Hoodman HoodLoupe VS Zacuto Z-Finder

Hopefully soon - I'll shoot Tonis an email tomorrow and see if he has any updates for me.

Kegan
 
i had been using the Hoodloupe since i got my 5DmkII quite a long time ago. its pretty good at best. i where glasses so with the Hoodoupe i had to take them off when using it. drag! forgot my glasses a few times and had to search for them.

i recently got the Zfinder (new version). its not even a contest between the two IMO. there is no magnification on the hoodloupe where the Zfinder has 3x magnification. although you do sense the lack of resolution of the LCD more with the Zfinder...its not much of a problem and it makes the image huge and...*intimate*. all the little things that you might want to focus on...very big! the smaller things with the hoodloupe would be much harder to nail vs the Zacuto.

Zfinder is like sitting in the first row of a theatre. works great with glasses too.

i like it and yes it was expensive but still worth every penny. i do happen to be one of those people that thinks Zacuto stuff in general is waaaaaaay overpriced. this paticular item kicks ass though and is worth it. if you got the bucks and accurate and precise focus is ***paramount***...get the Zfinder...end of story.

if you go for the hoodman though (great deal for the money), forget the silly straps they supply. here is a good tip i got from a DP named Norman Bonney with a much better way of attaching the hoodloupe than the silly straps.
http://www.normanbonney.com/hoodloupe..html

i didnt use the cushy floppy thing he had in the pics but i did the surgery on the rest of the hoodloupe and it worked like a champ. the cool thing is that you can easily pull it off for viewing between shots. the velcro does a solid job of keeping it intact.

david
www.davidprobst.com
 
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Its not that the Hoodman is bad, its just that the Z-finder is so much better.

David P hit the nail on the head... to really appreciate Zacuto gear one has to use it. The Z-finder works miracles on getting focus and assists in stabilization by giving another point of contact. Nothing else, at the moment, comes close in terms of quality and performance to frame a shot on an HDSLR. If you are used to shooting on PRO or ENG cameras (and not on an lcd screen) then this is the MUST HAVE for the 5D / 7D. Plus Steve gives great customer service- I had a question about the Z-finder a month ago and he personally answered my email within an hour- that is how you do repeat business. Quit the debate. Get the Z-Finder.

Ash
www.iniosante.com
 
Z-finders are now on back-order at Zacuto until mid-October. Guess all the new 7D owners are rushing the wire. I ordered and confirmed mine last week. :)
 
powervideo said:
Z-finders are now on back-order at Zacuto until mid-October. Guess all the new 7D owners are rushing the wire. I ordered and confirmed mine last week. :)
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Yea me too...I think we might have been the last few to get in before the back-order. Mine has shipped and is in FedEx transit somewhere between here and ORD.

Regards,

G.
 
Z-finders are badass, no doubt. But they could be chocolate dipped in gold; if I can't afford it, I can't afford it. $400 is ridiculous for a loupe. So, probably Hoodman for me unless the LCDVF comes out soon.
 
mine will be here tomorrow... yay... yeah the customer service from Zacuto is great I actually called the office and had a chat with one of the girls from the bloom invasion video... and she bumped me in the back order list... lol
 
Jean Dantes said:
Unfortunately, not all us can afford the Z-Finder...
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It is expensive but I'm moving over from broadcast DVCPRO50 and 2/3" HD gear so in relative terms it's nowhere near the nose-bleed prices I've been paying. A HD viewfinder (B&W at that) costs over US$3,500. To a large extent you get what you pay for.
 
Lucian said:
If this holds true, the 7d is gonna disappoint a lot of people. Never has a bar been set so high for a $1700 camera not even designed for video.
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But this is exactly what I mean. You do get what you pay for with the 7D. You get great DOF, low-light capability, the "look", access to great relatively inexpensive lenses, etc, etc.

You lose video camera-specific functionality, video without aliasing, simple audio connectivity, ergonomics, etc etc.

I don't expect to stop shooting commercials on XDCAM HD or Varicam, but I will shoot a lot of stuff on the 7D that suits the specific project, and I think I'll get exactly what I've paid for.
 
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I've been shooting all weekend with the z-finder and I couldn't live without it. I tried a couple of external LCD's and LCD glasses but nothing comes close to the z-finder. It's way overpriced for what it is and the LCDVF sounds good for less than half the money but it isn't focusable and I don't have perfect eyesight so the z-finder was the only option for me.
 
I just watched the Hoodman video: Cinema Strap? Ok... Hair ties, rubber bands and those things that fasten the strings on my swimming trunks... CINEMA STRAP!!!!!
Not knocking it cause it works and it's cheap, but I shouldn't have been drinking water while watching that video is all I'm saying LOL *choke/gag/cough/WTF/cough/wheeze*
 
I bought the extra elastic straps for the z-finder but I haven't bothered to use them, the only time the z-finder came off was when a DJ stepped on it.....gotta love that lifetime warranty. I've clipped the z-finder to the MKII neck strap so it doesn't disappear.
 
Has anyone actually called Zacuto and asked if they know the frames will work with the 7D? If would be f'in hilarious if we were all left with the frame in our hand, scratching our heads with the other. :)

david_p said:
although you do sense the lack of resolution of the LCD more with the Zfinder...its not much of a problem
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I know you said it wasn't much of a problem but if you can see the pixels it can be horribly distracting. So, would you say a tad less magnification would have been better? The LCDVF will have a little less magnification.
 
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