There are as many bag configurations as types of travel photography so the title of this post is a little sensational; however, finding a great setup can feel like winning the lottery and I’ve found one that works for me so I wanted to share it.
There are so many factors and options in a search like this that you kinda need to psyche yourself up for the research process. Most importantly is defining what you want. My system focuses on exploration and freedom of motion so size and ergonomics carry alot of weight.
This is what it has to do:
- Qualify as carry-on with all airlines.
- Hold 3 days of clothing.
- Be small enough to use as a daypack.
- Hold a dSLR and 3 lenses, spare batteries, charger, memory cards, reader and external hard drive.
- Room for a laptop, AC adaptor and mouse.
- Comfortable.
- Gotta be able to run in it (i.e. it has a quality harness system).
So I can do this:
- Travel light and indefinitely.
- Fly on any airline without checking baggage.
- Carry all my possessions in my care.
- Shoot for a 24hr period (minimum), edit and post without returning to basecamp.
- Perform physical activities like running, jumping, climbing, etc with the equipment.
- Not make me look like a photographer (low profile: reduces intimidation and attention in dangerous environments).
My search was divided into two activites: shooting (ie. carrying a daypack) and transit (i.e. moving about in planes, trains and automobiles). After considering over 250 bags, I came across two that fit my needs almost perfectly.
Reviews:
a) Kata Sensitivity V (for shooting)
b) F-Stop Gear Tilopa (for transit)
**review coming soon, when I return from my current trip using it**
[...] Kata Sensitivity V is one half of my Ultimate Adventure Photography Bag System (see this post for what that [...]