The limit on a handheld shooting day is almost never the camera. It is your spine. A camera that feels fine for the first take feels like a different object by take thirty, and the footage shows it — drift, sag, shortened takes, and a tired operator making worse decisions.
There are two solutions and they cost an order of magnitude apart. Buying the wrong one is a common, expensive mistake in both directions.
The cheap fix that handles most days
Letus Shoulder Pad — $160
Genuine leather over memory foam, with a built-in velcro mounting surface. It does one thing: it stops the rig digging into your shoulder. At $160 it is the highest comfort-per-dollar item in this entire catalogue, and for a shoulder-mounted camera on a normal shooting day it may be all you ever need.
See the Letus Shoulder Pad →Buy the pad first. If a shoulder pad solves your problem, a vest is four figures of equipment you will leave in the van.
When you genuinely need a vest
A support vest transfers weight off your shoulder and arms into your hips — the part of your body actually built to carry load. You need one when:
- Your rig is heavy enough that arm fatigue ends takes before the director does.
- You are walking or running with the camera for extended periods.
- You are operating a stabiliser — a Helix, Infinity or similar gimbal adds mass in front of you, which is the worst possible place for your lower back.
- You shoot multi-hour events where putting the camera down is not an option.
“A vest is not a comfort upgrade. It is the difference between a ten-hour day and a four-hour day.”
EXO17 SUPPORT VEST — $1,299
The EXO17 moves the load into your hips and holds the camera at a consistent height, which does something the spec sheet will not tell you: it makes your framing repeatable across a long day, because the rig is no longer slowly sinking as you tire.
See the EXO17 SUPPORT VEST →EXO17 SUPPORT VEST with Helix PRO — $5,400
If you are buying a Helix PRO and you know you will be walking with it, buying the combination is the sensible route. A gimbal hung off the front of an unsupported operator is the single fastest way to end a shooting day early.
See the EXO17 SUPPORT VEST with Helix PRO →Fit is the part people skip
A vest that does not fit transfers load to the wrong places and can be worse than no vest. Two accessories exist for exactly this reason:
| Accessory | Price | What it solves |
|---|---|---|
| EXO17 Vest arms | $150 | Replacement or spare support arms |
| EXO17 Vest Extenders (pair) | $100 | Taller or broader operators — correct fit without a custom vest |
The extenders are $100. If you are tall and the vest sits wrong, that is a cheap fix for a problem people otherwise solve by not wearing the vest they paid for.
The decision in three lines
- Shoulder-mounted camera, normal day: Letus Shoulder Pad.
- Heavy rig, long days, or walking shots: EXO17 Support Vest.
- Buying a stabiliser and planning to move with it: EXO17 Vest with Helix PRO.
No sales tax. Letus builds and ships from Portland, Oregon, and Oregon has no state sales tax — the price you see is the price you pay. Not sure which configuration fits your camera? Message our team on WhatsApp and describe your rig.