Carrying the Canon 7D

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For some time now I've been meaning to write about my very favorite camera accessory.

It's called the Cotton Carrier and I have to tell you, it has changed my photographic life.

Let me back up a bit here. For years, I shot with a Panasonic Lumix, a truly wonderful camera. In fact, all the photos on this blog prior to February of 2010 were shot using a Panasonic Lumix. One of the great advantages of this camera is that it's incredibly light weight.

Then, about a year ago, I played with a friends Canon 7D, and I knew it was time for me to finally take the Digital SLR plunge. And I really love my Canon, it's an amazing camera, with just one tiny problem.

This sucker is really heavy.

At first I thought it wouldn't be that big of a problem, but as time went by, it became apparent that it was going to be a gigantic hindrance. It all came to a head last fall when we were in Capitol Reef. We took off for a hike one day, it was fairly warm, and the footing was pretty rocky. I tried carrying it around my neck, but that got bad pretty quickly. Then I tried carrying it in my hand, but I needed my hands for balance. Then I tried over my shoulder, but it just didn't feel secure enough. Not being the most stable on my feet (actually, I'm an enormous klutz), I was having a really difficult time. Finally, we just returned to the rig.

Where I started looking at camera straps, and let me tell you, there are a million different ones out there. Then I started seeing mention made on several sites of a contraption called a Cotton Carrier. Holy Moly, this thing looks like Japanese Samurai gear! And it's expensive to boot. But the more I look at it, the more sense it makes. I keep looking all over the Internet, but over and over I kept returning to the Cotton Carrier.

Finally, I talked with Terry, took a final look and realized it was available on Amazon (with an easy return policy) and pressed the order button.

And I have never looked back.

The hardest part of the whole set up is initially getting the fit right. It took both Terry and I awhile to figure out exactly where the straps should ride, but once we got that settled, I took it out for the exact same hike, and the difference was night and day.

The Cotton Carrier was a real revelation. Not only did it carry my heavy Canon 7D with absolutely no strain at all, but I am also able to carry my Panasonic Lumix in the added holster (I carry both because I don't have a wide lens for my Canon, and the Lumix takes such excellent wide angle shots).

At first, I thought it looked pretty silly. But now, I really don't care how it looks. It's the perfect accompaniment to my Canon 7D, or any camera for that matter.

I use it all the time. Whenever we go out shooting, I put it on. You can walk, hike, ride a bike, climb a hill, do just about anything and not only is your camera totally protected, it's immediately available for use.

It's the cat's meow,
the bees knees
and
the best thing since sliced bread.

If you want to read more about it,
you can find information
on their website at
CottonCarrier.com