Bad luck!

[chris dees]

I'm sorry for you Chris 😔  For my understanding, I guess that the D810 assembly was fixed on a mono/tripod, the latter being handheld ?

No, everything handheld. No mono/tripod

[BW]

Thats to bad! I never trust unoriginal straps unless they have a security line attached to original strap. I have had incidents where the tripod foot of the Nikon 70-200 have loosened. The Joby strap has a security line that has saved my skin a couple of times. Hope it work out for you.

[MFloyd]

So, holding the assembly at the LCF-10 foot then ....

[Mikes]

What a shame, Chris. I had a similar, much less serious experience. I happens in an instant, then it takes a little while to fully comprehend the outcome. Fingers crossed.

[MFloyd]

Which means that the spring loaded release latch has been unlocked also. The reason for my questions is that I have also RRS gear with a lot of expensive Nikon glass attached to it 😳

[chris dees]

Which means that the spring loaded release latch has been unlocked also. The reason for my questions is that I have also RRS gear with a lot of expensive Nikon glass attached to it 😳

As I said, I'm afraid it's a user error. I think the screw was/went loose and I was fiddling with latch during walking (I often hold the lenses at their foot while walking).

[Erik Lund]

Well the similar situation has been seen before, the surface treatment of the RRS is slippery, that's why they introduced the small stop screws for their lens and camera plates - Customers just dropped their gear since the plates slit out of the clamps, especially the leaver clamps,,, the screw knob clamps are the old school solution.

I never trust these for transport/walking.

I don't see the need for these harnesses where you have only attached the lens in one single screw in the base of the camera, the eyelets should never be able to come undone by design,,, the 300mm PF is so light that it can easily be on the camera like that.

Sure large lenses should have their own lens straps. Directly mounted on the lens eyelets.

I also always use metal strap locks.

[MFloyd]

It's may be the time to share our good practices? I'm always using a strap (Peak Design) linking the (tele)lens and the body together; especially when I carry the whole setup by the (mono)pod...

[Jan Anne]

My 200-400VR with camera was slipping out of the RRS monopod head with lever clamp which was slung over my shoulder during the SA safari, luckily I had the little security screws in place or else the trip would have ended shortly.

Since that event its back to the trusted screw clamps, very hard to make them loose traction on the plates.

[Erik Lund]

It's may be the time to share our  good practices? I'm always using a strap (Peak Design) linking the (tele)lens and the body together; especially when I carry the whole setup by the (mono)pod...

And if the lens foot slips out of the clamp,,, ?
I would hold on to the lens or camera and the monopod, not only the monopod.

[MFloyd]

Herewith, my "heavy" body-lens setup: D5; 300mm f/2.8 VRII combined with an RRS footplate (see the two retaining bolts - avoiding a slip through) and a Peak Design strap with their outstanding Anchor Link system:



So far this combination has provided me with a satisfying anti-crash security.

And here in operation during a kite-surf session in Fuerteventura (Canary Islands):



I only use the lever-release slide clamps from RRS; I find the knob-clamps too risky.

[the solitaire]

Sharing some best practices might be a good idea.

I for one do not want to take any risks when I'm out in the woods. Occasionally I have to climb or traverse difficult terrain to reach the spot where I want to be and at those times I do not want to think about my camera.

With that in mind I went for the best solution I could think of. I bought a $10 chinese Black Rapid camera strap ripoff.

On arrival I set it to the correct length and sewed shut all the seams. The strap is no longer adjustable in any sense. The nylon strap is strong and durable enough as long as it does not fray. I also removed all metal parts included with the strap and chucked them in the bin. No way I will ever trust these frail nickel or tin plated pewter cast parts.

I then bought two of these:



One goes in the camera tripod mount, the other in the lens tripod mount.

I then went to the local DIY store and bought two of these:



They are chrome vanadium steel carabiner hooks which are rated at 150 kg (300 lbs) each. I checked their function in store and made sure the spring is snappy and the articulation precise and without play to the sides so the hooks don't come undone while I'm climbing over something.

All of this is less then sophisticated and looks rather crude but it is fully functional and pretty much bomb-proof

[Akira]

What a pain!  Hope the insurance will cover the loss.

[Erik Lund]

That carabiner is a disaster waiting to happen, any climber will know. I hope you reconsider,,,,

Also attaching on end of the strap to lens the other to the camera puts all the stress on the camera mount, not nice for a heavy set up,,,

Sorry but both are not what I would recommend.

Btw a monopod on feet,,,, 

[Jacques Pochoy]

Also attaching on end of the strap to lens the other to the camera puts all the stress on the camera mount, not nice for a heavy set up,,,

I would agree on the stress part... Still, I'm so sorry for you and that accident ! Whatever the reasons, it's always a great sadness to see the guts of our hardwares on the field...