Hey everyone, time for a review of another innovative photography product. This time around we will be taking a look at the Carry Speed DS-Slim camera strap. I think it’s funny that I just recently did a review of a different strap from a different company, and when I did the review I thought to myself, “there are no more new ideas for straps at this point. Yeah, I was obviously wrong!But before I go ahead any further I of course have to mention that this strap was provided for review by the cool people over at Carry Speed and not purchased by me. So with that out of the way let’s have a look at what sets this apart from the crowd!
The Carry Speed DS-Slim mounted to the Olympus OM-D
Right off the bat you should have noticed that the way the Carry Speed DS-Slim attaches to the camera looks a bit different from anything else on the market. Instead of flush mounting to the tripod socket you see this shaft protruding from the bottom of the camera. And it is this that makes the Carry Speed unique. Let’s have a closer look at that. As you can see below instead of a mounting lug that simply swivels on one axis the Carry Speed used a patented “ball and socket” configuration that allows your camera to not only swivel about one axis, but also to pivot as it rotates. It doesn’t sound like a major improvement at first, but once it is on your camera you will see how this is actually a genius idea. No more having your camera stuck at an awkward angle as you pull it up to shoot like when using other brands of camera straps. The ability to pivot on that ball ensures that when you pull up your camera to shoot it can pivot into a comfortable position. In the image below you can see the knurled metal collar that the ball/stem mounts into. To attach the stem to your camera simply turn the collar counter clockwise to loosen it, and remove the ball/stem from the collar.
The swivel mount on the Carry Speed DS-Slim
After you have removed the stem simply thread it into your tripod mount hole and tighten down using a coin. A coin? If you look closely at this shot you can see that they have even designed it w/ a coin slot to make tightening it down that much easier. Once attached you just insert it back into the collar and turn the collar clockwise to tighten. That’s it!
Ball/stem inside of the socket w/ collar loosened.
But as far as the strap itself is concerned it is a pretty basic design. It is nylon webbing which is pretty standard as far as straps go. The shoulder pad is pretty cool though. It is a vented piece of neoprene that is really soft and squishy. That makes for a comfortable fit. It is however a little flimsy and if I am going to be honest here it is where the design falls short. I am sure the pad will hold up, but it does feel like the weakest part of this design and I prefer the strap and shoulder pad on my Black Rapid straps much more.
As we get to the end of this review I think that in order to really show off all these features a little video review would be perfect, and it just so happens that Paula Thomas of Gapey’s Grub has created a review of this strap just for you. So sit back and enjoy Paula’s take on this awesome strap.
In conclusion I would have to say that I can completely recommend this strap to anyone using the µ4/3 camera systems. I actually at this very moment have it mounted to one of my OM-Ds and when it isn’t attached it is stowed away in my Think TANK Photo Retrospective bag.
Purchase the Carry Speed DS-Slim Strap on Amazon
Take care everyone and as always I encourage you to ask questions or leave comments below.
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