I've been doing a ton of portrait work lately for some local seniors and honestly my wrist is starting to give out on me after holding the camera vertically for three hours straight. I'm using a Nikon D850 and while I love the sensor the ergonomics for portrait orientation are just not there without some extra help. My logic was that I should just grab a grip and be done with it but the price tag on the official MB-D18 is honestly making me dizzy. Like how can they justify 400 dollars for that?

I did some digging online and saw a lot of people talking about the Vello BG-N19-2. It looks okay and the price is much better but then I read a few forum posts saying the shutter button on the grip feels mushy compared to the actual camera body. That really worries me because I do some sports photography for a high school team here in Chicago and I need that tactile feedback when I'm tracking players. I also looked at the Meike one because it's super cheap but some people said it drained their battery even when the camera was turned off which sounds like a total nightmare.

So I was thinking maybe there is a middle ground brand I havent found yet? My budget is roughly 150 to 200 dollars. I really want to get that 9fps boost too which I know requires the bigger EN-EL18 battery and the BL-5 cover. Do the third party grips even handle that power draw safely? I dont want to fry my circuit board just to save a couple hundred bucks but I also dont want to feel like a sucker paying the Nikon tax if the build quality isnt actually that much better.

Here is what I am really hoping to find:

• solid build quality that doesnt flex when I have a heavy 70-200mm lens attached
• reliable weather sealing since I shoot outdoors in the wind and snow sometimes
• buttons that actually click properly without getting stuck

I'm hoping to get this sorted before my next big tournament shoot in three weeks...