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| This shows the custom grip in place |
I recently returned from travel in Central Australia and several locations on the other side of the planet. The LX100 came with me all the way and performed very well in all conditions.
But as readers of this blog will be aware I have ongoing concerns about the LX100s ergonomics, related to holding, viewing and operating.
There is nothing I can do to improve the viewing and operating arrangements but it occurred to me that I might be able to improve holding with an accessory handle.
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| Rear view |
I went about this in my usual fashion, by direct fabrication in the wood, guided by my fingers.
I held my right hand on the camera in the position which felt most natural for my fingers. This left a space to the right and front of the existing handle.
I then crafted the accessory handle to a size and shape which filled that space, provided a more secure grip for the fingers at the front and a more prominent support for the thumb at the rear.
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| Top view |
As you can see in the photos the resulting shape is quite complex.
It was a bit tedious to make in stacked plywood layers with a fretsaw, screws, bog and glue and no template. Like the freeform craft precursor to 3D printing.
Being a custom, one off product it blocks access to the tripod socket and battery/card compartment.
For hand held work I just start the day with a fresh card and battery which is good practice anyway and for tripod use I remove the accessory handle.
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| Off the camera. Anti rotation plates front and back. |
I have to confess to being rather pleased with the new handle.
It improves holding and handling quite substantially. It also makes the camera easier to carry.
The camera with handgrip attached fits nicely into the same Think Tank Mirrorless Mover 5 carry bag which I had already been using.
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| Holding the camera with the accessory grip fitted. It is difficult to demonstrate the improvement provided by the accessory grip because I am trying to describe in words and pictures something which can only be properly experienced by feel. The right hand and fingers take up a more natural open posture. The thumb lies diagonally which is strong and comfortable. The hand and fingers are no longer scrunched up as is the case with the standard arrangements. Yes that is how I hold the camera with my left hand. The specific reason for this is so the left index finger can act as an accessory eyecup to block stray light from entering the viewfinder. I have been rudely castigated by armchair experts on user forums for holding the camera this way. It is unorthodox but hey, it works. |
This is not how I would approach the design from scratch.
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| The silver mockup on the right is my proof of concept exercise. It is the same height, width and depth as the LX100 but features a very different and much more ergonomically effective design. |
The way I would do it is shown in the silver mockup which has the same dimensions (wxhxd) as the LX100 but a completely different and much more ergonomically effective shape and control layout.
I made this as a proof of concept to show that with optimal ergonomic design a very comfortable, efficient user interface can be developed even within the constraints of a compact form.
Readers please note: The accessory handgrip featured here is a custom one off model. Please do not ask me to make you one.
However you might want to show the photos to one of the established accessory handle makers and ask if they might be interested in making something similar.
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