This about one of those irritating problems that plague most serious photographers: lens caps that fall off at a mere touch. Generally it's the cap that protects the front of the lens, and it's an issue both with cameras that have fixed lenses, and those with lenses you can change.
Lili is no exception. My Leica X-U is a very good camera, but - being ruggedised - she has a thick rubber lens cap, and it tends to come off way too easily.
I can't actually lose the cap if it falls off the lens, because it's permanently tethered with a proper cord to one of the lugs that you attach the neck strap to. But it comes off often, and with so much camera-usage the problem is getting worse. It's mildly annoying - and I don't want to be annoyed with my lovely camera. So I've been considering solutions.
This not a straightforward problem to solve. I want that lens cap to be immune from casual detachment, but I don't want to clamp or tie it on so tightly that I can't release it in very short order, should a good picture suddenly present itself.
Nor do I want any solution that involves physically modifying the cap in a permanent way - such as cutting holes or notches in it, or using adhesives, or applying sticky tape which might leave a residue. You just don't do such things to a genuine Leica part, especially if it's original and unique to a non-current specialist camera manufactured in Germany by master-craftsmen Nibelungs insanely dedicated to their task, who might seek revenge if ever they find out. Believe me, they are not like the Seven Dwarfs, who were old softies and loved Snow White. They are implacable. I would have to go on the run for the rest of my life.
Well, I played around with black thread a couple of weeks ago, and saw a way of using the 'official' hole at the base of the lens cap to make the cap 'hang' more securely from the flash hump:
Not pretty, but the cap was certainly harder to nudge off. It was however difficult to put enough tension in the thread to make it work well. But clearly something better might be achievable, using that 'official' bottom hole in the cap. So, I next experimented with a rubber band (this one was green, but ideally it would be black):
The rubber band had more tension than the thread, which was good; but that very tension threatened to distort the lens cap. Not good. In any case, ordinary rubber bands don't last long. They deteriorate and eventually snap or disintegrate. So this couldn't be a long-term solution, unless I were prepared to change the band frequently, before it became too tatty or too brittle. A palaver.
In any case, like the thread, the rubber band wasn't a particularly elegant way of keeping the lens cap in its proper place. There probably wasn't a completely elegant way. But there must be something I could do that didn't look so makeshift.
I returned to the problem again today. Rummaging in Mum's sewing box, I came across some black elastic. Aha! The wider sort might do the trick:
And so I cut a length, overlapped the ends, and sewed them together with black thread. Only rough-sewing; but my quick-and-dirty efforts with a needle weren't so obvious that it was worthwhile doing the job all over again, with more finesse.
This is how the lens cap is now held in place - how I carry the ensemble around, when not anticipating any pictures in the immediate future:
I think that loop of elastic somehow looks like an extension of the neck strap. Not too odd, anyway. Although this latest solution means wrapping the elastic band around the camera body, none of the controls are affected, nor is the handgrip compromised. And although one third of the rear screen is now covered, this doesn't make navigating the menu any harder if I need to set Lili up differently for a particular shot. In fact it's rather a bonus that the rear screen now has some extra protection.
It's easy to yank the elastic leftwards, if suddenly wanting to get the camera ready for shooting. It then just hangs from the left end of the neck strap, and can't go anywhere.
When the lens cap is also removed, there are now two accessories dangling from the left side of the camera. But they didn't seem to get in my way, whether I hold Lili portrait-fashion or horizontally.
As you can see, the black elastic band doesn't show up much against any sort of dark or patterned clothing.
Most importantly, this latest solution won't damage the rubber lens cap, nor the camera. Whether it proves truly practical is another matter. I don't see why not. But experience will show.
Does it ruin my camera's looks? Well, this is only an issue when the elastic band in position, and it won't be if I'm taking pictures at frequent intervals. In any case, many would say that my Leica X-U is already too plain and 'utilitarian' for this to be serious question. And they have a point. Me, I'd say that the practical benefit outweighs anything else, and at least it's a fairly neat-looking solution. I will however still be exploring other ways.
