movements but able to travel on trains and planes

[Frank Petronio]

If you stretch to the limit, and get a maximum legal carry on like the Think Tank Photo Backpack ($400!), you can get a compact 4x5 system and a small 35mm system onboard along legally, with reading material, a laptop, and toilitries - but it is very difficult. I did it with a Technika, 60 sheets of Readyloads, a second lens, Pentax meter, etc. a Nikon D70 and a couple small primes, all crammed into a Lowe Compu-Trekker (like the Mini Trekker but thinner to allow for a laptop compartment.

In the 80s I used a lightweight maxiumum legal carry on that was larger then. I really could pack a full 35-120-4x5 system. Gary Regester of Chimera and Plume fame used to give lectures and demos of how he did it. I used to haul a complete 3 body - 5 lens Nikon set, a Fuji GS690, and a Wista SP with three honker big lenses. But nowadays it is impossible to get all that onboard, unless you're talking about something radical like:

A Kerry Thalman style Toho 4x5 set up
A compact 120 rangfinder like a Mamiya 645i
and either Leica Ms or similar

None of these maximum carry-ons are any fun to carry or load onto a luggage bin.

For fun, I would simplify and take my FAVORITE camera and maybe a compact - and stop worrying and start shooting! The format is never as important as actually making the photo, and a good 35mm photo beats a mediocre 4x5 everytime.

[james silverman]

everything is wrapped in lens wraps?

what are lens wraps..do you mean bubble wrap

firstly the fresnel screen is pretty vulnerable I just had one that broke the other week through not protecting it enough and not carrying it in my black mamouth magic box...

when I get to a shoot I normally put what is neccesary into a regular bag that has 2 shoulder straps so I can easily move around and bubble wrap lenses putting them in there but I am always a little concerned about the safety of the quipment..travelling through airports andputting equipment on the plane you dont know if someone will open the cabinet and itll fall out..

keep the comments coming...

[Michael S. Briggs]

Lens wraps are padded squares of fabric that wrap around a lens or similar size object and fasten with velcro.

The typical rules allow one carryon luggage and one personal item, which can be a briefcase. I use a smaller than normal rollon as my carryon luggage and fit a field camera and several lenses wrapped in lens wraps, light meter, etc. Arrange something sturdy over the ground glass, or a piece of corrugaged cardboard. I've never broken anything this way. The briefcase can hold the other items that you want during the flight -- book, snacks, etc. If you check photo equipment in baggage, it has to be packed better, because the luggage will get rougher handling.

In the city, the rollon works well, Outside, a backpack works better. If one bag is too big to carryon, you can alway check it filled with cloths and transfer your camera to it at your destination.

I don't use Readyloads etc because the film I want isn't available in that format, but most of the complaints that I've seem are from the earlier versions of the Kodak holder, or from mixing brands (one brand of film with another brand of holder).

[james silverman]

I found this link with LF equipment in Loweprow and Pelican bags...would it be possible with monorail or nonfold cameras?

http://www.beautiful-landscape.com/Equipment.html

[Henry Ambrose]

James,

The Ebony SW45 would be wonderful for your situation. It will handle the three lenses you have with more than enough movements and it is --very-- light and compact. Add a 6x9 rollfilm back and a 58mm lens to your outfit and leave the Fuji at home. Or just carry more 4x5 film to make your life really simple!

I carry my SW45 in a Pelican 1550 with 5 lenses, 10 filmholders, filters, meter, darkcloth - everything but a tripod. If you really want to travel light you can carry the camera, three lenses, meter, filters and some filmholders in a LowePro OmniPro model case without the Pelican as a carry-on bag and save a lot of weight. Or check it in the Pelican case and leave the case when you are working.

Look here:
www.lowepro.com/Products/Hard_and_Soft_Shell/classic/

[Dave Henry]

Hi James,

As I mentioned earlier, the Sinar folds flat when the rail is removed and gets wrapped up in the dark cloth. Still has the original focusing screen. I have replaced the fresnel a couple times because it is plastic and scratches over time from dragging a loupe over it for many years. If you broke the ground glass, which is under the plastic fresnel (on my camera), it really must have taken a beating. Calumet makes an inexpensive plastic sleeve for protecting focusing screens that might work for you.

When I wrap up the body I put the readyload holder (in its case) next to the focusing screen to protect it in transit.

What I like about carrying my stuff in a generic back pack is that I blend in with the general public and don't tend to attract attention. I also know that the stuff is being well cared for and watched by ME.

Good luck in your pursuits.

[David Crossley]

James, another vote for the Ebony SW45.

With similar criteria to yours, i picked up the slightly heavier non folding 45S and it fits the bill perfectly. Like Henry, my kit gets thrown into a pelican and into pack boxes on horseback for a part of the year, the hold of my sea kayak for another,and i have yet to see how it holds up on a pulk backcountry skiing as soon as the snow flies....



David Crossley/Crossley Photography....

[Tony Ilardi]

I recently started using large format again. About a dozen years ago, I had a Sinar a1, a Zone VI tripod and a large Bogen head. Mostly, it stayed in the closet because of the weight and bulk. Now I am using an Ebony RW45 and a lightweight carbon fiber tripod with Acratech head. I pack it in a Lowepro Mini Roller, having concluded I am not the backpacking kind. The case has enough room for the camera, 3-4 lenses, Fuji Quickload holder plus film and everything else I need, with the tripod strapped on the outside. I have not flown with this setup yet, but it looks promising as carry-on, with the tripod packed in a separate checked bag.