Flash Bracket & Off-camera Shoe Cord
A flash bracket offer the photographer two benefits. First, it lets the photographer switch freely between having the camera in horizontal or vertical position, while keeping the flash centred over the lens. Second, it increases the distance between the flash unit and the lens, reducing the risk of running into the “red eye” effect caused by direct flash.
Recently, I found out that I really needed a flash bracket and an off-camera shoe cord to go with it.
There are many flash brackets available. A popular and inexpensive line is the Stroboframe Quick Flip brackets, consisting of the Quick Flip 350 for small format cameras (compacts, SLRs for 135-format film, and DSLRs), and the larger Quick Flip 120 for medium format cameras using 120-format film. The Stroboframe Quick Flip 350 usually retails around USD 40.
For a Nikon TTL Off-Camera Shoe Cord, there is the SC-17 (discontinued), its replacement, the SC-28, and the luxury model SC-29 (with an AF-assist light so that you still have AF-assist when you move your Speedlight out of the hot-shoe). The SC-28 usually retails for around USD 60.
This means that for a flash bracket and flash cord, one can expect to pay USD 100.
However, a number of eBay vendors offer Chinese-manufactured clones of the Stroboframe Quick Flip 350 for around USD 24, and clones of the Nikon SB-28 for around USD 30 (Amazon sells a similar clone, known as the Opteka i-TTL cord). This means that its is possible to buy a flash bracket and flash cord for around USD 54 – slightly more than half the cost of the original items.
How usable are these Chinese clones? Read on to find out.
Nikon SC-28 cord clone
I ordered one from from a Hong Kong-based eBay vendor and paid USD 30, including shipping. There are cheaper vendors, but I wanted one with a high turnover and 100 % rating.
No brand was listed in the auction, but when the item arrived, the box said YongNuo Digital SC-28B TTL Remote Cord, while the cord itself was stamped YongNuo SC-28A. YongNuo is the brand name for a line of products manufactured by ShenZhen YongNuo Photographic Equipment Co. Ltd., a Chinese company that designs and produces photographic electronic equipment.
I have no idea what the difference is between the A and B models.
The image below shows the cord from four different angles. The box at the Speedlight end of the cord is fitted with two three-pin connectors that fans out to Nikon's older TTL-system (pre CLS). I have not tested these, since I haven't got any equipment that uses this type of connector. At the bottom of the box at the Speedlight end, there is a a hole with a standard BSW 1/4"x20 thread for mounting om stand/bracket (top right), The box at the camera end of the cord is fitted with a locking lever similar to the locking switch on the original Nikon SC-28 (bottom left). The hot-shoe for attaching the cord to the camera is metal (bottom right).
However, the first unit I received did not work right. The locking lever was loose and whenever I touched the lever, the flash mounted in the hot-shoe at the other end of the cord would fire.
I immediately contacted the seller and described the problem. In the reply, I was told to open the device and see if the problem could be fixed without making a return necessary. The photo below shows the inside of the faulty unit.
Inspecting the inside, I could not see any loose wires, dry joints, or anything else simple to fix. Too me, it looks like the problem has a mechanical cause: The locking lever assembly, shown at the rear in the photo, is loose. The metal rod that is part of the locking assembly moves laterally when the lever is pushed. This small movement somehow creates a short circuit below the small circuit board under the red and green wire, and this short circuit triggers random flashes.
I returned the unit, and ten days later, I received a replacement. The replacement worked fine, and I've been using it for around three months without an issue.
Stroboframe Quick Flip 350 Bracket Clone
I also ordered this unit from a Hong Kong-based eBay vendor, and paid USD 24 including shipping. It took around ten days to receive the packet with the bracket from Hong Kong.
There is no brand name or indication of manufacturer on the packet. To look at, the bracket is an almost exact copy of the Stroboframe Quick Flip 350 Bracket, down to the eight holes with BSW 1/4"x20 threads drilled in the base. The bracket comes with a BSW 1/4"x20 bolt with a large head designed to fastened using your fingers. You just pick the hole that positions the centre of the lens under the flash when using the bracket in the horizontal position, and use this bolt to attach a camera to the bracket by means of the camera's tripod socket. Any of the other holes can be used as base for attaching the bracket to a tripod.
The bracket is manufactured from sturdy anodised aluminium, and there is a non-slip rubber padding glued to the base, and a foam-rubber grip. The bracket come fitted with a cold-shoe with an anti-twist stud that fits a hole in the bracket's swing arm.
The Chinese design also faithfully reproduces the limitations of the Stroboframe Quick Flip 350. I.e. The bracket can not be folded compact to fit nicely into a camera bag for transport. The swing arm pivots freely, and is only held in position during use by gravity. If you are careless when carrying the bracket rig with camera and flash attached, it may flip on its own during transport and possible break something.
The picture below shows the bracket fitted with a Kodak DCS 14n DSLR camera and a Vivitar 283 flash. The hole bracket rig is then placed on a tripod to be photographed.
Since the Vivitar 283 is a generic flash, it is placed in the bracket's cold-shoe, and connected to the PC-socket of the Kodak by means of a Vivitar PC-1 Sync Cord.
The image above shows how you operate the Quick Flip. With the camera in horizontal position, the swing arm points to left, positioning the flash over the centre of the lens. When you turn the camera over to the vertical position, you swing the arm 180 degrees so that it points straight up, and the flash is still positioned over the centre of the lens. The weight of the flash holds the vertical arm in a stable position.
The image also shows the main weakness of the Quick Flip design. The Kodak DCS 14n has a vertical grip and with an extra release button for use in the vertical position as long as you twist the camera counterclockwise. But the Quick Flip forces you to twist the camera clockwise for a vertical shot. This puts both release buttons below the body. This is not the most convenient place to have them, but it is actually not too awkward when you get used to it. More expensive flash brackets avoid this by having more movements, or by turning the camera around an axis.
To use the Quick Flip with a TTL flash, you need to remove the cold shoe and replace it with a SC-28 Off-camera Shoe Cord or equivalent. As it happens, the Chinese has not used a standard BSW 1/4"x20 thread screw to fasten the cold-shoe, but a screw with a slightly finer pitch. To mount Off-camera Shoe Cord I have to supply the correct screw myself. The image below shows both the original screw (black) and its replacement from my spare parts drawer (shiny). You need a screwdriver for this operation.
The image below shows the bracket with the cold-shoe removed and replaced with the Off-camera Shoe Cord discussed in the previous segment. The flash can now be used in TTL mode.
As you can see from the images above, the Quick Flip has room for my Kodak DCS 14n (131 mm) with a Off-camera Shoe Cord in its hot-shoe, with some room spare. If this is not enough, it is possible to raise the swing arm an additional 40 mm by adjusting the position of the pivot support. You may also want to adjust the position of the pivot support to make sure the flash is positioned over the centre of the lens in the vertical position. See the image below for an illustration of this assembly.
While the cold-shoe that comes with the bracket has an anti-twist stud that fits a hole in the swing arm, I am not aware of any other anti-twist accessories for this type of bracket.
Conclusion
The first Off-camera Shoe Cord I received had an electrical or mechanical fault. This demonstrates that quality control may be an issue with equipment manufactured in China. However, the replacement unit was quickly dispatched from Hong Kong, and the replacement cord was in good order.
I had to look in my spare parts to find the right screw to mount the Off-camera Shoe Cord on the bracket, but otherwise, the Chinese bracket seems to perform just as well as the Stroboframe Quick Flip 350 it is obviously based on.
Some may have issues with the design of this particular bracket. It is true that when used in the vertical position, the camera's release button is in an awkward position. But for a total of less than USD 50, these two Chinese items are in my opinion very good value.
