Clip-Shot Camera Holder :: September 25, 2007

Made mainly for self-portraiture or posed shots in the outdoors, the $20 Clip-Shot camera holder is a small clamp on a tiny stainless steel post, threaded to attach to a camera via its tripod mount.

To use it, attach a camera to the Clip-Shot; clamp the Clip-Shot to a treebranch, ski pole, ice ax, etc.; set the camera’s self-timer; run to position; pose, smile; and never miss a shot again.

Lyndon Wilson, a machinist from Noxon, Mont., rang me up last week to introduce this product. It’s one of those one-man ideas forged out of a personal need then brought to commercial fruition only after the fact.

Wilson is an elk hunter and a few years ago missed a photo opp he still regrets while solo bow hunting. Thus, he designed the Clip-Shot, which is a simple solution and a quality product.

I tested it with my big Canon D20 SLR camera, clipping the holder to objects including tree branches and fence posts. You screw a knob down to secure the plastic clamp on an object. The camera can then be positioned to the correct angle for your shot.

The Clip-Shot essentially turns any stationary, clamp-able object into a tripod-like mount.

Clamped on, the Clip-Shot seemed solid. I was a bit nervous leaving my heavy SLR on the small mount when it was attached to anything high off the ground. But the camera never budged.

For any normal point-and-shoot camera, the Clip-Shot’s design is more than beefy enough, though it’s still very compact and lightweight.

Materials include: The main frame is machined from 6061T6 aluminum for strength and light weight, and then anodized for added durability. The camera deck is made from a stable material called Delrin to provide a non-marring contact surface. The Clamp is molded with high-strength plastic that has UV protection. The snap ring is 15-7PH stainless steel to assure corrosion resistance, and the threaded insert of the T-knob is a 300 series stainless steel that is both non-magnetic and corrosion resistant. (In case you wanted to know!)

Overall, a cool little product. It just might find its niche with photographers who want the stability—or self-portraiture ability—of a tripod while outdoors, but do not want to haul the extra weight of a three-legged stand along in the woods.

Price: $19.99

Available: Now.

Contact: www.clip-shot.com