The Frio Hold, Grasp, Arch, Cling, Stand and Reach sound like yoga positions, but they’re actually rather useful lighting clamps
(Image credit: Frio)
Frio’s new lighting mounts let you position external LED panels and flashguns exactly where you need them, without the fuss (and trip hazard) of lighting stands. With a selection of clamps, arms and suction pads, they can put your lights in the perfect position even in the tightest spaces.
They’re based around the Frio Hold, a small but invaluable ‘cold shoe’ adaptor. On the top it has a slide-in accessory mount for any off-camera flashguns or LED panels designed for camera hotshots, and on the underside it has 1/4-inch and 3/8-inch screw holds for attaching to a tripod.
Cold shoes are perfect for off-camera lighting. They are ‘cold’ because there are no electrical connections, so the Frio Hold is both inexpensive and takes up almost no space at all in your camera bag. LED panels don’t need electrical connections, and off-camera flash is controlled wirelessly, so a cold shoe is fine.
The New Frio attachments take the concept further. You no longer need a bulky tripod or lighting stand to mount your light on, as these attachments let you position it in all sorts of inaccessible corners without taking up any extra space.
Frio Hold: This is the cold shoe adaptor itself. It costs $12.99 singly or £34.99 as a three-pack. You can mount it directly on a tripod or any of the New Frio accessories.
Frio Grasp: This is basically a ball head on an adjustable clamp, offering 360-degree orientation and ideal for tabletops, railings, poles and more. It comes in Bigi ($89.99) and Mini ($79.99) versions.
Frio Arch: A 360-degree articulating ball head and shaft for attaching the Frio Hold to light stands or tripods and offering much greater freedom of movement ($49.99).
Get the Digital Camera World Newsletter
The best camera deals, reviews, product advice, and unmissable photography news, direct to your inbox!
Frio Cling: A vacuum powered suction pad to attach to mirrors, windows and other smooth surfaces with a ball head for full articulation ($99.99)
Frio Stand: The Frio Stand has a baby 5/8-in female pin receptor that mounts to arms, light stands, C-stands, roller stands, wall plates—or any standard grip gear ($39.99)
Frio Reach: Produced in conjunction with Tether Tools, this is a jointed arm with a heavy-duty clamp at one end and a Frio Stand at the other ($170)
Rod is an independent photography journalist and editor, and a long-standing Digital Camera World contributor, having previously worked as DCW's Group Reviews editor. Before that he has been technique editor on N-Photo, Head of Testing for the photography division and Camera Channel editor on TechRadar, as well as contributing to many other publications. He has been writing about photography technique, photo editing and digital cameras since they first appeared, and before that began his career writing about film photography. He has used and reviewed practically every interchangeable lens camera launched in the past 20 years, from entry-level DSLRs to medium format cameras, together with lenses, tripods, gimbals, light meters, camera bags and more. Rod has his own camera gear blog at fotovolo.com but also writes about photo-editing applications and techniques at lifeafterphotoshop.com
