Packing lensboards and lenses

[jeroldharter]

You don't mention how many lenses you plan to transport or the sizes of those lenses. Assuming you are using lenses typical for field photography, the Photobackpacker cases are excellent.

If you have several lenses (which you will if you don't yet) and use a backpack, then the fly fishing reel cases from either Cabela's, Orvis, or Fishpond work well. They function like a case within a case but the dividers can be configured for any size lens. The small lensboard size of the Toyo is an advantage and the lenses will fit nicely. The case will easily hold your meter and loupe as well. The standard size Cabela's case is especially inexpensive. I use one for my 4x5 lens array and another for my 8x10 lens array.

[John Bowen]

The late Ted Harris used one of these for his LF lenses
http://www.orvis.com/store/product.a...ubcat_id=12297

I have 3 of them. One is for LF lenses on boards, one is for 35mm lenses and one is for my Hasselblad.

My LF lenses include a Fujinon 600, Nikon 450, 355 G Claron, 305 G Claron, and 240 Fujinon. This case easily handles all these lenses, my Pentax Digital meter, extra cable releases, some wratten filters, a lens pen, a spirit level, small notebook two desicant containers and a partridge in a pear tree.

NOTE my Symmar 300 and Symmar 360 do NOT ride in this case. They weigh a ton, are mounted on larger boards and are stored/transported using the plastic containers Bruce Barlow referenced. I rarely use these two lenses.

NOTE #2 All the lenses I use are mounted on 4" boards. If your boards are much larger than 4", this case may not meet your needs. Depending on the height of your lenses, you may be able to carry 4 lenses on 6" boards if the lenses are placed in the case on their lenscaps. My lenses travel horizontally, where the edge of the board contacts the bottom of the case.

[sun of sand]

winter beanies

[David_Senesac]

I use little cheap cheap cardboard shipping boxes one can see in the fourth image below the top of this web page inside an ordinary climbers daypack:

http://www.davidsenesac.com/Backpack...ckpacking.html

Thus none of the elaborate foam cushioned, compartmentalized, weight monstrosities typical of almost all marketed "photo backpacks". Have been carrying my lenses so in the field many years over many trips, sometimes into locations only billy goats would want to go and never had a lens damaged inside my pack. It is true as a lifelong mountain rambler I'm athletic even in my old age with excellent balance so I've never dropped my pack down even small heights. However I regularly toss my pack onto the ground, push it about, and it receives modest forces travelling on my back jostling about. A lensboard inside such boxes tends to keep a lens at the center of the sage box air space except for the top and bottom that has usual ordinary lens caps at both ends. I'd expect if I tossed one of my lenses out of a two story window onto a concrete sidewalk or over rocky cliffs that indeed a lens might become damaged. I'll take those chances.