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Camera bags " what do you use"

Changed from a DSLR to a mirrorless so the body and lenses are smaller and lighter so more lens capability can be carried in a LowePro Passport Sling bag.
 
I keep a camera, a couple of lenses and filters etc in a LowePro of some kind, has a shoulder strap, not backpack type. I love the Billinghams that a lot of you guys use, but they look pretty dear.

The thing is, I never carry the bag with me - I really only use one lens now, a 17-55 on a crop Nikon, and I just carry the camera. If I am doing long exposure I lug a rather heavy tripod with the camera bolted to the top, and fill my coat pockets with the filter paraphernalia!

Daft.
 
I use a Billingham Hadley Small for my mirrorless manoeuvres fitted with a USPO shoulder pad which works really well.

For my medium format stuff I use a Tenba, which looks like a direct ripoff of this bag only the colour of mine is black.
 
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I have:

Kata R-103 backpack - really useful although now the Fuji gear is lighter I don't need to use it much anymore. Had this for almost a decade now - Kata was bought by Manfrotto so their version is the Bug-203 PL. Very comfortable.

Lowepro Classified 140 AW - great shoulder bag, used it a lot for weddings - can take a full pro sized DSLR with 70-200 mounted, but still nice and small in size. Slightly too big for the Fuji.

Tamrac System bag - this holds all my chargers & flash gear plus light modifiers etc.

Manfrotto Advanced A7 bag - use this without the dividers to hold filters, light meter and cleaning kit. This is my 'support' bag that lives in the boot when I out.

Tamrac Stratus 6 - this is my main bag and holds the X-T2 and all the lenses. Small but offers good protection. The supplied dividers were useless - I use the internals from the Manfrotto bag. I bought this bag after the Manfrotto as it was the same size but I wanted a sturdier bag with a better strap. I knew the dividers were not going to work as I wanted - but the Manfrotto ones are excellent, so the ideal solution - combine the best bits of two bags to make a perfect one!

Lowepro Passport Sling - a truly great bag, so good that I bought a spare when it was on sale. Use this loads when out and about or on holiday. Can easily hold my X-T2 + 16-55 with 14, 35 & 56mm primes in lens wraps. Space too for wallet, phone, keys etc and as someone else has already said there is a water bottle holder on the outside too.
 
Bags are very subjective - I have a Tamrac that a friend gave me (well, I made a charity donation for it, but same thing really) - as he wasn't using it. It's got lots of nice features, but I don't use it, there is just something awkward about its proportions. Occasionally gets used as a lens store in the car.
What I would recommend anyone in the market for a bag to do is visit the Photography Show. You can get to handle the bags, and there are usually a couple of used bags stalls where you can pick up some incredible bargains. e.g. Lowepro waist belt, apparently unused - £5.
 
I use one of these http://amzn.to/2jyuutV with a padded camera insert I got from eBay. Holds a Fuji body, 3 lenses, batteries etc.
 
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Billingham Hadley for long walks (diagonally across body with a shoulder pad, it's fine for 7d2 plus 15-85 with another lens such as the 70-300L in a padded bag, and sometimes the x100 as well).

For photo walks I use a Billingham 225 - slightly more capacity when photography rather than walking is the priority.

I also have a 335 which was perfect for safari - good protection from dust and bumps for 2 bodies and 3-4 lenses. Plenty of room for filters, batteries and cleaning stuff, but you wouldn't want to be walking miles with this, it's just too big and bulky.

I have a 445 which I use for the car and UK holidays, sometimes taking the Hadley as well.

And I keep the bodies and most of the smaller lenses in a Peli case at home.
 
I've got an ona Bowery I picked up in New York. It's really small but looks great and doesn't look like a camera bag most importantly.
 
Rug Doc said:
I have had a bag stolen with laptop, phone, camera etc before so I tend to just put the lens on I'll most and leave the bag at home these days!! Shame as I've had a load of good ones. The one that was stolen was a Manfrotto.. maybe a giveaway?!
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Yeah, you might as well advertised 'camera gear hete'. I use a £12 Slazenger backpack that can hold 2 x Canon 1Dx bodies, 85mm 1.2, 42-70mm 2.8, 2 x 580 flashguns, 15" MacBook Pro & iPad, card readers, memory cards etc.

Stealthy!
 
I use a Kata DR-465i - love it - the biggest plus point is that it doesn't look like a camera bag and it has loads of space for non-camera gear too. They do a bigger version which also takes a laptop IIRC.
 
I've used a variety of LowePro bags for years now, most successfully the S&F series from memory. The backpack is mostly for storing gear, as though it's somewhat useful for hiking a hill, it's awful to shoot out of.

These days I use Think Tank gear. I use a Speed Demon - though this is a bit of a squeeze for pro-size FF bodies. Mostly I use a Retrospective 30, which doesn't scream 'camera bag', and I can easily fit a couple of D3 bodies, a pair of 2.8's (70-200, 24-70), a flash, a small prime, and a sandwich and pair of sunnies. It just works.

I'm also working toward a belt system built from Think Tank gear, for events.

Bags are very personal. I can recommend you take a look at Think Tank to see if they've something that suits your needs. I find they're very well-made, particulary durable, and built for shooting.
 
For one camera one lens outings I use a Crumpler. Very well made and looks like it will last forever.

But, I've still got the Billingham that my mother bought me for my birthday - 40 years ago - it will outlast me and whoever gets it after my demise. Unparalleled build quality IMO. Great bags!
 
As our Daughter and I both take pictures we have an assortment but we find we don't want to advertise that we have a few quid in a bag so tend to not use them much.
Its a sad fact but you can become a target if you advertise.
She uses a Girly backpack with the camera in a towel and I fill my pockets.
We have some Peli cases we keep in the boot which are fantastic, I recently bought a cheap Peli copy and to be honest its excellent.
 
Just out of interest, do people here generally leave their cameras in a bag, or do you have other storage methods for your collection of stuff? I ask as I have quite a bit of stuff currently in various draws, but it's kind of overflowing onto a shelf or two...
 
Cesare said:
Just out of interest, do people here generally leave their cameras in a bag, or do you have other storage methods for your collection of stuff? I ask as I have quite a bit of stuff currently in various draws, but it's kind of overflowing onto a shelf or two...
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I used to keep my stuff in bags but found it difficult to find stuff and was always unpacking and repacking the bags. I now make sure all my bags are emptied when In get home, and I keep all my kit on shelves above my desk. I keep things in groups, like lenses, filters, bodies etc, and I then decide what I want to take out with me, check everything over (dust lenses, clean sensors etc) then pack a suitable bag. Seems to work well for me.
 
Daughter has the cameras on a shelf in her room, the odds and ends are in bags and Peli cases under her bed.
The Dark rooms in the garage until I finish the shed, oh to have more space.
 
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