Simon Posted June 10, 2018 Share Posted June 10, 2018 I'm sure this must have been discussed before, but new kit comes out .. I was wondering what bags / cases people use when they're out an about. In the past I had a rucksack type affair, which was good for the big lenses, but not much good on the beach, when you had to take it off, put it down, get sand everywhere etc when changing lenses. At the moment I have a Vanguard Heralder 33 which has some great features - rain cover, pockets for cards, money, built in tripod holder, top access. If it had some kind of dual straps so could wear it round the back as well as over the shoulder would be great. When it's fully loaded - DSLR, 3 lenses, laptop, tripod it doesn't half make a groove in your shoulder. regards Simon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin P Wilson Posted June 10, 2018 Share Posted June 10, 2018 I have WAY TOO MANY camera bags and have never found the one that is just right, it is probably not possible, different circumstances need different bags. I have a large canvas Billingham bag that I now use as a an overnight bag when travelling by car. It is heavy before you put gear in it, I used it with two large Canon film cameras (EOS-3 and grips) with fast zoom and long lenses - perhaps explains why I now have occasional neck and back issues I could probably not lift it these days if loaded it the way I used to! For my Fuji X-T1/2 outfit I use a small backpack (Tenba), a small shoulder bag for a small outfit and laptop or a nondescript shoulder bag for a camera and single lens with a non-digital note book and pen. I sometimes use a large Tenba backpack to store or transport an outfit (only by car, motorhome) to locations or media centres-I have used it as a carry-on when flying but loaded it is certainly too heavy and probably too big by today's standards. I keep looking for that perfect bag but these days I manage to resist buying. It is more than five years since I last bought bag (the small shoulder bag for my laptop and outfit). However what I hate are heavily padded bags, they make getting gear in and out difficult and that is weight I can happily do without.. (a stiff or padded base is good though) I believe Salgado and David Hurn (Magnum) use two small shoulder bags to balance the load. Sounds more than sensible than a one-sided load. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nacke Posted June 10, 2018 Share Posted June 10, 2018 For me during the last three decades there has only been one bag: DOMKE F2 and the only time I bought a new one is when the old one was stolen on East 62cd street in New York in 1991. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Rooney Posted June 10, 2018 Share Posted June 10, 2018 I have one or two Domke F2's back in NYC. With me, I have an F3 Ballistic. It fits all my Sony gear in it, and with a bit of jury-rigging, I can slip in the MacBook 13". But it is not the bag I walk around with. I put one of the Sonys in a smaller, simpler bag, not a true photo bag, along with other items, like a notebook, batteries and cards. I use an Upstrap. A bag that you can't take stuff in and out of while it's on your shoulder is useless. I have a normal neck or shoulder strap on my RX10, but wrist straps on both the RX100/3 and a6000. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin P Wilson Posted June 10, 2018 Share Posted June 10, 2018 I always fancied the Domke bags but getting to look at and handle them was, probably still is, difficult in the UK. I bought a Lowepro sort-of clone of the Domke which I used for a long time. I like the lack of padding so they are a working bag, rather than a bag to store male photo jewelery! If I was working seriously as a photographer I think I would get a Domke, or perhaps even a pair of smaller ones. Nowadays I tend to work like Edo, with a small simple bag that does not shout camera! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Limb Posted June 10, 2018 Share Posted June 10, 2018 I have tried many over the years ... some good, some ok, some not so good. But the lesson I learned more than any is you get what you pay for and not all bags are equal A couple of years ago I colleague recommended Think Tank - initial thought was very expensive but I bit the bullet and bought one ... wish I had done years ago, without a doubt one of the very very best for what I need. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Ventura Posted June 10, 2018 Share Posted June 10, 2018 I use two shoulder bags. One for assignments where in need two cameras and a variety of lenses....that one is the Tamrac Pro. The other is more for walking around with a small camera and few other things, can also hold an iPad or a laptop.....and that one is made by Tenba, not sure of the model (I really love that one). The latter is more like a bicycle messenger bag but with padding inside. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted June 10, 2018 Share Posted June 10, 2018 Whatever 7dayshop have for £12.99 or thereabouts. Mine is actually a Hama camcorder bag, I think. But there doesn't seem to be what you ask for- a dual-purpose bag and rucksack. Maybe you need to design one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted June 10, 2018 Share Posted June 10, 2018 When I switched to Sony mirrorless cameras, I resurrected a tiny Tamrac bag that I bought about 20 years ago. It easily holds my a6000 and an extra lens. When carrying more stuff, I use this Sony bag. I don't love it, but it's lightweight, roomy, and reasonably well made. I got it for a song (about $25 CAN) a few years ago when Sony closed its stores in Vancouver. P.S. I prefer to use a small day pack for additional paraphernalia -- e.g. water bottle, guidebook, cheese sandwich, etc. -- rather than try to cram it all into my camera bag. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
losdemas Posted June 10, 2018 Share Posted June 10, 2018 4 hours ago, spacecadet said: Whatever 7dayshop have for £12.99 or thereabouts. Mine is actually a Hama camcorder bag, I think. But there doesn't seem to be what you ask for- a dual-purpose bag and rucksack. Maybe you need to design one. Just bought a 7dayshop shoulder bag (£21.99) to replace a generic Fuji shoulder bag that really was not up to the job. Cheap and cheerful, does the job I need it to - very happy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betty LaRue Posted June 11, 2018 Share Posted June 11, 2018 If you’re healthy, a sling bag is nice. Cross-body strap. Have it on your back, swivel it around to the front without taking it off to change lenses bracing on the bag. I carried my Nikon gear in it and it held quite a lot. Trouble was I have deteriorating disks and anything heavy compresses my spine and hurts. I tend now to either carry my X-T2 in my hands and if I need to have another lens, put it in a small waist bag which doesn’t hurt me. I have larger bags that I transport gear in, but it goes from house to car, car to house. If I’m on a shoot, everything stays in the car and I pluck out what I need when I need it, and the car is close. If I walk a distance, then it’s the camera (Fuji) in hand, period. I have the tiniest cute little shoulder strap purse that holds my RX100-3, a comb, DL, a few bucks, and a spare battery and card when I want a camera always with me. Or I just slip the RX in my regular purse. Betty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MandyD Posted June 11, 2018 Share Posted June 11, 2018 All depends....I have several Lowe Pro bags...they don't make the one sling and the backpack I have, but my favorite has to be this one https://store.lowepro.com/ca/sling-bags/passport-sling-iii-ca found it great for travelling, has some good interior pockets, can slip your phone in the side pocket so it's always next to you and room for a bottle of water in the front so it won't spill on anything. I have an older version of this https://store.lowepro.com/ca/sling-bags/slingshot-edge-150-aw-ca Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted June 11, 2018 Share Posted June 11, 2018 8 hours ago, losdemas said: Just bought a 7dayshop shoulder bag (£21.99) to replace a generic Fuji shoulder bag that really was not up to the job. Cheap and cheerful, does the job I need it to - very happy. No problem. So there's at least one other person who doesn't pay more for a bag than they do for a camera. I'd be looking at that if the one I bought in 2012 wore out, but it's a bit over budget (I'd wait for the clearance sale) and I don't usually replace stuff that still works. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay D Posted June 11, 2018 Share Posted June 11, 2018 Mostly use a Lowepro Photo Hatchback 22L AW Backpack, doesn’t look like a camera bag, cheap light comfy and an almost perfect design for a weekend away shoot. Almost in that its a squeeze for a 13” macbook and no tripod straps. Also have two Billingham Hadley Pro’s, couldn’t decide on black or olive so kept them both 🙄. As mentioned theres no bag fits all out there but it won’t stop me looking 😊. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kuta Posted June 11, 2018 Share Posted June 11, 2018 My little compact Ape Case AC540BL nylon "Messenger case" holds two Sony mirrorless with lens affixed, can also fit a little tabletop tripod on one end, even a water bottle on the other end if I want. The front pocket can hold chargers, spare batteries, other stuff. It's padded enough for my use. Been using it for 5 years now, it fits (loaded) in the bottom of a backpack as a carry-on for air travel. When I was using a Canon full-frame, I preferred a Lowepro waist belt with a holster for camera + lens, and accessory holders for other lenses. It had an optional shoulder strap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted June 12, 2018 Author Share Posted June 12, 2018 Thanks all - I was thinking about using 2 smaller bags on either shoulder, to spread the load. Or, just stick to shots where I can park the van up and leave everything in there till I need it ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dyn Llun Posted June 12, 2018 Share Posted June 12, 2018 I have always used the same criteria for buying bags as I use for buying cameras and other photo gear. I tend to buy the best that will last on the basis that in the long run it's cheaper and easier in terms of maintaining quality. However, I don't buy anything that I don't think is absolutely practical and fit for purpose. I don't have time to 'fiddle' with inferior and badly designed stuff. Some of my Leica lenses are over 60 years old and still perfect today. Expensive at the time but spread over the long time I have had them, very cost effective. I bought my first Billingham bag - the big one - over 30 years ago and it's still going strong after all that time and very, very hard use. It used to carry all my Nikon gear but now I use it to carry spare 10" x 8" film holders, a couple of spare 10"x 8" lenses, notebooks, meter etc. Billingham replaced the shoulder strap a couple of years ago which was a bit frayed but still very useable and repaired the toggle on the big zip at a very reasonable cost, extending it's life for another 30 years. I prefer shoulder bags but that's personal choice. I have four Billinghams in total, of which three I have used for years and they are all going strong. They also carry my travel documents, notebook, wallet etc. safely zipped away. One or other is always with me. My 'Hadley's' can carry two Leica bodies with a lens on each, extra lenses plus bits and pieces and my documents etc. as described. My latest one cost me nothing, well, a £1 raffle ticket - see below - but I promise you I'm not sponsored or paid by Billingham! Just my own choice for many years. Pete Davis http://www.pete-davis-photography.com/ http://peteslandscape.blogspot.co.uk/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Vickers Posted June 12, 2018 Share Posted June 12, 2018 Domke F2 for full frame (5DMKIII)....Domke a little bit smaller for APSC kit (200D)….and an smaller Domke X5(I think) for just one body and lens Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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