Gear Reviews: Cecilia Camera Straps
In this modern world of choice overload, it’s become quite difficult to stand out in a saturated market and camera straps are by no means an exception. When inundated with mundane swag and marketing word salads, you can rely on basically two things: craftsmanship and what the company stands for. Cecilia checks both boxes.
They ain’t trying to reinvent the wheel with some nifty sliding system or fancy attachment features, they just focus on quality and let the materials and craftsmanship do the talking. Indeed, the little details are well thought out.
We got our eager little hands on a Charcoal Baby Alpaca Wool/Black Leather Camera Strap and put it to the test on a Rolleiflex SL66. Intended to be used with an SLR but if it can handle the 2kg beast of metal that is the SL66, it’s definitely robust enough for anything Nikon, Canon, Sony et al can dish out.
I certainly appreciate the understated positioning of the logo. While many a straps flaunt their logos with conspicuous sizing and location, Cecilia embosses theirs on the supple black full-grain cowhide leather lining on the inside of the strap. On the flip-side is baby alpaca wool handwoven in the Peruvian highlands. All this reinforced by 250 lb. Tensile Strength nylon/polyester complemented with Zinc-Alloy clasps and buckles.
The edges are finished with superb stitching and I love the balance point of the lines going from wide to thin, it’s elegant and surprisingly robust. Another point of benefit is the lack of itchiness from the wool; in fact, alpaca wool is hypoallergenic because, unlike sheep’s wool, it contains no lanolin and the alpaca wool on these straps are spun to a lovely soft and cotton-like texture. It’s a stark contrast to my Woolrich and Pendleton wool shirts.
After a couple months of regular use on a hefty camera like the SL66, the strap still looks the same as the day it came out of the box but these straps don’t come cheap at around the $90 USD mark. Granted, that’s pretty much standard for any high-end strap these days that balances durability, utility, simplicity, and luxury.
Another caveat, while not applicable to my needs, is the lack of a way for quick detachment. Being able to quickly release a strap from a camera is important to many photographers and a possible solution is getting a quick-connector such as Anchor Links which would set you back another $20. An extra step yes, but a viable solution nonetheless.
Aside from manufacturing goodies, they are also involved in the photography community and making a name for themselves through their support of not only well-established photographers but up-and-coming photographers as well. They curate an online gallery which you can check out here: Cecilia’s curated online gallery
While I have no glaring qualms with the straps, I realize that not everyone is inclined to drop almost $100 on something that functions essentially the same as the stock strap. However, I’m of the opinion that sometimes it’s good to go with a little refinement instead of innovation. And with a range in prices from $46 to $104, we’d argue that there is an option for even the most frugal of light stalkers.
Peep out the many options of camera straps, from wide to narrow neck straps to ring or cord tethered wrist straps over at Cecilia camera straps.
They also feature photographers and swag pics on their Instagram here.
Has anyone else tried their straps? Do you have a favorite brand, or do you use the strap that’s in the box? Feel free to comment below.
MN
Haven’t tried their straps nor even heard of them until now. Since a regular strap of theirs can handle the SL, I want to try something of theirs.
Been using whatever is handy, and that is usually something like a strap that says Canon or Nikon on it. Well these do work, and most importantly, they are adjustable. But there is no utility value when using them, and if using for a long time in one day, there is usually something rather unlikable about that sort of strap. Also, you can’t blend-in very well when you have a brand name strap on the camera, even if the camera itself is discreet.
Tried a few fancy well-made straps which cost some money, and those did not work out.
Even bought a nice leather strap distributed by Leica. Now that was a disappointment because it was too short. It is the type that goes around the neck. It has two lengths, which are short and even shorter.
Then mostly gave up and when buying a strap, usually get a cheap wrist strap meant for a point and shoot.
Michael, Thanks for your review!
Larry, Thanks for replying to the review! We’d love to get a strap in your hands to test out. You can contact me directly at [email protected] and we can discuss.
Cheers,
Michael