Does anyone have a shoulder mount for the XF300/305 that they like? Digital Juice has a small one for $100, and I've seen a IKAN stealth model on B&H for $620, and a Cinevate one for $2700. So, obviously there's a wide range. I'm not looking for anything too fancy - just want to make it comfortable hand-holding the XF, and it would be nice if it could collapse down for easy transport.

Hi Steve,

I currently own an XF300, but have not needed a shoulder brace for it. I've occasionally used it hand-held, but never for any longer than an hour or so at most.

With that said, check out Westside AV, one of our sponsors:

Canon 300 Canon 305 (http://www.westsideavstore.com/index.php?p=catalog&parent=10&pg=1)

Best,

Yes, I've got the Westside AV unit. I agree that the XF doesn't always need a shoulder mount, but the folks at Westside have a nice unit you can mount a lot of extras to, like your wireless receiver.

I also have a DVtec multirig. It's a very flexible and extremely portable handheld and shoulder mount. I would recommend at least looking at their video of how it's used. I have used it on some very long shoots and found it is really good to have in a crowd, where I can fold up the handles and carry it at waist level through a large crowd.
http://www.dvtec.tv/ some good videos of them in use and setup.

I have the Tilta T03 Base Plate for my XF300, but I don't have the Hand Grips, and I sometimes find it difficult to keep the camera vertical. I also find that with the QR plate, from my Manfrotto 516, attached to the base plate, it partially covers the shoulder mount when fitted to the base plate. I could get round this by not using the location dowel on the QR plate and moving it forward.

I will get the hand grips sometime soon, which I am sure will make the rig far more stable.

Tilta BS-T03 Base Plate and Accessories Review on Vimeo

The Tilta kit is extremely well made, and very reasonably priced.

TILTA (http://www.photogear.co.nz/index.php?route=product/manufacturer&manufacturer_id=12)