brand I remember from some aftermarket grips for the K20D and K-5 many years ago. They tend to be very light plastic and not very well constructed but do the job.

I found this a rather bulky but indispensable attribute to shooting my IR camera. It fastens securely to the tripod mount, is adjustable so it probable fits any DSLR and while not very pretty, it does the job. It allows me to hold the camera at eye level with the soft rubber eye cup against my eye, leaving my left hand free to focus or support the lens. There is no light leakage as the edges which contact the LCD frame on the camera also are some soft rubbery material and the image is really bright, clear and enlarged. It allows manual focus (or moving the AF indicator around for precise AF) and is really great to nail composition and avoiding wonky horizons (the bane of my shooting in general).

Downsides are some distortion of the image due to the el-cheapo lens in the eyepiece (but that of course does not impact the image) and the fact you can actually see the insides of the thing - somewhat distracting. As I stated before, it is bulky as hell but you can flip the eyepiece up and out of the way. I do need a longer camera strap to allow for the added bulk on the back of my camera and still carry in comfortable. I'm also wondering how long it will take me to break it but at roughly €40 I'm not complaining.

That was a constant problem for me using my “Q” - I finally purchased some Chinese brand {I forgot the name} sold by Amazon. So, I was set for a few years, then I fell down and didn’t notice that my eyepiece had fallen off. It is worthless without the eyepiece. I was about to purchase a Meike kit, when B&H had a sale {50% off} on a genuine Hoodman kit. It is great!

[pid]

Matin M-6296 LCD-Viewfinder

has good glas optics and is cheaper than the hoodman

[newmikey]

Matin M-6296 LCD-Viewfinder

has good glas optics and is cheaper than the hoodman

But all it has to hold it to the camera is an elastic band right?

[reh321]

But all it has to hold it to the camera is an elastic band right?

I know of three ways to attach a loupe: via the tripod socket, via a glued frame, and via a rubber band. Hoodman uses the first and third methods. My arrangement words via the first method to a “Q”, but only because I was able to ‘lower’ the loupe {actually raise the camera},by replacing the provided screw, and inserting an appropriate nut.

[mlag]

But all it has to hold it to the camera is an elastic band right?

Mine has a plastic ”arca style with screw” plate at bottom plus elastic at top.
Looks similar to the one above. See MEIKE MK-VF2 LCD viewfinder reviews - Pentax Camera Accessory Review Database

I am using it with mirror lenses and live view and focus peaking.

[pid]

But all it has to hold it to the camera is an elastic band right?

yes but it works without problems and the loupe sits tight and sure. It is nothing wrong with this technic.