Any frequent flyers here?

Hi everyone,

A recent airline trip made me realise all over again just how well the backpack works for transporting a lot of photography gear, both on location and while travelling by road and air. It's not the best for working out of, but for getting a lot of gear from one place to another, the backpack rules.

Which brings me to my question: What is the current state-of-the-art in carry-on sized photography backpacks? I am looking for a backpack that excels at transporting my gear through airports and around the world, not a backpack for trekking (which is what Lowepro seem to be designing these days). The last backpack I have purchased is the Lowepro Mini Trekker AW. It has since been discontinued, and as much as I like using it when the occasion presents itself, it is not as good for airline travel as it could be. The straps cannot be stowed away, they're always dangling around and getting caught and snagging on things. The backpack itself is not square-shaped, and therefore not as commodious as it could be, to take as much advantage of the carry-on space allocation as possible.

The one model that caught my eye is the Think Tank Photo Airport Accelerator: http://www.thinktankph​oto.com/products/a...r​ator.aspx. This seems to satisfy the strictest space restrictions for carry-on luggage (as specified by some of the most infamous airlines that I know of). It looks like just what the doctor ordered, but I am wondering if there might be anything else out there, that I am not aware of, that would meet my needs even better.

To all you frequent flyers: What photography backpack do you use and why? If you had to do it all over again, would you buy the same bag or would you buy something else? What features are important to you, and what could you do without? If you do not use a backpack, why not (maybe there is a better solution that I am not aware of)?

Looking for any and all opinions!

I fly quite frequently, but I don't like using flight-specific backpacks. Why?
Because they are not comfortable, nor are they convenient.

Instead, I use my F Stop Tilopa BC. Sure the straps don't come off, sure its not square. But it is rigid, holds a lot, distributes weight properly, and I'm ready to go off shooting wherever I want as soon as I get off the plane, without needing to repack or switch bags.

Features that are important to me in order of decreasing importance:
-comfort
-durability
-protection
-rear access
-carrying capacity
-modularity
-price
-looks

What I could do without?
-price
-not much else


The Tilopa actually fits exactly within the limits for major and budget airlines (not sure about domestic flights, I'm talking international), and it is slightly sloped at the top which helps it fit perfectly in the overhead bins, so despite not looking like an ugly square box, it wastes none of your allowance.

As for doing it all over again, I have actually done just that. I started off with a Lowepro Fastpack 350, which I found very uncomfortable when fully loaded and extremely inflexible in terms of configuration of the storage spaces. Got rid of that, and used an F Stop Guru for a while, which I then found too small*, so I bought an F Stop Satori EXP, which as it turns out is a bit too big for some smaller airlines (e.g. Easyjet, Malaysian airlines, Icelandair, to name a few). So I returned that, and got the F Stop Tilopa BC, which is absolutely perfect as far as I'm concerned, and I wish I'd just gotten it from the start.


*Too small for air travel, it is perfect as a daypack and hiking bag, which is what I now use it for, with the Tilopa being reserved for multi-day trips and overseas trips

The other guy at Luma, Duncan, did something like 175k miles last year in air travel. Egypt. Doha. Tunisia. Singapore. Germany. France. India. London. Scotland. Burma. Cuba. Detroit, amongst others.

He absolutely swears by his Think Tank Airport. All the big gun gear goes into it (Nikon D4, 2 D3s's, 18-24, 24-70, 70-200, a 300, couple of GoPro Heros and his beloved Sony RX1), spendy ball heads and a CF card along with a Retina MacBook Pro and travel docs.

A small backpack has a change of clothes, toiletries and essentials. Long term travel outfits and other bulky stuff goes into an Eagle Creek traveler (I'm trying to get him to upgrade to the new Arc'Teryx luggage).

Rudi.
I think you answered your own question and also beat me to my reply.
The ThinkTank Airport Accelerator has been the backpack I needed for not only air travel but also for maximizing space.
Like you said, since it is square it allows me to carry two bodies with lenses attached in the upper portion of the bag. I also carry two additional lenses, two 600EX-RT flashes, two ST-E3 Transmitters and other "STUFF"
I also fly with my ThinkTank Sling-O-Matic 30 which will house all of my computer related gizmos along with a third 600 flash.
The Sling-O-Matic also is my walk around bag as this also holds both cameras attached ready to shoot.

I've got a F-Stopa Tilopa which I think is absolutely amazing. It's a rugged backpack for the outdoors that can be taken into the wilderniss and backcountry. If you're not going to use it in remote places but only want to use a backpack because you find it easy to carry around, look at Think Tank for sure.

I stopped carrying a backpack when I realized how heavy it was. Now I use the Pelican 1514 into which I can get the three bodies and six out of the seven lenses in my sig. I wheel it through the airport and onto the plane, and carry my Lowepro Stealth Reporter on my shoulder, filled with two Speedlites, the 50mm lens, a book and a sandwich, plus earbuds, glasses, etc. The Pelican easily fits overhead and the Stealth Reporter under my seat.

I pack a Lowepro ulitity belt and harness in checked luggage for walking around in cities, or the Stealth Reporter. I also pack the Classified 140 for the evenings.

Rudi wrote in post #15923927
Hi everyone,

A recent airline trip made me realise all over again just how well the backpack works for transporting a lot of photography gear, both on location and while travelling by road and air. It's not the best for working out of, but for getting a lot of gear from one place to another, the backpack rules.

Which brings me to my question: What is the current state-of-the-art in carry-on sized photography backpacks? I am looking for a backpack that excels at transporting my gear through airports and around the world, not a backpack for trekking (which is what Lowepro seem to be designing these days). The last backpack I have purchased is the Lowepro Mini Trekker AW. It has since been discontinued, and as much as I like using it when the occasion presents itself, it is not as good for airline travel as it could be. The straps cannot be stowed away, they're always dangling around and getting caught and snagging on things. The backpack itself is not square-shaped, and therefore not as commodious as it could be, to take as much advantage of the carry-on space allocation as possible.

The one model that caught my eye is the Think Tank Photo Airport Accelerator: http://www.thinktankph​oto.com/products/a...r​ator.aspx. This seems to satisfy the strictest space restrictions for carry-on luggage (as specified by some of the most infamous airlines that I know of). It looks like just what the doctor ordered, but I am wondering if there might be anything else out there, that I am not aware of, that would meet my needs even better.

To all you frequent flyers: What photography backpack do you use and why? If you had to do it all over again, would you buy the same bag or would you buy something else? What features are important to you, and what could you do without? If you do not use a backpack, why not (maybe there is a better solution that I am not aware of)?

Looking for any and all opinions!

I don't use a photo specific backpack. Mine is a Swiss Gear designed to hold a 17" laptop. It's just big enough to zip closed around my oversized Asus gamer laptop. I also carry all of the gear in my sig, plus accessories like filters, batteries, chargers, cables, computer power brick and mouse, my nook for reading on the plane, etc. It's loaded to the max and weighs in at a good 35-40 pounds, but it works well for me, and it fits easily in the overhead even in the smaller commuter prop that I take from Miami to Nassau.

tvphotog wrote in post #15925316
I stopped carrying a backpack when I realized how heavy it was. Now I use the Pelican 1514 into which I can get the three bodies and six out of the seven lenses in my sig. I wheel it through the airport and onto the plane, and carry my Lowepro Stealth Reporter on my shoulder, filled with two Speedlites, the 50mm lens, a book and a sandwich, plus earbuds, glasses, etc. The Pelican easily fits overhead and the Stealth Reporter under my seat.

I pack a Lowepro ulitity belt and harness in checked luggage for walking around in cities, or the Stealth Reporter. I also pack the Classified 140 for the evenings.

I already have the 1514, but it is just too heavy. It starts off at 6.5 kg empty, while the Airport Accelerator weighs in at 2.5 kg with everything attached, and only 1.9 kg with waist strap and such removed. That means that I can load a whole lot of gear before I catch up with the weight of the Pelican, and since airlines are starting to crack down on carry-on weight, this is likely to make a huge difference in the future.

The good thing about the Pelican is that it can be checked without having to worry about your gear being damaged.

Rudi wrote in post #15925886
I already have the 1514, but it is just too heavy. It starts off at 6.5 kg empty, while the Airport Accelerator weighs in at 2.5 kg with everything attached, and only 1.9 kg with waist strap and such removed. That means that I can load a whole lot of gear before I catch up with the weight of the Pelican, and since airlines are starting to crack down on carry-on weight, this is likely to make a huge difference in the future.

The good thing about the Pelican is that it can be checked without having to worry about your gear being damaged.

Don't check a Pelican with camera gear inside. Here's what happened in Naples when I tried that.

https://photography-on-the.net …0667&highlight=​tamperseal

tvphotog wrote in post #15926719
Don't check a Pelican with camera gear inside. Here's what happened in Naples when I tried that.

https://photography-on-the.net …0667&highlight=​tamperseal

Well, that's the whole idea behind buying a backpack that is light yet holds a lot of gear - I can carry it on the plane with me!

Sorry to hear about your experience at Naples, but good to know that the Pelican and the locks held up to the assault.

I want as soon as I get off the plane, without needing to repack or switch bags.

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http://www.thinktankph​oto.com …-bags/airport-series.aspx

I use a ThinkTank Airport Take Off that is a couple of years old. I raley use the backpack straps and love the rolling feature.

Happy shopping!

I fly 6-8 times a month and life is peachy with the F-Stop Loka. Fits all my gear in along with space for laptop, iPad, noise cancelling headphones, and other small personal items.

It fits easily in the overhead baggage compartments or if the seat next to me is empty I put it in the footwell next to me so I can fire off some shots in air.

Rudi wrote in post #15928737
Well, that's the whole idea behind buying a backpack that is light yet holds a lot of gear - I can carry it on the plane with me!

Sorry to hear about your experience at Naples, but good to know that the Pelican and the locks held up to the assault.

I didn't check it because it was heavy but because the tripod was in it and the security refused to allow it on the plane. Now I always put the tripod into checked baggage. The Pelican always goes in the overhead.

IMO, nothing offers protection against jarring, bumping and dropping like a Pelican. I can't afford to land in a place with something out of whack and not have a shop to repair it or replace it with confidence..

The problem is in Australia checked baggage weight limit is 7kgs. The Pelican almost weighs that dry. Chances of having your bag weighed at the gate are a lot lower if its on your back.