Preventing strap marks

[jay_.]

If Cameron has enough pride of ownership in something he's spent big bucks on to want to avoid at least the damage he can anticipate and easily prevent, what's it to you guys? Just like all the people who rant on about just using a hood or lenscap and not a UV filter are usually the first ones to shun a lens with cleaning marks, people who advise someone else not to care about the condition of their camera are usually the ones to nitpick the living sh*t out of one they're thinking of buying, or else try to haggle the price way down on that basis.

[wgpinc]

I put black photo tape on things like that. Prevents wear, is warmer than metal to the touch and comes off relatively easily. I even taped the top tube on my bogen 3001N tripod. Tape the whole damn camera and then it will look like my M2. Good luck.<div></div>

[david_s4]

I've seen at least two mentioned in the forum that may work for you. They have leather tabs affixed to the strap-ends that fit between the split-rings and the camera body:

<ul>

<li>Voigtlander <a href="http://www.cosina.co.jp/strap/">Deluxe Carrying Strap</a> available for $25 at <a href="http://cameraquest.com/inventor.htm">CameraQuest</a></li>

<li>Domke <a href="http://www.tiffen.com/domkecat35.htm">Gripper Camera Strap</a>, available for $13 at <a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=16174&is=REG">B&H</a> or <a href="http://adorama.com/catalog.tpl?op=details&sid=10721132741075959&sku=DMST1000BK">Adorama</a></li>

</ul>

If you choose to purchase from one of the latter two stores, consider browsing there from an advertisement on photo.net, so the site will receive credit for the sale.

[cameron_sawyer]

Thanks again, everyone. Wow, what a response!

 

Thanks in particular to Jay, for the rubber tube idea, and to David, for the leads on straps.

 

A number of people expressed some disdain for the idea that anyone should even think about avoiding unnecessary wear on their gear. Some people seemed to be saying that there are only two approaches to the issue: (a) trash the living hell out of your gear; or (b) keep in a glass case and don't use it at all. I suggest that this is completely wrong.

 

My pro days are long gone, but I try to treat my tools the way I did back then: I use them hard and don't baby them, but I try to keep them clean, avoid dunking them in water, and try to avoid scraping them against walls and bashing them against trees. If you had ever earned your living with your cameras you would know what I mean, at least if you'd earned your living with gear which was your own property and not just checked out of some newspaper's property department. The same with any car mechanic, surgeon, or anyone else who uses tools.

 

Therefore, I don't mind at all the inevitable scratches (got the first one yesterday, in fact, that paint IS soft), but why not take elementary precautions to avoid the non-inevitable ones? Especially those ugly strap marks? People who just don't care at all, it seems to me, are either complete slovens, or in fact just don't encounter the issue -- they just don't take their gear very often out of their carpeted, suburban ranch house environment.

 

My gear does not live such a pampered life. This year I travelled to 9 different countries, some of them primitive, and a dozen or more provincial Russian cities. I am a platinum frequent flier on Aeroflot (just a thousand more kilometers and I get the free goat, just kidding), and the M6 is always in my bag. I jumped out of a Russian Air Force helicopter with it (I had a parachute in addition to the Leica, fortunately). At the beginning of the year, the camera was mint, but now it is definitely user quality with more than one scratch on it. But it still works fine (actually smoother than when it was new) and has a nice patina, and so will continue to give me service for some years to come. If I just didn't give a shit about it like some of you suggest, it would already be time to replace it, which I can't afford to do every year (well, frankly, I could afford to, but I really don't see the point).

 

So again, for those who contributed to this effort, instead of just sneering (through the picture windows of their ranch houses), thank you!<div></div>

[gerald_widen]

I third the use of some kind of black tape over the area where it would hit. Actually my first suggestion is not to worry about it.

[stephen_w.]

Here's my solution for avoiding strap marks: I don't use straps on the camera. They are always getting tangled up in something. I use fanny packs, Eagle Creek bags, and other not meant for camera packs, but work fine as camera bags that have straps. I bike, and don't want my camera swinging in the wind. I prefer nylon to canvas or leather, so I can toss them in the washing machine every few months or so (depending on where they have been). I prefer removable straps and D-rings, as I can use the straps I prefer, usually laptop case strap or two (shoulder and waist), as they're meant to be comfortable lugging 7-8 pounds of gear.

[jay_.]

Black tape gets gooey and starts to slip off, leaving behind a mess which requires solvent to clean off.

[billsr]

If the finish is as soft as Cameron suggests, I would hesitate to apply protective tape to it. The adhesive might well penetrate and soften the paint even further or even lift it off upon removal. The bottom half of the Leica ever ready case I have does not allow the lug rings or plastic clips to make contact with the camera body. The strap terminals rest on the leather case instead. Best regards, Bill

[________1]

No Cameron, I�m sneering at you through the barred windows of a social housing project I manage in the poorest neighbourhood in Canada. A tiny neighbourhood I and my neighbours share with 5,000 IV drug users, 75% of whom are HIV positive. Vancouver�s dirty little secret. The building is located on a �low track� stroll; that means addicted teenage hookers. My morning ritual includes sweeping up hypodermic needles and used condoms, before the children here are walked to school. And I still think worrying over your LHSA paint job is silly.

[paulstenquist]

Sunbathing in the nude will help prevent strap marks.

[fredus]

The Domkey straps are nice but they don't prevent entirely the rubbing ... There is still some rubbing happening.

 

Fred

[hadji_singh]

Personally, I like the rubbing...

[cameron_sawyer]

"No Cameron, I�m sneering at you through the barred windows of a social housing project I manage in the poorest neighbourhood in Canada. A tiny neighbourhood I and my neighbours share with 5,000 IV drug users, 75% of whom are HIV positive. Vancouver�s dirty little secret. The building is located on a �low track� stroll; that means addicted teenage hookers. My morning ritual includes sweeping up hypodermic needles and used condoms, before the children here are walked to school. And I still think worrying over your LHSA paint job is silly."

 

 

OK, OK! How can I argue with that? But isn't all of photography itself a petty vanity in that context? What are YOU doing here?