NEW LADIES’ CAMERA STRAP | RS-W1 by Black Rapid from BLACKRAPID on Vimeo.

Boys and girls are different.  When we hit puberty we become very different.  In many cases our bodies zig where the boys’ zag.  Though the industry has come far in the way of Lady Gear I still sympathize with the Amazons.  I can see the convenience of removing your right breast, whether it is in the battle field or the photo field.  Much of the gear for girls is boy gear with a pretty color on it.  Yes, some of us are that superficial, and others of us wish our camera straps would pick a side of our boobs and stick to it.  Black Rapid has released a solution to the problem.  The RS-W1.  It stays neatly between your breast, and allows you to keep your camera safely off of the ground while your hands are free.

The boobs, or rather the face of the RS-W1 is LaRae Lobdell.  I am a nosy person and she consented to answer for me the questions that were burning in my breast.

LaRae Lobdell has been shooting weddings in the Seattle are for over 10 years.  That is where she met the future inventor of the Rapid Strap, Ron Henry, and even test drove his hardware-store proto-types.  She loved the concept, but if you’ve met LaRae you know she is one of those adorable women that you want to put in your purse and take home with you.  At 5’3” just about all of the straps were to big, bulky, or awkward to pair with the formal garb of a “lady.”  Not to mention that we ladies have these things on our chest that prevents straps from laying flat, and makes any additional bulk look like an advertisement.  Last Winter Black Rapid and LaRae began collaborating on a strap that would work for her, me, most other women, function, and still look bitchin’ with a ballgown.

I met the boob strap at WPPI.  I saw it from across the room and was smitten.  LaRae helped me try it on, and though I have 5 inches on her it still was a far superior fit to the other straps in the booth.  I ran home and excitedly told all of my photo sisters about the boob strap.  I spent the next 4 months messaging her: when?  Now?  How about now?  Soon?  And it is finally here!  It is only recently available so your favorite store might look at you like a moron when you ask for it, but keep asking.  How else will we prove to the industry that we need more than a pretty bag!

I also got some info on LaRae and where she stands on gear, garb, and giggles (she’s a girl and uses her prerogative to giggle, even in print).  She’s shooting Nikon, but has the sense enough to know,

it isn’t what you have, it’s how you use it.

Does the industry underestimate the relationship between a girl and her gear?

That’s a really good question. I photograph a lot of events, many for large charity fundraisers that I am required to wear a party dress to (in heels) and blend in with the guests. I’m 5’3” and look ridiculous with 2 or 3 cameras and a bag of lenses dangling off of a cocktail dress. Straps pull at clothing and require constant, ah-hem, adjustment.

Personally, I feel that the industry makes everything “one size fits all”, without taking into consideration that carrying a lot of camera gear and accessories is not only uncomfortable, it can also unattractive. Belts, straps, bags: most are bulky, uncomfortable and unappealing for women photographers to wear, but we must wear them to do our vocation, day in and day out.

Over the last year I’ve been seeing a good amount of camera and laptop bags that have sleek, practical and cute designs with women in mind; it is extremely refreshing to see. I think companies are starting to pay attention that half of the industry is women and believe that we will start seeing more of the industry creating products tailored to us.

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