Last Updated on 02/27/2014 by Chris Gampat
When retailer Mako Haus reached out to us about the FotoStraps, we took to a particular liking to them. But when they added in that the sale of each one goes towards a non-profit setup to fight adversity, we were even more taken away. We called in the Graphite Canvas Fotostrap, which has brown leather accents and a whole lot of sexiness about it coming out of the packaging.
Pros and Cons
Pros
– Beautiful and well built strap
– It’s got a soft touch but still feels quite rugged and well made
Cons
– Leather scuffs a bit too much for our liking
Tech Specs
Taken from the company’s listing of their product.
FEATURES
100% genuine leather and canvas fabric camera strap
Ergonomic shoulder pad with non slip padding (monogramming is available for just $8)
Brass hardware – holds up to 40 lbs
Charcoal gray color
SPECIFICATIONS
Total adjustable length:Â 46.5″ to 49.5″
Length of decorative portion of the strap: 32.5″
Width of camera strap:1.5″
Width of attachment strap that fits into camera body: 7/16″
Shoulder pad: 8″L x 2.5″W
Ergonomics
The Fotostrap is a long piece of art–and we’re refraining from calling it a product here because we believe it really is a piece of art in its creation. Though it seems modest in appearance, it is overall quite beautiful and simple in its design.
Along the main section of the body is the gray canvas that is padded on the inside–at least it feels that way. However, it has full pliability. On one end of the strap is the company’s logo and branding in brown leather to accompany the look of the gray.
Along the brown leather are brass buckles and buttons added to the design. These buckles are how you’ll ensure that the strap stays in place. At one point, it also has another sliver that you slip over another part of the leather belt to keep that in place. This requires pulling the strap belt tightly to begin with though.
The strap has a padded shoulder pad that is comfortable and has a bit of grip to it. We imagine that in the warmer months that this grip might make skin not feel so great. With that said, we recommend using this strap in the winter or colder months. A pad like this also doesn’t let skin breathe so well.
Build Quality
We tugged on this strap as much as we could and couldn’t find a major weak point about it. However, we recommend that you properly adjust the buckles because otherwise they can be a tad problematic. For what it’s worth though, we never had the camera fall out of the strap–just become a bit more loose than we’d like.
When wrapped around a wrist instead of slung around a shoulder, the strap basically acts as a scarf for your wrist. In essence, that will mean that it will make you warmer in the summer and toasty in the winter.
The material is thick, and therefore doesn’t have a lot of breathing room.
If you carry a mirrorless camera though, forget about it. This strap is way too thick to match a camera of that size. Instead, you’ll want to affix this one to a DSLR of some sort.
Ease of Use
As with any strap, it’s really just about fitting it on and shooting to your heart’s content. This strap in particular is as simple as putting on your belt in the morning–except that you need to do it twice. Once it’s snugly fit and in place you’ll have no problems.
Conclusions
Sleek, sexy, sturdy, and somehow or another giving to a good cause–what’s not to like? We really digg the Fotostrap Graphic Canvas offering, and think that many photographers will, too, if they carry a DSLR.
