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03-13-2013, 05:42 AM   #1
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Why do all shoulder straps seem to attach to the tripod mount?

I've been wondering if I wouldn't be happier with a shoulder strap instead of a neoprene neck strap. Looking around a bit, it seems all shoulder straps (sometimes called sports straps) attach to the tripod mount.

Why would I want to do that? My camera has two strong hooks made just to attach a strap, and my tripod mount is designed to attach to a tripod. Mine always has a plate screwed in. am I the only one interested in using each attachment poiint for its intended purpose?

03-13-2013, 05:54 AM   #2
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I think the idea is to move the strap away from the grip for better handling, but I am not keen on this idea because there is no way to make sure the strap won't unscrewed itself.
03-13-2013, 06:00 AM   #3
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Luma Loop can use the shoulderstrap mounts.
03-13-2013, 06:12 AM   #4
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A strap that attaches to the tripod mount is nice when a long lens is mounted on the camera. I find that I can sling it over one shoulder and it stays comfortably on my side without much bouncing around, even with a 400mm lens. For a few dollars you can get a bolt, cable clamp, and keychain ring from a hardware store and make your own, even if just to see if you like it enough to purchase a better one. When I use a tripod or monopod with this lens, it is attached directly to the lens anyway. You might be able to find or make a solution that allows you to have both a strap and tripod mount at the same time, or perhaps it is not right for you.

03-13-2013, 06:14 AM   #5
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QuoteOriginally posted by bdery Quote
I've been wondering if I wouldn't be happier with a shoulder strap instead of a neoprene neck strap. Looking around a bit, it seems all shoulder straps (sometimes called sports straps) attach to the tripod mount.

Why would I want to do that? My camera has two strong hooks made just to attach a strap, and my tripod mount is designed to attach to a tripod. Mine always has a plate screwed in. am I the only one interested in using each attachment poiint for its intended purpose?
While I suppose you're right about the most prominently available shoulder straps being the system straps out there (black rapid comes to mind), there are plenty of long straps that can be used sling style (I'm thinking you're talking a sling over your head and not just over one shoulder!). I use a pacsafe sling strap, but over the years it has become quite curled due to being made of wire internally. While I agree that directly mounting to the tripod socket is kind of useless, I use arca camera plates that have strap lugs. I usually attach straps one to the top left and one the bottom left of the camera (left side looking at the back). With longer lenses I wear the camera facing toward me, so the lens goes down and around towards the back. For small lenses, the camera is worn outward facing. I find it works pretty well this way!
03-13-2013, 06:29 AM   #6
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Personally, I don't understand folks that carry their cameras around exposed on ANY strap. If I thought for a minute, it would benefit me, I would do it. While I keep straps on all my cameras as safety devices for taking picutres or moving around, the camera quickly goes back in the bag when I have finished taking pictures and move to the next location.

A camera, on a strap while you walk is a recipe for the camera smashing into something, getting hotter/colder, dirty/dusty, stolen, dropped, scraped..whatever.

I've come to the conclusion that folks that use the "rapid straps" or other fancy straps, either have a single lens or some other special need for the special strap.

I know I will get some flames here, but deep down I think it has more to do with "Look-at-me-and-my-expensive-camera", so it's no wonder folks use the 1/4-20 tripod socket, as they are only concerned with "posing" with the camera!

To date, the most effective rapid-use-device I have come across is the combination of a holster and speed changer bags.

Think Tank Photo Digital Holster 40 V2.0 (Black) 876 B&H Photo

Protection and speed/ease of use are paramount to me, and the features of the Think Tank holsters are awesome.

The Think Tank holsters top opens AWAY from you, and that is a key feature as well as being able to put on a belt. They also come with rain covers and shoulder straps.

Last edited by LaurenOE; 03-13-2013 at 06:35 AM.
03-13-2013, 06:47 AM   #7
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LaurenOE, do you find the Digital Holster allows for rapid camera changes without the risk of the camera falling out of the unzipped holster?

Right now when I'm on assignment and need to change cameras/lenses quickly I'm using the Sun Sniper DHP (Sun Sniper Sun Sniper DHP Double Press Harness D-SSN-DPH B&H) which allows me to quickly swap between my cameras. I thought about getting the Think Tank Digital Holster last year but I was worried that it wouldn't be as fast to swap cameras and I'd have to close the zipper on the holster if I didn't want a camera to fall out when I'm walking quickly or running.

Oh, and for those who are worried about the strap coming out of the tripod socket on straps like these, the Sun Sniper series uses a mount with ball bearings that spin freely so the camera won't be likely to loosen when you're moving around. After a couple dozen weddings and press assignments I haven't had any cameras come loose from the Sun Sniper DHP strap.

03-13-2013, 07:05 AM   #8
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QuoteOriginally posted by bdery Quote
I've been wondering if I wouldn't be happier with a shoulder strap instead of a neoprene neck strap. Looking around a bit, it seems all shoulder straps (sometimes called sports straps) attach to the tripod mount.

Why would I want to do that? My camera has two strong hooks made just to attach a strap, and my tripod mount is designed to attach to a tripod. Mine always has a plate screwed in. am I the only one interested in using each attachment poiint for its intended purpose?
I use the OpTech version, it attaches to the camera lugs, not the tripod screw.
OP/TECH USA Utility Strap - Sling
I use only the left lug, as the other one is attached to a hand strap and Arca Swiss plate.
03-13-2013, 07:09 AM   #9
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QuoteOriginally posted by wlachan Quote
I think the idea is to move the strap away from the grip for better handling, but I am not keen on this idea because there is no way to make sure the strap won't unscrewed itself.

thatz how I dropped my camera, and broke the DA* 16-50mm in a hiking trip.......I still wake up screaming in nightmares from time to time
03-13-2013, 07:40 AM   #10
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I agree with Lauren that these straps can place the camera at risk, but when I wear mine that's exactly what I want: the risk of damage with its corollary reward of instant camera availability. When shooting in a documentary style, having a camera at one's hand often makes the difference between successful capture and missed opportunity. Now that I'm shooting more contemplatively with still subjects, getting the camera out of the bag hardly affects setup time, so the strap sees less use. Of course, if I'm going for a wander, I'll have the camera on the strap not because it makes it possible to capture the image, but because it encourages me to take a picture when otherwise I might not bother.

As far as secure attachment goes, I used to use a wrist strap that was attached to the left-hand camera strap lug and looped into the strap itself, fully backstoping the tripod-mount system. But I've never found the mount even slightly loose, so I don't do that anymore. (I use an eye bolt, wing nut, fender washer, and felt pad; the wing nut compresses the felt pad, providing a far more secure connection than a simple bolt.)

Why not a neck strap? I never found carrying a camera against my chest to be comfortable. Depending on how it was resting and where my hands were coming from, sometimes I would have the strap under my hands, and sometimes over my hands. I also feel that if someone looks at me, a camera in front of my torso makes more of an impression than one at my side. With a shoulder strap, the strap itself never gets in the way, it is visually unobtrusive, and, if I'm moving around a lot such as scrambling up a hill, the camera stays put with a simple carabiner on my belt. Yes, sometimes the camera on the shoulder strap can flip around, but I frequently have my hands at waist level and the camera provides a convenient hand rest, preventing unwanted movement.

Why the tripod mount instead of the strap lugs? This positions the camera grip under my hand with the lens facing backwards. Not only is this more convenient than having to fuddle about finding the grip, but it also protects the lens from things that I might run into--and I have a habit of paying more attention to things tens of meters away than what's under my nose, so that can be useful. Yes, it prevents quick shifting between tripod and strapped use, but all of my tripod shooting is slow and so that doesn't really make a difference. I can see this being a deal breaker, though, for some people.

For what its worth, I don't see why people use the traditional straps. I would much prefer to have a second tripod mount on the side for an actual tripod plate than to keep the existing strap lugs. At any rate, what different people find comfortable and effective is about as variable as what subjects people like shooting, so there's no wrong answer if what you've got works for you.
03-13-2013, 07:49 AM   #11
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I use Sun Sniper Strap - Steel & Bear which is supposed to be impossible to cut of and steel for a thief (but this didn’t matter for me when I bought it). I feel it’s an easy way to carry the camera. I also have a OpTech wrist strap attached so that I can alternate between the Sun Sniper and the hand strap but I do prefer the OpTech Wrist Strap.

It once happened to me that the Sun Sniper unscrewed itself but I was holding the camera in my hand at that time so nothing happened. But I won’t let it unscrewed itself again.
03-13-2013, 07:52 AM   #12
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QuoteOriginally posted by JJJPhoto Quote
LaurenOE, do you find the Digital Holster allows for rapid camera changes without the risk of the camera falling out of the unzipped holster?

Right now when I'm on assignment and need to change cameras/lenses quickly I'm using the Sun Sniper DHP (Sun Sniper Sun Sniper DHP Double Press Harness D-SSN-DPH B&H) which allows me to quickly swap between my cameras. I thought about getting the Think Tank Digital Holster last year but I was worried that it wouldn't be as fast to swap cameras and I'd have to close the zipper on the holster if I didn't want a camera to fall out when I'm walking quickly or running.

Oh, and for those who are worried about the strap coming out of the tripod socket on straps like these, the Sun Sniper series uses a mount with ball bearings that spin freely so the camera won't be likely to loosen when you're moving around. After a couple dozen weddings and press assignments I haven't had any cameras come loose from the Sun Sniper DHP strap.
A holster will never be as fast as a camera that is already out in the open. So in that regard, you have a special application - as do some of the other responses here that support the "rapid-strap" configuration.

However, I feel those instances are few and far between for the average shooter.

I find that the Think Tank Digital Holster gives me very quick access to my camera, and just as quickly can be zipped up and I'm off.

As for running with it open? No, I don't run with the holster open, but I do walk around with it open when I need to throw the lens cap inside while I am actively taking pictures. Because there is a flap that protects the LCD of the camera from the strap, the holster has a built in mechanism to keep most of what is inside the holster inside when the flap is open. Additionally, there is a pouch when the flap is open, that I also use to put things in. Unfortunately, the web and images don't do justice to the Think Tank design details.

Using the Think Tank Holster, along with another body and lenses in a backpack, are what finally made shooting with two bodies comfortable.

I can't live without my Think Tank Holster now.

I started to make a little video, but as I held the camera to video, I kept getting boob shot in the frame, and I'm too embarassed of my weight gain to make one where you see me in action using the Digital Holster.

It's up to more attactive women to demo photo products.

03-13-2013, 07:52 AM   #13
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QuoteOriginally posted by JJJPhoto Quote
I'm using the Sun Sniper DHP
I'm seeing this could be a real possibility for me, it would save me many trips to the gym trying to develop sloping shoulders that go the other way to which they do now i.e. slope down towards the neck.

This has always been my problem when working with two bodies, the constant hiking them back on the shoulders thing, no matter what kind of non slip pads I've tried. This system appears to tie the shoulder straps together across the back. I'm wondering will this be enough, to stop my ongoing battle?

QuoteOriginally posted by LaurenOE Quote
I'm too embarassed of my weight gain to make one where you see me in action
Good living is a cruel mistress, to hell with it, your still you and should not care about such things, it wont alter your photography any, just my 2c.

Last edited by Kerrowdown; 03-13-2013 at 07:57 AM.
03-13-2013, 08:08 AM   #14
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QuoteOriginally posted by LaurenOE Quote
Personally, I don't understand folks that carry their cameras around exposed on ANY strap. If I thought for a minute, it would benefit me, I would do it. While I keep straps on all my cameras as safety devices for taking picutres or moving around, the camera quickly goes back in the bag when I have finished taking pictures and move to the next location.
Greetings again Lauren-

I agree that cameras swinging loose are a recipe for broken cameras or lenses.

How I protect my camera depends on the situation. It is rare indeed that I don't have my camera secured either around my neck or cross-body - the two exceptions are mounted to a sturdy tripod, or in a case with the zipper or whatever fastener it has, closed. There is a small period between coming out of or going into its case when I am holding the camera and securing it from an accidental drop. One of my cases is a holster style. I find I don't use it often due to space restrictions when I travel. My messenger-bag serves much the same purpose and keeps the rest of my gear handy.

Now two more points- I've added a waist belt to my messenger bag. It keeps the bag from swaying around and banging into things, and distributes the weight across my hips as well as my shoulder. And, if I feel I need to keep my camera very close at hand, but not IN my hand, I have another waist level belt with a quick release mount that uses the same plate as all my tripods and monopod.

I have extenders for my neck strap to turn it into a cross body strap (all using the camera's strap lugs) and a quick release plate is always mounted on the camera's tripod socket. The camera stays put, usually in front of my right leg, with the lens & its hood aimed down my leg, while I am walking. But in about one second I can release the camera and move it up to my face - far faster than digging the camera out of a holster or bag and safe from being dropped in my rush.
03-13-2013, 08:42 AM   #15
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I've recently bought the BlackRapid sling for my K5 with the battery grip. It seems good for using with big zooms that have tripod mounts on the lens. Frankly, I'm not sure I'd trust the weight of my old Tokina 80-200mm f2.8 to any strap or sling mounted to the tripod socket in the grip, considering that the grip is plastic. One trip to the Atlanta Zoo with the Tokina's weight on the strap lugs on the K5 made me apprehensive of the lugs' strength.
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