Photo Backpack

[Hans Kruse]

My current photo backpack is a Gura Gear Bataflae 32L which I purchased 4 years ago. One of the zippers is now worn and I have to replace the bag. Too bad as I like the bag. The only issue I have had is to always remember to zip both sides as it has happened that I forgot and lenses etc. fell out of the bag!

Since Gura Gear became Tamrac the replacement is G32. From the website it is not too clear exactly how it differs from the Bataflae and there is no store where I can go and have a look.

So is there any that has made a switch like mine and gone for the G32 or have you researched the huge market for bags and found an alternative? I need the full space as I have in the Bataflae.

Thanks for any posts.

[TonyVentourisPhotography]

Have you considered calling them up to "refresh" the bag?  Depending on their warranty of the gear, some companies will repair or renew stuff like that.  Worth a shot especially for a bag you are really connected to.

[NancyP]

Don't forget your local outdoors shop - you might get a referral. The most likely service place to routinely do stuff like this is a saddlery.

[MikeHit]

Tamrac have a 5-year warranty which nominally excludes normal wear and tear to zips but it may be worth asking.

[Hezu]

My current photo backpack is a Gura Gear Bataflae 32L which I purchased 4 years ago. One of the zippers is now worn and I have to replace the bag. Too bad as I like the bag. The only issue I have had is to always remember to zip both sides as it has happened that I forgot and lenses etc. fell out of the bag!

Since Gura Gear became Tamrac the replacement is G32. From the website it is not too clear exactly how it differs from the Bataflae and there is no store where I can go and have a look.

I haven't yet seen Tamrac G32 in person either, although I think that it might now slightly easier to find a local shop that carries these bags with Gura Gear DNA since Tamrac has wider distribution network. But if I have understood correctly from Internet sources the biggest change in these Tamrac G Elite bags compared to older Gura Gear Bataflaes is that there now just one big front pocket (that can accomodate a laptop) rather than two smaller and narrower ones.

So is there any that has made a switch like mine and gone for the G32 or have you researched the huge market for bags and found an alternative? I need the full space as I have in the Bataflae.

When my trusty Gura Gear Kiboko started to exhibit similar zipper problems you are apparently having, I started to look for replacement and eventually settled in F-Stop Tilopa BC with XL internal camera unit (ICU). It proved to be be quite nice bag especially for wilderness activities with more pockets and attachment points than Kiboko, but soon it started to bother me that the XL ICU (the largest that can fit this bag) was not quite as large as my old Kiboko: you really couldn't insert two gripped camera bodies with lenses (of which one is a fairly large telezoom) in sensible way like you do with Kiboko/Bataflae. So, after about half a year I ended up getting also Bataflae 32L, which has not broken up. One possible alternative might been also some larger model from Think Tank's Airport series, which offer similar boxy appearance as these Gura Gear backpacks (and now Tamrac G Elite) with more traditional lid opening and a large front pocket designed for laptop storage.

[brandtb]

Be sure to check Ebay there was a listing for this bag but sold. I have no idea what kind of zipper or length but there is a very good chance you could get the exact replacement just do the web search - and then have a "luggage repair" or similar store replace original.

[Colorado David]

If it was my pack, I'd just take it to an alteration shop or luggage repair shop.

[Jim Metzger]

Have you contacted Tamarac? They own the Gura Gear bag line now.

I have an original Kiboko, I love it for traveling but I also have an order in for the new Peak Design backpack which looks like I will be able to work out of on the fly.

Jim

[muntanela]

My Kata big waistpack is in bad conditions, I'm tempted by this:

http://www.mindshiftgear.com/products/rotation180-professional

[armand]

My Kata big waistpack is in bad conditions, I'm tempted by this:

http://www.mindshiftgear.com/products/rotation180-professional

I have it although I didn't get to use it that often. I took the top ICU out and use only the waist part for photo stuff and the top for clothing, food, etc. It's not that much room down there, as far as I recall I could fit a DSLR with a medium zoom and one or two lenses. It is however quite convenient and works easier than I expected. Didn't use it just as a waistpack for now.
I see it as a good choice for a lightweight overnight hiking/ climbing trip with the bottom dedicated for the camera or as a full day of shooting with multiple lenses and one or two bodies if you use the top cameras also. Has a separate attachment for a tripod.

PS. These days for backpacking I use a top loader for a camera (mirrorless) with a lens hang by the chest strap of a regular backpack. Somehow protected and doesn't need any extra attention but it's available even faster. You only get a camera with a lens compared to the mindshift but you have a regular backpack.

[Hans Kruse]

Thanks everyone. I was not considering a repair. I have ordered the G32 which is so similar to the Bataflae 32L that I most likely will be very happy with the new one. I did not find one in Europe so ordered one from B&H.

[TonyVentourisPhotography]

I have their smaller of the three camera focused rotation bags.  I have to say their concept works extremely well!  A pleasure to use! 

My Kata big waistpack is in bad conditions, I'm tempted by this:

http://www.mindshiftgear.com/products/rotation180-professional

[Wayne Fox]

Have you contacted Tamarac? They own the Gura Gear bag line now.

Not relevant I know, but for those interested it’s actually Gura Gear that owns Tamrac.  http://www.tamrac.com/collections/gura-gear

[armand]

I have their smaller of the three camera focused rotation bags.  I have to say their concept works extremely well!  A pleasure to use!

The rotation works quite well. The problem is that all the padding of the rotation module and around it tends to waste space. It does add to versatility that you can use the bottom as an independent waistpack but it should have had a version with less padding, either in the module or outside it to maximize the space.

[Hezu]

Thanks everyone. I was not considering a repair. I have ordered the G32 which is so similar to the Bataflae 32L that I most likely will be very happy with the new one. I did not find one in Europe so ordered one from B&H.

Although this comes too late for you, for example Idealo price search finds few places in Germany that sell that backpack. Also I know (since I asked earlier) that Finnish Tamrac importer Foka at least considered taking G32 into their repertoire and already had one sample you could have bought via their resellers (= most Finnish camera stores since they are also official importer of Sigma and Leica and few other well-known camera equipment brands).

[BrownBear]

My Kata big waistpack is in bad conditions, I'm tempted by this:

http://www.mindshiftgear.com/products/rotation180-professional

We've found a "compromise" that's made us happy, no matter which pack is on our back.

We always have a few empty lens pouches snapped onto our packs via cheap carabiners. Once we start shooting and the choice of lenses is establshed, we transfer the lens pouches to the waist belt of the pack via their sturdy belt loops and move the lenses of the moment into them.

Priceless. No dismounting the pack and fishing for lenses, and we can use any pack that fits the gear and location of the day. It's a habit we picked up in our pro shooting, and it transfers extremely well to landscape shooting and hikes.

[Hans Kruse]

Although this comes too late for you, for example Idealo price search finds few places in Germany that sell that backpack. Also I know (since I asked earlier) that Finnish Tamrac importer Foka at least considered taking G32 into their repertoire and already had one sample you could have bought via their resellers (= most Finnish camera stores since they are also official importer of Sigma and Leica and few other well-known camera equipment brands).

Thanks. I did a search and no EU sellers came up. I looked at some Tamrac resellers and they did not carry the G32, so I just went ahead and bought it from B&H. Maybe more expensive that way.

[Hans Kruse]

I got the G32 now from B&H. It's wonderful that you can now prepay any fees like customs and VAT and not have to deal with any of that. I got the bag in two days directly.
I moved the stuff from the old bag to the new bag. The G32 pretty much has the same features as the Bataflae, but the laptop insert is not my taste. It makes the bag stiff to open in one side only. I will not use the bag for my laptop which I always carry in a separate bag with my iPad, cables, chargers etc.
Other than that I think I will be happy with it.

Thanks again for answering my question