Monday, January 23, 2017

Arca type quick-release tripod mount for Fuji 50-140mm and 100-400mm lenses

I had always wished that Fuji would have made the tripod feet on the two long ]zooms with an Arca-Swiss type mount, just as the did for the body grips for all the X-cameras. But they didn't. I knew it would only be a matter of time before someone else would recognize the opportunity and manufacture a replacement quick-release foot. Now someone has, and this time it wasn't someone in China. The replacement mounts are made in the USA.

The 50-140mm zoom shown at the top of this photo has two options, a tall and short version of the tripod foot.  Below is the 100-400mm zoom with the foot attached. 
There are two mounts made for the Fuji zooms, a typical tall mount and a shorter mount. Personally I preferred the shorter mount, since it allowed the lens to fit comfortably in my camera bag with the foot attached. The photo below shows the two Hejar Photo release mounts for the Fuji 50-140mm zoom compared to the bulky contraption of a standard Fuji mount on the right fitted out with an auxiliary release plate. 

The Fuji 50-140mm zoom fitted with the short version of the Hejar Photo quick-release mount. All the mounts, including this short version, allow the hood to be attached backwards on the lens for storage. 

On the left is the foot that comes with the Fuji 50-140mm zoom. I added an Arca adapter to it so I can use it on my tripods. It does tend to bulk the whole thing up. On the right are the two quick-release feet that are made by Hejar Photo with the Arca adapter milled into them. They are also longer making it easier to balance the camera plus lens on the tripod. 


Short version of the quick-release mount on the Fuji 50-140mm zoom. 


The foot of the plate is quite long, but this allows the camera and lens to be perfectly balanced on the tripod, as it is here with a Fuji X-Pro2. Were I using a Fuji X-T2 with a battery pack, the outfit would have to be mounted further back to achieve perfect balance. 

On the left is the standard stubby tripod mount for the Fuji 100-400mm zoom fitted out with an auxiliary Arca mount to adapt it to my tripod -  a bulky contraption and not stable enough for such a long lens. On the right is the Hejar Photo release mount for this same lens -- larger but much more stable. 

This photo also shows a comparison between the replacement Hejar Photo quick-release mount and the standard Fuji mount with added adapter. 

The low mount for the 100-400mm zoom still allows the lens hood to be attached for storage and fit more compactly in a camera bag. 
I particularly like the low profile replacement for the tripod foot on the 100-400mm zoom. I had always felt that the standard stubby foot that comes with that lens is was much too small for the size and weight of the lens. Both of the Hejar Photo replacements for this add much more stable gripping power to the foot.

The plates are fitted with two safety stops to prevent accidentally sliding off the tripod mount. The are finely machined from aluminum with a black anodized surface. They are all 3.725" long. 

The Hejar Photo quick-release mounts for Fuji zooms are available directly from their web site at Hejar Photo.  They are also available on Ebay. 


4 comments:

  1. Thanks for pointing that out about the 50 and 140 numbers. I am always mixing those up when I type.

    I do own the 50-140mm zoom and show its foot in one of the photos in the post. It does not have an arca track milled into it. It only has a screw mount hole. I have shown it with an adapter plate I have to use to adapt it to fit my tripods.

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  2. Dear Tom,
    I have a smaller 55-200 but I feel it would be better to use with a plate.
    Which plate do you suggest?

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  3. I would suggest the shorter one because the entire lens with plate can fit better in your camera bag.

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