Struggling with cable clutter in your photo or video studio? This practical guide compares the best cable management tools, from reusable Velcro straps and Think Tank Red Whips to classic Bongo Ties and heavy-duty cinch straps. Learn which cable ties are best for organizing light stands, securing extension cords, managing tethering setups, and keeping seamless paper rolls clean without tape. Discover smart, budget-friendly solutions that actually hold up in real-world studio use.
If you're a photographer, filmmaker, or creative looking to clean up your workspace, this breakdown gives you clear pros and cons of each cable tie option. Perfect for anyone setting up a home studio, building a tethering station, or managing gear for on-location shoots. Save time, reduce stress, and make your setup look pro with these cable management tips that go beyond basic zip ties.
IN THIS VIDEO: Hook & Loop Tape: https://geni.us/vhjkXk Hook & Loop Cable Ties: https://geni.us/edya1K1 Bongo Ties: https://geni.us/AgQX Generic Cord Locks (Black): https://geni.us/9kTOWu Generic Cord Locks (Orange): https://geni.us/5qYEMEg Cord Locks Kit: https://geni.us/LA8Y192 1" Cinch Straps: https://geni.us/wuOrAuq 2" Elastic Cinch Straps: https://geni.us/IqRFFE
00:00 Intro 00:15 Hook & Loop Tape 02:18 Hook & Loop Cable Ties 02:58 Bongo Ties 04:31 Think Tank Red Whips 06:19 Cinch Straps
Video Transcript
Not all cable ties are created the same. And I'm going to go over the different types of cable ties that I use and the ones that I would recommend for different situations and different scenarios and how I would recommend using these. The first thing we're going to look at is what might commonly be referred to as Velcro or like hook and loop. These are uh they stick to everything. First con, I would use these for like just tying tying cables, tying things, but they get lost pretty frequently and you end up with all these like loose bits.
It is is one of the most cost effective ways of managing your cables. They're fine, right? You know, they work in in the way that you would expect them to, but the second you take them off, uh they're they're lost. They get lost easily. One of the ways that I like to use these hook and loop, these cut your own to size hook and loop is for paper rolls. And they're great for paper rolls. I found a better solution for paper rolls, which I'll get to in a minute.
But this is a very inexpensive way to do it. And you just put it on your paper. No tape mess. That's going to hold it there. It does slide a little bit depending on how tightly you put it, but that is perfect. You can just take take the cut your own size ones, put it around your paper roll. Grab your scissors. Use multiples of those. Keep your paper nice and clean. Keep the tape off of it so you're not ruining your paper and you're causing rips in your paper as well.
These are, I think, the best use for the hook and loop. If you're going to get that, then get the 1 in thick. These smaller ones will work, but they're not as strong, and the paper is more likely to rip because there's a small point of pressure on the paper. So, for the Velcro, the hook and loop, everything that you're going to see here today, I just got off of Amazon, and I'll put the links in the description below.
You can decide what you want to use what for what. That is my recommended use for 1-in thick hook and loop tape. And uh beware if you have a dog because this is going to be covered in dog hair. Now my second recommendation is also hook and loop. I got this in a pack of 80, I believe. And when you need one, you just peel it off of the stack. And these are great because they are permanently attached to your cable.
So, anything I have that is a cable automatically now gets one of these. So, I just put it on. I mean, it's pretty self-explanatory how these work. Everything that I have that requires a cable gets one of those. And then when I undo it, it's not going to get lost because it's always attached to the cable. So, that is the most common kind of cable tie that you will find in my studio. Next up, we have bongo ties.
These are elastics with an anchor point on them. So when you wrap these around a cable, the biggest issue here is that you can't really tighten them. You can get a bit of uh tension on there uh that over time is just going to get loose and that's not going to hold very well. So these are not great for holding cables together unless there are cables of a specific size. But where I do find these work excellent is when you are uh securing something to a light stand.
These are perfect cuz they fit around the bar of the light stand and then anchor off to itself and hold cables in place. They can suspend cables, too, because of the friction. So, if you are putting something into your studio in a sort of semi-permanent way, you'll want to use bongo ties. If you're tying something off to a grid, bongo ties. These are, I think, a fantastic option in the studio when you want to secure something permanently rather than using plastic cable ties, which you will have to cut and cut again to take off.
These are great. They're reusable. The only thing that I would say is that because they are elastic. It's just an elastic that will degrade over time, but it will take years for this rubber to degrade. So, highly recommend the Bongo ties for securing cables to light stands. They're great for tether stations if you want to hang cables there or keep your cable management clean. They're perfect for for that use as well.
Uh, next we have these uh these are elastics again with an anchor point except this anchor point is movable. These are from Think Tank. Think Tank refers to them as Red Whips and I've been using these for the past 12 years. I think these very ones I've had for 12 years and they still work great. The Think Tank ones come in this uh sort of storage cube that you can use for cable management as well. So, you'll just take these, wrap it around the cable, and then cinch it tight, and that works wonders.
So, I've been using that for years. These are also great on light stands and for the cable management on on your lights and your light stands, uh keeping everything neat and tidy. I often just have these hanging in my studio. Every light stand has one hanging from it so that when I'm putting a light on that and running a cable, there's already a red whip there to secure the cable to the light stand.
You can get generic versions of these. And the generic versions I have found the elastic is not as thick. It's not as strong. It feels a little flimsy, but they'll they'll still work. You can also get kits. So you can get this material, cut this to the length, thread it through one of these anchors, and then tie it off on the end. So you can make your own in whatever size that you want. So that is also available and a solution for you to use as well.
These are great for all kinds of purposes. I know someone who uses them on their paper rolls and they just put them like that. Although I think that's kind of a a waste of a good red whip cuz pretty much any elastic can do that. And I actually think the strips of Velcro work better, but I even have a better solution that I'm going to show you right now. Uh, recently I've started using cinch straps.
You can wrap these around rolls of paper here and just pull that tight. The specific ones I don't recommend for using on paper because they are a little too short. They also don't have any grip on the inside of them. So, these are great for cables. If you have like a large outdoor extension cable, this would be perfect. You can just cinch it tight and strap it up. But the best solution that I have found now for keeping my paper clean.
The hook and loop is great. But these cinch straps, these ones are 2 in thick. They have a rubber going down the inside of them and that grips onto the paper and keeps the roll nice and tight. You're going to wrap it around your roll. And the rubber on the inside, it's going to grab it. And because this is this is elastic, that cinches nice and tight. And that is perfect. The rubber on it causes it to not move.
The force is spread out amongst the surface of the the edge of the paper. So, you're less likely to get tearing on that. These straps aren't going to work great. They do not fit around a full roll. They only fit around a roll that has been used. this. These are 12 in and these are 18 in. So, get the 18-in ones cuz those I think are your best options for cable use and cable management. So, that's how I use all the different cables.
If you have any suggestions, please leave them in the comments. If you found this video helpful, please hit that thumbs up button, share it with a friend, share it in a Facebook group, share it online, and hit subscribe to stick around for more videos that I hope you will also find helpful.
