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Fotomate Sliding Plate

The Photomate sliding plate is a device that goes between the tripod and camera allowing the cameras to move either back or forward, or put the other way around from left to right. The movement is a maximum of 10cm and a scale allows you to see how far it has moved. Two wheels allow its control, one to run a geared wheel moving it along the scale and the second is a lock to hold it in place. There are two camera retaining screws one fixed the other in a sliding slot. You can use either for the camera and the second is possibly available in some situations to connect something else.

Its use

• Its principle use is in macro photography, where you want to move the camera towards the subject.

• It can be used to take panoramas, where you want to move the camera back so that it rotates where the aperture in the lens is over the centre of the tripod.

• It can also be used to slide the camera from side to side, to take 2 spaced photographes to produce 3D images.

Using two of these together arranged at 90 degrees, you can have a macro focusing device that allows you to move both back and foreword and from side to side.

Two of these placed the same way gives an adjustment of up to 20cm, but is a little wobbly, although usable.

This is an alternative to this, the Novaflex Castel-Mini , but having a shorter range. the Fotomate is lighter and takes up less room in the camera bag than the Novaflex Castel-Mini.

Source- you will find them advertised on eBay or you can get one cheaper online from izenet.com at £22 post free, as this comes from overseas, VAT may be added by customs but its unlikely. They also sell a four way version (£43) which we have on order and will be reviewed shortly.

Alternatives - The Novaflex Castel-Mini, costs £120. Novaflex also make a slide plate similar in function to this one called the Novaflex castel-L focusing rack at £160, or the 4 way Novaflex castel-cross-Q focusing rack for £299, all available from SpeedGraphic.