Bill Pierce
Well-known
The one thing that many, many photographers own the most of is not cameras, but camera bags. No one camera bag suits all situation and so there are shoulder bags (and the kissing cousins - the messenger bags), backpacks, sling bags, holsters, roller bags and hard cases (and hard cases with rollers). A few brands come to mind - Domke, Billingham, Tamrac, Peak Design, Lowepro, Tenba, Think Tank, Manfrotto and Ono - but there are many more. And, of course, many photographers use bags, packs and cases that were not thought of as bags, packs and cases for photographers, but bags, packs and cases for fisherman, hikers, the military and non photo folk who needed a bag, a pack, or a case.
Jim Domke at the time he started designing Domke bags was a working news photographer who field tested his camera bag designs on his friends and associates. I still have one of my original bags among my many Domkes, worn but still in use. I also have two Domke jackets, each with nine large pockets sealable with velcro or zippers, that I believe are no longer in production, but are much more fashionable and acceptable in upper society than the utilitarian fisherman’s vest. Billingham’s first releases mimicked the fishing bags they originally produced. I suspect they moved from fishing bags to camera bags when they noticed their trout bag was truly one of the most popular bags of all times with a lot of photographers. And, yes, I still have a waterproof, rubber-lined trout bag.
Ona’s leather bags are pricey but beautiful. At the other end of the price scale is everything from military surplus to general consumer bags and packs that were never intended as camera bags. Here’s one other place where Jim Domke came to the rescue - the Domke Wrap. They are 11x11, 15x15 and 19x19 inch light foam pads covered on one side with nylon and the other with a light flannel fabric. Velcro strips on the corners allow you to, of course, wrap and secure the padded cloth around equipment, carrying it protected and safe in a variety uncompartamented bags and containers. These are so useful that that competitors have arisen, most notably Tenba Camera Wraps.
All photographers have bags. Photographers who like to or have to travel have lots of bags. I used to think I had more bags than anyone. From large Penquin and Haliburton cases really used to ship gear to two belt packs, I figure I have about 30 things that carry cameras along with other goodies. Some are prepacked with gear for specific kinds of work: others await an inspirational mix of toys for a new adventure. It’s silly, but interesting, to ask you how many bags and cases you have. But I will. But I already know 2 photographers my equal or better in sheer bag numbers. More interesting - what is your favorite bag and what is in it? Mine is minimal. It’s either a small Domke with single camera with a fixed lens or a small Billingham with a single camera and 3 lenses. More important - all the other things that are in that bag. There’s the extra battery, the Lenspen brush/cleaner and a cloth suitable for cleaning the LCD and viewfinder glass. And then there’s the two pairs of glasses (somewhere there has to be a photographer with good eyesight), the wallet, the cellphone, the checkbook, the notepaper and pen and, since the pandemic, the face mask and hand sanitizer. That’s right - it’s a guy purse. So what’s yours and what’s in it?
Jim Domke at the time he started designing Domke bags was a working news photographer who field tested his camera bag designs on his friends and associates. I still have one of my original bags among my many Domkes, worn but still in use. I also have two Domke jackets, each with nine large pockets sealable with velcro or zippers, that I believe are no longer in production, but are much more fashionable and acceptable in upper society than the utilitarian fisherman’s vest. Billingham’s first releases mimicked the fishing bags they originally produced. I suspect they moved from fishing bags to camera bags when they noticed their trout bag was truly one of the most popular bags of all times with a lot of photographers. And, yes, I still have a waterproof, rubber-lined trout bag.
Ona’s leather bags are pricey but beautiful. At the other end of the price scale is everything from military surplus to general consumer bags and packs that were never intended as camera bags. Here’s one other place where Jim Domke came to the rescue - the Domke Wrap. They are 11x11, 15x15 and 19x19 inch light foam pads covered on one side with nylon and the other with a light flannel fabric. Velcro strips on the corners allow you to, of course, wrap and secure the padded cloth around equipment, carrying it protected and safe in a variety uncompartamented bags and containers. These are so useful that that competitors have arisen, most notably Tenba Camera Wraps.
All photographers have bags. Photographers who like to or have to travel have lots of bags. I used to think I had more bags than anyone. From large Penquin and Haliburton cases really used to ship gear to two belt packs, I figure I have about 30 things that carry cameras along with other goodies. Some are prepacked with gear for specific kinds of work: others await an inspirational mix of toys for a new adventure. It’s silly, but interesting, to ask you how many bags and cases you have. But I will. But I already know 2 photographers my equal or better in sheer bag numbers. More interesting - what is your favorite bag and what is in it? Mine is minimal. It’s either a small Domke with single camera with a fixed lens or a small Billingham with a single camera and 3 lenses. More important - all the other things that are in that bag. There’s the extra battery, the Lenspen brush/cleaner and a cloth suitable for cleaning the LCD and viewfinder glass. And then there’s the two pairs of glasses (somewhere there has to be a photographer with good eyesight), the wallet, the cellphone, the checkbook, the notepaper and pen and, since the pandemic, the face mask and hand sanitizer. That’s right - it’s a guy purse. So what’s yours and what’s in it?
