CKC Power

Anyone who has used the Coolpix 900, 900s or 950 knows that it is a great macro camera BUT -- you cannot select the Macro and Selftimer functions together because they're on the same button. The only way to get good macro shots without camera blur is by using the selftimer or a cable release, neither of these is an option with the Nikon cameras as they come from the factory.

My good friend Tom at CKC Power and I started corresponding some time back about building a special bracket for the Nikon Coolpix cameras to allow them to use a cable release. At first it was just a simple thing to facilitate the cable release and then we pondered making it a bit more versatile.

I'm happy to report that CKC Power is now shipping the bracket for $70, yes it's a little pricey but when you have something like this custom made in small numbers the cost is usually higher than we'd like. This price includes your choice of a 10" or 20" cable release. The optional flash bracket is an additional $9 but well worth it if you want to make this bracket even more flexible in its overall capabilities.

This is the CKC Power bracket for the Coolpix 900, 900s or 950 camera. It is a precision milled and black anodized aluminum bracket that allows you to use a standard shutter cable release. It is pre-drilled with two different threaded holes to accomodate the physical differences between the old (900 and 900s) and the new (950) Coolpix cameras.

Tilted down you can see the optional flash bracket mounted on the top edge of the bracket. You can also see the two different mounting holes for the cable release.

Here's the Nikon AS-E900 hot shoe extension mounted on the optional flash bracket. You can now mount the Nikon SB-28 flash (or other compatible strobes) directly on the CKC Power bracket.

Rear view of the AS-E900 mounted on the optional flash bracket. I just used the screw/knob supplied with the Nikon SK-E900 flash bracket.

There's no limit to what you can do with the optional flash bracket, here's a $20 Quantaray MS-1 slave flash unit on it. It can be tilted up and used as a slave, bounce, fill-flash.

The side of the CKC Power bracket also functions as a very sturdy handgrip when it's not mounted on a tripod.

Removing the camera from the bracket to change batteries or CF cards couldn't be easier thanks to the quick release tripod mount. You loosen the knob under the camera, swivel it out like this and ...

lift the camera up and off of the bracket. The tripod socket mounting screw does not get in the way of the CF card access or the battery compartment.

The bracket being used on a Raynox QM-1010 copy stand. I always had a problem with the camera getting moved around when pressing the shutter button but that is not a problem anymore!

Now you can have your camera mounted on the tripod and gently trip the shutter using the same kind of cable release used on film cameras. It can be a short one or a very long one, there are air-release cables that are as long as thirty feet - good for bird watchers I guess.

The bottom line is that this is a priceless accessory if you need to take sharp and well-focused macro shots with the Coolpix 900/950 cameras. It works well in conjunction with a copy stand like the Raynox QM-1010 and will cause no harm to the camera (a concern with the alternative which is using one of those flask caps that snaps down onto the Nikon's power/mode dial switch.)