Black Rapid straps?

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Im after a camera sling , seen Black Rapids are they really worth the £80 ? Will be carrying 1 dx mk2 plus lens.
 
Prefer Peak Desing personally, you have the option of anchor points which stops the body spinning on the end of the strap.
 
Sold my black rapid and I'm also a happy slide user now, I got the cuff too and it's also useful when you don't want the strap on
 
I have also been looking at sling straps this morning.

The BR straps look really good, I like the single point swivel fixing in theory, but not so keen on it attaching to the tripod mount - would rather keep that free for when I want to use a tripod. They are double the price of the PD Slide though.

Any love for Optechs version?
 
some friends got me the black rapid sport for my 30th 3 years ago and it is still as much a revelation now every time i use it as it was back then. I imagine the peak design will give the same benefits but can't really say for sure having not used one before, but i have an arthritis type condition that affects my neck, shoulders and lower back and so the standard camera straps make for a painful experience, the sling type has taken nearly all of that discomfort away even on long days
 
Oh yes, the PD loops hang off the Arca plate on the bottom of the camera, so tripod use is instant....
 
I had the BR-Sport for about 4 years, never had any problem with it. I often swung a D800 with grip + 300mm F4 from it. Looking out for something similar but neater for the Fuji.
 
Hallsy said:
I have also been looking at sling straps this morning.

The BR straps look really good, I like the single point swivel fixing in theory, but not so keen on it attaching to the tripod mount - would rather keep that free for when I want to use a tripod.
Click to expand...

You can buy the little connector that allows for tripod use (y)
 
I replaced my standard strap with a BR and use it with a 6d, grip and normally a 70-200 2.8.
The overall weight was to much to have hanging off my neck.

Welcome BR, and after the unfamiliarity of having the kit hanging by the tripod connector.
You soon get used to it, and it is a revelation.

One prob that I had is the plastic clips that determine where the camera hangs on the strap often open and leave the camera to 'slide' between the guides. No great shakes as they can easily be secured in place.

So, not perfect, but a marked improvement on the standard offering.
 
Hallsy said:
I have also been looking at sling straps this morning.

The BR straps look really good, I like the single point swivel fixing in theory, but not so keen on it attaching to the tripod mount - would rather keep that free for when I want to use a tripod. They are double the price of the PD Slide though.

Any love for Optechs version?
Click to expand...

Not used the Optech or Peak. Do like BR's though. Wouldn't be without one now.

Regarding the issue with tripod mount, I'm sure everyone has their own approach but I personally just pop the connector off if I'm using a tripod. Hate having a strap in the way if the camera is on a tripod anyway. It takes a couple of seconds to remove.
 
I've had and used a BR for a few years now, excellent strap, the only downside is I have to replace the carabiner clip every year, as it does wear away with the weight of my gear, that's a Nikon D500 with with a Nikon 200-500mm at present, but I use my strap at least three times a day every day for a minimum of an hour at a time when I walk the dog, most straps wouldn't get that amount of wear :)

PS. I forgot to add, be careful the first few times you use it with a big lens, as it's the lens that stays attached to the strap not the camera body, I dropped my body the first time I use it :-)
 
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Hallsy said:
I have also been looking at sling straps this morning.

The BR straps look really good, I like the single point swivel fixing in theory, but not so keen on it attaching to the tripod mount - would rather keep that free for when I want to use a tripod. They are double the price of the PD Slide though.

Any love for Optechs version?
Click to expand...
I've used Optech straps for years, I have neckstraps, the dual harness and a shoulder strap.
Never had any issues, they just work
 
I have both the Black Rapid RS-1 (Dual Strap) and a Single RS version, great strap. (might part with them, if interested let me know).
The are great straps and very strong, mine are showing zero signs of wear and are like new.
 
FWIW in regard to method of connection with my my BR

As I have an L plate on the camera body and an Arca Swiss style plate on my 100-400 zoom I attached an Acre Swiss clamp to the BR strap. This removes the need to continually attach & remove the BR screw from either the camera or lens.....using the clamp makes for IMO a more robust and easy to use 'system' :)
 
I've got the BR sport, optech and peak design slide. By far my favourite is the peak design slide. It's the only one that prevents the camera from spinning around whilst you're walking, feels most secure and the only one with two anchor points without adding a separate tether, and the quick release system works great. I also like the fact that I can leave the tripod plate on so that I can transfer it from my strap to my tripod in seconds.
 
Phil V said:
I've used Optech straps for years, I have neckstraps, the dual harness and a shoulder strap.
Never had any issues, they just work
Click to expand...
Optech for me too. been using mine for years.
 
Box Brownie said:
FWIW in regard to method of connection with my my BR

As I have an L plate on the camera body and an Arca Swiss style plate on my 100-400 zoom I attached an Acre Swiss clamp to the BR strap. This removes the need to continually attach & remove the BR screw from either the camera or lens.....using the clamp makes for IMO a more robust and easy to use 'system' :)
Click to expand...

Same here. Works well and quick and easy to remove the strap for tripod use.
 
I recently just upgraded my first BR strap for a new version which had some additional features. On the whole I think they are very good and comfortable straps to use. However as others have said the I am using a tripod more and more now and am finding the BR a pain from that point of view. The second slightly minor irritation is I use a shoulder bag and you tend to find sometime using the BR as well makes things a bit awkward. Its only a minor issue.
 
Box Brownie said:
FWIW in regard to method of connection with my my BR

As I have an L plate on the camera body and an Arca Swiss style plate on my 100-400 zoom I attached an Acre Swiss clamp to the BR strap. This removes the need to continually attach & remove the BR screw from either the camera or lens.....using the clamp makes for IMO a more robust and easy to use 'system' :)
Click to expand...

I too used this setup when I had the BR, I also added an Optec connector as an insurance against the clamp coming off
 
morph1909 said:
I recently just upgraded my first BR strap for a new version which had some additional features. On the whole I think they are very good and comfortable straps to use. However as others have said the I am using a tripod more and more now and am finding the BR a pain from that point of view. The second slightly minor irritation is I use a shoulder bag and you tend to find sometime using the BR as well makes things a bit awkward. Its only a minor issue.
Click to expand...

I purchased one of these : https://www.amazon.co.uk/Black-Rapid-FastenR-T1-Manfrotto-Plates/dp/B0049H89F8

It turned my tripod's quick-release plate into a BR strap compatible plate. Just unclip the caribena and done. Very simple.

Although it's expensive for what it is though. It could do with being a fiver tbh! :D
 
While on holiday I had my Leica Q on an A&A strap and my Pen F on the strap it came with, the Pen F strap was to short the A&A perfect, seemed silly to spend £60 buying another strap for the Pen so I saw the Peak Design slider with connector tabs, bingo one strap that I love that changes from one camera to the other in seconds. Great little system.
 
I use a BR but have modified it by cutting off the carabiner and adding two sets of short op-tech straps ,,making it quick realease for hide or tripod use and also cuts out metal to metal noise as you walk ,works for me anyway
 
I've been using a BR-RS7 for years, with a Canon 80D and 70-300L (previoulsy 70D) "dangling" off the end. I normally only use it when I'm out for a full day's motor racing. I've never had any issues. Fairly sure this particular model is now out of production, though.
 
I have a BR sling for DSLR and long lens - it's great for what it's for. Optech neoprene neck strap for my cameras and short zoom/prime combo when I use 2 camera; the Optech is ideal to anonymise the camera - a strap saying Nikon D3/D810/D500 is a bit too showy (not the most comfortable straps either) and one that doesn't say D810 etc just shows that you couldn;t afford a more expensive model even if you strut around pretending to be a pro tog with a Nikon....

So a YES for BlackRapid sling and Optech neck.
 
wezza13 said:
I purchased one of these : https://www.amazon.co.uk/Black-Rapid-FastenR-T1-Manfrotto-Plates/dp/B0049H89F8

It turned my tripod's quick-release plate into a BR strap compatible plate. Just unclip the caribena and done. Very simple.

Although it's expensive for what it is though. It could do with being a fiver tbh! :D
Click to expand...
They are good for manfrotto plates, it's a shame they don't fit arcs Swiss plates.

Black rapid now do an arcs Swiss plate (50mm and 70mm).

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B0...wiss+plate&dpPl=1&dpID=41EC8MaGAFL&ref=plSrch

It solves the tripod foot issue but not the camera connection if you use an arca Swiss L plate like I do. I'm using the black rapid connector on an arca Swiss clamp to enable quick swapping between foot and L plate but you have to make sure the clamp is always tight!
 
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I tried the black rapid and the peak design straps on my camera in the shop. The peak design strap felt more comfortable compared to the black rapid. With the black rapid, it felt like the camera was swinging around and bashing against my hip when i walked, would have been intolerable using it all day with a big camera and fast lens.
 
I notice nobody has yet mentioned my favourite rapid access sling strap, the Joby. http://joby.com/ultrafit-sling-strap. I had the opportunity to compare it to Black Rapid at a photography trade show. I chose it over the popular Black Rapid for three reasons. It's swivelling attachment to the tripod attachment point on the camera is stronger, better engineered and less likely to fail. The length you set the Black Rapid type of straps to have two conflicting demands to cope with. You have to make it long enough to cope with easily moving the camera up to your eye, or sometimes further when resting the elbows on a support and using live view on the LCD, or even holding the camera up over your head for a high viewpoint. You also have to make it short enough to tuck the camera safely into the body for moving through bosky areas where twigs can catch in the strap, or in confined spaces where the camera may swing about and bang into a wall or something.

The Joby has an ingenious way of very quickly semi-automatically lengthening and shortening the strap so that you can carry the camera at the best length for being safely tucked into the body, easily clamped if necessary under an arm while leaving the hand free, while almost instantly having the full reach maximum length of strap available. That allows me to keep the camera safely and securely on its strap in difficult moving situations where I'd bag the camera for safety if I was using a Black Rapid.
Last but not least it's cheaper :-)
 
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