nikon Nikon D500 vertical grips

[Fetzie]

I've been thinking about getting a vertical grip for my D500 for a while, to make taking photographs in portrait orientation (not just portraits but also topics such as hand-held macro or nature) more comfortable. Does anybody have any experience with the off-brand variants of the MB-D17 and would you recommend any of them? The price difference is quite staggering to Nikon's own-brand vertical grip, which can be anything from 5-10x the price of the Neewer/Pixel/Meike variants (Nikon wants around 400 euro for it, and I'm finding it quite hard to find used ones for a more reasonable price).

 

I have the budget to buy an original MB-D17 if I needed to, but obviously if I could spend the 300-350 euro I would save with a third-party option on something else and get a similar user experience then I would prefer that.

[Ankerson]

Buy the Nikon version, the 3rd party versions are poor build quality and don't work as well as the original.

 

There are countless threads all over the internet with people that have had BOTH and they all say the Nikon versions are better overall. Countless issues with the 3rd party versions. There will always be those who cheeped out and say they are fine while not telling people the issues they are having....

 

You get what you pay for in the end.

 

If you have the money as you say you do then get the original one.

 

 

 

 

[nick name]

I can't remember the brand of the one I have for my D7100, but it was around $300 cheaper than the Nikon one and works flawlessly in all menus, etc.  

 

So don't let the gentleman's opinion above scare you.  

[nick name]

I just checked mine -- it's made by Vello.

[nick name]

https://www.amazon.com/Vello-BG-N17-Battery-Grip-Nikon/dp/B0753RJGX2

 

It's only $90 USD!  That's less than a quarter of the Nikon price!

[nick name]

Holy crap -- the Neewer is only $33!  

 

https://www.amazon.com/Neewer-Battery-Replacement-Batteries-Compatible/dp/B07CYPS1HS/ref=pd_sbs_421_1/133-3366366-4920414?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B07CYPS1HS&pd_rd_r=3cf51fbf-fde9-4c48-9d5b-0a55bcc947ec&pd_rd_w=Azwk7&pd_rd_wg=ypkvD&pf_rd_p=52b7592c-2dc9-4ac6-84d4-4bda6360045e&pf_rd_r=E1YW527Z2B8JMGN8PQQM&psc=1&refRID=E1YW527Z2B8JMGN8PQQM

[Fetzie]

Yeah, part of my thinking is that I could have a box of a dozen of those break before it gets more expensive than one Nikon

[brandishwar]

10 hours ago, nick name said:

I can't remember the brand of the one I have for my D7100, but it was around $300 cheaper than the Nikon one and works flawlessly in all menus, etc.  

 

So don't let the gentleman's opinion above scare you.  

Yeah I've got the same one, using it with the the D7200. Works like a charm. Zero issues. Seems pretty well built as well. Can't complain.

[Guest]

20 hours ago, Fetzie said:

Yeah, part of my thinking is that I could have a box of a dozen of those break before it gets more expensive than one Nikon

I would say get the el cheapo one just to see if you get on with grips. I shoot macro and wildlife at least twice a week for many years now. I too thought grips would be a good idea. For me however they became extra weight and also intrusive. Especially when trying to get the lens level with a subject when macro shooting, such as shooting insects on a log or rail for instance, it prevented me from getting the low angle I wanted. So I ditched the idea.

[Fetzie]

1 hour ago, Phill104 said:

I would say get the el cheapo one just to see if you get on with grips. I shoot macro and wildlife at least twice a week for many years now. I too thought grips would be a good idea. For me however they became extra weight and also intrusive. Especially when trying to get the lens level with a subject when macro shooting, such as shooting insects on a log or rail for instance, it prevented me from getting the low angle I wanted. So I ditched the idea.

That sounds like a sensible idea, thanks for the feedback

[brandishwar]

3 hours ago, Phill104 said:

I would say get the el cheapo one just to see if you get on with grips. I shoot macro and wildlife at least twice a week for many years now. I too thought grips would be a good idea. For me however they became extra weight and also intrusive. Especially when trying to get the lens level with a subject when macro shooting, such as shooting insects on a log or rail for instance, it prevented me from getting the low angle I wanted. So I ditched the idea.

That's definitely a good point. I don't shoot anything macro (right now), but I can see where the grip would get in the way when shooting in landscape alignment. I shoot wildlife and portraits, some landscapes, so having the grip makes shooting in portrait orientation much, much easier.

[nick name]

I can attest to a grip being a bit of a problem if you want the camera as close to the ground as possible, but they are definitely worth having.  When I have it attached I usually use it instead of the camera to navigate menus.