Backpack for Hassy Kit

[mitchino]

I'm looking for a good backpack to carry HD4 and a few lenses & accessories, plus a tripod. Be good if it took a laptop too, though won't use that all the time.

For hiking to shooting locations. I realise it'll be heavy!

Any recommendations? I'm in the UK.

[MrSmith]

Thinktank products are very well made and thought out, I use their rollers and bags having tried various other brands. Lowepro are not quite in the same league from my experience and their warrenty support in the uk is not brilliant. I had to throw away a pro-roller after the fragile plastic handle fell to pieces. Thinktank sent me a new lock the next day when it jammed. Not the cheapest but mine are lasting well and get a lot of use.

[amsp]

http://fstopgear.com

[dchew]

http://fstopgear.com

Yup. I have not found a better bag.

Dave

[fotagf8]

I am a fan of Think Tank bags.  As is true of many photographers, I have had my share, looking for the perfect bag. Right now I am using an Urban Disguise 50V20, but that won't work for you--it is more of a brief case than a backpack.  I have also used one of their backpacks--don't have the number handy.  The bags are well made, have compartments in the right spots for cards and batteries.  Mine came with rain covers inside and also a nice card pouch attached to the bag.  My one bit of advice.  I tried a Kimba (?) backpack, which supposedly had the advantage of letting you load the bag by unshipping the whole thing, but then allowed you to open the sides to remove individual pieces.  That didn't work so well.  On that bag, I also went big--that was a mistake. Smaller is always better, but only if you test it before buying it by loading the equipment you will be carrying into it.  Unfortunately, that will be more difficult to do now that Calumet has closed its store in our city.

Good luck

[Joe Towner]

Which lenses are you looking to carry?  How many klicks are you headed each way?  What size frame are you?  How much other stuff beyond camera gear are you looking to take?  I'm 6'3", 235lbs, so 1.9m and 107kg, what fits me may not fit you.

I love Think Tank, but their standard gear is too urban for outdoor travels.  I've been using a Chrome Niko camera backpack most recently, and while I wish the straps were more backpack style, it holds a lot of gear and sits well.  I want to test drive one of the MindShiftGear (made by ThinkTank) bags but I don't think the layout will work perfectly - as in lots of wasted space due to sizing.

http://www.chromeindustries.com/us/en/bags/camera-bags/niko-pack
http://www.mindshiftgear.com/pages/products

Can't say I've used FStop, but as you can see lots of folks like them.  No bag maker seems to take the DMF market seriously - and if it does a layout it's for a studio shoot where you carry the bag all of a few hundred meters.  JSPhoto is right in laying it out a few times over, one of those things you have to have a retail store to do.

Best of luck, let us know what you decide on.

[mitchino]

I'm 6' 3" to, slim build. I want to carry at least  body & back 28mm, 80mm, Tilt Shift adaptor, tripod and sometimes laptop. Need backpack that I can hike with and cycle with.

[Richard Morwood]

I often use Think Tank Street Walker hard drive for carrying H4D plus 2-3 lenses. It is big enough for me to carry camera with 35-90 attached and 28 or 80 would be no problem. Don't often put laptop inside but it works well when I do. It carries a gitzo series 3 tripod fine and series 5 at a push!.
I've no longer got the HTS adapter and can't remember how it fitted. That aside it works well for me.
I agree though that they seem more urban than some (lowepro for example).
Regards
Richard

[SethDAugust]

Ever consider a timbuk2 with their dslr insert? I've been using that with my Hassy and an 80mm and 150mm. Still have some space to add in a 28mm down the road. Plus it has the laptop sleeve behind the insert which is still usable.