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Thread: Show your bag

  1. #41

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    Mar 2005
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    Baton Rouge, LA
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    Re: Show your bag

    I am curious how you use these backpacks - do you set them on the ground to uppack?

    I am looking for a way to carry stuff in the field that does not require setting anything on the ground, ever, and also does not require a balancing act to avoid dumping everything when I am trying to something out of the bag. I noticed one shoulder bag in this lot, which looks like it would let you work with the bag still on your shoulder.

  2. #42
    Vaughn's Avatar
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    Jan 2007
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    Humboldt County, CA
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    Re: Show your bag

    My 8x10 camera pack weighs about 45 pounds -- more if I fill the exterior side pockets full of water and food -- so yes, I set the thing on the ground!

    If I was using my 4x5 and did not want to set anything on the ground, it would be rather easy. My Gowland 4x5 weighs just over a kilo with the lens (2.5 lbs). I would carry the camera on the tripod and work from a shoulder bag (in it, a meter, 6 or 8 holders, an odds and ends bag). The darkcloth would be wrapped around the camera. The deciding factor would be how far I was hiking...if the distance is great, I'd prefer a backpack.

    Actually, I have seen Richard Misrach work with an 8x10 this same way at Pt. Lobos...very impressive! No wonder he could use an 8x10 to photogrphic fires in the desert! If I remember right he did not use a meter.

    Vaughn

  3. #43

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    Oct 2005
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    Michigan
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    914

    Re: Show your bag

    Quote Originally Posted by Ed Richards View Post
    I am curious how you use these backpacks - do you set them on the ground to uppack?

    I am looking for a way to carry stuff in the field that does not require setting anything on the ground, ever, and also does not require a balancing act to avoid dumping everything when I am trying to something out of the bag. I noticed one shoulder bag in this lot, which looks like it would let you work with the bag still on your shoulder.

    Hi Ed,

    The LowePro-like bags provide a great advantage in that they make everything available with one unzipping. The trade-off here is that they are heavier and don't carry as well. My remedy is the blue tarp pictured in my first post. It goes on the ground first, and then everything is unpacked onto it - this take less than a minute. If the weather takes a turn for the worse you can just fold the tarp over the gear and continue to shoot. I designate a clean side and fold it in when packing up. Others here use a similar system - someone uses a shower curtain and prefers it because it's lighter and more compact. I like the durability and price of the 6X8 utility tarps.

    Cheers

  4. #44

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    Aug 2006
    Location
    Chateauneur sur Loire, France
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    34

    Re: Show your bag

    My contri...

    Lowepro Nature trekker AW, I attach the tripod on the bag (stopped doing it with the Manfrotto 055, but the Berlebach is much lighter)

    Actually, I just went back to the backpack, and stuffed the 35mm in the Nova5 AW I previously used for LF. Sorry, I have no pics of this arrangement, which was nice to use.

  5. #45

    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    Minneapolis Minnesota USA
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    216

    Re: Show your bag

    HI Ed:

    This is my personal kit. I, too, prefer to keep my bag off of the ground. By hanging it from the tripod, you keep the straps clean and add some mass to the tripod to surpress vibrations as well.

    Quote Originally Posted by Ed Richards View Post
    I am curious how you use these backpacks - do you set them on the ground to uppack?

    I am looking for a way to carry stuff in the field that does not require setting anything on the ground, ever, and also does not require a balancing act to avoid dumping everything when I am trying to something out of the bag. I noticed one shoulder bag in this lot, which looks like it would let you work with the bag still on your shoulder.
    Bruce

  6. #46
    Whatever David A. Goldfarb's Avatar
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    Mar 2000
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    Honolulu, Hawai'i
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    4,658

    Re: Show your bag

    Since I'm on the road and it's raining right now, I thought I'd post a few quick webcam shots of what I think of as my medium-size 4x5" kit. I'm in Chicago for a conference, and I've been doing a little street shooting and a few snapshots (handheld with just the 150/4.5 Xenar--not the whole bag), and then I'm visiting the in-laws in Hawai'i, so there will be some family snapshots, landscapes, and I hope we get a chance to see the albatrosses at Ka'ena Point on O'ahu, and then my family in Las Vegas, so more family stuff and landscapes.

    The bag is a Crumpler Fux Deluxe. In the top layer shot you can see two Kinematic filmholders (like a Grafmatic, but 10 shots) loaded with Efke PL 100 and TXP. That's all the film I brought with me, but I can buy more in Chicago if I have time to shoot between my conference events, and then I've got film in the freezer in Hawai'i from a previous trip. On the left is a 6x7 Super-Rollex back, which is for the albatrosses (I'll shoot color slide). Then to the right is a Toyo loupe, Linhof finder, and Linhof shade and filter holders; Tech V with 150/4.5 Xenar to the right of that; and the grip on the far right. When I'm out shooting, I leave the grip attached and don't zip the insert.

    The front inside pockets have my B&W filter wallet on the left (color filters I left home); small case (see last photo) with odds and ends, Digisix meter, Kinematic brush and lens cloth in the center; center filter and wide angle shade on the right. The front pocket (closed) has things like my notebook and a changing bag for emergencies (I normally reload at the place I'm staying).

    The bottom layer photo shows a 360/5.5 Tele-Xenar (albatrosses) and 135/3.5 Planar (low light, family stuff, street, landscapes) to the left of the camera, and a 75/4.5 Grandagon-N (landscapes) to the right.

    The small blue case holds all the things that seem to bother the TSA inspectors and gets checked while I'm flying--rangefinder cams, small tools, cable releases, and such. There is a cable release attached to the 150 inside the camera and a cam for the 150 in case my checked bag is delayed.

    The tripod I'm using at the moment is a Tiltall, and it gets checked in a Tenba TTP case, which also holds my clothes and everything else, so I don't need to carry another bag.

  7. #47

    Join Date
    Oct 2007
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    Lakewood, CO
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    722

    Re: Show your bag

    I pack with a deuter futura zero 40. Its a traditional hiking rucksack rather than a dedicated photo backpack. Everything drops in the top, so it doesn't really make sense to show the layout, but it is basically first aid and clothing on the bottom. Fishing gear if applicable next and camera stuff on the top. I've actually never purchased a dedicated photo backpack as I've always felt that a traditional hiking pack was better suited to my needs, and my hiking packs have lasted a very long time. This Deuter just replaced a Mountainsmith Wizard that I'd been hauling around rock climbing and mountaineering and skiing for almost 15 years.

    What I really like about this pack is the mesh trampoline style back panel. This pack carries cooler and more comfortably than any pack I've ever carried before. A lightweight frame separates the pack from your back and keeps the mesh taught. Osprey and Gregory make similar daypacks and Osprey even makes a couple ultralight backpacking packs with this configuration. I just bought my wife a smaller Osprey daypack model like this for Christmas.

    One other thing. If you carry a 35mm body when you hike, look into the Think Tank camera support straps. They are the little black bits you can see on the should harness. They clip into the webbing on your should harness, and you can attach your camera strap to them so that you don't support the camera's weight on your neck. These are my favorite camera accessory to date and they only cost about $15.

    PS, sorry about the mess in the background. My printing/framing room is still recovering from the Christmas rush. Time for some serious spring cleaning.

  8. #48
    Weekend Warrior Sanjay Sen's Avatar
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    Dec 2006
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    New York, NY
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    Re: Show your bag

    Quote Originally Posted by Ed Richards View Post
    I am curious how you use these backpacks - do you set them on the ground to uppack? <snip>
    Yes, I set the backpack (Lowepro CompuTrekker for 4x5, F.64 BPX for 8x10) on the ground to unzip and take stuff out. However, if there's an elevated surface available, I will use that instead. Putting the backpack on the ground may not be the best option I'd like to take, but sometimes that's the only option.

  9. #49

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    Oct 2007
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    Lakewood, CO
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    722

    Re: Show your bag

    Quote Originally Posted by Ed Richards View Post
    I am curious how you use these backpacks - do you set them on the ground to uppack?

    I am looking for a way to carry stuff in the field that does not require setting anything on the ground, ever, and also does not require a balancing act to avoid dumping everything when I am trying to something out of the bag. I noticed one shoulder bag in this lot, which looks like it would let you work with the bag still on your shoulder.
    If you use a shorter rucksack, you can keep the waist belt attached and swing the pack around front and then get what you need. At least with a rucksack you can get into it standing up, but the downside is sometimes you have to take stuff out to get to the stuff you're looking for. I usually just look for a tall rock to set mine on.

    Another pack I seriously considered is the Deuter Futura Vario 40+10. Its harness and backpanel are just like mine, but it ditches the ultralight mentality of my pack. Instead it has front zipper access to the bottom of the ruck sack, which can be separated from the upper rucksack with a divider. It also has some side pockets. It was a special order item, where my current pack was available locally.

    Mel-

  10. #50

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    Aug 2006
    Location
    New Zealand
    Posts
    79

    Re: Show your bag

    The last few months I've been far more interested in using my 4x5 as more of a walk around camera. I always absolutly hated carrying my Lowe Pro Nature Trekker AW II around city streets and just anywhere off hiking trails, especially at night just because it stood out a little too much and was more cumbersome to use than I would have liked.

    I decided to have a look at my Lowe Pro Omni Traveler and see if I could make it work for me. I've got a very simple kit anyway, so I knew I could get most of what I need in there. As it stands, I can get my Shen Hao 4x5 with 150mm lens mounted backwards and folded closed, anywhere up to 4 film holders, a loupe, really basic old Sekonic light meter (the one weakness in my kit, but I'm too poor to do anything about it right now), an old t-shirt lens hood and a lee filter system with a couple of graduated ND's.

    My backpack will still get used when I need to hike anywhere over rough ground for more than a couple of kms, but as it is now, this is such a small and light bag it's really hard make myself want to go back to my backpack. When I eventually buy a 90mm lens I expect I'll be using my pack a lot more, but for now this is perfect for me.

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