Letus quick release?
 

OK I've built my support and arm for my LCD screen to flip the image for the LetUsA and would like to have a quick release to get the camera onto and off of the letus without having to disassemble the whole thing. One Idea is to glue two squeeze lock lens caps face to face and drill out the center. That way just squeeze the lock and the camera is free... anyway got any ideas Ideas? This would save a whole bunch of time and effort.... I hope to have pictures in a few days... It's really no big deal...thanks

I don't think that lens caps have the support required to keep the Letus on the camera. I would only trust tried-and-true metal screw threads to that kind of support.

My arrangement for mounting a device to camcorders varies from many.

I fit the dioptre lens to the camcorder via the filter mount thread but the 35mm adaptor fits to the bayonet fitting for the camera lens hood. This is of a wider diameter and maybe a little stronger. So the dioptre is not integrated into the device.

The centres are harder to set up but the construction ends up a lot simpler.

This enables a quick assembly and dissembly but still requires the dioptre to be unscrewed by hand if you want to run off with the cam and do something else.

For best and safest results, you still need to re-inforce the arrangement by bracing to the camera tripod mount.

BTW, I am much impressed with Quyen's reversable SLR lens mount idea. Clever young fellow isn't he. Now if only I had thought about that. Quyen might do well to look at the Pyser-SGI PNP-HG night vision arrangement.

This device looks similar to the Letus but is smaller. Its baseplate area underneath also integrates the battery enclosure, two separate penlight cells in cylindrical holders with screwcaps - very reliable. Under this there is a tripod stud hole. With a big c-mount Fujinon on front and the camcorder hanging off the back, it balances fairly well on a tripod.

Provided you do nothing violent you can handcarry this arrangement by holding the combination where the Letus would be, but I would not make habit of it as the camera case itself is not all that strong.

The PYSER maincases appear to be drop cuts off a continuous aluminium extrusion with front and back lens adaptors screwed in from either end. That's something Quyen could examine as it would make the construction so much easier and quicker if he begins to build in greater volumes. Pyser also secure the front lens mount in with small rollpins, on radii separated 120 degrees.

Although the primary attachment is by threads, this prevents accidental dissembly when screwing lenses in and out. For a lens specific model of Letus, this could eliminate the need for cutting internal and external threads altogether on the front section.

Picture
 

Anyway you could post a picture or send me one?

CraigBellaire at hotmail.com

Speaking of mounts, after I shoot my project (aka sometime in February), I plan on rebuilding the Letus body so I can mount the GG right up against my camera's lens to take advantage of the GL2's macro functionality. So it will be similar to Dan's design in the sense that it bypasses all macro lenses and just shoots the GG plain. The Letus will be a lot shorter and lighter, plus the light loss will be minimized. Doesn't seem like it would be too hard to do.