What’s The Perfect Camera Bag For The Traveling Photographer?

By nature photographers are gear junkies.  We love new gadgets, gizmos and widgets designed to make our lives easier and take better photographs.  I’m one of them, being both a tech junkie and a photographer often makes my wallet rather empty.  How you transport your gear is almost as important as what’s in the bag, so here’s a look at my bags and why I carry them.

Note, I said bags, in plural.  I’m also a bag junkie, but do believe that there is a bag for each job and function.  First, a run down of the bags I own and why.

Crumpler Whicky & Cox photo backpack.  Crumpler is a funny company from Australia that simply makes bulletproof camera bags.  The materials they use and the zippers sewn into their bags are second to none and make their bags worth every penny.  Their photo backpacks are somewhat unique by design, which I didn’t understand until someone showed me one in person.  To access your gear, unzip two zippers that run down the inside edge, under the

shoulder straps.  The back panel, that is the panel that sits against your back, then opens up.  Essentially, you lay the front of the bag on the ground or table with straps up and that’s the access area.  Crumpler designed the bag to do this

on purpose for one main reason, to keep your back clean.  The second reason, which isn’t really advertised as a feature, is it’s a great theft deterrent.  The bag only offers two side pockets, which aren’t actually useful for much, so there is no way into the bag without taking it off.  Great if you travel on crowded buses or trains.

Inside you’ll find a bright baby blue interior, another signature Crumpler feature.  The fine people who designed these bags put bright colored liners in so you can find the small, usually black accessories, cables and lens caps that often come loose in a bag quickly and easily.  Dividers make multiple configurations possible and I’ve easily hauled my 5d with grip, 70-200, 24-70, 12-24, 50 and lens baby lenses, along with a light meter, filters and a few other accessories without a problem.  There is also a removable laptop bag that can accommodate a 17″ laptop without a problem.  The entire inside piece is held in with Velcro and removable should you ever want to use the bag purely as a backpack for clothing or what not too.  The straps on the bag are wide, padded well and comfortable and include a sternum strap to distribute the weight.

For more then 4 years this bag has been my transfer from one area to another area bag and shows zero signs of wear.  The zipper has never once been stuck and there are no frayed ends or loose stitching.  For moving gear, this is my bag of choice.

Tenba Messenger Bag (small).  Camera bags vary from mild to wild and I’ve always had a hard time finding one that I could easily work with.  Finally, the people at Tenba answered my wishes, a messenger style bag with a customizable interior and a long zipper along the top flap.  The zipper along the flap is the selling point for me.  The top flap’s velcro shuts against the bag and also has two secure buckle clasps, but when you’re shooting, it’s a pain to open that flap and then try to tuck it around the backside of the bag against yourself.  The top mounted zipper allows for near instant access to the inside of the bag; changing a lens or grabbing a flash is a breeze.  On the outside of the flap are two small pockets, perfect for memory cards.  Inside the bag, the customizable, dividable interior is roomy and also includes a laptop sleeve that will hold up to a 15″ laptop.  While the interior is gray and not nearly as bright as Crumpler, it still works better then black.

The back of the bag, which rests against the body when the strap is over the shoulder is well padded and made of a softer material then the more rugged sides, bottom and front of the bag so it doesn’t wear your clothing down.  Three is also a large zippered pocket back there, perfect for storing magazines or model release forms.  The shoulder strap is padded and curved and when wearing the bag properly, that is the strap on the opposite shoulder the bag is, it’s very comfortable.

The downside to the bag is that it’s not waterproof, the zipper across the flap and the corner areas can be exposed to the elements.  For a working bag, this is an oversight in my eyes, although the bag is water resistant.  The bottom is reinforced for abuse, important since the bag is meant to be used, but the rest of the bag shows lint and pet hair pretty well.  I chose the small bag because I use this for working, not for transporting all my gear and usually only have my body with a lens on it, a second lens and a flash.  The large version will hold much more.  Additionally, the bag is available in a variety of fun colors including plum and burnt orange, along with the staple of black.  Like the Crumpler, the entire photo insert is removable should you want to use the bag for another purpose.

When I travel, everything goes into the Crumpler and on the plane with me as a carry on and the Tenba gets packed in my luggage for use at the destination.

Lowepro Trekker Orion Backpack

Sadly, I haven’t seen this bag in over two years and I’m not sure what happened to it.  It’s a great bag though, here’s why.  It’s a simple backpack, the bottom of it holds camera gear, not a lot, but a body, lens and flash will fit, nothing overly long though.  The top half of the bag opens like a traditional school backpack and is open.  It’s a perfect hiking or urban walking bag because the top can hold a journal, swim trunks, bottle of water, sunscreen, etc, and mostimportantly, doesn’t look like a camera bag.  The bottom unzips to reveal the body.  While my Tenba messenger bag has replaced 90% of what this bag does, sometimes I prefer to have the weight evenly distributed across two of my shoulders, not one.  I’ve been debating picking another up but still haven’t given up the search for the lost bag.

Camera bags are pretty personal, and I for one don’t like camera bags that draw too much attention or look like camera bags.  Also, I’m not really a fan of bags that have dozens of small, zippered or Velcro pockets in them because they never seem to be the right size to hold what I want to put in them.  Simple, well built bags get my attention.  I’ve yet to find one bag to do everything I need, and I’ll probably never stop hunting for it, but until then I’ll utilize the ones I do own plus a few more I have my eye on to accomplish the tasks needed at hand.

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