Camera bags for DSLR?

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ricknc

Active member
Joined
Aug 28, 2016
Posts
42
Location
North Carolina
I am shopping around for a new walk-around camera bag for my Olympus OMD. I have been using my ancient Tenba Bag that used to haul my 35mm film rig. It was always too large for the OMD and the 3-4 lenses I carry. Thus I never carried it far. Now I'm looking for something a little easier to carry for a few hours and more portable.  Asking here because the majority of us are older with similar interests. What do you use/like?
 
My OH just bough the Amazon Basics one and loves it. Not sure if it comes in different sizes or not but it's not huge and has lots of space and he says it is very comfy but not had it on any walks yet, just through the airport. It is also very well made and cost around $40!
 
I carried an Amazon Basics sling bag all over Spain.  Much smaller and easier than a full sized backpack. Two cameras, three lenses, and sundry support items like defusers, lens cleaners, batteries etc.  it was quite full.
 
ricknc said:
I am shopping around for a new walk-around camera bag for my Olympus OMD. I have been using my ancient Tenba Bag that used to haul my 35mm film rig. It was always too large for the OMD and the 3-4 lenses I carry. Thus I never carried it far. Now I'm looking for something a little easier to carry for a few hours and more portable.  Asking here because the majority of us are older with similar interests. What do you use/like?

I can strongly recommend the MindShift Gear PhotoCross 13 Sling Bag. We have a half dozen bags we've acquired over the years but these days this is the bag I grab 90% of the time. Love the fact that you can easily change lenses e.g. without having to set anything down on the ground or juggle in another hand. Pretty generous amount of room and pretty comfortable to use on light to moderate hikes as well.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1340657-REG/mindshift_gear_423_photocross_13_orange_ember.html
 
Thanks for the replies. I was curious about the sling bags I had already looked at a few online. Here is what I typically carry; 1 OMD body, 60mm macro, 7-14 zoom,12-60 zoom, 40-150 or 80-200 zoom The 12-60 is my walk-around lens so it is always on the body.  I use the 80-200 the least and I don't carry it unless I'm planning on shooting wildlife or sports, otherwise the 40-150 (much smaller and lighter) is with me.

The 80-200 (2.8) is a big chunk of glass and won't fit in most bags while attached to the body and doesn't fit into most bag lens partitions. For most sling bags I would have to it keep in a soft case and stuff into the top compartment. For the other lenses, when I arrange all the pieces together, I doubt I could get everything comfortably into the Amazon bag. it would certainly exclude the 80-200. I also looked at several of Lowepro's sling bags liked them until I saw the Minspring  The Mindshift looks the most promising. I like that it is a dedicated camera bag and not a multipurpose bag. It has a full length flap so  everything is accessible. I could possibly get the body with big zoom (10" OA)in that bag. I don't care for having to stack lenses but that isn't a deal breaker. There is a competing bag made by Turnstyle I'm going to look at also.

 
Depending on the job I would typically carry the DSLR with a 24-70 or a 16-35 mounted on the camera. Third lens would usually be a 100mm macro or a fisheye-- again depending on the job. Did a real estate shoot of a very large house last week which meant I had to carry a tripod and change lenses frequently and the MindShift made everything a lot easier.

ricknc said:
Thanks for the replies. I was curious about the sling bags I had already looked at a few online. Here is what I typically carry; 1 OMD body, 60mm macro, 7-14 zoom,12-60 zoom, 40-150 or 80-200 zoom The 12-60 is my walk-around lens so it is always on the body.  I use the 80-200 the least and I don't carry it unless I'm planning on shooting wildlife or sports, otherwise the 40-150 (much smaller and lighter) is with me.

The 80-200 (2.8) is a big chunk of glass and won't fit in most bags while attached to the body and doesn't fit into most bag lens partitions. For most sling bags I would have to it keep in a soft case and stuff into the top compartment. For the other lenses, when I arrange all the pieces together, I doubt I could get everything comfortably into the Amazon bag. it would certainly exclude the 80-200. I also looked at several of Lowepro's sling bags liked them until I saw the Minspring  The Mindshift looks the most promising. I like that it is a dedicated camera bag and not a multipurpose bag. It has a full length flap so  everything is accessible. I could possibly get the body with big zoom (10" OA)in that bag. I don't care for having to stack lenses but that isn't a deal breaker. There is a competing bag made by Turnstyle I'm going to look at also.
 
Steve has his 70-200 lens plus Canon 5d with another lens and there's space for another couple.

Photo of main section and the other opening for bits and bobs. You can also get a laptop in back pouch...
 

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jackiemac said:
Steve has his 70-200 lens plus Canon 5d with another lens and there's space for another couple.

Photo of main section and the other opening for bits and bobs. You can also get a laptop in back pouch...

Thanks Jackie for the reply and pics. Looks like Steve is using an Amazon basics backpack.  I wasn't aware Amazon offered a backpack for photography.
 
jymbee said:
Depending on the job I would typically carry the DSLR with a 24-70 or a 16-35 mounted on the camera. Third lens would usually be a 100mm macro or a fisheye-- again depending on the job. Did a real estate shoot of a very large house last week which meant I had to carry a tripod and change lenses frequently and the MindShift made everything a lot easier.

Thanks, I did some reading up on the Mindshift this morning and I'm liking it a lot. I'm toggling between the 10 and the 13. I like the 10 but may have to omit one lens to use. I may just order both and see which one everything fits into and return the other. Considering the nearest real camera store is 140 miles away, the return shipping is still cheaper than gasoline.

As for photography itself. I haven't been a paid photographer in over 30 years. I worked in the photo lab at Emory University Medical Research and CDC for a few years, then I worked as a staff photographer for a couple small city newspapers for a few more years. Photojournalism didn't launch me to fame and fortune so I started building houses instead.  Now it's for pleasure, besides digital, I still like to work in medium and large format B&W film which I use to enter in a shows and club competitions. Hoping to do that again eventually.
 
ricknc said:
Thanks, I did some reading up on the Mindshift this morning and I'm liking it a lot. I'm toggling between the 10 and the 13. I like the 10 but may have to omit one lens to use. I may just order both and see which one everything fits into and return the other. Considering the nearest real camera store is 140 miles away, the return shipping is still cheaper than gasoline.

Yeah, I went back & forth re. the 10 vs 13 wondering if the extra bulk of the larger bag would be a factor. In the end I went with the 13 and am quite happy with the weight to storage factor.

ricknc said:
As for photography itself. I haven't been a paid photographer in over 30 years. I worked in the photo lab at Emory University Medical Research and CDC for a few years, then I worked as a staff photographer for a couple small city newspapers for a few more years. Photojournalism didn't launch me to fame and fortune so I started building houses instead.  Now it's for pleasure, besides digital, I still like to work in medium and large format B&W film which I use to enter in a shows and club competitions. Hoping to do that again eventually.

Hmmm... I've heard of this "B&W film" you speak of.  ;)
Sometimes-- but not that often-- I miss the good ol' days of processing one's own B&W in a home lab. When I added color film & slides with color analyzer, drum processors etc. etc. I figured that was pretty much state-of-the-art. Oh well...  :(

BTW, good move IMO forsaking a photojournalism career path go build houses!  :))
 
jymbee said:
B&W film[/i]" you speak of.  ;)
Sometimes-- but not that often-- I miss the good ol' days of processing one's own B&W in a home lab. When I added color film & slides with color analyzer, drum processors etc. etc. I figured that was pretty much state-of-the-art. Oh well...  :(

I still enjoy darkroom.Outside of work I never got into color print. I did a lot of home E-6 slide processing (can) when I was involved in camera club competition.  B&W film is still fairly popular among hobbyists but since film is no longer mainstream prices have soared. 50 sheets of 4x5  tri-x go for about $130. 25 sheets of premium 11 x 14 paper can run you $100.  With the demise of Kodak's US dominance it has opened the door for smaller companies ( ie: Bergger and Adox) that make premium high silver content papers to import into the US.
 
Any of the Lowe Pro bags are excellent.  They come in a range of sizes and styles.  I tried the sling bags and was not a fan, much prefer traditional camera bags and backpack style. 
 
Gizmo said:
Any of the Lowe Pro bags are excellent.  They come in a range of sizes and styles.  I tried the sling bags and was not a fan, much prefer traditional camera bags and backpack style.

I agree that Lowe Pro bags are great.

For myself there's different types of camera bags-- each with it's own purpose. My go-to bag for years has been a Tamrac Pro 12 (no longer made). Great layout of compartments for gear & accessories. I like backpack type bags for carrying equipment on longer hikes-- especially heavier gear like tripods but they don't allow for very easy access for a quick shot. I was a late comer to sling type bags but for most of the work I do now they're a perfect fit. Can carry a full size DSLR, 3 lenses, media cards, batteries etc. etc. Even a tablet if you so choose. Easy to carry around while working and with just a twist of the bat, full access to switch out lenses, cards, batteries, flash etc. etc.

There's certainly no shortage of choices out there. You can spend all day at B&H's bag section trying to decide what to buy!

 
I was in Raleigh (NC) Saturday and stopped at Southeastern Camera .I brought my gear with me and they had the Mindshift 13, It felt a little big and awkward for me when I rotated it around to access my camera. They had the Turnstyle 10 which is the same internal dimensions as the Mindshift 10 and everything fit very well except I cannot carry the 40-150 and 80-200 together which is not an issue.  I wanted the ability to carry a mini-pod so the Turnstyle 10 was out.  I was in the process of ordering a Mindshift 10 to be shipped to me when one of the other clerks said he was pretty sure they had a used one from a recent trade. He dug it out, it was practically new and all the original tags were inside of it. It had one possibly two dividers missing, but i have a bunch at home, So $70 bucks later I was out the door with a new-ish bag.
I had a chance to walk around a bit with it yesterday. It is comfortable for the most part, the camera is easy to get in and out. But it took some compromising in the strap adjustment to make it comfortable to use and carry. If it is comfortable on the back it is a little too high when I rotate it around to my front. If I lower it to make it work better in the front it is a bit too low on the back. I compromised with it being a little higher.

 
They say photographers collect camera bags like some women collect purses/handbags.  I laughed, then looked at my collection.  ThinkTank has some great options and they work together with mounting systems etc.  My go to is  a Lowe that will also hold up to a 17" laptop.  Loaded up, I have to sit in front of it to put it on.  For a hike, I go back to ny original Canon BG20.  Light and great for the body and a couple lens.  For snowmobile I have another Lowe that has a side entry for the camera and a somewhat long lens, and a top compartment for a second body.  The dividing portion is perfect for a holding strap.

For every season, turn turn  turn
 
ricknc said:
I was in Raleigh (NC) Saturday and stopped at Southeastern Camera .I brought my gear with me and they had the Mindshift 13, It felt a little big and awkward for me when I rotated it around to access my camera. They had the Turnstyle 10 which is the same internal dimensions as the Mindshift 10 and everything fit very well except I cannot carry the 40-150 and 80-200 together which is not an issue.  I wanted the ability to carry a mini-pod so the Turnstyle 10 was out.  I was in the process of ordering a Mindshift 10 to be shipped to me when one of the other clerks said he was pretty sure they had a used one from a recent trade. He dug it out, it was practically new and all the original tags were inside of it. It had one possibly two dividers missing, but i have a bunch at home, So $70 bucks later I was out the door with a new-ish bag.
I had a chance to walk around a bit with it yesterday. It is comfortable for the most part, the camera is easy to get in and out. But it took some compromising in the strap adjustment to make it comfortable to use and carry. If it is comfortable on the back it is a little too shigh when I rotate it around to my front. If I lower it to make it work better in the front it is a bit too low on the back. I compromised with it being a little higher.

Good find on the 10! Right place, right time.

My experience pretty much parallels your own. My 13 isn't perfect of course and I too had to fiddle with adjusting the straps to come up with a comfortable configuration. 
 
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