[Gear] The Incredibly Smart, 100% Crowdsourced, ‘One Size Fits All’ Follow Focus Adapter

As anyone who has tried to shoot video with a DSLR knows, creating a smooth, professional follow-focus motion can be a bit of a nightmare unless you’re willing to shell out for high-end equipment, and then deal with lugging it all around. How about a $45 solution that gets amazing results and works on any DSLR lens?

The guys over at Microfacturing are looking to create just that. By using the popular Crowdsourcing website Kickstarter, Microfacturing is looking to gain backing and support from the photo and video community to manufacture and distribute what could be a game-changing product for those of us who are looking to get into video and follow-focus mechanisms for the first time, or for those who might be looking for a small, portable system to take on location.

By using a rubber gasket, the Focus Shifter is able to fit around any commonly-used SLR lens and provide a follow focus motion that is infinitely more stable and accurate than even the steadiest of bare hands. The ‘KISS’ design approach is readily noticeable, and will certainly be appreciated by those who are looking to work quickly and efficiently.

To see a video of the product in action and get a feel for how it might perform, check out Microfacturing’s Focus Shifter Kickstarter Page.

Both photos Copyright Microfacturing/Daniel Bauen

After viewing the video and checking out some photos, it seems to be a very intuitive and easy to use solution that should appeal to a wide audience. We’ve seen Kickstarter do some pretty amazing things in the past (the recently-released TriggerTrap was born from Kickstarter) and I know I’d love to see a cheap follow focus solution like this make its way into the market.

If you think this is something that you could see yourself using, head on over to the Kickstarter page and put your name on the preorder list!