Perfect Rangefinder Transportation Device (Bag)?

[nonot]

What I mean to say here, is: What's the perfect rangefinder bag for you?

I've become somewhat frustrated with searching for one, so I've decided to just go ahead and try making my own. A bag that doesn't scream "Hey I have a bunch of camera gear" nor is ridiculously stylish or complicated with velcro attachments, etc. Something that can hold a few lenses and a notebook, give access to them all easily but also lend a reasonable amount of protection too.

So what camera bag are you using with your RF equipment, and if you are happy with it, why?

 

[back alley]

current favourite small bag is the lowepro terraclime 100 with a 2 compartment small domke insert.

 

[elude]

My (black) Billingham doesn't scream PHOTO unless you know what a Billingham is. I use it everyday for my M2, but also along with the Hasselblad if I'm in the mood, and ALWAYS with a couple of books I'm reading at the moment, my notebooks, rolls of films, even my college essays or anything I have to carry around at University.

 

[nightfly]

Jack Sp*de (you can't use that word apparently as it is sometimes used as a racial slur) small messenger bag with falling apart single Domke insert with a cut up mouse pad inside it to provide bottom padding. Interior pouches hold film and a second lens.

My perfect bag would be a little bigger and have one of those magnetic clasps they use on women's purses rather than velcro (quieter) and a more durable insert but I've gone through a bunch of other alternatives and keep coming back to the Jack Sp*de. It's main draw is that it looks good and it's not too tall so it's easy to grab the camera quickly without digging. Also no extraneous straps or other markings.

 

[photo4ls]

+1 for the Terriclime from Lowepro.
Works great for RF gear and you will
definitely need inserts. I also have a
Lowepro bag for my slr gear that has
lasted for quite sometime and is still
in great shape. Terraclime is a great
value for the money.
Nelson

 

[macfiend]

++1 for the Lowepro Terraclime 100.
I keep my M8 with 28/2 mounted, 50/1.1, 35/1.2, 15/4.5, 90/2.8 and spare battery all inside.
Great value for what you get. Also, doesn't look like a camera bag.

 

[Calzone]

I use two differant bags for differant reasons. I live in NYC and almost always carry at least one camera when I leave the house.

Like many of the above posters I use a bookbag, a Domke F-803, which happens to be their smallest version. It is padded and I added an extra spare insert from another Domke bag for a second camera. I essentially bought this bag for when I obtain a second M-body to carry a two camera kit, but at the moment I utilize it for one body with extra lenses. I imagine my M6 with a 35 Cron paired with a new MP with my 75 Lux. On the subway it just blends in with all the other bookbags.

I bought a used neveready Leica case made for the R8 or R9. It is leather with a double zipper for easy access. A small pocket is usefull for extra film. While not low profile, my camera is protected. Since the case is made for a Leica SLR, my M6 with a 75 Lux fits like it was made for it. Carrying this heavy rig is made more comfortable by slinging across my shoulder, but also works well with other lenses.

Out of habit, and partly because I'm a New Yorker, I always like to have my hands free in case of trouble. Even in Times Square there are tourists that will inadvertantly poke your eye out.

Calzone

 

[Ezzie]

I use three different bags. Two Crumplers and Sigma. The small Crumpler Messenger Boy 7500 holds an Epson R-D1 with lens, three more lenses, a large flash, some filters and batteries. Nice looking too. The larger Crumpler I use to and from work and on travels. Its a Daily XXL. Holds a 15-17" laptop, and a detachable camera insert large enough for two systems, both the Epson and a Nikon D2X with up to 5 lenses combined, flash, filters and more. The Sigma will hold the Epson with lens, and two lenses or on lens and flash. One size does not fit all..........yet.

 

[adrianzg]

i don't have a dedicated camera bag just for cameras. i'm a big fan of the billingham hadley pro but find that it's too small. i'm currently using a brady severn bag which is about 20% bigger. i can put a camera body in one of its front compartment, 2 lenses and a flash in the other, some clothes in the big middle compartment and a laptop in the back compartment.

 

[Steve B]

The terraclime 100 looks like a cool bag. Would it conveniently hold a rangefinder, 2 extra lenses and a compact digi plus odds and ends like film, batteries, etc. And if so what insert might be recommended. I've been looking at the domke inserts and can't seem to sort out which might be best. Any input from you folks who are using this bag would be much appreciated. Thanks,,,,,,,,,

 

[back alley]

the domke 'small' inserts designed for the f6 bag are what you want, perfect fit inside the terraclime 100. i have a 2 section insert that i use for 2 extra lenses, the rd1 plus lens sits next to that. extra batteries and media cards go into 2 small outer pockets.
i just ordered another bag and a one section insert so that i could have both bodies with lenses attached in the bag with the insert in between each body, and a 3rd lens in it.

be forewarned that the strap on the bag slips off the shoulder very easily, but the strap is extra long and great if you wear it bandolero style.

 

[FPjohn]

Any of a number of insulated "lunch" bags. $5-15 and they do not advertise their contents.

yours
FPJ

 

[Disaster_Area]

After going through at least a dozen bags I've finally settled on three main bags:

Crumpler 7 Million Dollar Home: This is my "on the job" bag.. when I need to carry my full DSLR kit or DSLR + 2 lens + RF body and a couple lenses. It's discrete... comfortable even when packed full and doesn't scream camera bag.

Kata Panorama U: This is my hybrid bag when I want to carry an RF and a couple lenses but also need room for real life things like a laptop, a book or magazine, files and paper work etc. It will fit two RF's with smaller lenses attatched in the bottom segment and there's three cool little pockets in the top half for more lenses and it's got a laptop section. The coolest thing is it came with a little pouch that velcro's anywhere inside that's PERFECT for my 15mm finder. http://gear.ign.com/articles/758/758734p1.html

Lastly is a leather bag from an company out of England called Grafea... I'm so in love with this bag it's ridiculous. I bought it second hand, the previous owner sewed some velcro inside to add dividers, I'm sure there's other inserts that would work. This is my everyday bag, it fits both my RF bodies, four lenses and a bunch of random crap. It's comfy and most of all it's stylish as hell, I've gotten more complements while wearing this bag than ever before. Complements don't make my pictures sharper, but it does start conversations which builds a rapport and has let me take pics of strangers easier:

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif] http://www.grafea.co.uk/shop/Leather_Camera_Bag.html

[/FONT]

 

[wgerrard]

Does real evidence exist that bags that we all think look like camera bags are any more likely to be stolen?

Perhaps a professional thief who specialized in cameras would find a reason to know what's likely inside, say, a Billingham bag. But, how many professional camera thieves are out there?

Aren't most people who grab your bag or backpack just taking the chance that there's money or something quickly sell-able inside? The risk is from someone just looking for an easy grab-and-run, not someone who's out to steal cameras.

 

[Disaster_Area]

It's not that I think my camera bag not looking like one will make me less prone to theft... it's more that I don't look like a tourist... I just look like a guy with a bag who happens to have a camera with him. They blend into my day to day life. I don't stick out of the crowd as a photographer. And, at least in my experience, I get taken more seriously when I don't have the same Lowepro or "insert brand here" branded camera bag that every first time DSLR buyer gets talked into when they pick up their Rebel XT or Nikon D50.

 

[Vince Lupo]

Love my Domke F803, particularly in its brown waxed cotton finish. Doesn't even say Domke on the outside.

 

[Pablito]

a variety of messenger bags with home-made or Domke inserts. That Jack Sp@de one seems very nice but I looked them up and, WOW, they are expensive.

 

[-doomed-]

I use the f-5xb it carries my M3 with 50/2.5 mounted and 2(90/4, 135/4.5 or the 40/1.4) lenses and a few rolls (3 to6) of film along with my sekonic l-28c2 and a small note pad, or my iiif , rasal finder, meter,and at least 6 rolls of film . My only gripe could be that its pretty small looking but a great RF bag.

 

[martin s]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]

[/FONT]

I think I'm in love. Thanks a _lot for sharing.

martin

 

[wgerrard]

... some clueless tourist sporting a pristine camera bag with a big ol' "CANON" across it?

Dunno, really. Might depend on how much of a hurry the thief was in. And, we assume that everyone knows what "Canon" and "Nikon" signify.

I've given up trying to avoid looking like a tourist. Everyone knows you are, anyway, especially as soon as you open your mouth. Shoes, coats, haircuts, even walking gaits, can give it away. When I lived in the UK, I could spot fellow Yanks quite reliably.

Now, I just wear what I want, use a camera bag that's comfortable, and spend hours on end with a camera dangling on a wrist strap.