L Brackets #138
This pod is for Petros in Chicago. In the last pod, I talked about quick release plates. Today, I wanna talk about L brackets. L brackets are essentially quick release plates of a different configuration. While quick release plates are generally about two by two inches and fit on the bottom of your camera, an L bracket will run along the bottom length of your camera and the left side of your camera. The reason you need an L bracket is this. If you're just using a regular quick release plate and you need to do a vertical shot, the only way to do that is to turn the camera to the side of your head, leaving it hanging off the side. Depending on how big the camera and the lens configuration is, this can leave everything a little bit unbalanced. And it would also require that your head have the capacity to manage that much weight. And this is why very large zoom lenses have tripod rings, so that you can mount your lens and not your camera to the tripod. And when you need to go vertical, you loosen the ring and turn the camera vertical while the lens is still balanced on the top of the tripod head. So this is where your L bracket comes into play. If you have an L bracket, when you need to do a vertical shot, you would dismount your camera and mount it to the left side of the L bracket so that your camera is sitting on top of the head and not to the side. It's a much more balanced way to set up your camera.
Where the L bracket is particularly useful is for those who need to go from horizontal to vertical in the same setup. Once you level your tripod head, if you need to go from one orientation to the other, you do not need to re-level your head. So this is particularly useful for those who are shooting products and those who are shooting architecture. So the L bracket is a lovely thing, but, and there's always a but, the but is that they are heavy, it's about three to four times as much metal as a plate. So that's a consideration. Now, I know a lot of people have been saying to me, Zim, it's not that heavy. And you know what? All the people who have said that are men who outweigh me by about 50 to 100 pounds. And if you've been listening to this podcast, you know that weight is a huge consideration for me.
Another issue is that almost all cameras have their connection points on the left side of the camera. So that means that you need to make sure to get an L-bracket with access to those ports. Another issue is the battery compartment. Your L-bracket should allow you to change your battery without having to take the bracket off. Because the thing is, almost all L-brackets require a hex key to mount and dismount. And if you need a hex key to replace a battery, well, you see the problem. Even if you have a bracket that allowed you access to these ports, the problem is when you shoot vertical. How do you get access to those ports? Oh, but you're firing remotely from your phone and you don't need access to that port? Sure, it would overcome that problem. But if you need access to any of the other connection points on the side of the camera, like your USB or HDMI, it's going to be a problem. Yes, you could buy a 90 degree cord, but you still need to move the bracket over to make room for that 90 degree cord, which means you still need to carry a hex wrench with you to loosen and tighten your bracket. It's not a huge problem, but it is most definitely something you have to plan for. And if you don't, then you will either be screwed because you can't get access to those things at all, or you're back to hanging your camera off the side as it did with a regular plate. As you can see, there are a few downsides to the L-bracket. I know a lot of people love their L-brackets, but for me, I don't do this kind of work and I don't mind having to re-level my camera and the extra weight just isn't worth it for me. If you find yourself in a position where you often go from horizontal to vertical with the same setup, then the L bracket is fantastic. If you like your camera being very well balanced on the center of the head, an L bracket is also fantastic. If you don't, it's just extra weight. I hope that was helpful. Until next time, keep on shooting.
And Petros, you outweigh me by about 50 pounds. And you're like eight inches taller than me too. So no, I'm not getting an L bracket.
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