GH3 Finally... A Worthy GH3 Cage?

Andrea189 said:
It might fit but the hot shoe piece and the two blocks at the front may not work, as you pointed out. Still the price is very interesting and perhaps it could be adapted. Thank you for your advice.
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You might want to check out the Wooden Camera small dSLR Quick Cage. That's MUCH more adjustable.

 
I like the way the left handle grip on the Woodencamera sits forward allowing easier access to the left hand side of the camera. Big difference in price though. But having said that, it's a much better cage if you want to keep it for other cameras and new GH models that may not quite fit the GH3 specific cage.
 
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I ordered one too, but the discount wasn't reflected in the shopping cart and not in the confirmation email. Took a lot of phoning and harrassing to get it ironed out. Seems they've hired Call Center at Home....a bunch of people who answer their phone at home while a lot of family yelling goes on in the background.
 
Has anyone received their cage yet? Just wondering what the consensus is?
I've received mine but haven't had a chance to go over it.
 
I received on Thursday, really like it, wish it contoured to the camera a little closer but very nice for $150. The anti-twist works great.
 
I'll echo the recommendations for the Wooden camera cage. I used mine for the first time last week and I'm substantially stoked. The big plus's:

Minimal and efficient design
Can be used with other cameras
Can be used with battery grip

Negatives:
Yes, it costs some coin.
The otherwise very useful handle on the left side can slow down fstop changes when using smaller lenses. I shot with a Zeiss and a Novoflex, I had to be a bit more deft at making aperture changes and focusing. All in all, it's very far from being a deal breaker, but it is less than ergonomically ideal.

Lastly, the cage allows me to sell my Gini Rig cage (GH2)- a great piece of gear in it's own right, but I'm tired of having so much DSLR camera specific gear. Look for it soon in the classifieds :-).
 
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Just received mine, for 150$ it's a good deal.
Anyone has any recommendation for a small baseplate which would fit the cage well? I'm making a minimal ENG-style rig with an external EVF.
 
will this work with CarrySpeed VF-4?

will this work with CarrySpeed VF-4?

Has anyone tried the CarrySpeed VF-4 with this cage? I can't tell if there is a way to use it with this cage. I've written to P&C about this, but they haven't replied.

$100 seems like a hard to beat value, and I may spring for one if it will work with the VF-4. I've been using a rail system, but a cage would provide stronger mount options and take stress off the GH3 hot shoe (which I've read is prone to becoming loose). The hdmi lock would be a great add-on, so I hope they don't charge a lot for it.

I don't use my follow focus as much as anticipated, but I would like the use of my rails for shoulder support. I wonder what P&C will come up with for add-on rails.
 
I just received Fhugen's GH3 cage yesterday and overall, I simply love it, worth every penny!

I tried fitting it with most parts from a Cinevate Simplis duo rig and a SmallHD DP4 EVF monitor. I just love Cinevate's handles for the cage : they can be screwed into any of the 1/4 20 holes, so you can either put one handle on the top of the cage, or two to the sides like in the pictures below (fig-rig style). The whole rig's well-balanced and really stable, plus the gunstock-style support really helps stabilizing shots further if the lens isn't stabilized.

I have a gini rig that I like, but this whole thing's much lighter and versatile, I really like it.
Here are some pics :Fhugen_Cinevate_01.jpgFhugen_Cinevate_02.jpgFhugen_Cinevate_03.jpgFhugen_Cinevate_04.jpg
 
Nice looking rig, Gabriel! I've been thinking about this cage, but P&C tells me that my VF-4 viewfinder won't work with it. I just bought the viewfinder from them, and it's a bit frustrating that their own products aren't fully compatible with each other. The price of the cage is very reasonable, and I'm still interested.
 
Hi Gabriel,

Nice lioking rig u have.
what is this shoulder pad you are using?

regards,
denis
 
Hi Denis, thanks! The pad's part of a Cinevate Simplus Duo rig ; in the last picture, you can see the Simplis baseplate that is used to screw all parts (the two handles and the shoulde stock) to make the rig.
 
got one...

got one...

Thanks to esnipe, I scored one of these on ebay for a mere $60/shipped. I am still sorting out how I'll set it up, but overall I like this cage. Build quality is great and it will likely outlive my GH3.

I really shouldn't complain for the price I paid, but there are a few things that bug me:

1. I wish the single tripod mounting hole was not positioned so far back, as it doesn't provide much surface when mounting to a JAG35 mount. I realize they are trying to keep the mounting hole centered under the lens for panning on a tripod, but with all the available space under the camera, they could have drilled and tapped a few extra holes for more mounting options.
2. The cutaway for the cables could also be a bit larger, as fitting hdmi, mic and headphone cables gets rather cramped. Plus, the OLED tilt rotation is restricted.
3. The Carry Speed VF-4 I recently bought won't fit. I will eventually get a small EVF, which will mount nicely on the GH3 cage, so its not a big deal.

cage bottom.jpgcage mount-1.jpgGH3 rig_1090106-SM.jpgGH3 rig_1090109-SM.jpg
 

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