How many camera bags?

How many camera bags?

  • Bag? none for me

    Votes: 14 4.7%

  • Just 1

    Votes: 29 9.7%

  • 2 - 3

    Votes: 84 28.2%

  • 4 - 6

    Votes: 90 30.2%

  • 7 - 10

    Votes: 49 16.4%

  • 10 - ?

    Votes: 32 10.7%
  • Total voters
    298
Far too many - I'm sure they breed when I'm not looking...

Crumpler Formal Lounge backpack - my everyday 'manbag' which carries books, papers, bits and pieces, and has a camera compartment that holds an M or the G2, another lens and some film.
A&A Evans Walker x 2 for the Ms - to grab when off for a walk
Fogg Violin holdall for M-system lenses, accessories and stuff not in use at the moment.
Lowepro smallish impact nylon bag (not sure of the model) for the Mamiya 7
Peli 1550 case for travelling
Lowepro Commercial Pro AWII - redundant at the moment since selling off my Canon gear.
 
I have a large number of bags, cases, and pouches that I use to carry photographic equipment. Some are hard; some are soft. Some are large; some are small. Some are water proof; some are not. Some are padded; some are not. Some are used only for transportation, some are used only for storage, and some are used for both. Some are used for cameras and lenses, some for lighting, some for camera and/or lighting support (i.e. tripods, light stands, background support, etc), some for film and/or digital media, some for photo accessories such as filters and batteries, and some for equipment maintenance & repair tools. The material in the bags/cases/pouches varies from leather to cloth to plastic to metal to cardboard to a combination of the various materials.

Which ones I use depends on what equipment I am transporting, how much equipment I am transporting, and what mode of transportation I am using (i.e. plane vs. car vs. bike vs. walking).

When I travel with a light photographic load, I carry a small camera in a small bag or pouch that I attach to my belt.

When I travel by bike or on foot, I use a soft backpack and/or a belly pack.

My largest photo case is a hard 22x19x9 inch waterproof and crushproof case.
 
I think I've finally found the bag for me- 90% of the time it's the F2. Roomy enough for what Iike to have- 2 or 3 bodies each with a lens and an extra lens or two in case, plus plenty of film (I shoot a bunch), the notebook to keep track of it all, filters, batteries, etc. And it is easy to work out of. I have my end pockets for fresh films- (one for color one for B&W- or one for fast and one for slow) the cameras go in and out easily without having to stop and fiddle.
Seems low profile enough for most of my locations- not that I'm usually anywhere I need to worry- and they are durable. My Tamracs looked awful after a year, then started to disintegrate. I also like the modular method Domke uses- I can have inserts for different stuff and mix up the bag easily- change out an insert and go, without having to move the films, the etc. I tend not to be so far from civilization anymore that I need waterproof- I can always pop into a shop if it starts to rain, or get back to the truck- but even when I've been caught out in the woods the bags are pretty good in moderate rain.
I also like the cotton material over Nylon/polystyrene whatever those others are made of. Not so hot on the hip come our humid summers.

I'm sure this wouldn't be the bag for everyone- but I was curious what folks use, mainly because I too find that I'm pretty particular about getting things right. (see my darkroom pics in FrankS darkroom thread)

http://rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=40458&highlight=darkroom+weekend

As to discipline, I try to lean on comedy and dry wit.
 
I have not found the perfect bag so far. I have tried 3 different bags, but none of them is the ideal one. The Billingham for Leica bag is quite ok, but too small. For travelling with rf and slr I have no decent bag, so the lowepro minitrekker is my choice. This backpack is great for everything up to 1 rf with 2-3 lenses and 1 slr with flash and 2-3 lenses.

Thomas
 
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My day to day bag is a green Domke F6 - it holds a DSRL, flash, a iiic or M6 and a few extra lenses along with film, memory cards, etc.

RF-only bag: LowePro Nova 1

Photo Excursion (EVERYTHING fits): LowePro Mini Trekker AW backpack
 
I must confess: 10+, too many in the eyes of she who must be obeyed, but this might be the ill fate of a camera junkie :)

(Billingham, Thinktank, Pelican, Lightware, Carnier, Lowepro, Hasselblad, Tenba, ...)
 
Too many.

pile_o_bags.jpg
 
I've got a boat load of bags; 14 that are in use! 11 of them are Crumpler bags. I just love these things. They are not the best "pro" bag as they don't always allow quick access to the lenses, accessories, etc. But the are extremely overbuild: extra heavy nylon exteriors, extremely over padded, giant oversized zippers. These things are built like tank - could run over them! I can't remember all the names. They're funky ones like "Oh Lord", "Glamor bag", "The Harry Potter Device", and the "Steamer". One of their greatest assets is that they don't look like a camera bag. (BTW, all the ones I have are the older "messinger" style bags. Not the newer "man purse" styles!) The most embarrassing thing of all is that each bag holds a different camera system. I gotta start pushing things THE OTHER WAY thru eBay!
 
I store all of my SLR equipment in camera bags, so I may have 16-20 camera bags total.
 
Magus,
I enjoy using my Canon T90 and F1N cameras. Both have excellent meters and both are built to last. As for lenses, I used to enjoy the super sharp Canon 500mm/4.5L lens for animal photography and some awesome sunsets. Another SLR lens for which I do not have a RF equivalent is the Canon 85mm/1.2L. The less serious wide angle lens, such as the 7.5mm (circular) fish-eye lens is still fun to use. In fact, last week I used the 7.5 lens on my M6. I used a 180 degrees fisheye door viewer to see what I will be getting on film. You are right about the sharpness of RF lenses and sometimes lack of it with some SLR wide angle lenses. I just bought a Nikkor 24mm/2.8 lens for next to nothing. It has an excellent reputation. I also bought for next to nothing a Canon 50mm macro lens.

Raid
 
It is SLR's for long stuff. I kept my F4's for macro work, but haven't shot them since getting hooked by the M's. Stockhouses won't look at film, so I don't really need the macro these days.
 
another vote for "too many", all of them are 1980s vintage tenba bags of various colors and sizes (orange, tan, gray, black)... just over 10 bags. an aluminum cased technika is coming my way though. my first hard case!
 
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