Koziro Cinema Mount Mark II a Great Photo/Video Accessory

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If you are seeking to expand your photography or videography creativity with your mobile device, Pixel Addix can help. They offer a host of products designed to help you get the most out of today’s powerful handheld devices and the new Koziro Cinema Mount Mark II is a great place to begin!

Koziro Cinema Mount Mark II/Images by David Goodspeed

The Koziro Cinema Mount Mark II is an expandable case designed to hold a plethora of smart devices on the market today while allowing the use of photo and video accessories. The rugged metal and plastic case has somewhat of a familiar look to it but it offers creative expansion of your photography and videography talents. The unit comes with wide angle and macro lens attachments along with a filter holder and graduated neutral and blue density filters. The case features standard thread mounts top and bottom for attachment to tripod or shooting rig while also allowing the use of separate audio accessories or light units via included cold shoe mount.

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Right out of the box I was impressed with the quality of construction but I was struck by a similarity in design elements to a popular brand of cameras on the market. I found some of these design elements unnecessary as they add little or nothing to the overall performance of the Cinema Mount Mark II device – but let’s press on.

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There are horizontal and vertical adjustments on the case to allow for accommodation of a variety of mobile device sizes. I found I was even able to keep my iPhone 6 in its minimalistic case and place this in the Koziro unit. Once you tighten the case around your smartphone or mobile device you simply adjust the lens attachment to align with your device lens and you are ready to let the creative juices flow. I recommend attaching this unit to a tripod for the best quality video or photography. And as your talents enhance you may wish to look into audio accessories such as short shotgun microphones (many are specifically designed for use with mobile devices these days) and perhaps wireless microphone equipment as well. Personally, I use both – depending on the shoot location and subjects.

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I also recommend taking your earbuds or other accessory for using the phone in your device when out shooting with the Cinema Mount Mark II. That way you will be able to use the phone application without removing your mobile device from the holder. Openings on the side of the Koziro unit allow for access to the accessory outlets on the mobile device and Pixel Addix includes an A/V cable extension.

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The lens attachments I spoke of are a two-piece design that screw together for use as a wide angle lens. Remove the front portion and you can use it as a macro lens. The filter holder screws on to the front of the wide angle lens so the filters can only be used when shooting wide angle. Good news is, when shooting with both the lens attachments and the filters there is no discernable degradation in image quality. A lens cap is also included in the kit to protect the front element of the wide angle lens when not in use and the filters come with their own case for storage. A strap for the case rounds out the list of items included with the Cinema Mount Mark II.

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By the numbers, the multiplication/magnification ratios for the lens attachments is .63X for the wide angle lens and 5X for the macro, and the lenses are glass and metal construction and feature multiple layer coating. There are optional lenses available as well for use with this kit, one is a 180-degree fisheye and the other a 2X telephoto. The Koziro unit itself accommodates mobile devices up to 7 inches long and 3.25 inches wide. The entire unit, even with your mobile device attached, is not very heavy and allows for extended handheld use. I recommend a tripod, however, for the best image quality overall. No manual comes with the Koziro Cinema Mount Mark II but you can download a very basic one from the Pixel Addix website. Everything else you will have to figure out for yourself but that should be no problem.cinemamountmarkIIe

Some really good news is the pricing for this device – it has already been reduced on the Pixel Addix website, down from $120 MSRP to just $85. I would rate this as a great bargain for what this unit offers and its capabilities. A few years ago I made something similar to this device out of parts from other kits I had accumulated over the years, and the Cinema Mount Mark II blows that away. For those of you getting started in mobile production I would highly recommend getting this unit. You will find it greatly expands your creativity options right out of the box and your work will immediately reflect that. And when you are ready to further express your creativity skill set, Pixel Addix has other options for that as well.

The Koziro Cinema Mount Mark II (review sample provided by Pixel Addix)

Likes: Quality construction; includes lens attachments and filter/filter holder; ease of use and flexible options.

What Can Be Improved: Include some type manual and warranty information in the packaging; would like the bottom tripod socket to be more centered (or add a secondary threaded socket) for better balance.

More Information: www.PixelAddix.com

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About the Author

David Goodspeed
David was editor of AutoworldToday at Today Newspapers in the Dallas suburbs until its closing in 2009. He was also webmaster and photographer/videographer. He got started doing photography for the newspaper while working as a firefighter/paramedic in one of his towns, and began working for the newspaper group full-time in 1992. David entered automotive journalism in 1998 and became AutoworldToday editor in 2002. On the average, he drives some 100 new vehicles each year. He enjoys the great outdoors and as an avid fly fisherman, as is his spouse Tish. He especially enjoys nature photography and is inspired by the works of Ansel Adams.