One of the best things about OR is getting a chance to visit the new or smaller companies with booths out on the periphery of the main floor. That’s where you find some real gems. This year was no different and one of the companies we found is Backcountry Solutions. They had a couple of products but the one that really caught our attention is the Keyhole, a hands-free camera harness. If you’ve ever worn an SLR when hiking, you know about what a pain-in-the-fourth-point-of-contact it is. It swings around and the lens sticks out constantly getting in the way. Deborah at Backcountry Solutions is an amateur photographer and had the same issues. She said she actually resorted to storing her camera in her pack. Obviously, this defeated the point of taking it in the first place and, weary of missing great shots, started working on a solution. The key feature is the keyhole plate itself. You ready your camera to fit into the plate by attaching the red knob to your camera in the tripod mount hole. This knob is designed to fit into the slot on the Keyhole plate. It’s that simple. Be sure to check out the video on their website.
The Keyhole is designed to attach to any backpack or chest harness that is equipped with typical 1†wide webbing on the shoulder straps. Quick disconnect buckles allow for easy backpack on/off. They’ve really put some thought into this. It even includes a tethered lens cap keeper as part of the hands-free system which keeps a hold of your lens cover when you bring the camera to bear.
It will take a few mods to make it PALS compatible but I think they are up to the task if someone wants to work with them. In our discussion, they certainly seems open to it.
Interested? Visit backcountrysolutions.com.
