I use an RRS L bracket on my D2H and D70. An individual has made some claims on dpreview that an L bracket in vertical mode leads to mirror slap at slow shutter speeds; he uses 1/8s as an example. He uses a Nikkor 135mm F2 DC, which is a large, long FL collar-less lens; a worst case situation with the exception of a 180 F/2.8 Prime. As I write this I do not know what bodies and tripods were used.
I respect that individual's knowledge and his posted images so I decided to test this to the best of my ability with the gear I have. My longest/heaviest collar-less lens is a Nikkor 105 F/2.8 Micro (non-VR).
I tested it on a Gitzo 1410 with Markins M10 ballhead, D2H and D70 with RRS L brackets. I saw no image degredation. I shot 1) normal landscape, 2) vertical on the L and 3) vertical with the ballhead flopped as if I ony had a simple bottom plate on the bodies.
For the D2H I shot in single shot mode with MC20 remote release, as well as Mirror Lockup. For the D70 I used the self timer with 10s delay on that test; same as the IR remote. The D70 has no mirror lockup.
I then tried the D70 on a Gitzo 1228 + Markins TB20 base palte + M10 + 105 Micro. I saw significant vibration. See test image.
I repeated the test, shooting three frames in each mode and I got 100% consistency in my results. I then repeated the 3 duplicate shot test with the D2H, using single shot mode and MLU. The D2H showed just a touch of vibration, more of a loss of contrast. Had I not gotten 100% consistency with my 3 duplicated shots in each mode (18 shots total in this case) I might have chalked that up to user error. See test image.
The test image shows a single shot at 100% crop from the D2H and D70 on the Gitzo 1228. Judge for yourself the seriousness of this problem.
It is very important to understand several things:
1) This is not a problem if you use MLU and if your camera has MLU or "mirror delay mode" you should always be using those features at slow shutter speeds. I get worse vibration with my 70-200 VR + TC14 at 280mm even in landscape mode using the lens foot (and RRS replacement foot).
2) I saw no evidence of this on a Gitzo 1410, which is roughly equivilent to a 1325 CF. The extent of any problem you may have is very specific to the camera, lens, and tripod, plus your technique.
3) I did not hang any weight on the 1228; that is my usual practice but here I was "looking for trouble" while still exercising proper slow speed technique for these shots. My experience with the 1228 is that it is generally more stable with 6-10 LBs on the hook, but that test will have to wait for another day.
I'm not about to ditch my L brackets. I have a love/hate relationship with them, but they do offer many benefits. Also many evils. This is a personal choice and this specific problem outlined here should be taken in the context of all the other perceived benefits and evils of using L brackets.
2-12-2007 - It was suggested to me that centering the camera over the position of the mirror stop would eliminate the vibrations. The second image tests that hypothosis (I never understood the reasoning behind that hypothesis). This time the same G1228 + TB20 + M10, all legs fully extended, now with a D200 + 200mm F/4 AI.+ RRS L Bracket. My D70 was unavailable at the time. These images indicate that position of the camera in the 50mm clamp had little or nothing to do with the amount of vibration. If anything, slightly more vibration occurs the further the clamp is positioned away from the right angle bend in the L bracket. With the camera mounted to the bottom plate and the ball flopped over in prtrait mode (image 5), results are much better but not as good as the MLE image.
Although I did not post images, I added 6 LBs of weight to the tripod, resulting in noticably better performance. This flies in the face of suggestions I have seen on the net, relying on "mass coupling" theory, that adding weight may help in windy conditions but will not improve basic vibration performance. This may be the focus of future tests.
The D2H was tested again on the G1228 and G1410 + M20. In both cases there was little or no vibration, similar to the previous test. These new tests do indicate that the D200 is also subject to vibrations in vertical mode. I tested the D200 on the G1410; the performance was very good, with little or no vibration detected. Neither the D200 or D2H suffered significant vibrations on the G1228 with NO legs extended, and with the legs in their normal highest angle position (not splayed out). The problems with the G1228 can be reduced or eliminated by keeping the legs retracted.
The tripod makes a big difference, as well as camera body selection.
The 2nd-4th composite images were shot with an MC-30 remote in single shot mode. The first image shot with Mirror Lock-up as a reference. The 5th image with the camera base mounted to the clamp (simulating a simple body clamp) and the ball flopped over in protrait mode.
