GGS Swivi HD DSLR LCD Universal Foldable Viewfinder Version II with 3.0X Magnification

Just what I was hoping for. I've owned and used the Perfect 3.0X and the Sigma LVF-01; this is better than either of those. The Perfect 3.0X worked well enough on my DP3 Merrill, but it was held to the LCD panel with glue which lost its grip in the hot sun of New Mexico. The Sigma LVF-01 works well, but only fits Sigma's Quattro series of DPx's, is rather pricey, and comes with a sun-blocking cap that dangles on a string. (One of the problems with viewing hoods is that if you absent-mindedly let the sun shine into the viewing lens, it can ruin your LCD.) The Swivi is well made, designed to fit most cameras (all sorts of adjustments, including an extra-high rail in case you're using a camera with a large battery grip), has a very large eyecup (usable with glasses), a good diopter adjustment, and a shutter (not a cap) to block direct sunlight. True, because of the adjustments it's a bit larger than either the Perfect 3.0X or the LVF-01; that's no problem for me, since I use my Sigma Foveon DPx's as studio/field cameras, on a tripod or in the studio with monolights.There's no problem attaching a tripod quick-release plate to the Swivi. I use the Manfrotto release plate. Note that other reviewers say you can use the Swivi's own base plate (part of the kit) directly with some other tripod heads.I'm very pleased and wish I'd bought this item before the others I've tried.

I bought this for a Canon 70D. Works great. Overall, the build quality of this unit is very solid. Almost bulletproof. However, there is a little slider just in front of the eyecup that opens a little plastic shutter. I guess that's there to keep dust out. Well it continually jammed, and would neither open or close all the way.I used a jeweler's screwdriver to open it up and found a clear plastic disk floating free. It had a self-adhesive ring around the edge and apparently was meant to hold the shutter pieces in place (and act as another dust barrier). I pressed it back in securely and closed everything up. It fell out again and the shutter jammed.This time i opened it and removed the entire shutter assembly, and epoxy'd the clear ring into its slot. Now everything is fine, and I'm very happy with this unit. It really makes a huge difference shooting video outdoors in direct sunlight.

If you're a filmmaker looking to use this viewfinder in combination with a shoulder rig or tripod-mounted rig (especially with a matte box), you're going to have problems with the mounting bracket that attaches it to your camera.The mounting bracket uses your camera's tripod mount under the camera. "Stealing" this mount, the mounting bracket offers three other mount options but they are all offset to the left or right, making your camera off-center when you mount it to a rig. It is impossible to line up your camera with the center of a matte box with the mounting options provided. I've tried to find a longer mounting screw to avoid using the offset mounts but I cannot find them anywhere. I even shipped a "variety of camera screw mounts" from a camera specialist in NYC but none of them work. An adjustable baseplate would resolve the problem, but they cost upwards of $100 so it's hardly a perfect solution.Swivi could've EASILY fixed this issue by supplying a longer screw to go through the mounting bracket and into your camera, or by supplying the screw they provide with a female head so you can tap into it.The viewfinder is reasonably well made and is useable without a rig. It's big and makes your camera look legit if aesthetics are important to you. The quality of the optics aren't brilliant but are acceptable at this price point and offer much better ability to frame and focus in bright sunlight compared to battling with your camera's LCD screen.Unfortunately, with the mounting design being less than ingenious, I cannot use this viewfinder. It's been a waste of money for me and I am going to have to buy another that has a better mount option.

So disappointed that I could not use this on my Nikon D810 with the vertical battery grip attached to it. The vertical rails on the left and right sides of the adjustable bracket mount that allows for lowering and raising the loupe needs to be 1.5 inches taller and the flat slide-in tongue portion of the same bracket mount needs to be 0.75 inches longer due to the width of the camera and vertical battery grip. The loupe size was perfect, however, and would fit perfectly onto my LCD screen, allowing full view of whatever was on the screen, including the menus and whatever I was filming or photographing in Live View, all the way to each corner of the LCD. I really wish there was a way to modify this Swivi II viewfinder/loupe. The plastic lenses of the unit were secured well, the blades of the viewfinder open and close easily with a slide switch at the top, the diopter adjustment wheel seemed to work well enough to get sharp focus. Overall, I was very happy with the build quality and features of this unit, but was sorely disappointed that the bracket was slighty too small to fit my D810. When I attempted to visit their web page to see if there was a larger bracket I could purchase, their website [ www(dot)swiviusa(dot)com, printed on their packaging] had expired, according to the pop-up message. It would not be difficult for this manufacturer, Swivi USA, to make a slightly larger bracket so it could be fitted to larger pro DSLR cameras. If only I could reach the company...