LENS CAPSULES AND POUCHES
One of my earliest projects at Tenba involved designing structured, molded Lens Capsules, alongside a lower-cost set of soft neoprene lens pouches. These higher-price-point capsules offered additional protection with molded EVA caps on the top and bottom; protecting the spots where a camera lens is most vulnerable. I particularly enjoyed working with premium materials on this product, including YKK zippers and a microfiber lens cleaning cloth included with each capsule.
The toughest aspect of this project was figuring out how the capsules could securely attach to a belt, webbing loop, or similar item. This required more trial and error in the process - and ultimately, a reinforced, thick Velcro solution proved effective following rigorous product testing with local photographers.
Photography by Jeff Dietz
INSPIRATION & MARKET RESEARCH
Market options were mostly bulky or overpriced, with few viable choices available.
BASIC CONCEPT
I incorporated my initial concept of molding the Tenba “T-Shield” logo into the top lid, emphasizing a protective and sturdy design.
PRELIMINARY SPECS
The specs were straightforward overall, with the Velcro webbing mechanism for attaching to other bags or a belt requiring careful attention. Working together with my Design Manager, we selected the optimal webbing thickness and reinforced the velcro to ensure strength and reliability.
FIRST ROUND SAMPLES
Sample looks good! The final mold for the top and bottom pieces will be confirmed after the Design Manager and I finalize the respective lens sizes. The main challenge at this stage was determining how many capsule sizes to produce for both DSLR and mirrorless lenses. Using in-house lens models, we were able to accurately finalize the dimensions for each size.
REFINEMENT SPECS
One other detail we noticed through testing the first round of samples, was the d-rings for shoulder straps needed to be reinforced - especially for the larger lens capsules. I made sure to include this adjustment for the final round of sampling.
These samples would be the final sizes for this lens capsule collection. Following this, we were able to complete a lower price point version of drawstring neoprene pouches utilizing the same dimensions.
