DIY R-Strap

After seeing the BlackRapid R-Strap mentioned on Photojojo I knew that I wanted one for greater convenience when walking about with my camera. I hate neck straps because they get in the way when you aren’t using them and make you look like a fat tourist when you are. I might as well break out the khaki shorts and Hawaiian shirt. Aside from the not-exactly-cheap $50 price tag, I figured that and R-Strap was something I should DIY.

My version of the R-Strap is a simple affair, consisting of the plate off my Manfrotto ballhead and some gear from the climbing section of REI. To begin with, I got myself a 2 foot long, 18mm runner which I wear like a bandolier. To this, I attach a simple locking carabiner - I just chose the smallest and cheapest one. I thought about using chintzy keychain carabiners, but then realized I’ll be hangning thousands of dollars of gear off of it and went with the slightly more expensive real thing.

Finally, I tied a small loop of nylon cord to the D-ring on my tripod plate, to which I clip the carabiner. If your tripod plate has a large enough ring, you could clip directly to it.