RED Firmware Update Allows for Hasselblad Viewfinder

With a bracket and a new “Prism Mode,” users can make use of a wire-free viewfinder with a retro touch.

If I’m honest, the EVF market isn’t too hot right now. There aren’t that many options. Zacuto most likely owns most of the market, but it still irks me that their flagship products don’t have an on/off switch. Instead, they’ll sell you a $150 cable to fix this.

So, it’s nice to see some sense of innovation from RED and Viper Gears. They created a bracket that can fit a Hasselblad viewfinder over the Komodo’s top-mounted screen. It’ll work with a 500 Series waist-level viewfinder and a prism viewfinder. Upon the release of Viper Gear’s bracket, RED added a “Prism Mode” to their monitoring settings. This flips the screen so that the image displays correctly through a 45-degree ​​Prism PM5. This firmware update has been out for about a year now.

Usually, I would be quite skeptical of lo-fi hacks, but Mark Holtze makes the case that this is a pretty convenient setup. He claims that the image looks great, keeps the setup compact, and doesn’t require any power. This seems like a great rig for street shooting on a sunny day.

While the setup is cheaper than picking up any Zacuto option, it’s not cheap. The bracket from Viper Gears costs $255. Then, a further $300 will be needed for a good quality Hasselblad viewfinder. The caveat that Holtze points out here is that users will lose access to the touchscreen. Depending on your setup, you may find it annoying to pull the viewfinder off just to change exposure. This would probably work better with a separate monitor to control the camera or at least a side grip with limited controls.