NEW PRODUCT- The Perfect Camera Strap

REVIEW

Abie Camera Straps

By Betsy Finn, Cr.Photog., CPP

Finding the perfect camera strap is no easy feat. A number of elements go into this decision, including comfort, capability, and of course, style. Usually, you can find a strap with one or maybe two of these qualities, but it’s rare to find one that has all three. If you’re tired of sacrificing your fashion sense for comfort, or are ready for a camera strap that is comfortable to wear during long shoots, you may want to give Abie Camera Straps a chance.

Abie Camera Straps are both practical and fashionable. When you first hold one of these straps in your hand, you can feel the difference—I was impressed with the amount of padding in the strap, as well as the suppleness of the material. I fell in love with two designs in particular: subtle brown suede with an embossed motif, and a lighthearted yellow floral woven design.

The straps come in more than 20 styles, so whether you are looking for something whimsical, elegant, or subtle, you’ll have multiple options to choose from. Guys, don’t worry—there are some more masculine designs you will not be ashamed to wear out in public. If you’re looking for something more you, custom straps (even showcasing your logo) can be designed upon request. Unless you decide you want to add your logo, though, Abie Camera Straps come delightfully free of branding. You won’t be promoting a camera company or any business aside from your own.

I want to highlight several features that help Abie Camera Straps to stand out from the ordinary camera straps I’ve used in the past:

• Comfort

In case I haven’t emphasized it enough, the straps are well padded, yet are somehow not bulky to wear.

• Quick Release Buckles

The straps feature a pair of plastic buckles that allow you to change out camera straps easily, or even go strapless. I appreciated this because I like wearing a camera strap on location, but having a strap on my camera in the studio inhibits my shooting style (I use a camera stand).

• Plenty of Length

Since I am rather short (5'3"), the strap “ends” (that connect to the camera) were longer than I needed. This is a nice feature, as my husband (6'2") can rarely find a camera strap that allows the camera to hang properly. For myself, though, I trimmed off about six inches of excess length on each side (with more to spare). If you do decide to trim your straps, just make sure to heat the newly cut ends so that the nylon will not fray.

• Secret Pocket

Aside from the comfort factor, the straps are very well constructed, with a hidden pocket to hold an extra Compact Flash card (on the underside of the strap). [see below]

• No-Slip Backing

The backside of the strap, regardless of your strap’s motif, is soft black suede. I really enjoyed this feature because it kept the strap from sliding off my shoulder when I was working.

The straps are currently designed for use with Canon, Nikon, Olympus, Pentax, Sony and other DSLR cameras. A hand strap is also in the works for those who prefer not to work with a neck strap. One final thing to note—Abie Camera Straps are crafted and sewn in the United States. Overall, I enjoyed using the Abie Camera Straps while working with my clients. As I mentioned, the ease with which I could detach the strap for studio work was extremely convenient. Despite the detachable nature of the strap, I felt comfortable trusting it to support the entire weight of my camera and lens. Even my model in the images accompanying this review remarked on how comfortable the strap was to have around her neck. In short—if you’re tired of having a subpar camera strap and want something comfortable, I think you should give Abie Camera Straps a test run. You’ll be amazed at the level of comfort it will add to your workday!

Abie Camera Straps are the brainchild of photographer and entrepreneur Ellen LeRoy, and retail for $145-175. The official website will be launching in about two weeks, so for now, you can visit www.abiestraps.com to get a sneak peek. Sign up to receive an e-mail notification when the site launches (and get an exclusive discount code at that time!).

Betsy Finn, Cr.Photog., CPP, has a portrait studio in Dexter, Michigan (BetsysPhotography.com); she shares tips and ideas for photographers at LearnWithBetsy.com.

Mark

©Photosical - the photographic, philosophical observations of Orange County Photographer, Mark Jordan

Mark Jordan Photography specializes in crafting stunning contemporary, traditional, classic, and storytelling family portraits (high school seniors, children portraits, babies, maternity, pregnancy), headshots and pets. Mark Jordan, a Photography Hall of Fame photographer in Rancho Santa Margarita and provides portrait photography throughout Orange County. The portrait studio also serves San Diego County and Inland Empire. Studio Photography Services are also provided in Riverside County and Los Angeles County. Local Cites where photography studio services are offered are in Aliso Viejo, Anaheim, Brea, Costa Mesa, Coto de Caza, Cypress, Dana Point, Dove Canyon, Fountain Valley, Huntington Beach, Irvine, Ladera Ranch, Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, Laguna Woods, Lake Forest, Mission Viejo, Newport Beach, Northwood, Orange, Orange Park Acres, San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano, Santa Ana, Tustin, Villa Park, Westminster, Yorba Linda, Corona del Mar, Murrieta, Murrieta Hot Springs, Quail Valley, Riverside, Temecula, Winchester, Chino Hills, Fontana, Grand Terrace, Loma Linda, Montclair, Rancho Bernardo, Carlsbad, Coronado, Del Mar, Escondido, La Mesa, Oceanside, San Diego, San Marcos, Solana Beach, Vista, Carmel Mountain Ranch, Rancho San Diego, Rancho Santa Fe, and San Diego Country Estates, Turtle Rock, Shady Canyon. Portrait Photographers everywhere (photographers in O.C. as well) are welcome to contact our portrait studio for mentoring/guidance.

Mark Jordan Photography

Orange County Family Portrait

Orange County Beach Portrait

Orange County Senior Portrait

Orange County Headshot

Belly Art Photography

Wordle™ Puzzles

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Camera straps business photo business portraitexecutive family portraits head-shot headshotportait planning portrait design portrait sessionpublicity

REVIEW: The Polester

By Betsy Finn, Cr.Photog., CPP
I recently had the chance to try out The Polester, created by Longshot Camera Systems. It’s a “camera-on-a-stick” device that allows you to photograph things from a drastically different angle than you could achieve with your own reach (unless, of course, you are Stretch Armstrong).

The rig consists of a camera mount, triggering device with a retractable string (like an extendable dog leash) that extends down to the base of the pole. As you extend the pole, the triggering string remains slightly taut. When I received my review unit, I got a crash course on assembly. In short, you want the vertical portion of the trigger to hug the camera body as closely as possible. The little arm at the top of the trigger is meant to hover over the shutter, and by pulling on the string lightly, you can focus before pulling harder to take the shot.

The camera mount portion of the setup attaches to a double-action locking telescoping pole, which  s very nifty. The pole has a handle with a release button, and it allows you to swiftly and easily extend the pole to the height you need.

Components of the Polester assembly.

Here’s what it looks like when you have everything assembled. I have to say, the trigger mechanism is a very clever invention.

While I could see some potential to use it at events (i.e., a wedding, sports tournament), I wasn’t exactly sure how applicable it would be for a portrait session. Obviously with a large venue, you could hoist up the camera to get a nice bird’s eye view of the area, as blogger Rob Sylvan did during Imaging USA 2010. But for a portrait session, the applications might be more limited.

I ended up using the Polester to capture an overhead view of my model (below). Yes, I scheduled a special session just to test this out, as I thought it might take some time to get the hang of framing my subject while more than an arm’s reach away from my camera.



In retrospect, I have to tell you that working with the Polester is easier said than done in some circumstances. When you have a five pound camera setup that you’re supporting at the end of a pole, there is quite a bit of sway; I had to use significantly faster shutter speed than normal to avoid blur. The amount of sway in the fully extended pole also affected my composition. So, it was a matter of trial and error to get the shot I wanted. On top of that, my arms got tired from repetitively extending the pole (to take a few shots) and retracting it (to see if I’d framed it right).

My conclusion? If you are an event photographer looking for a way to get “the shot” that requires being heads above everyone else, the Polester is a great tool to have. It would be great for evidence photographers, or press photojournalists. But for typical portrait work, it may not be worth lugging around. I might bring it along to a sports event or a wedding in the future in order to get a nice “scene” shots, but I am pretty sure I will not be bringing it on another portrait session.

Depending on the size of your camera, you may need either the point and shoot trigger device, or the larger DSLR trigger device. While both do a good job, it’s a lot easier, physically, to hold the point and shoot up for any length of time than it is to hold a DSLR up in the air at the end of a pole.

The Polester was originally invented to allow contractors and inspectors to easily photograph places that were hard (or dangerous) to get to. There are two version of the Polester, both of which retail for $199. For more information about the Polester, or to watch a demonstrational video, visit Longshot Camera Systems.

Mark

©Photosical - the photographic and philosophical observations of Orange County Photographer, Mark Jordan Photography

Mark Jordan Photography
Orange County Family Portrait
Orange County Beach Portrait
Orange County Senior Portrait
Orange County Children Portraits
Orange County Headshot
Belly Art Photography
Wordle™ Puzzles

Orange County Photographer, Mark Jordan Photography, a family portrait photographer in Rancho Santa Margarita, specializes in crafting striking family portrait photography with styles ranging from contemporary, traditional, and storytelling. Mark Jordan photography (as award winning beach photographer) also specializes in beach family photography, high school seniors, children portraits, babies, maternity and headshots. Mark Jordan, a Photography Hall of Fame photographer (a Rancho Santa Margarita portrait studio), and provides family portrait photography throughout Orange County and Southern California. Mark Jordan's Orange County family portrait studio also serves San Diego County and Inland Empire. Studio Photography Services are also provided in Riverside County and Los Angeles County. Local Cites where Mark Jordan photography studio services are offered are as an Aliso Viejo Photographer, Anaheim Photographer, Costa Mesa Photographer, Coto de Caza Photographer, Dana Point Photographer, Dove Canyon Photographer, Huntington Beach Photographer, Irvine Photographer, Ladera Ranch Photographer, Laguna Beach Photographer, Laguna Hills Photographer, Laguna Niguel Photographer, Lake Forest Photographer, Mission Viejo Photographer, Newport Beach Photographer, Northwood Photographer, Orange Photographer, Orange Park Acres Photographer, San Clemente Photographer, San Juan Capistrano Photographer, Santa Ana Photographer, Tustin Photographer, Villa Park Photographer, Westminster Photographer, Yorba Linda Photographer, Corona del Mar Photographer, Riverside Photographer, Temecula Photographer, Chino Hills Photographer, Loma Linda Photographer, Rancho Bernardo Photographer, Carlsbad Photographer, San Diego Photographer, Turtle Rock Photographer, Shady Canyon Photographer. Portrait Photographers everywhere (photographers in O.C. as well) are welcome to contact our family portrait studio for mentoring/guidance.

Betsy Finn, Cr.Photog., CPP, has a portrait studio in Dexter, Michigan (BetsysPhotography.com); she shares tips and ideas for photographers atLearnWithBetsy.com.

Tags:
Camera Accessories
Longshot Camera Systems