strap suggestions

[moop]

I hemmed and hawed on this one for a bit. The black rapid seemed like the most viable option but then I found some reviews on this system:Amazon.com: Black Color Carry Speed Cs-1 MK II Camera Sling Strap Rapid for DSLR: Camera & Photo

I love it and the options that are standard on it are amazingly good at maintaining control of your camera in a multitude of scenarios. The only issue I had with this strap was the lack of instructions but it was simple enough to figure out after some fiddling.

I have looked at that one as well. The only thing I dont like about it is the bracket that must be attached to the camera first to clip the strap to. When in the field I often switch between handheld and tripod frequently, which would require removing the bracket, something that Black Rapid avoids by utilizing their Quick Release Fastener

That is totally understandable. I haven't run into that scenario as much. I will say that I'm not picky and often just leave the whole attachment(bracket and quick release) on. It does get sort of bulky, but it works for me. It definitely seems as if any number of strap options are viable and really depend on the users experience. I love the sling straps though. Like I said before, the options for controlling it while it is at your side is what sold me. Bending over and moving around, it stays in place, I had to get used to the idea of constantly not holding it at my side, and just letting the strap do all of the heavy lifting. The price was also pretty reasonable as the BR was more but had less features. As far as the bracket not being secure when holding all of the equipment, I have a kit that is pretty light so I see no issue in the long run with the weight, but I get why someone with a heavier camera and lenses might be more wary about using the bracket system as opposed to the engineered hook.

 

[Solarflare]

What I instantly dislike about the Black Rapid straps is the company mark on them. Thats one of the main ideas why I would get a different strap than the original one in the first place - to be no longer a gratis advertisement for whatever your camera company is. And here the other strap ALSO has ANOTHER company mark on them. UGH.

I dont think the strap is unimportant. Unfortunately cameras are quite phrone to breaking, so protecting them from that is a priority.

 

[TheBiles]

When it comes to the whole "stap secured to the tripod mount" debate, I've never once heard a first-hand account of the tripod mount failing and causing the camera to drop. I've heard plenty of "oh, I know a guy who... blah blah blah" and people admitting to not connecting the screw properly, but never once have I seen someone come forward and say that their own tripod mount failed on the camera body. Maybe I'd believe it if I actually say some photos from a credible person, but these second-hand accounts make for completely unfrounded paranoid. If $3000 cameras were dropping off sling straps left and right, I think it would be more of an issue than it is now.

So, basically, those accounts don't count unless you want to count them, which you don't, because you're a BR fanboi.

Got it.

Yes, I don't count second-hand accounts with no photographic evidence of any type. Guess I'm a fanboy. Maybe I should go back to my "Save Bigfoot" fanclub.

 

[Buckster]

When it comes to the whole "stap secured to the tripod mount" debate, I've never once heard a first-hand account of the tripod mount failing and causing the camera to drop. I've heard plenty of "oh, I know a guy who... blah blah blah" and people admitting to not connecting the screw properly, but never once have I seen someone come forward and say that their own tripod mount failed on the camera body. Maybe I'd believe it if I actually say some photos from a credible person, but these second-hand accounts make for completely unfrounded paranoid. If $3000 cameras were dropping off sling straps left and right, I think it would be more of an issue than it is now.

So, basically, those accounts don't count unless you want to count them, which you don't, because you're a BR fanboi.

Got it.

Yes, I don't count second-hand accounts with no photographic evidence of any type.

And yet, according to what you said earlier about why you bought it, you're perfectly willing to take positive second-hand accounts you read about products that say they're "all that" and use them to decide to buy those products and then you're also willing to tout those positive second-hand accounts as *evidence* to others that those products are the best.

And then you call that *logic*. lol. Interesting.

Tell me something, if you don't mind... As you're unwilling to give others the benefit of the doubt when they describe their experiences with products, why should the OP or anyone esle for that matter give you the benefit of the doubt and trust what you have to say about the products you endorse or spit at?

Guess I'm a fanboy.

Based on the above, I fully agree.

 

[Netskimmer]

I'm not sold on the idea that a sling strap connected to your camera's tripod mount is dangerous. Many tripods can be configured to put the camera at almost any angle you can imagine and camera companies know this. I have to assume that they would make a contact point like a tripod mount strong enough to secure the body as well as most lenses, at least those lenses not heavy enough to warrant their own tripod collar.

I would be more worried about the sling straps that connect to one of the neck strap connectors, Those were designed to operate as a pair, equally distributing weight between them and they are meant to support that weight at a specific angle. By using only one connector you are forcing it to support more weight than is was designed for and usually at an angle it was not meant to be used at. This is especially true if you are using them with a lens that is heavy enough to warrant a tripod collar, which is where you would connect a sling strap with a tripod connector in that instance. I don't get why anyone would be concerned about using a tripod mount and not concerned with using one tiny neck strap connector.

In regards to vertical grips, if it were an oem grip then I wouldn't be too worried, if it were are low-cost, after-market knockoff like mine, then yes I might worry.

 

[Buckster]

I'm not sold on the idea that a sling strap connected to your camera's tripod mount is dangerous. Many tripods can be configured to put the camera at almost any angle you can imagine and camera companies know this. I have to assume that they would make a contact point like a tripod mount strong enough to secure the body as well as most lenses, at least those lenses not heavy enough to warrant their own tripod collar.

Tripods don't swing and bounce and twist around for hours at a time dangling their cargo upside down from them. The physics involved in a mass bouncing from below the attachment point vs. sitting atop one in a very steady state are much different.

I would be more worried about the sling straps that connect to one of the neck strap connectors, Those were designed to operate as a pair, equally distributing weight between them and they are meant to support that weight at a specific angle. By using only one connector you are forcing it to support more weight than is was designed for and usually at an angle it was not meant to be used at. This is especially true if you are using them with a lens that is heavy enough to warrant a tripod collar, which is where you would connect a sling strap with a tripod connector in that instance. I don't get why anyone would be concerned about using a tripod mount and not concerned with using one tiny neck strap connector.

Show where even one "tiny neck strap connector" has EVER come off a SLR or DSLR camera body that wasn't a cheap plastic POS camera.

I've been shooting for over 40 years, and that is one kind of damage I've never even ever heard a rumor of. Not once.

I think you're WAY reaching on this one...

 

[Netskimmer]

I'm not sold on the idea that a sling strap connected to your camera's tripod mount is dangerous. Many tripods can be configured to put the camera at almost any angle you can imagine and camera companies know this. I have to assume that they would make a contact point like a tripod mount strong enough to secure the body as well as most lenses, at least those lenses not heavy enough to warrant their own tripod collar.

Tripods don't swing and bounce and twist around for hours at a time dangling their cargo upside down from them. The physics involved in a mass bouncing from below the attachment point vs. sitting atop one in a very steady state are much different.

I look at a neck strap connector and they just look small to me and I don't think they were intended to be swung, bounced and twisted either. (at least not as much as a sling strap would cause) I also don't think one neck strap connector is meant to be used without the other. You have a good point about the bouncing and swinging but not about the "just sitting on top" as I mentioned, many tripods can be configured to hold a camera vertically or even upside down, some are even desinged to be strapped to the outside of a moving vehicle and camera manufactureres know this. It would make sense that they would make that connector strong enough to support the camera in those instances. I'm not saying that I know they do, just that it makes sense that they would.

Show where even one "tiny neck strap connector" has EVER come off a SLR or DSLR camera body that wasn't a cheap plastic POS camera.

I've been shooting for over 40 years, and that is one kind of damage I've never even ever heard a rumor of. Not once.

Can you show me where a tripod mount connected to a sling strap has has failed? Not this "my cousin's brother's sister's friend knew a guy" stuff. I'm talking about you or someone you've known in your 40 years experience.

I think you're WAY reaching on this one...

I'm not trying to justify one type over another or anything, I'm just stating my observations.

 

[Josh66]

LOL - I thought you were trying to say how superior and stable sling straps are ... and now they bounce around too much to attach it to the strap ring on the camera?

 

[Buckster]

LOL - I thought you were trying to say how superior and stable sling straps are ... and now they bounce around too much to attach it to the strap ring on the camera?

No, I don't think they do. That's the point. The strap ring on the camera is made for that action. The tripod mount is not.

 

[HughGuessWho]

LOL - I thought you were trying to say how superior and stable sling straps are ... and now they bounce around too much to attach it to the strap ring on the camera?

No, I don't think they do. That's the point. The strap ring on the camera is made for that action. The tripod mount is not.

^^ That. Plain and simple.

 

[Josh66]

LOL - I thought you were trying to say how superior and stable sling straps are ... and now they bounce around too much to attach it to the strap ring on the camera?

No, I don't think they do. That's the point. The strap ring on the camera is made for that action. The tripod mount is not.

Yeah. I was commenting on Netskimmer's post:

I look at a neck strap connector and they just look small to me and I don't think they were intended to be swung, bounced and twisted either. (at least not as much as a sling strap would cause)

(Should have quoted in my post...)

edit
Everyone is saying how awesome the BlackRapid straps are, because they're so secure and stable - they stay where you want them, the camera is always *right there* ready for instant use... And yet, they make the camera bounce around too much to risk attaching it to the part of the camera specifically made for attaching a strap...

 

[Buckster]

I'm not sold on the idea that a sling strap connected to your camera's tripod mount is dangerous. Many tripods can be configured to put the camera at almost any angle you can imagine and camera companies know this. I have to assume that they would make a contact point like a tripod mount strong enough to secure the body as well as most lenses, at least those lenses not heavy enough to warrant their own tripod collar.

Tripods don't swing and bounce and twist around for hours at a time dangling their cargo upside down from them. The physics involved in a mass bouncing from below the attachment point vs. sitting atop one in a very steady state are much different.

I look at a neck strap connector and they just look small to me and I don't think they were intended to be swung, bounced and twisted either. (at least not as much as a sling strap would cause) I also don't think one neck strap connector is meant to be used without the other.

You could probably pull a car with one. I'd be willing to bet that the manufacturers take all factors into account and WAY overbuild the amount of stress a camera strap lug on a camera can handle. I've emailed CanonUSA with the question to find out.

You have a good point about the bouncing and swinging but not about the "just sitting on top" as I mentioned, many tripods can be configured to hold a camera vertically or even upside down, some are even desinged to be strapped to the outside of a moving vehicle and camera manufactureres know this. It would make sense that they would make that connector strong enough to support the camera in those instances. I'm not saying that I know they do, just that it makes sense that they would.

Right side up or upside down or sideways isn't the issue - it's all the rest of the movement for hours at a time while walking around that is the issue on the stress point(s).

It's like those machines that slam a car door all day long in stress tests. How many times can you slam a car door before one of it's stress points fails? 10,000? 100,000? 1,000,000? 1 Gazillion? It doesn't matter how well it's made - it has limits and something will fail at some point, if you keep at it long enough.

If a tripod mount on a body or grip is made primarily to handle the stress of several pounds of camera, lens and grip sitting motionless, with occasional movement and occasional additional stresses from vibration because someone mounts it to a suction cup on a car, that's one thing. It's a whole nuther thing to attach it to a 300' long bunjee and start throwing it off a bridge over and over and over and expect that it will never fail. Somewhere in between those two things are the stresses caused by a sling strap and walking.

Show where even one "tiny neck strap connector" has EVER come off a SLR or DSLR camera body that wasn't a cheap plastic POS camera.

I've been shooting for over 40 years, and that is one kind of damage I've never even ever heard a rumor of. Not once.

Can you show me where a tripod mount connected to a sling strap has has failed? Not this "my cousin's brother's sister's friend knew a guy" stuff. I'm talking about you or someone you've known in your 40 years experience.

You misunderstand. Unlike the sworn first-person testimony required by some, I'm willing to entertain 3rd person accounts. Just point me to one. I've never heard ONE. Not ONE. Did I mention the number is NOT EVEN ONE? Yeah. Go for it.

I think you're WAY reaching on this one...

I'm not trying to justify one type over another or anything, I'm just stating my observations.

According to your posts, you're relatively new to all this. But hey, maybe you have a degree in physics or engineering you can bring to bear on this issue? Or maybe you have someone at one of the major camera manufacturing companies who can fill you in on the details of their stress tests (I've already emailed Canon about the neck strap lugs - hopefully we'll have a comprehensive answer on that soon - I'll be sure to share with the group).

If you have facts, use them. I love to learn new stuff.

 

[2WheelPhoto]

If someone can show me a better strap solution than Black rapid I'll gladly (and want to) purchase it.

The "flimsey" mount option is off the table. I've accidentally mounted my BR to the grip instread of the tripod mount on my heavy 70-200 VRII with no prob other than me catching it mounted like that and being nervous a sec heh.

I don't give a %$#^ about what "brand" products we use nor am I fanboy of any, but i'll spend a few extra bux for the best. So post up the better strap with justification and i'm down like a clown.

The grouchiness and hater chat just doesn't do much for me -

 

[TheBiles]

And yet, according to what you said earlier about why you bought it, you're perfectly willing to take positive second-hand accounts you read about products that say they're "all that" and use them to decide to buy those products and then you're also willing to tout those positive second-hand accounts as *evidence* to others that those products are the best.

And then you call that *logic*. lol. Interesting.

Tell me something, if you don't mind... As you're unwilling to give others the benefit of the doubt when they describe their experiences with products, why should the OP or anyone esle for that matter give you the benefit of the doubt and trust what you have to say about the products you endorse or spit at?

I find that there's a difference between reading product reviews to make an informed buying decision and hearing scattered second-hand reports of unfounded fundamental defects in a highly popular style of product. These people worried about the tripod mount have no solid reason to be worried about it, and they can't actually verify that there is any problem other than unfounded paranoid. Now if you want to talk about product reviews, there are literally hundreds of reviews actually showing sling straps working exactly as advertised. That's the kind of information I want to see. Not rumors and speculation with zero concrete evidence.


Quick edit: I also never said anything about accepting third party information as fact. My exact quote was "I prefer to go off of reputation and reviews," which are the result of first-person, hands on experience from actual users. This is completely different from "Oh, I saw a guy at the mall who's camera fell off the strap but I don't have any information about the kind of strap or how it was attached!"

 

[HughGuessWho]

That's the kind of information I want to see. Not rumors and speculation with zero concrete evidence.

Void of common sense and ones personal opinion?
That's how this debate started out, especially with me. No personal attacks or questioning ones intelligence. I simply voiced my thoughts and concerns with the method of attaching the strap. My opinion is based on MY wisdom obtained over 56 years of seeing things break and fail. Why is such a stretch for someone to think that maybe something would not do the best job at doing something that it wasn’t designed to do in the first place?