The Camera Strap Everyone Else Has to Beat? Peak Design Slide Lite

A camera strap is just a camera strap. Right? Peak Design changed that with a Kickstarter back in 2014, and having only undergone one or two subtle changes over the years, it still sets the standard.

Almost eight years ago, I bought the Peak Design Leash, a lightweight, minimalist strap that was my first foray into Peak Design’s ecosystem. Since then, I’ve bought a couple of bags, a wrist strap, and a Capture Clip, and subsequently put this gear through countless trips and jobs. I’d already been pondering a less minimal strap to suit a life that’s not solely geared around traveling as light as possible, so when Peak Design reached out to see if I’d be interested in receiving the Slide Lite to review, I couldn’t say no.

Three Flavors, One Ingenious Attachment System

Peak Design offers three types of adjustable strap. In order of size and weight:

• Leash — 0.75 in (1.9 cm) wide; 32.6 to 57.1 in (83 to 145 cm); 3 oz (86 g)
• Slide Lite — 1.3 in (3.2 cm) wide; 39 to 57 in (99 to 145 cm); 3.7 oz (104 g)
• Slide — 1.8 in (4.5 cm) wide; 39 to 57 in (99 to 145 cm); 5.2 oz (148 g)

All three take advantage of Peak Design’s anchor connection system. Introduced almost 14 years ago, it uses a pair of semi-permanent cord loops that attach to your gear, meaning that you can buy multiple pairs for all of your cameras and easily switch straps between them. Today, you’ll find them across Peak Design’s gear — not just their straps, but as tethers inside bags for attaching keys.

The design is superb; the connections are lightweight, strong (rated to 200 lb / 90 kg), hard-wearing, and quick and easy to use. There’s barely a camera in my collection that doesn’t have a pair of these anchor points attached.

The Strap Itself

The design is deliberately low-profile and minimal: no bulky external padding, no additional stitching, and no extra attachment points. The strap uses internally padded, seatbelt-style nylon webbing and has a smooth, almost silky texture. The slipperiness of the material is what gives the Slide its name; the idea is that the strap moves seamlessly over your clothing each time you pick up your camera, making it an ideal choice if you prefer to carry your camera cross-body. For those times you need it to stop sliding around, you can flip the strap and use the silicone detailing that adds a ton of friction.

Adjustments

This is where I was pleasantly surprised by the Slide Lite. I’d seen the videos of people effortlessly changing the length of the strap, but my Leash had never been that straightforward, always depending on my getting the angles right in order to make an adjustment. By contrast, the Slide Lite is as easy as the videos make it look: Lift the lever. Pull. Done.

Other Stuff

Each strap ships with Peak Design’s Anchor Mount, a tiny plate that screws into your tripod attachment. To this, you can attach one or two (or more, I guess) Anchors, giving more options for carrying. I like to have my cameras hang upside down, a system that I find really suits the “slide-to-wield” approach that the system encourages.

What’s in the Box

• Slide Lite
• 4 Anchors
• 1 Anchor Mount
• 4 mm hex wrench (to attach the Anchor Mount)
• Microfiber pouch

Price and Colors

The Peak Design Slide Lite is available from B&H Photo for $69.95 and comes in a variety of colors, from the predictable black and the rather gorgeous kelp (pictured) through to the ludicrously named coyote, eclipse, and Optifade Waterfowl Marsh.