Custom Grip Makes Canon S90 Almost Perfect

Tiny, pocket-sized cameras are wonderful, especially if they are the Canon S90, a stunningly capable camera for its size. The let you take great pictures at any time, but disappear into your pocket when you don’t need them. The problem is that they can be too small. Holding a little compact while twisting its knobs […]

s90-grip

Tiny, pocket-sized cameras are wonderful, especially if they are the Canon S90, a stunningly capable camera for its size. The let you take great pictures at any time, but disappear into your pocket when you don't need them.

The problem is that they can be too small. Holding a little compact while twisting its knobs and dials can be like snapping a picture with a slippery fish as it tries to slither free of your fingers. The answer is a grip, something that camera makers have allowed to wither to nothing more than a vestigial fin on most modern cameras.

This is why we love the Custom Grip for the S90 from Richard Franiec. Franiec makes custom parts for a small number of cameras, and all of them look like they could have come from the original maker. The grip is a good example:

[It is] individually 3D CNC machined from a solid block of aircraft-grade aluminum before being glass-bead blasted, black-anodized and nickel-sealed for durability and good looks.

The grip sticks out enough to wrap your fingers around, but still stays 1.5mm lower than the lens, so it shouldn't affect pocket-ability. Neither should it affect your pocketbook: the grip is just $33. It sticks onto the body using a sheet of adhesive film, and stays attached permanently. You can, we are told, remove it without damaging the camera's finish.

I'd like one of these for my Lumix GF1, which despite its bigger body is still a wriggling eel of a camera. As it is, I'm going to fix it up with some Sugru, the silicon silly-putty which has been sitting on a shelf here since I ordered it back in December 2009.

Canon S90 Custom Grip [Lensmate]

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