Need help finding a bag to hold all your gear? Have no fear…once again, I have done all the research for you. I’m starting to notice a pattern in this obssessive sort of behavior I have:
1. Decide I need to have a product.
2. Spend hours online researching said product
3. Buy product.
4. Love or hate product.
5. Decide I need to have a newer, better product.
It’s a vicious cycle, but one that you can learn from. And save money from, since I can tell you how bad the product does not fit my needs. After all, our needs are exactly the same, right?
When I first got my camera, I needed a small bag to bring with me to hockey games. However, I hate the way traditional camera bags look. They are so boxy and dorky and scream “There is a camera in here!!” Luckily, Tamrac has the Velocity series. They are low profile, sling style bags that don’t look quite so dorky (especially if you get the black, and don’t pose like the guy in the picture on their site).
They are well thought out bags, and seem to be designed with help from actual photographers. I have the Velocity 6X, which holds my D40X with one lens attached, and the other lens on the other side of the divider. It has a slim front pocket for lens tissue, dust blower, etc. The strap is pretty comfy, although a little more padding would be nice. This is a great bag for light duty work. Great for bringing to hockey games, social events, a short trip to Longwood, etc.
When you start to accumulate more camera crap or know you are going to be traveling, you need a bigger bag. The bigger bag is the harder one to find the perfect fit.
The first bag I tried was the Lowepro Stealth Reporter Bag. There was nothing stealth about it. I bought it because it had a great internal configuration with a ton of pockets, but it was waaaaay too big. Like, my 22 pound cat could have slept in it big. So that went straight back to Amazon and my search continued.
My next stop was Crumpler bags. They seemed to have a pretty loyal following on flickr and in general, so I decided to check them out. After the “Stealth” disaster I knew I would have to see the bag in person before buying, so I headed to New York Camera and Video in Southampton PA. (Actually, I went to the one in Quakertown first, but that location was closed, so I had to reroute. Thanks for updating your website guys, I appreciate it!)
NYCV has a fantastic selection of bags. The entire back room is pretty much dedicated to bags, and you can try them on and check yourself out in the mirror. The staff was helpful but not pushy, which was a plus. I probably browsed the bags for about 45 minutes before making my selection. I ended up going with the Crumpler Keystone. Here is what I like about the bag:
- Super comfortable. It really conforms to your back and distributes the weight evenly.
- Looks kinda cool.
- Your camera is not accessible to thieves sneaking up behind you.
Here is what I dislike about the bag:
- Very very expensive. Like, a lot of money.
- Just like the thieves sneaking up behind you, your camera is not accessible to you very easily!
- A lot smaller on the inside than it looks on the outside. The Crumpler website shows it fitting all sorts of stuff, but honestly, I can get my camera and two lenses and not a whole lot else. Right now I also have my two duaflexes in there, and I can fit my two point and shoots. But really, the point and shoot in there is gonna take about 5 minutes to get out, since you have to take the bag off, lay it down, unzip the outer zipper, unzip the mesh zipper, then grab your camera and do it all again in reverse. You’ve definitely missed a lot of photographic opportunities by the time that has happened.
Overall, the Crumpler Keystone is a great bag for when you’re going away for the weekend. You can pack all your camera gear, and even your laptop with no problem. It gets a bit heavy once you add the laptop though. I like to think of the Keystone as more of a staging area for your equipment. Throw it on the hotel couch and work out of it all weekend.
If I had to do it all over again, I’m not sure I would go with the Crumpler. Right now, I have my eye on a few other bags, but hopefully I won’t buy them. So I guess I will give you the full report on my new bag in a few weeks, right? ; )