Camera Sling

[Daniel Hamilton]

Hello,

 

Are there any AC's out there who have attempted to create their own camera slings for 35mm? I'm working on one now based on a modified SAW machinegun sling (the only sling I could find that's rated for the types of weight 35mm entails), you can find it here:

 

http://www.specialforces.com/store/custome...=294&page=1

 

Obviously the final mounting hardware will have to vary for each camera it's used with, but I'm replacing the lightweight metal clips on the ends of the sling with heavy-duty D-rings cross-stitched into the nylon. I imagine I'll use climbing carabiners to clip into these D-rings, and various and sundry attachment methods using 2" climbing web to fix the carabiners to the camera. This sling is also very nice because it's three-point, so you can adjust the camera position without having to adjust the way the sling fits on your body.

 

The sling would of course only be a security measure, especially useful in handheld situations on treacherous terrain, but it's always seemed like it would be a good idea to have the ability to secure a camera to your body just in case.

 

Anyone else have any similar homebrew solutions?

 

-Daniel Hamilton

1st Asst. Camera

Los Angeles, CA

[Brad Grimmett]

My question is why do you need this and who is it for? If it's for the 1st it doesn't seem like the best solution. It's not going to make carrying the camera any more comfortable and it will be time consuming to clip in and out of it before and after every take. If it's for an operator it doesn't make much sense to me either because of the same reasons it wouldn't be good for an AC.

Also, anyone using this to carry a camera is going to have a big problem if they have a fall while carrying the camera. You mention using it in treacherous terrain. It would actually make it much more dangerous since the person will be unable to push the camera away from their body, so either they will fall ON the camera, or the camera will fall on them. Not pretty. I'd prefer to trash a camera and not crack my skull. For example, when steadicam operators fall, which they do on occasion, they are normally injured by the gear slamming into their body, or vice versa, and not by the fall itself.

Maybe I'm misunderstanding and I'm way off track. Please elaborate a little more.