Do MF hand grips favor left-handed use?

[Ariston]

The hand grip for my RB, which I never use, is left handed. I always thought that was odd. Then I searched for a hand grip for a 500cm, and it is left-handed, too. Is there a reason for this? It is awkward to me, coming from 35mm.

 

[ic-racer]

Most people are right handed. Holding the camera with the left hand allows the dominant hand to focus or adjust the settings on the lens.
This is not universal. My Horseman has a right-handed grip. This is because you need to cock the shutter with the left hand. The rollfilm backs also wind with the left hand.

 

[Ariston]

I also just realized the shutter cocking and advance are on the right side, so you can't really put the grip over there...

 

[Sirius Glass]

Anyone can be right handed, only the greatest over come that.

 

[MattKing]

Putting the shutter release on the left hand grip works great for me.
Of course, I am extremely left handed!

 

[rjbuzzclick]

Koni Omega rangefinder also has a left handed grip and shutter release. Right hand manages the focus and film advance with shutter cocking.

 

[Sirius Glass]

The Hasselblad is designed to be held in the left hand, so a left handed grip would be consistent. The Mamiya Cxx family has focusing knobs on the left and right sides so I would expect ambidextrous grips or a choice of right handed and left handed grips.

 

[John Koehrer]

Of course there's always a pistol grip. That centers the weight over the hand holding the weight and eliminates the
twist the weight want to induce.

As a shameless plug, I have a Mamiya pistol grip I'm trying to peddle. The grip is used with the left hand to
hold the camera and trip the shutter. Right hand controls focus and film advance. The button that presses
the release on the body is adjustable so it can be used on some(all?) of their tlrs. $30 shipped to US address.

 

[macfred]

My Bronica ETRSi has the ''Speedgrip'' with shutter button, winding lever and hot shoe designed for the right hand - I'm used to focus with the left (even when shooting without the grip, balancing the camera on my left palm). Works great for me.

 

[jimjm]

Bronica SQ series have a right-handed speed grip that feels very natural for handheld shooting. Integrated shutter release and thumb lever wind also helps give the impression of shooting with a 35mm camera, albeit a lot bigger and heavier.

 

[dynachrome]

My Bronica ETR, SQ and GS-1 cameras all have Speed Grips which work well and allow me to hold the cameras with my right hand. I also have an SQ-AM. The Mamiyas are another story. I don't really like the left hand grips for the M645/1000S/J or RB cameras. For the M645s I got the motor winder just so I could have a right hand grip. The problem? With an insert, a prism finder, a lens, the motor winder and 6 AA batteries, you have a very heavy set-up. I carried a 1000S with all of these things and a bag with three more lenses around Montreal for a day several summers ago. I have a motor for my RZ67 but that's more suited for use on a tripod. An RB67 with a WL finder, a back and a 90 is not that heavy. I prefer to hold it without the left hand grip.

A few days ago I shot a roll of 120 Portra 400 with an SQ-A with a WL finder and a 50/3.5 S lens. I don't mind the laterally reversed image. My Yashica Mat 124G from High School had the same view. How did I meter? I used a Minolta X700 with a 50/2 lens. Generally I wouldn't use the Speed Grip with a WL finder. I have a number of prism finders and a metered chimney finder for my SQ-As but the WL finder is light and doesn't take up much space when it's folded.

I don't mind the grip for my Koni-Omegas. The problem with that camera is the loud film advance. It can sound like cocking a gun.

 

[itsdoable]

Left or right hand grips were designed to be used a certain way, learn how they were intended to be used, and see if they work for you. For instance, a right hand grip on a Hasselblad would make winding very difficult. But the Hasselblad motordrive was a right hand grip because it wound for you.

 

[abruzzi]

I've never understood how the Pentax 67 left hand grip was supposed to be used, it just looks large and awkward: