Attaching the Arca Swiss L-plate or L-bracket to the body of Olympus OM-D E-M1 will help us to attach a camera to a tripod either for taking horizontal or vertical photograph. Without the L-plate, you have to use the drop notch on the ball head to move your camera into portrait position.
On May 6, 2018, I wrote an article named “ProMaster L-Bracket Review for Olympus E-M1 Mark II”. There were a few L- plates for E-M1 Mark II and most of them were expensive. Due to the design, there were some limitations in using the screen of the camera. Since 2020, the situation has been totally different. At present, you can buy the L-plate with a better design with no limitation in using the articulating screen and with a best price.
Believe it or not, I bought the L-plate from China only $10 US! It’s a no brand product. With such a cheap price, the decision was a complete no-brainer.
For your information, all of E-M1 Mark II L-plates can be used with the E-M1 Mark III because the base size of both cameras is the same.
The design of this L portion is very important. With a design like that, you can almost fully use with the articulating screen. When you flip the screen around, it can’t fully flip and tilt in down like the illustration below.
You have to twist the screen and insert it into the gap of the L portion. Then you can use the articulating screen.
You can also take a photo by looking at the screen from your hip level or lower.
The L portion of this L-plate is removable by using the supplied hexagon screwdriver.
You can change the position of L portion like the illustration below. This will help stabilize when shooting video by holding the L portion with your left hand.
You can easily attach this kind of L portion to the tripod head.
The base plate has a 1/4”-20 threaded socket for additional accessories such as a mini tripod.
Final Thoughts:
No matter which brand of the L-Bracket for using with Olympus E-M1 Mark II/III, you’d better take the following specifications of L-plate into consideration.
1. The design of the L portion must be similar to the one in this article which doesn’t obstruct the movement of the camera’s screen.
2. The base plate must have a 1/4”-20 threaded socket for additional accessories.
3. The L-plate must maintain access to the battery door and the camera’s ports.
4. The L portion must be removable for user’s convenience.