That's exactly what I've been searching for! Heck, Some of them even come with a carrying pouch, don't they? Great idea!Originally Posted by Louie Powell
That's exactly what I've been searching for! Heck, Some of them even come with a carrying pouch, don't they? Great idea!
What *I'm* looking for is a bag that will carry ten or so 4x5 film holders, preferably with a snap, latch, or hook-and-loop closure to keep them secure when I'm walking. Carrying the Speed by its handle strap and my tripod by its shoulder strap, meter on its lanyard around my neck, the film holders are the only thing causing trouble. An outside pocket on the bag that would accept a wrapped 4x4 lens board with lens and shutter mounted would be a nice bonus...
Last edited by Donald Qualls; 29-May-2006 at 12:22.
If a contact print at arm's length is too small to see, you need a bigger camera. :D
I'll comment on what I do once I'm shooting however first I'll relate the rest of my gear since that puts it in the perspective of my style of field work. I spent a lot of time brainstorming how to work efficiently out in the field.
I don't carry all my camera gear in a dedicated photo backpack but rather a Black Diamond climbing daypack with one large compartment plus a typical small overlap compartment at the top. Any dedicated photo backpack I've seen would never work for me. Too bulky and little place for other gear. My current pack size is 36 liters although I used to use a similar 40 liter pack until it was stolen. The 36 liter pack translates to 2200 cubic inches. Climbing packs tend to be narrower, longer, and fit in more gear than usual daypacks. Into the pack I fit my wooden field camera, extra bellows, dark cloth, 3 lenses each on separate boards, film holder case with 12 holders, a 22" Litedisc, and a small REI fanny pack with lots of small stuff. That still leaves some space for some more sheet film, clothing and food. On the back I strap my big Gitzo G1325. The whole thing weighs about 30 pounds. I readily take all this backpacking and have done so for up to 9 day trips into the wilderness. When backpacking this whole daypack attaches to another more classic backpack via a custom system of quick release buckles. (very heavy) I also use it when just day hiking about road areas too.
When I reach a location to start shooting, everything in the main pack compartment is quickly dumped on the ground. After setting up my camera atop the Gitzo, the containers and what else are immediately pushed back in the pack in a way I can readily get to the other two lenses and film holders. I wear the fanny pack backwards towards the front. I am continually moving the lens cap in and out of it and taking a brush out to dust my lens. Also lots of small stuff inside like map and loupe. Will also hang my light meter and if desired the Litedisk on the fanny pack belt. If I am shooting at a precarious location where I cannot leave my camera, I'll also temporarily attach the film holder case to my fanny pack belt.
After completing a shot, I'll return to my daypack, hoist it on my back, and carry the Gitzo with camera atop my shoulders most everywhere unless I have to negotiate some pretty difficult terrain or if I know I won't be taking any more shots for awhile and prefer to hike more comfortably. Of course I usually shorten the long tripod legs for travel. Putting my gear back in the pack takes just a couple or three minutes since I've done it so many times.
...David
http://www.davidsenesac.com
Last edited by David_Senesac; 29-May-2006 at 12:39.
Ed,
I carry my 4x5 wooden camera, 2 lenses, a meter, a small number of filters, a scientific calculator (solar), a spare battery for my Gossen, a cable release, my dark cloth, a handy little bubble level from Lee Valley, a measuring tape, a small notepad, a pencil, some black tape for emergencies, an air can and no more than 6 holders in a Tenba DB15C backpack.
On myself I have a mechanical pocket watch, my Swiss Army knife (that I never go out without) and a compass.
I NEVER carry the camera on the tripod. Even when I have to move the setup a short distance, I pack everything up and then leave. So I have the backpack on my back and the tripod in one of my hands.
The backpack is very secure, although it adds to the overall weight. I decided to play it safe rather than risking the equipment in some makeshift arrangement. So far so good..
I have found that it depends on the location. For one shot I carried the kit in a 99p plastic bucket as I was working on some weed covered rocks. I had also changed into wellies first and by the end of the shoot I was standing in 6 inches of water. Everything kept nice and dry int he bucket and I could easily just pick up the tripod with the camera attached (lens wrapped in the bucket) on my shoulder and the bucket in the other hand to make my way back over the rocks.
In hindsight a square bucket, such as is used for wallpaper paste or paint rollers may have been more convenient. But I got the shot I was after without damaging any kit.
Other times I have just used my jacket, knowing that I had everything else set up already (right lens etc.).
I haven't taken the camera any great distance yet. That has yet to come. A pair of waterproof (ortleib style) cycle panniers has also been pressed into service before (and will be again - many of the locations I shoot are readily accessible by cycle, saving a few hours of hiking)
..d
I guess I'm the cheap skate here. I use a shoulder bag, primarily because I can't afford a $450 photo backpack. I also use a mountain bike outfitted with paniers, which I walk over rough terain and ride over the smoother stuff. This works fairly well for getting along the trail with a pile of gear since it carries the load so I don't have to.
I typicaly can fit my 4x5 camera, 6-10 holders, two lenses, light meter, and dark cloth in my bag. The tripod goes over ye olde shoulder as well. While not overly comfortable, it does the job and is actualy not a hot as wearing a backpack in the Florida sun. Then again, most of my destinations are over relatively flat ground and not more than 2-4 miles from the parking area.
- Randy
At the moment my 4x5 gear lives in a California Innovations cooler/cart. That's the darkcloth, wood field camera, a couple of lenses, spotmeter, around 8-9 film holders, and a rollfilm holder with film, filters, cable releases etc. The tripod travels on top. Most of the time it will roll, though I keep the shoulder strap in the bag in case I need to carry it. I forget who brought it to may attention (it was probably here), but it was an excellent $25. My wife has two that she uses to transport materials when she is presenting art classes.
On site the spotmeter goes around my neck. Since the cart is mobile, it stays handy close to the tripod. So far I have not needed to pare down the kit on-site. My old Palm PDA lives in a belt pouch 90% of the time, as does a pen and any other small items I don't want in pockets. A tripod apron is a handy place for lens caps and other things you have to put away before moving on.
I'll second the California Cooler soft sided cooler/cart. I dragged one all over Mariposa Grove with an 8x10, six holders, meter, filter kit , dark cloth, loupe and three lenses. Sadly, a year later it sprung a leak when pressed into service as a...a...cooler for my daaughter's 7th birthday party :-(
"I would feel more optimistic about a bright future for man if he spent less time proving that he can outwit Nature and more time tasting her sweetness and respecting her seniority"---EB White
Hi Ed R -
To actually carry stuff around...
4x5: I use Quickloads in a pouch that has three compartments and a snap-over top. My wife made it for me from old khaki pants, so it is light, soft and durable. It has a perforated mesh plastic sewn into the middle divider. The whole thing weights nearly nothing, and it fits 20+ shots, a Sharpee and a Quickload holder in not much more space than the box the film came in. It has the added advantage to slip exposed sheets into a divided compartment, which eliminates that nagging thing of immediatly putting the "exposed" tag on sheets while trying to capture the moment. It has Drings to clip to just about anything, or sometimes I use a small strap designed to hold corporate name tags when I'm wearing a shirt with epaulets.
Alternatively, I use a couple of the venerable graphmatics, which fit neatly into, ugh, cargo pants! Not exactly the best for style I suppose, but it does work without adding to the heat. A ziplock or two helps prevent dirt / moisture intrusion.
The rest - to get compact, I fold the camera with a small lens and then use a sholder strap, or just put the whole thing in a small camera bag. For distances under a couple of miles round trip, I carry the camera atop a carbon fiber tripod leaned on my sholder. For longer distances, I find that a cloth bookbag with a darkcloth as padding works well enough. Sometimes, I skip the tripod and then use a beanbag pillow, which also acts as padding for protection. The beanbag is often better than a small tripod...
8x10: For the Gowland Aerial, I just lug the thing either with bean bag, or atop a pod. The absolute best 8x10 filmholder bag I've ever seen is something I got free with a computer power supply of all things ( Enermax ). I don't know what they were thinking when they put the bag into the powersupply box, but man, it holds and perfectly fits 6-7 8x10 holders, a GPS, a cell phone, a meter, cable release and perhaps a tad more. Weighs darned near nothing, and it's a soft, yet bullet-proof canvas. It even has drings and a shoulder strap.
The Deardorff - that gets lugged short distances locked tight on a pod ( really tight and secure ), but so far, it doesn't get to go where the truck can't go. ( to paraphrase one of the saints, "it ain't scenic if it's too far from the car" This is why I use big Pelican cases with foam so that even the roughest terrain won't break the GG - take the truck there as much as possible. I'm planing to make a soft yet durable bag for the 'Dorff, so that perhaps just the Dorff and 2-3 holders can join me.
I find that most backpacks add too much weight, and are too much of a hassle to open. I'd rather sacrifice a little protecting for something that is light, strong and soft against my body - so a sort of "Dorff bookbag" will be just the thing. I'm sure that Canham users with small lenses don't have my troubles - I just happen to love plasmats and somehow end up liking the shots from some heavy lenses. Imagine a bag mostly made from canvas, but with some sections more like the material in lenswraps. Then just add two shoulder straps and some drings to clip other odds and ends to - should be good to go.
To get the wife to make such things can involve various techniques for some of us. Mentioning the cost of camera bags helps, as do making dinner, and washing some dishes... however the mechanics work well if one mocks up the prototype with paper and glue / staples - then it's pretty easy to figure out. Materials for just about any light-weight but strong bag are very inexpensive - so are sewing machines. Wives on the other hand..."priceless" ?
For the car, I use coolers on rollers from the local store, and often also toolboxes with padding inside - they work fine for that. When I have to do a job, it often involves interior and exterior work, so the kit gets huge - especially including lights and stands. I fill up a whole truck with it, yet my personal effects take up one very small "airline pilot" type of bag.
Most of the time, a day out with some film out of the cooler isn't so bad - plus exposed shots go back into the cooler.
Once a year, Old Navy has some neat canvas bags that could be useful. Last year I got a shoulder sling army bag that holds a whopping amount of equiipment - much more than a vest, however it fits on one shoulder. Lots of places to clip things too. In warm weather, I hardly ever use a vest - it's just too hot for comfort.
I'll try out the bookbag type setup soon, when the pack trains start up again. I figure that a mule ( literally ) can do a great job lugging both me and the gear...
It seems to be a trade-off between protection and weight / comfort.
I use lowepro backpacks. a bag for 8x10 holders from the apug site (they are perfect). I made a shoulder strap for the tripod, and a smallbag for my packard shutter and 4 lenses. With 8x10 I have a coffee cup rule, if I can't set my cup under the tripod, it's too far from the truck.
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