Who are the best Manufacturers of Leather Straps and Case

[Asim]

I'm in the market to buy a classy looking leather strap for my black Leica MP. Which manufacturers are the ones to look into? The only one's I know are:

Luigi
Artisan and Artist
Tipton and Co.
Tap and Dye
Black Label Bag

I must be missing a bunch. Could you please recommend any others. I have never had a leather strap on a camera and thus never bought from any of these companies.

 

[Kwesi]

If you are looking for a strap and case combo then, Arte di Mano.
If Strap only, then Harry Benz.

 

[Out to Lunch]

Ebay seller "Mr. Zhou"or "jiozhou".

 

[ktmrider]

Photo Village has "Very Soft Strap" from A&A for $40. It is very nice and lives on M2. Getting another for M9.

 

[stillshunter]

If it must be leather, it must be Luigi @ LeicaTime. Next question?

 

[YYV_146]

Gariz makes excellent half cases. For straps I like cloth ones, the best leather is Luigi or BLB, though, and I prefer BLB to Luigi.

 

[rlouzan]

http://www.popflash.com/accessories/artisan-artist-acam-262-black-cordovan-leather-strap-new/

 

[Roger Hicks]

I've never seen better than A&A -- and this includes many photokinas looking at straps and cases for Shutterbug magazine. Expensive -- but use one for a few years and you see why they're worth the money. Frances and I use them on MP, M9 and more.

Cheers,

R.

 

[rolfe]

I second the suggestion to search eBay for seller "Mr. Zhou"or "jiozhou".

Look through all his listings though, as he makes several styles and colors.

 

[ray*j*gun]

U have 2 Mr Zhou cases for my M's and they are excellent.

 

[Godfrey]

I have A&A half-cases for M4-2, M9, and X2. They're excellent quality.
I have a Mr Zhou half-case for the CL, it's good but nowhere near the same quality.
I decided to try an Arte di Mano half-case for the X typ 113, waiting for it to arrive. I expect it to be at the same level as the A&A; time will tell.

Straps, though, are different. I'm not fond of leather straps. I'd like a couple of the silk cord A&A straps for the Leica RF and X family cameras but I feel $190 is a bit much for a strap. For $50-70, the soft nylon cord Street Strap is excellent quality and does the job very well.

G

Leica X with Street Strap:

 

[Rob-F]

I have and use a Luigi strap and can recommend it. That "Very Soft Strap" sounds interesting; haven't tried it, though.

 

[Charlie Lemay]

I can't imagine shooting with a Leica M or R without a Luigi case and strap. Worth every penney!

 

[ingsy]

I have a 'Camera Leash' wrist strap from Holdfast, and I really like it. They make a few types of straps.

 

[gilpen123]

A&A case are good though I would still prefer the distressed Luigi. Use also street strap.

 

[EdwardKaraa]

I prefer Leica leather straps and arte di mano half cases.

 

[konicaman]

Leather straps - Ebay seller janzis from Portugal. Bought from him a couple of times; really good materials and craftsmanship.

 

[asilda]

Here are all my favorites: asildaphotography.com/straps
I tried to put this all together because it's not that easy to find out all the small brands.
More photos are inside the review.

http://asildaphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/ap-strap-review-9579.jpg

 

[seakayaker1]

I love the silk A&A strap vs leather. I walk around with the camera in one hand with the strap around my wrist. If I am not taking images the camera is in the bag.

MP with silk strap

 

[NY_Dan]

IMHO the best was Kameraleder. But I'm pretty sure they're out of biz. They had a curved leather neck strap and a beautiful half case. I don't like Luigi neck straps unless they're made to one non-adjustable size. Reason, I don't like the extra material.