If you could have just ONE camera bag, what would you choose and why?

[noisycheese]

If you could have just ONE camera bag, what would you choose and why?

That's my question. It's a simple question that is bound to have 10,000 different answers.

One camera bag for the rest of your life: What bag would you choose?

There is one stipulation - if it falls apart or wears out, you are allowed to replace it with the exact same make and model (but in a different color if you so desire).

 

[mdarnton]

My favorite bag, ever, was one LL Bean made in the 70s. It had a canvas body about the size of a medium Timbuk 2, and the bottom was encased in leather, about 4 inches up all the sides. They made them for quite a while and I had several of them sequentially. I still have one, but I don't use it all the time because when it's gone, that's the last of them. What I liked was the leather, that provided adequate protection without bulk, and the internal pockets and dividers that keep things separate enough without being fussy.

 

[mdg137]

Just recently acquired a Fogg B-Sharp, and sold almost all my other bags.

Seems to be the perfect balance of protective structure and body hugging softness, works well with an M body and up to 5 lenses, but doesn't feel cavernous with 1 or 2 lenses.

Lighter than the leather bags I was using, has a handle which is a must, looks and feels like super high quality, but doesn't scream for attention.

Worth every penny.

 

[benmacphoto]

I would go with my waxwear Domke F-6.

 

[kxl]

It's not so simple a question for those who shoot multiple formats, from RF's to large format. From a practical perspective, I would opt for the smallest and most comfortable bag that would carry the greatest and largest amount of gear that I have transported or plan to transport.

My current bag for large or bulky gear is the Thinktank Airport Commuter backpack. Obviously that bag would not be my first choice if I were just transporting an RF body and one or two lenses.

 

[Darthfeeble]

One bag! I'd have to open a vein. Well if you must, the Domke F6. Not that big but lots of room for the RF gear. I had two bodies and 5 lenses and room for other stuff too. Easy access as well.

 

[mfunnell]

Only one camera bag? An insane idea! But if I had to play, I'd choose probably my least-used bag, a Billingham 445. Why? That way if I needed to carry a lot of gear, I could. But I'd feel a right dill using it to carry only one small camera and lens.

...Mike

 

[back alley]

i can now make that decision with ease as i have finally put together my perfect camera kit...2 fuji bodies and 3 lenses and it all fits perfectly into a domke f6!

 

[Harry Lime]

Practically speaking: Domke F6

Personal favorite: Billingham L2

 

[nickthetasmaniac]

Hmmm. Either a Hadley Small or Domke F6, for much the same reasons: small enough to use as my day to day, but capable of carrying my full kit (I have a small kit) and some bits and pieces if I'm travelling, which I often do. Both are fantastically made, represent a design ethos I admire, come from brands who I respect (in terms of labour rates and stuff like that) and are made to age 'gracefully'.

 

[jarski]

thanks, great thread! (going to check how Domke F6 looks like) 😛

 

[WJJ3]

loving my beige F2!

 

[jschrader]

I HAVE only one bag, but I do not need it any more, except at times for the digital gear.

For my M6, I have an "ever-ready" case (is that the term?), and I leave that at home of I do not need to protect the camera from whatever.

Less is more :angel:

PS Oh yes, the bag is a 30 years old Tenba, bought when they were new on the market and began to replace the hard boxes that were used in the 70s and before

 

[E.M]

I only have one bag , a Domke F2 in black since my sand F2 worn out , which I had from the early nineties and traveled a lot with in SE Asia . Maybe in a warm climate the sand is better for the heat ...

 

[thirtyfivefifty]

Think Tank Shape Shifter for DSLRs.

 

[MarkoKovacevic]

Probably the Domke F2. It's big enough to hold what I need for 99% of jobs, but very low key, easily accessible, and holds just enough not to be uncomfortable during work

 

[Godfrey]

LOL! One bag? For everything? An impossible thing to hope for given having gear as different in size and shape as a Nikon F6 and a Leica M, never mind the Hasselblad or the Polaroids.

If I limit the scope of this "one bag" to 35mm-ish cameras, it becomes a toss up between the Billingham L2 "Alice" and the Black Label Bag "Evans Walker mark II", with the assumption that I'll sell off the Leica gear if I go with the L2, or the Nikon gear if I go with the Evans Walker. I hardly ever want to carry more than camera and two to three lenses nowadays ... usually less than that.

Needless to say, this isn't going to happen any time soon. 🙂

G

 

[burancap]

Leica Combination Bag for M System, by Billingham. Part#: 14854

 

[mdwsta4]

I may like the Hadley because it can swallow up everything, but it also results in me packing too much.

So one bag I'll go with a newer entry that has traveled the world with me: Ona Bowery. It holds my normal two camera kit perfectly (MP and X100), but can be changed up to carry my Hasselblad, or one body and multiple lenses, instant printer, etc. The rear holds my iPad air perfectly too. Small, light, and forces me to be smart with what I pack.

 

[porktaco]

the fogg bags were my first thought but the everyday messenger from kickstarter really might be the right answer.