Camera Bag

[OneDisney]

I'm looking for a bag for my Nikon D80. I want it to hold a Zoom Lens(55-200mm), Small Zoom(18-55mm), and a Prime(probably a 50mm or something like that). I don't need extra room for memory cards because I only have 2, and no extra batteries.

Any recommendations?

 

[PoohJen]

Well, your answer may depend on a few factors, such as budget, what kind of shooting you will usually do (i.e., where are you taking your camera most days) and your own comfort/preference. Do you want a sling bag? back pack? other?

I really like my Tamrac Adventure 7 Backpack. It holds all the gear you mentioned easily. I like that it opens by unzipping the top from the bottom, rather than like many backpacks that unzip from the front (just a personal preference for me, seems more sturdy). As I am usually shooting long weekend days at baseball, I like a backpack where I can (i) keep my hands free (i.e. carry other stuff) and (ii) carry other stuff in the upper compartment (such as photography book, snack, light jacket) (disclaimer: the Adventure 7 doesn't really have room for a jacket if you are carrying other stuff in the upper compartment as well).

Here's the Adventure 7:

I also have the Tamrac Express 6 for when I don't need to haul all my gear:

HTH; Good Luck!

 

[OneDisney]

Well I was mostly looking for any kind of bag as long as it's easy to open while walking, because I'll primarily be using it at Disney World.

 

[DisneySuiteFreak]

I'm looking for a bag for my Nikon D80. I want it to hold a Zoom Lens(55-200mm), Small Zoom(18-55mm), and a Prime(probably a 50mm or something like that). I don't need extra room for memory cards because I only have 2, and no extra batteries.

Any recommendations?

This is the one I bought:Kata H-14 GDC Holster Case
http://www.amazon.com/Kata-H-14-GDC...2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1204214633&sr=8-2

It holds my D80 + 18-135, 50mm 1.8 in the bottom of the bag, SB800 flash in one pocket and 70-300VR in the other pocket. It's snug but it fits. I also carry an extra camera battery, extra flash batteries, lens cloth, extra memory cards, and there is still room for more. It gets heavy carrying all this stuff around all day and night though. I don't know how heavy your 55-200VR is, but my 70-300VR is pretty heavy to lug in addition to all the other stuff. After awhile, I stopped lugging it around and just carried my my D80 + 18-135 kit lens in an Optech bag, and stuck the 50mm in a fanny pack. I found that I didnt need the 70-300 on my trip, and didn't need the flash. The Kata will hold all your stuff easily. Maybe to me it was too heavy because I also had the flash. I found that I didn't need the extra batteries and was able to purge all that stuff out of my bag too. If you get this bag, get it from Amazon or Adorama, I wouldn't trust Ace Photo Digital or 47th st photo. It's a really good compact bag.

 

[Steve's Girl]

I have a Crumpler $5mill bag and really like it. I wear it messenger style so it is easy to get in and out of. It would fit what you described perfectly.

 

[Mckymousefn]

I got the Tamrac Photo Backpack 4372 (Red) for 49.99 through Wolf Camera. I have my camera, both lens, battery charger, 2 len shades and my manual in the bag. Its small.. but big enough to carry what i need.

 

[OneDisney]

I have a Crumpler $5mill bag and really like it. I wear it messenger style so it is easy to get in and out of. It would fit what you described perfectly.

I like the Crumpler. Do you have any dislikes with it? Their website says I could put 2 lenses, a flash, and other accessories in it, could I put 3 lenses and accessories?

 

[Steve's Girl]

I like the Crumpler. Do you have any dislikes with it? Their website says I could put 2 lenses, a flash, and other accessories in it, could I put 3 lenses and accessories?

My only complaint is that the bag does not have a pocket on the back for park maps, etc. But that is a pretty minor issue. I have my bag divided into three compartments. I put my camera with lens attached in the center and a lens or flash on each side. You could fit 3 lenses if one was attached to the camera. I have also stacked one small prime lens on top of another lens (I put a lens cleaning cloth between them). The other thing that I do when I want to carry extra stuff with me is attach a Lowepro lens pouch to the loops on the outside. I have outgrown the $5mil bag in that all my stuff will not fit in it anymore. I have a $7mil for storing everything and transporting all my stuff to WDW,etc. But the $5mil bag is still the one I carry with me everywhere I go. I just put in it what lenses I want for that particular day.

I must admit that I am kind of a bag junkie and I do own four other bags, but the Crumplers are my favorite. Hope that helps.

 

[Mrs Potato Head]

I'm a bag junkie...so I have this to say on the subject:

Crumplers - loud velcro...can be a problem in some situations. REALLY loud velcro. Also, the lack of outside pocket means you might need another bag for other stuff.

The backpack mentioned - good, but be sure your camera and the lenses you will take for the day fit comfortable. Good size top compartment for other stuff. Check for a sternum strap or waist strap on any backpack to help with the weight.

I LOVE the Lowepro Slingshots - had the 100 with my D40x and my old D100...but now I have the D300 so I upgraded to the Slingshot 200. It will hold more stuff in it's upper compartment, so it will be even better suited for WDW. (I'm a pin trader too, so I carry lots of extra traders AND the camera stuff and a Pal Mickey....) I like the ease of getting into this bag a lot - I don't have to take it off my body to get my camera out or in, and the bag is secured on me while I fiddle with stuff.

I'd also look at the new Lowepro Fastpacks if you want a backpack. I went with another slingshot because they have the rain cover built in and a protective cover for the LCD of my camera built in - both are missing on the Fastpack. Also, the Fastpack did not have a sternum strap and the shoulder straps were not fitting my shoulders...didn't want it falling off my back!

Hope that helps in some way...it's my personal ramblings, though...

 

[OneDisney]

Right now I think I'm going to go with the Crumpler. Unless anybody has any major complaints..

I really don't want a backpack, and I think they Lowepro Slingshots are a little pricey.

 

[texbob]

I picked up the Lowepro Fastpack 350, it lets me carry my gear plus a laptop. They have other versions without the laptop, if you unhook it from your right arm you can access your camera. BH had great prices on them.

I know this thread hasn't been posted to in a while but I just picked up a Fastpack 250 a couple of days ago. It will hold all my photo gear, a laptop, and the associated cables and accessories. It will even hold my underwater camera and strobe in the top section making this a one bag solution for an upcoming dive trip (but that is another story).

But I am still in a quandry about wherher or not this is the ideal solution for trekking around WDW. On the one hand, it will definitely hold the photo stuff I want to take in the park along with other stuff. I won't be carrying the laptop in the park obviously. But I'm not sure if this is all that comfortable of a backpack. I'm sort of thinking of leaning towards using my really comfortable Jansport day pack (which I really like except not good for camera gear) and picking up some small pouch type covers for the camera body and lenses.

Oh the decisions the decisions. (Is there an emoticon for wishy washy?)

 

[AZ JazzyJ]

I have a dilemma that I am hoping some of you might be able to help me with. I currently have a Nikon D200 (hopefully soon to have a Nikon D300 if my wife reads a hint like I hope she does). I have a NIKKOR 17-55mm/f2.8 lens, a NIKKOR 70-200mm/f2.8 lens, and an SB-800 Speed light that I typically like to take with me along with an assortment of extra batteries, compact flash cards, and a couple of 77mm lens filters. After what seems like years of experience that's about the bare minimum I take when I am shooting. I need a new bag that can fit this equipment and protect it. Normally I would just browse through the countless threads we have asking for assistance in finding a bag but I have one extra caveat in my search that makes this unique. I need a camera bag that will fit on a Harley-Davidson motorcycle in a saddlebag. The saddlebag has the dimensions of 12.25" tall X 18" wide X 6.75" deep. The opening to the saddlebag is 6" x 13.5". A photo of the saddlebag can be seen here (my bags don't have the bright yellow model number and price tag on them, they are just black leather). The inside of the saddlebag is a rigid plastic so it keeps its form. I'd obviously need some sort of padding around the camera equipment to protect it from bouncing around too much. At first I thought about a backpack but that is impractical as I sometimes have a passenger that rides behind me and a backpack would not work in that case. The passenger (in some cases my wife and other cases one of my kids) refuses to wear the backpack. In their words "we're not your pack animal" so I need to find something I can toss in a saddle bag when I want to take my camera along. I thought perhaps someone has had a similar need and could make some suggestions.

Jeff

 

[Steve's Girl]

We sold our Road King a while back, so my answer is based on what fits in DH's Honda ST something or other saddlebag. I tried a Tamrac Messenger bag, Adventure Messenger 4, and it fit really nicely in the saddlebag and held quite a bit of gear. It also had pretty good padding. But I didn't like the interior of the bag since every time I took something out of the bag, it would get caught on the strips of velcro that run around the inside of all the compartments. So, I returned that bag. But I liked it because the size was perfect for the saddlebag. Right now, I use my Crumpler $5mil bag, but it is a bit of a squeeze on the width and your gear would not fit in that bag.

 

[MICKEY88]

if you decide to try the above mentioned bag, an easy solution to the velcro problem would be to go to your local walmart, go to the sewing section, by a pack of velcro cut to size and stick on the annoying velcro in the bag, problem solved..

 

[Steve's Girl]

if you decide to try the above mentioned bag, an easy solution to the velcro problem would be to go to your local walmart, go to the sewing section, by a pack of velcro cut to size and stick on the annoying velcro in the bag, problem solved..

Hey, why didn't I think of that?! Other than the velcro issue, the Tamrac bag was pretty nice and a good value.

 

[MICKEY88]

Hey, why didn't I think of that?! Other than the velcro issue, the Tamrac bag was pretty nice and a good value.

you should have told me about the problem I could have helped you out..

 

[jann1033]

that's ok you helped me second hand..i just started having the same problem, i think i lost one of my inside flap things so stuff is sticking where it shouldn't

 

[AZ JazzyJ]

We sold our Road King a while back, so my answer is based on what fits in DH's Honda ST something or other saddlebag. I tried a Tamrac Messenger bag, Adventure Messenger 4, and it fit really nicely in the saddlebag and held quite a bit of gear. It also had pretty good padding. But I didn't like the interior of the bag since every time I took something out of the bag, it would get caught on the strips of velcro that run around the inside of all the compartments. So, I returned that bag. But I liked it because the size was perfect for the saddlebag. Right now, I use my Crumpler $5mil bag, but it is a bit of a squeeze on the width and your gear would not fit in that bag.

Thanks, I'll definitely have to look at the Tamrac Adventure Messenger 4 bag. It's a great starting point. I am a little worried that the 70-200mm might be a little long for that bag (that has been my problem with other bags) so I'll have to see if I can find one locally to check it for sure. I think Trina is really hoping that I find a bag otherwise she knows what happens next. I get out a pad of paper and start drawing which is closely followed with a conversation that starts with "You know what would be cool..." and then countless hours of her time in front of a sewing machine.

 

[Steve's Girl]

I think Trina is really hoping that I find a bag otherwise she knows what happens next. I get out a pad of paper and start drawing which is closely followed with a conversation that starts with "You know what would be cool..." and then countless hours of her time in front of a sewing machine.

DH is an engineer and I sew. That conversation sounds really familiar. However, that would be a very expensive option! Just ask my DH.

 

[AZ JazzyJ]

DH is an engineer and I sew. That conversation sounds really familiar. However, that would be a very expensive option! Just ask my DH.

Yeah I agree that is an expensive option. I asked Trina if she could make "a couple" pin trading lanyards once. She agreed and the next thing she knew we were a supplier for the 2002 Winter Olympics. That cost me big time. Then I asked if she wouldn't mind making a couple of stadium seat cushions I could take to the Diamondbacks games. Next thing she knew she was getting calls asking for seat cushions. That again cost me big time. I'm kind of getting tired of sleeping on the couch. I'm not sure why she complains, she got a new sewing machine and a new surger out of the deal.