Talk to me about camera straps that connect to the tripod mount.

[bobkoure]

I've always used camera straps that connect at the two basic left and right points on the camera. I've also modded a strap to be like the Black Rapid Sport where it has that extra strap that goes under the armpit so it prevents the camera from swinging around to your front when you lean over. I'm also a professional photographer.

When I look at the straps that connect at the tripod mount, I can't bring myself to see how it's of any benefit whatsoever compared to a standard strap.

- Because it's connected at only one point, the camera will swing and twist around wildly when walking and especially running or doing anything active. If the camera's too low your thigh will just knock it around as well.

- A two-point strap when pulled tight against your body allows the camera's LCD-side to sit flush and tight against your body. I often tighten the strap and my camera hugs my back, making for a system that stays put when I'm active.

How do you pull it tight? If I was to wear a neck strap, I'd want to be able to adjust the length while I was wearing it.

- You can wear standard two-point straps in a sling style as well. In fact, that's how I always wear mine.

Optech's slide system can be setup to work a bit like this, hang from the neck-strap lugs, worn as a sling. The attraction is that, to the extent the fittings slide over the strap, the pad stays on your shoulder as you raise the camera to your eye. There's also a tab you can grab to adjust the hang position of the camera as you're wearing it.

My issue was that they don't slide well enough for me. I've looked at replacing their hardware something else (maybe Petzl square rings?), but haven't sorted all that out.

The nice thing is that, if you've got their loop connectors on your lugs, you can quickly switch from slide to neckstrap.

- You've gotta get special hardware if you want to easily mount the camera to a tripod since the tripod mount is already taken up by the strap. With a standard two-point strap you can mount the camera right into the tripod without doing anything.

- If you want to quickly mount the camera to a gimbal for video shooting a two-point strap can easily disconnect the entire strap via two side-squeeze buckles and then balancing on a gimbal is nice and easy. With a tripod-mount strap you'd have to unscrew the entire strap each time.

RRS sells A/S compatible plates with a Magpul socket. This gives you an attachment point that's both secure and quick/easy to detatch/reattach.

I see other people with slings attached to A/S clamps. So, to put camera onto tripod, detach clamp on sling, attach the one on tripod.

So.... what am I missing here?

 

[BGD300V1]

The plates will accept a strap and have an auxiliary 1/4x20 tripod socket.

Personally, I use the Kirk plates on all my cameras. They don't come loose without an allen wrench.

I use Peak Design tab connectors and put three on the camera. One on the bottom plate at the strap location and one each on the side connectors. This give me the option to carry it sling style by moving one of the side connectors to the base or front facing using only the side connectors. I also have the wrist strap which I connect to the bottom tab when I'm using it.

The advantage is that none interfere with use of the arca-swiss mount.

I also have the tabs on my heavier telephotos which have tripod mounts. If I switch to the tele I just move the strap from the body tabs to the lens tabs

 

[PerTulip]

I use:

- RRS L-Plate: connects now only to the tripod socket, but also the the left sling attachment. So, if the mounting screw becomes loose for any reason (never happened, but ... you know) there's still a failsafe.

- adjustable sling with QD mounts. I can attach it to a single point or to two of them. Attaches and detaches in 1 second. And I trust QD (idiot-proof by design) more than all those contraptions out there.

- sling can be short or long, adjustable on the fly

- mounting on a tripod is no issue

- rock-solid

After going to different slings/straßs, I finally found the one I'm going to stick with.