Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

It was easy to place on my Canon.
Easy to view.
Prevents having to get into awkward positions to take a photo low to the groung.
Love the carrying case for travel.

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

It took a few beats to get used to it, but with my bad knees this thing is a huge help, especially when I'm doing close-ups of musical instruments.

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

Botanical macro photography is my joy. Needed something to allow me to get the tight, low-level shot without standing on my head. Works fine except adapters are loose and wobbly. Some judicious use of needlenose pliers fixed this for now, but will see if this is permanent fix.

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

I use this mostly in the pursuit of ground-level macro photographs. Right-angle viewfinders are a great tool bring you down to the level of your subject, it can be very exciting when you are dealing with bugs face to face! Excellent accessory if you enjoy photographing flowers, fungi and reptiles or amphibians. I even use it when taking landscapes - it allows a tall person to photograph comfortably without over-extending the tripod.

It seems well constructed, but the body is plastic, so its durability is questionable.

The ocular is adjustable for your eyesight, and is stiffer that the equivalent Nikon product This is beneficial, as you are less likely to shift focus accidentally.

On the negative side, there is no method to attach a strap or cord which the Nikon product does have. As well, eye piece adapters are required - these are small and easy to lose!

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

I bought my viewfinder more than one year ago and almost didn't use it,but today I needed it for some detail photo;I observed some excess grease at the base of the eyepiece tube and I put the thing under the lighted magnifier to clean it before use ; this is the way how I discovered the deep cracks in the prism plastic-made cover at the two mount screws and the cracks in the optics plastic-made case where the four screws are inserted through the metal plate ; probably either the person who assemblied it torqued the screws too hard,or the screws were too big or the plastic too weack,or all three... ; the cracks were probably there from the begining but I haven't seen them until now[...]Optically it is OK but the described deffects can't be ignored,this thing can fall apart at any time.

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

Here is what I found from the HOH-RAV unit I purchased. This is based on the one unit I received and returned and may not be indicative of all. Possibly I just got a bad unit.
It is plastic, as expected, but seemingly well built.
However, to make it universal, one gets four adapters, 2 Nikon, 1 Canon, 1 Fuji, these fit between the viewer and the camera. Though they fit snuggley, it causes spacing and a bit of slop factor when attempting to adjust the diopter.
The diopter on the unit I recieved was so tight it took both hands to turn it, as well as seeing the potential, that over time, the optical body would get distorted, and/or the coupler.
The view through the unit was noticeably cloudy and the view was never clear in the tests I did for focusing.
Apparently, because of the adapter-created distance, the 1x view looked a little like looking through binoculars backwards. The view size is smaller than desirable.
Switching to 2.5x helped but was so far off from the previous diopter setting that both hands again had to be used to change the setting and this again was not a good clear view. With either the 1x or 2x, I essentially had to remove the viewer to focus, then put it back on. Kind of negates the purpose, no!
Again, this is based on the one unit I recieved. Obviously from the other reviews, many users are happy with theirs.
I returned the unit and bought the Nikon DR-6. A far superior product and worth the $70 difference for the five letters. The image quality is very good, clear, and no backward-binocular effect on 1x. The diopter does have to be moved when swithced to 2x (come on Nikon - what's with this) but it was easy to do with minimal movement but still a bit of an annoyance. The Nikon unit is plastic also, but no adapters.
Final note on both. Eyeglass wearers will find both units a bit of a challenge to use.

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

Good for shooting low perspectives while staying out of the mud. Used in Antarctica & South Georgia Island where penguin rookeries could be pretty nasty. Easy to install & remove. Compact for carrying in a pocket. Good image through viewfinder.

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

Very clear optics. Fit my Canon digital camera w/o any problems. User-selectable magnifier a nice feature. I highly recommend it.

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

Needed more clarity when photographing outdoors and with macro work. This fits the bill. Was more than pleasantly surprised. The dioptric adjustment allows for precision viewing. Great addition to my camera!

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

Elliminates the need to lay on your belly to get low angle shots and is usefull in macro flower photography.

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

I used it for all low angle shots which deliver different perspectives. It's easy to use, flexible and also saves my knees and back. I think it's a must have gadget for all serious photographers.

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

I just started using my right angle and love it. It is great not having to lie down on the gravel to get those low shots

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

This item comes in handy for a lot of things but most of all it helps save your back and knees.

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

Short of a fully articulating LCD screen, which Nikon does not offer, this is the next best thing for framing and focusing your DSLR in those odd set-ups common when shooting macro. Well made with nice optics, but 16mm(16-85 mm Nikkor) is a little too short of a focal length for a full screen view. Otherwise, it works fine on a 60 mm AFS Micro and will do the job until the industry embraces the flexibility of adjustable LCDs as more than just toys.

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

Great product. Most useful when doing macro, close-up and table top work. Could be used in more formal portraiture and landscape as well.

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

Rheumatoid Arthritis has restricted my use of Tripod (as often happens with other physical issues, too.)

This viewfinder allows me to use Tripod again, or more effectively to steady a hand-held camera against walls, fences, etc. Blurred images have decreased quite a lot since I started using this.

I would prefer it to have a 45-degree angle, as 90-degrees is still a bit restrictive. But, this is a huge improvement over the fixed on-camera Viewfinder.

Anyone who shoots from acute POV angles should find this helpful, also.

Comes with a nice carrying case - including several adaptors. One fit my Rebel XT perfectly.

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

It works okey when you are taking pictures from a low or high angle.
But it is difficult to see the camera settings.

An other disadvantage is that the viewfinder switches positions too easily and needs constant adjustment.

Hoodman: Is it possible to make the viewfinder bigger? I mean this viewfinder is meant to be used in hard working or extreme situation, and it would be a lot easier if the eyepiece was bigger. Like on a TV-camera (Broadcast).
On TV-cameras it is also possible to flip the eyepiece so you can look right on to the mirror. This is a easy way to work when you are photographing very high or low. ;-)

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

It's been difficult to use tripod after upgrading to a dSLR (no LCD)- critical with the Zoom Lenses. As I favor shooting from acute angles, as well as straight-on from tripod heights, it was important to find a general solution. A Pro told me about this item.

Truthfully, a 45-degree angle would have been easier for me to use, but this is heads above trying to use the regular viewfinder.

I'd recommend it to anyone whose physical issues hinder camera and/or tripod usage.

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

It does what it says it does. I have used another make in the past that irritatingly resulted in a mirror image in the viewfinder but this does not. Also the ability to swing from landscape to portrait is more than a bonus.

Comments about Hoodman H-RAV Professional Right Angle Viewfinder:

I find this product "toy like" hard to see much if you where glasses---sorry I bought it!