Discrete bag for Travel and Street? Domke F6, F803?

[Michiel Fokkema]

J803 is in my opinion the best bag ever made.

 

[back alley]

my favourite bag is the domke f6, little bit smaller.

for travel though i will switch to the tenba cooper slim 13 because it has a big loop to go over the double handle on travel luggage.

 

[JoeLopez]

My discreet carry bag is a black Timbuk2 Eula with the Tenba 636-227 camera bag insert.

Looks just like any other black messenger bag on the streets today.

 

[Phil_F_NM]

I have carried two Mamiya 6 bodies in my F803. It's packed but it can handle them.
The Hadley Pro is almost twice the size of the F803 and will fit the Mamiyas plus the 150mm lens and the close-up adapter. That's a substantial amount of gear and what I like to carry for a long weekend or longer. Or if I'm doing a photo study on something and want a few focal lengths and not having to change lenses.

Phil Forrest

 

[Dogman]

I'll second (third?...whatever) the Hadley Pro. For an M6 w/35mm lens and XT2 with 35/1.4 and 23/1.4, the Hadley Pro is just about a perfect. You'll want to carry a good supply of film for the M6 and extra batteries for the XT2 plus some accessories and general "stuff". It's big enough to grow into if you add new gear and it's small enough to not get in the way while carrying. Plus it's rainproof and it will stand up to decades of heavy use before you'll need to replace it, making it the lower priced bag in the end.

I have a history with Domke bags dating back to the mid 1970s when Jim Domke made them and marketed them to news photographers. They were fairly inexpensive at the time and they carried a lot of gear for general daily newspaper assignments. Today, they're good bags but I think they're overpriced for the materials used. Still, if you can't go the Billingham route, the F6 will work well. The 803 might be a little tight on interior space for the named gear--I haven't used one of the 803 satchels in several years and I don't remember how gear fit in it.

 

[LynnL]

Domke inserts

Domke inserts

I just wish Domke had not gone cheap and skinny on the inserts. What a crock.

Lynn

 

[Nokton48]

I use the F803 as my daily work bag. I bought an insert for it from Midwest Photo and it works great. I can even carry my Hasselblad and 350mm lens around in it

 

[back alley]

someone from rff gifted me a long time ago with a near new domke 802...gfb!
i put an insert into it that can hold my lunch, 2 cans of ice tea and snacks (& can keep it all cold). the outside (under flap) pockets hold an xe2 with 27mm lens, various miscellaneous stuff like ear buds, apple sd card converter...plus more!
w/o lunch in there i could fit a sweater and a bong...soon...canada is going legal with weed next year!!
anyway, love the 802, use it everyday...love the f6, use it on weekends...

 

[B-9]

Joe, you'll need an extra water bottle to fill that bong!

As for bags, I like what Peak Design has been cooking up lately.

Thinking about their Field Pouch for a one camera one lens carry with room for the iPhone a few business cards and my Instax SP2 printer.

 

[sepiareverb]

Artisan and Artist ACAM 7000 line. Discrete and long wearing.

 

[Godfrey]

Does the 5X-B have any sort of slip pocket for a small journal or book or is the only pocket the main one. Hard to tell from photos.

Mine has an internal slip pocket partitioned off the main compartment, and a pair of small Moleskine notebook sized compartments under the over flap. There's no slip pocket on the back because it was designed to be wearable like a waist pack on a wide belt for light loads.

G

 

[michaelwj]

I use an F6 as my everyday bag. I walk to work and carry an M4/6 with a 35mm lens, lightmeter, lunch, some fruit, wallet, etc in it. When I'm going "only photo" I carry an M4/6 with the 35mm lens attached, the other of the M4/6 that doesn't have the lens, a lightmeterm and a few odds and ends in the 4 pockets of the insert. Beside the insert I carry film on one side, and a snack/water on the other.

But what you really want to know is how thick it is. In the space besides the insert I can put an M4 on its base, with the body facing the side of the bag. So the interior width is a big bigger than the width of an M, and to get the overall width you need to add the front pocket. It's not slim, but it's not a struggle to get anything in or out.

 

[Pablito]

No camera bag is discreet. If you really want the bag not to be noticed, or at least not to be seen as a camera bag, get padded bag inserts ( many companies make them) and put them in a messenger bag or backpack.

 

[jazzwave]

The usual suggestion of getting a normal bag that fits what you want and then buying a camera insert applies here.

Every so often I look at "camera" bags and am ultimately disappointed (or too picky) and fall back to my Jack S p a d e (the censorship software filters the second word, hence the spacing) with a Crumpler insert. When I travel I generally take this super cheap Holga bag I got years ago which is small enough to fit in other luggage but big enough for a Leica, a Ricoh GR and an extra lens and notebook.

I'm doing this way as well, bought any casual bag and insert camera pad (buy the pad from ebay, $15).
Many people think, thats normal bag not camera bag.

~ron~

 

[Godfrey]

For bicycle riding, I've purchased a pair of small Artisan & Artist pouches. One holds the camera and lens, the other holds up to three lenses (or two lenses plus spare battery, spare cards, & cable release). The two of them plus my Sirui tripod fit nicely in my Timbuk2 Rapid Pack or my larger Invisible Backpack Two.

It's better than one larger insert IMO because other things can fit in and around the camera gear. They're padded to keep the gear safe.

G

 

[benlees]

We have a Domke dealer in Edmonton. And the prices are good. Weird. Gotta be one in Vancouver.

 

[Rob-F]

Of all the bags I have, the Domke F-803 looks the least like a camera bag, and is very good for street shooting. It worked out very nicely for a Chicago trip.

 

[ChrisPlatt]

I just wish Domke had not gone cheap and skinny on the inserts. What a crock.

I'm not sure I understand exactly what your complaint is.

Though not inexpensive the various inserts available just like Domke bags
are of good quality, offering adequate protection with minimal bulk.
Choosing the right inserts many Domke models become fully customizable
as required to nearly any configuration, making them true system bags.

Most Domke models come with the most often used insert included.
FWIW many Domke owners are minimalists who choose to use none.
And if all inserts were included they'd double the cost of the bags.

Chris

 

[back alley]

We have a Domke dealer in Edmonton. And the prices are good. Weird. Gotta be one in Vancouver.

who?



.

 

[cz23]

J803 is in my opinion the best bag ever made.

I've used one forever and agree. I had a luggage shop replace the metal buckle with a plastic pinch clip from an old Tenba bag. I have a much nicer insert from Ebay and use an Upstrap bag strap. Not much Domke left on it, but it's just about perfect now.

John