Recent Posts | Share a Tip | Back to Basics | Reader Photos | Forum | Subscribe
Home Studio | Tutorials | Readers Projects
Readers Projects - Strap it on Baby
I have to hand to you, Ever since I started the "Readers Projects" Quest, I've been getting a ton of great DIY/Photography ideas and projects. After hitting it with the Thomas Schwenger's Complete Two Seconds Lighting Kit and the Christmas Tree Ring Light comes Ben's great project that does not have to do with lighting but can defiantly improve you life if you are one of those photographers that use a hand strap but disappointed from what the market has to offer.
The DIY Hand Strap
Ben Plaut was not a happy camper; he was tired of those neopropene straps that make your hand sore.
Luckily for Ben (and for us), Ben had the equivalent of baggage store floating around in his garage (or God-knows-where). Ben has Mcgiverly turned those into a comfy hand strap.
There are two tips Ben gives for free: Seal your edges off with a match or a lighter; and Use meat scissors. While I totally agree to the first, I could not - for the life of me - explain what meat scissors are.
- See the complete list of parts here.
- See the final product here.
Make sure you don't miss out on the next article - Register to the RSS feed or the newsletter.
Bookmark this post with:
Comments
Why?
I guess this is cool, but I don't understand the point when commercial products, which are VERY secure and VERY comfortable are also VERY affordable. Like $5 to $15.
Also, "meat scissors" are the kitchen shears that come with many knife sets. I've never used mine for meat, as I prefer a very sharp knife, I have found myself using them any time I'm cutting something too thick & strong for regular scissors.
- Jon
re: Why?
Jon,
There's one very simple reason: with most (if not all) of the commercial products, at least the cheaper ones, I wouldn't have a secure way to attach my Rstrap (also DIY, in the same flickr set). Apart from that, a fifteen dollar item costs an additional fifteen dollars shipping to Hawaii. It's still not a huge amount of money, but why pay when you can make?
--Ben
More detailed..
pictures of the construction process would have been nice. The parts photo lacks contrast as all the parts are dark in color and blend together. :)
As for Jon, you simply don't get the fact that DIY is sometimes done just for the "I did it myself" bragging rights and fun of it. :)
Sure I do
Sean -
I definitely get the "I did it myself" factor of DIY projects. You should see the furniture (think Pottery Barn style on a Walmart budget) and hifi systems (more style and better quality than most any commercial unit you can find, at a fraction of the price) I've built. Not to mention the motorcycle I'm restoring ($1K to buy, $500 in parts, plus a few hours of my time, and I get Ferrari level acceleration and even better cornering) or the vast majority of my photography gear.
But to spend the time on something like this (that costs $15 retail and doesn't take up any of your time) that could be spent on a project that saves you a lot of money doesn't make sense to me.
Ben -
Maybe I'm not understanding some element of your rstrap, but the commercial hand straps I've purchased have a 1/4-20 thread on the bottom, just like the camera, so I can still attach a tripod shoe or anything else I want.
I hope you aren't offended by my comment, I just think the time that went into this could be better spent on a project that saves you a lot more money or adds a significant feature that is missing from the commercial units.
For instance, if I spent my time making my own AA batteries, I may find that I can get slightly higher capacity than retail ones, or that they cost me slightly less, or both, but the benefit isn't nearly enough to justify the time invested. I could have been out marketing my work or tickling my daughter.
- Jon
More...
@Sean: check the set again, I added a bunch more better pictures that show the process. Note that I replaced the top plastic D-ring with a key ring--it's slightly easier to attach to the camera.
@Jon: the problem is that once you add on a bunch of stuff to the bottom of a second tripod hole, the whole contraption starts to get big and unwieldy. I had the opportunity to try a Habuka strap (same as all the cheap ones), and I'm not even sure if I'd want to trust my camera on them! Plastic galore! The more expensive ones look great, but then there's actually a point to DIY.
Let's all get back to taking pictures :)
--Ben
ehhh, i dunno...
I'm a big fan of hand straps (check out my post on 'the cheapest camera insurance' here: http://shaunkrisher.wordpress.com/2007/12/09/the-cheapest-camera-insuran...
This thing looks like it screws into the baseplate mount on the bottom of the camera, but then doesn't give you another one. I, too, would prefer the commercial one, even for $30. That's still a marginal cost compared to your dropped camera and lens.
great!!!
Very interesting article. I will add it to my blog
P.
Could you please explain me
Could you please explain me the meaning of 'DOM'
didnt understand
I really didnt get the process either. How does it work?I am curious to know
looks cool
I really like how the final product looks. great piece of equipment. Nice straping technique.
Hi
Having the right strap is imperative. Spend those extra few bucks to get a good strap because you dont want to learn the hard way like I did.
Thanks
The finished item looks cool, I was wondering how are all the different parts assembled in order to get it like that, is there a step by step tutorial ? Thanks.
Post new comment