Long-Haul Cabin Bag

[rowan57]

Hey folks, i have held off buying a new camera bag recently as i knew my needs were going to change quite dramatically. I currently have a Crumpler Pretty Boy XL, which holds about 1/3 my gear (Doesnt even hold the 40D anymore as it now has a grip).

I need a long-haul (15 hrs+) cabin bag for flying backwards and forwards to Kenya (& other countries) in the next few years. The downside to most bags is that they are either or (I.e. either camera stuff or general stuff). So i have been looking at the following:

Tamrac Adventure 9

Lowepro Compurover AW

My Stuff:

Gripped 40D
Tam 17-50mm
70-300IS
Takumar 100mm Macro
EF-500 DG Super

Pentax SMC-M 135mm
Pentax SMC-M 28mm (These lenses are very small and im not too concerned about
Takumar 50mm 1.4 them, they will fit in somewhere)

Monopod & Head (Yet to purchase)

Macbook 13"

My criteria:

Airline Carry-on (Specifically Heathrow / Emirates, experience with either bag in this situation greatly appreciated)
Weather-proof (Inc. an all weather cover)
Ability to store stuff for freshening up during the flight
Space for chargers, cables etc. (Ideally, but not 100% essential, must take Macbook charger however)

My initial thoughts:

I dont generally like Lowepro stuff, its function over form design & doesnt look that great.
The tamrac would seem to suit me down to the ground, but others may disagree?

Thoughts welcome
Cheers
Rowan

[ChristopherMadison]

Look at www.thinktankphoto.com (http://www.thinktankphoto.com) , it's on the expensive side, but well worth the money if you are going to be traveling so much. Quality is absolutely the best....IMO

[SuzyView]

I have the Adventure 9 and it's pretty big and around $150. I take my most necessary must haves in that and then the Airport International wheel case. It's really expensive, but fits everything else. I check the other stuff. If you need to bring the laptop, I'd recommend the Kata 467 and the Pelican 1510 or 1514, both will cost around $250 and would fit everything you have listed.

[cicopo]

The model number isn't correct, it should read PCS283 but this bag has me looking very hard at what it can do.

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=663050

[Pandya]

I walked my Lowepro Computrekker AW through Gatwick on a BA 777 flight to Bermuda just fine a week ago. Probably weighed close to 30lb, carrying a 40D, 400D, 70-200 f/4L, 17-40 f/4L, 50mm f/1.8 II, filters, chargers (both cameras and a hugeass laptop adaptor), cables, card reader, cards, all the general accessories. The Computrekker AW would accomodate all your gear and a macbook just fine and it works for carryon...wouldn't fit my 20.5" laptop, but that's another story. I walked on to the plane with my loaded down camera bag and a big laptop and checked two bags and BA were just happy with it. Also loaded a Lynx bodyspray I bought at the airport, and there was room for more.

Long story short - fitted all my crap, would fit all your crap and laptop, is waterproof (AW cover that works, another slice of experience), and fits BA carryon limits just fine. You might not like the look of Lowepro bags, but it certainly does the business. Flight wasn't so long-haul - only eight hours.

[Andrushka]

Look at www.thinktankphoto.com (http://www.thinktankphoto.com) , it's on the expensive side, but well worth the money if you are going to be traveling so much. Quality is absolutely the best....IMO

i fly back and forth to Ukraine and within the US with my ThinkTank Airport Antidote and i never have a problem with airport security or fitting it overhead or under seat... awesome quality...

http://thinktankphoto.com/ttp_product_ArprtAntdt.php

[rowan57]

Thanks guys, loads of great feedback so far. ThinkTank don't really seem to do anything that suits my needs at the moment, i do love their stuff but its just not appropriate for me unfortunately. I need the camera bit and bit for my general stuff to be 1 bag as my second 'carryon' will be a suit carrier, so unfortunately having say a pelican & a tamrac isnt an option.

Its good to hear that people havent had any issues going over the carryon limits set by the airlines & airports, i have never had an issue thus far but will be flying a lot more in the near future.

A backpack is definitely what im looking for from the point of view of carrying, i will be spending time in very poor areas of africa & dont desperately want a rolling case, you need a reasonably flat surface for them anyway ;)

Pandya, that is a huge laptop! Thats bigger than most peoples desktop screens! Glad to hear you didnt have any issues with the carryon of the CompuTrekker, that gives me a bit more confidence.

Cheers guys
Rowan

[Pandya]

Hehe yeah it is a bit on the big side. For photography, it's awesome. For portability, well, I get my work out, that's for sure. I was pretty nervous going through the BA checkin line and then security, I really didn't want to be in the situation where they wanted me to check a laptop and a bag full of camera gear, and equally I wasn't going to just mail it home. Turns out the laptop fits absolutely fine within their size limitations, as did the camera backpack. They actually don't specify a weight though - just that you can lift it unaided into the overhead. I can lift far heavier than that into the overhead :)

But don't worry, and do have the confidence. No sense in stressing yourself and being nervous, you will be fine.

[Andrushka]

here is an idea i have toyed with for when I dont need a laptop (not sure when that would ever be). So, maybe get a suitable backpack that will fit your camera bag in the bottom. Then, when you dont want to be carrying a backpack, you have a shoulder bag which is much more user friendly when you are ACTUALLY shooting... I've been to Tanzania and Kenya a couple times, and i regretted having to have my photo backpack on my back all the time cause i didnt have a shoulder bag with me... i think this is how i will do it next time i head to East Africa

[rowan57]

Pandya, that must really be a workout! I have a friend with a 17" laptop & i thought that was big enough, im quite happy with my little 13" screen :D

Andrushka, thats the kind of setup im going for, the cabin bag will then be used for general valuable holding, all my camera gear etc when i am set up in my flat, then i will also have a daysack for when im working & will just shove my camera & whichever lens/es i think is/are suitable for the day into that.

cheers
Rowan

[fishfoto]

First off, when flying Emirates, you must be aware that the airline is extremely strict regarding not only carry-on size limits but carry on weight limits. Emirates also only allows for 1 carry on, NOT 1 carry on + 1 personal item.

While Emirates allows for a maximum carry on size of 55cm x 38cm x 20cm, the weight limit is only 7kgs/15lbs. With the airline often doing 'gate weight' it is wise to use a backpack rather than an roll-aboard. A backpack can be casually worn, and look like it weighs 5lbs, even it if weighs 50lbs Perception is the key to not being stopped and randomly weighed (unless you're flying economy class in New Zealand , in which case you're just going to probably have a problem).

The Think Tank bags are good, but often stand out as 'larger' bags due to the square shape (and I do love Think Tank bags).

I have been using the Mountainsmith Parallax when I need to pack a lot on a small space, and get past strict carry-on guidelines (such as flying economy on Virgin Atlantic out of London Heathow). I have detailed the Parallax a few times on my site for flying photogs, Flying With Fish (http://www.flyingwithfish.com), you can read two detailed write ups on this bag below

http://boardingarea.com/blogs/flyingwithfish/2008/10/22/the-mountainsmith-parallax-photo-backpack-revisited/

http://boardingarea.com/blogs/flyingwithfish/2007/08/03/3-august-2007-going-around-the-world-for-a-few-days-youll-need-to-pack-ulta-light/

With some creative packing you can also explore the Mounainsmith Borealis AT, which I have some detailed photos of here:
http://boardingarea.com/blogs/flyingwithfish/2009/03/01/traveling-quick-light-packing-a-%e2%80%98run-kit%e2%80%99/

If you absolutely want a Think Tank (and I LOVE my Airport Addicted) you're best bet for staying out of Emirates' sights for weight would be the Airport Antidote v2.0, which you can check out on Think Tanks's site here: http://www.thinktankphoto.com/ttp_product_ArprtAntdt.php

Happy Flying!

[rowan57]

Thanks Fish, your tips are always greatly appreciated. I have flown emirates a few times before, but that was at least 3 years ago and i looked much younger back then, i think people are more forgiving of young teenagers!.

Im not too concerned about the bag being weighed, as described by others, carrying cameras, laptops etc. is a way to get round that. The size thing is more of an issue, especially as by the sound of it i wont be able to get away with a suit carrier as well.

The Borealis looks good, i will strictly be flying economy (Most of my life for the next few years will be volunteer work & they dont pay for business unfortunately ;) ). I definitely dont want ThinkTank, its just not suitable for my kit, nor a roll-aboard. I will look at the Borealis, your reviews are really helpful as they actually pack the bag out fully unlike a lot of reviews. I do like the look of the MountainSmith stuff for sure, & it looks like i might actually be able to get hold of it over here as well which i didnt think i could.

Cheers
Rowan