Most photographers, especially when starting, will use the official camera strap that shipped with their camera. However, these straps can be uncomfortable even under the best circumstances, and they are even more frustrating when using a backpack, since they can interfere with the shoulder straps. The BlackRapid Backpack Strap is one product that addresses this issue. In today’s review, I will explore how the BlackRapid Backpack strap performs in practice and whether it can help you carry your camera more comfortably while wearing a backpack.
Note that this strap is not meant to be used on its own, but rather in combination with a backpack! I purchased this strap last autumn for personal use, and I have no connection or sponsorship from the maker.
(Image from BlackRapid website)
Table of Contents
The Standard Backpack Strap Dilemma
Before I dive into the specifics of the BlackRapid Backpack Strap, it’s helpful to understand the alternatives and some of the problems they run into when using a backpack.
- Neck Strap: Wearing a neck strap over your backpack straps is uncomfortable. The weight of the camera sits directly on your neck, causing fatigue and pain, especially with heavy setups. Additionally, the camera tends to dangle and swing uncomfortably in front of the body.
- Single Shoulder Sling: This option is perhaps the worst when combined with a backpack. The camera strap has to compete for space on the shoulder with the strap of the backpack. The result is that one or both will tend to slip on the neck, requiring constant adjustment.
- Belt Clip or Shoulder Strap: There are clip systems that attach the camera to your belt or directly to the shoulder strap of the backpack. While they offer quick access, and I have used them happily with gear like the Z6 and 24-120mm f/4, they can be bulky and typically cannot support heavy loads.
The BlackRapid Backpack Strap
BlackRapid approached this problem from a different angle. Instead of creating another strap that competes with the backpack, they designed a solution that integrates with it. The central idea of the Backpack Strap is to use the backpack’s load-bearing structure as a camera support system.
The BlackRapid Backpack Strap is, at its core, a minimalist yet highly functional system made of three parts:
- Backpack Attachment Points: The actual “shoulder strap” is made of a sturdy ballistic nylon webbing that is not worn around the neck or on the shoulder. At its ends, it has carabiners that attach to attachment points found on most technical or photography backpacks: D-rings on the shoulder straps, webbing loops, or other sturdy attachment points. Check your backpack and verify that it has these attachment points before use!
- Sliding System: It is the heart of any BlackRapid system. There’s a sliding buckle which can be adjusted in length to adapt to your body shape, a carabiner to attach to the backpack, and a thread to fit the 1/4″-20 tripod mount on the underside of your camera body or lens collar. This allows the camera to hang comfortably at the side (or slightly forward or back, depending on the adjustment) and slide smoothly along the strap when the photographer raises it to their eye to shoot.
- Locking Bumpers: There are two adjustable bumpers along the strap. These can be slid and locked into place. They are used to define how far the camera travels along the strap.
Weight and Ergonomics
The BlackRapid Backpack Strap itself is exceptionally lightweight (132 grams / 0.29 pounds all included), adding negligible weight to your overall rig. It also comes with a small mesh bag that fits the strap system.
The primary ergonomic advantage of this strap lies in how it distributes the weight of the camera. Instead of placing the load on your neck or a single shoulder, the Backpack Strap transfers the weight of your camera directly to the harness of your backpack. This means that the weight is supported by the padded shoulder straps and, when the backpack is worn correctly, also by the hip belt. This utilizes the entire carrying system of the backpack, which is designed to handle much heavier loads compared to a traditional neck strap.
In practice, I found some tangible benefits:
- Comfort: There was little tension on my neck or shoulders, so it was possible to take longer hikes without the fatigue typical of traditional shoulder straps.
- Stability: The camera was surprisingly stable along my side, with minimal oscillation, thanks to the bumpers and the low attachment point (tripod screw). Also, the system works in harmony with a backpack, so there is no conflict between straps and shoulder pads.
- Safe transport: It isn’t as safe to carry the camera outside the backpack, in case you fall or it hits some obstacle next to you. However, the stable attachment point still felt much safer compared to a traditional neck strap where the camera can swing around. Also, the Backpack Strap can be paired with a secondary tether strap (such as the BlackRapid Tether Kit) if you want an additional connection point between the camera and the backpack.
- Freedom of Movement: I found that I could adjust the strap to hold the camera out of the way, so it was possible to keep my hands free even for using trekking poles.
- Access: This is the main benefit of a strap system in the first place, compared to keeping the camera in your backpack. The camera is always quickly accessible with this strap system; the camera slides up along the strap to your eye.
Handling Maximum Weight: The Z9 with 600mm f/4 Tested
The real challenge for any carrying system is handling heavy, costly gear. That’s why I believe pairing the Nikon Z9 with the Nikkor Z 600mm f/4 TC VR S lens is a significant test.
In my experience, the BlackRapid Backpack Strap is one of the few practical and effective solutions for this scenario because it can transfer the load to the backpack harness effectively, and the center of gravity of the entire camera and lens system is lower and more balanced, making carrying more comfortable and reducing stress.
Drawbacks
I think this is a pretty clever solution, but it is not free of drawbacks.
- Putting on and taking off the backpack with the shoulder strap attached at both points is possible, but not comfortable. I always prefer to detach the camera and lens and remove one of the two carabiners. In short, it is not difficult, but it certainly makes taking off and putting on the backpack slower. Of course, other camera straps also slow down the process of removing the backpack in their own ways.
- The bolt must be screwed into the bottom of the camera, either to the Arca plate you already have on it or to the tripod mount of the lens, which prevents you from immediately using the camera or lens on the tripod.
BlackRapid produces flat-head bolts that can be folded and “disappear” into certain tripod plate models. However, I don’t see them as a perfect solution considering they only work with some tripod plates, and they are expensive. That said, unscrewing the bolt does not require tools and can be done quickly (this is what I do). Alternatively, you can use a ring connected to a generic quick-detach (QD) quick release mount to speed up the process, instead of the standard BlackRapid bolt, provided that the tripod plate you use has that type of attachment.
Conclusion
The BlackRapid Backpack Strap is a cleverly designed tool that addresses a specific and common problem for many photographers. It alleviates the frustration and discomfort of carrying your camera in an accessible position while wearing a backpack. Its capacity to effectively distribute weight across the backpack harness makes it especially comfortable, and even suitable for carrying heavy body/lens combinations like a Nikon Z9 with a 600mm f/4 for extended periods. While it does come with some minor drawbacks, similar issues are present with most any sling system, so I do not consider them to be concerning.
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I hope you enjoyed this review of the BlackRapid Backpack Strap. If you have any questions or feedback, please don’t hesitate to leave them in the comments section below.
nice article, Due to a design choice by Nikon. For the owners of a Nikkor Z 70-200 f2.8, don’t attach your strap on the tripod foot, since the screws holding the lens are too short and too small (diameter) they tend to break.
Thank you for your comment, Bjorn. This is a topic I should touch on in the article.
Even if I didn’t get any first-hand information about how this problem spread, I was used to screw the bolt directly into the hole on the lens barrel and not into the removable foot (that I use only when I use the tripod).
This certainly eliminates the leverage effect that I suppose has a role in that fault.
The 70-200 shares the same foot with 100-400 and 600PF, so I’m pretty confident the lens barrel has the very same hole. I also suppose that hole is there for this reason, as the lens foot doesn’t use it.
To me, that kind of strap means your gear will be hurt in a way or another. I prefer to have my gears safe in a bag or in my hand when used.
When walking, I usually combine a sling bag with a standard shoulder camera bag, the second being under the other and each being held on each shoulder. That allows me to balance weight between shoulders (or change the balance to avoid tiring) while allowing an easy access to cameras. And I’m free to add belt bags – or use more pockets – if I need more contents, that way.
On the other hand, I’m not a great hiker – to say the least ;) – and mostly use a bicycle (and everything is suspended on it by now, to save my back).
“Putting on and taking off the backpack with the shoulder strap attached at both points is possible, but not comfortable.”
This!
For most photographers/situations there are better tools available for years already which solve the problem even better: Peak Design Capture Clip or Pgytech Beetle Clip! While with this strap the camera dangles around while hiking, with such a clip the camera is attached firmly and out of the way.
For really big lenses the clips are not suited, but for example, I have done many hikes with a Tamron 50-400 with no problems at all. So this strap here is only a niche product for people with really big tele lenses, all others are better served with a clip.
No thanks. You may not know this, but photographers get a bad rap for being geeky. Those clips do NOT help the situation! ;-)
Thanks for the comment Christoph.
As usual, there are personal preferences on the tools, which does not surprise me.
However, I do not agree with the summary of your evaluation. This shoulder strap can be used with all cameras and all lenses, it is flexible.
Conversely, the clip, which, as I wrote, I have used and own, is limited to combinations below a certain weight and size; as these increase, it becomes less and less comfortable until it is completely unusable. I would add that the clip, during atmospheric events, even of minimal magnitude, and such as not to hinder photography, exposes the eyepiece of the camera, making it then problematic to photograph.