First look at prototype the Element Technica handheld system. Please keep in mind that this is unfinished beta model and the final will look more polished. Also the left handle in the pic is a different Arri style grip and is not form Element Technica. I had the chance to test out the ergonomics of ET's handheld rig and I all I can say is that it is has answered my handheld prayers. My RED has NEVER felt better on my shoulder. The shoulder pad fits like a glove and wraps comfortably around my shoulder. The shoulder pad interfaces to this ultra light arri compatible dovetail and is independently adjustable. The dual adjustment lets the 8” dovetail give you over 13” of fore and aft travel so you can find the balance sweet spot. Because the should pad is attached to the arri compatible dovetail, by using the RED arri baseplate, you can go from tripod to handheld in a matter of seconds. The dovetail/shoulder pad system slides out of camera's baseplate by releasing one lever, take camera and slide it onto the your tripod with dovetail..boom..DONE. It's super secure and no tools needed. It gets better folks. All of the handheld systems that I have seen thus far depend on the rods for the handgrip support. Not so here. You can't tell from this picture but the front of the shoulder pad dovetail has a tool-less (and optional) interface that includes a left and right side rosette for mounting handles that project forward and down. No more having to deal with handles getting in the way every time you switch from handheld to the tripod. The entire hand held system slides out as one unit, shoulderpad and rosette handles.

From ET: "there will be nearly infinite adjustability while the rosette interface provides a pit bull like grip once you’ve found “the position”. There will be THREE different right side handle option and TWO different left side options. The final piece of the hand held puzzle includes a rosette-based right-side full-sized handle. This handle is sturdy enough to bear the entire weight of the camera and can be located almost anywhere along the right side of the camera with our rosette extensions and offsets. This right side handle will also work with the dovetail handle mount described above." The Element hand held system has the flexibility and professional quality you expect from a company like Arriflex with the pricing you’ve come to expect from Element. Best of all, every item in our system is available a la carte. You only buy what you need to complete your ultimate hand-held kit."

So there you have it folks..some preliminary info about a handheld solution that everyone who needs to go handheld should be excited about. With this and a belt battery pack, I can finally feel confident about solution that won't kill me after hours of use and will allow to me to swiftly switch modes with little effort and great speed. Hats off to the ET crew for this one!