How Much Does Your Carry-Around Gear Weigh?

I'm curious to know what weight of gear all of you are carrying around with you as you go about your hobby or profession.

When I go out photographing I take all the things I'm likely to need, without taking anything for the sake of it. I find it quite a struggle sometimes and the other day I decided to weigh my carry-around gear, which totalled 35lbs (just under 16kg).

It's only my camera (with lens fitted), tripod & head, then my bag with two lenses, filters, odds and ends, and a separate lens in its own bag. I've also got another small bag with maps, torches and a drink in it, so nothing excessive there.

Am I overdoing it, or do a lot of you find the need to carry that kind of weight? My back keeps hurting, so I'm going to have to re-think things if planning any longer walks.

Mike

Fully loaded I would have a similar weight of gear.

FWIW I found it much easier to carry my kit when I went for the Think Tank Belt system with a harness and skin set. Otherwise a good back pack might help you out.

Get the weight off your back & put it on your hips where it belongs.
Lowepro Beltpacks
http://www.bhphotovide​o.com …Bags/ci/4338/N/​4291080223

Post #68
Show me your camera bag

I only carry what I expect to use, & my tripod stays in the trunk, along with the spare batteries I never seem to need. A spare 2GB CF card goes in my pocket. A walk by the river

When I go out photographing, I tend to take very little. I like to make a choice about a lens that I will use for this trip and then just use it in every way I can think of during that "session". Sometimes I will take the tripod, sometimes I leave it; sometimes a prime, sometimes a zoom; sometimes ..... well .... you get the idea.

I actually like the way I am forced to learn and get creative about what I have with me, rather than trying to carry everything I own. It makes me think "photography" rather than "what equipment" when I encounter something. It also makes for much lighter loads.

It's supposed to be fun. If your pack is "hurting" just unpack some stuff. It is much more fun to take pictures than it is to be a pack mule.

My gear weighs somewhere around 17 lbs and I can knock off about a pound if I leave things, such as, chargers out of the bag (which I don't need on a 1 day shoot).

Everything fits nicely and can be accessed easily and safely in a Lowepro ProMag2/AW without having to take off the shoulder.

http://products.lowepr​o.com …/Pro-Mag-2-AW,1996,20.htm

The waist belt, i conjunction with the padded shoulder belt, makes it quite comfortable, for a shoulder bag with this weight.

There is NO WAY I would drag around 35 lbs to an event.

I looked at your gear list and I don't see 35 lbs unless you actually do bring eveyrthing in your gear list.

The place where you can save the most weight, short of not bringing lenses is to change your tripod and geared head. Expensive proposition.

PS: I don't bring or use a tripod.

Thanks everyone. I'll have a look at the alternatives mentioned, but I like the shoulder bag because I can work from it whilst I have it on me, which is quite handy if I can't put it down (like when I'm standing in the sea or somewhere equally stupid).

Bohdank, my 5D with 17-40mm on my tripod/head weighs 13lbs, my bag, with 70-200mm, 24mm TS-E, flashgun and my filters etc weighs 13lbs, my extra bag (maps, torch and drink etc) weighs 5.5lbs and my 400mm in its soft case weighs 3.5lbs.

To illustrate my earlier point, I've just been out for a quick trip and used everything but my flash and 24mm TS-E. I'm just off out again and could well use either of the two I didn't use earlier.

Mike

A lighter tripod/head can easily knock 3-5 pounds of the total. Other than that, if you need all the stuff, you need all the stuff. Not much you can do.

I had a photography instructor that was able to file a workmens comp claim for back injury from carrying too much gear for too long. I think about that every time I load up a pack. I used to carry 3-4 primes, switched to zooms to get the weight down.
honestly, I could stand to loose more weight than I typically carry.

If you've already looked at that link, go back & look again. I added a shot of my waist pack/belt.

I used to pack three lenses, assorted gear and two cameras. Now, I carry one camera and two lenses, and one flash unit and that's it. (oh, lens tissue and very small stuff like that)

Sometimes I've missed a picture because I don't have the right lens or whatever, but I'm okay with it. A hurting back is just nasty and I don't want to try to cope with it if I can help it.

My messenger, shoulder bag weighs 12 pounds.
I carry everything i own, and a Fujifilm S2000HD digital cam as well.

Depending on my configuration, i play tetris in my bag to even hold a secondary body.

I carry my bag on one shoulder, and never across.
It's heavy sometimes, but i take it.

Thanks for the latest replies.

Frank, were you referring to post #32 in that thread? There are a couple of broken photo links, but I can see one of the blue waist pack. I quite like the idea of a waist pack, if only to take the weight off my back. My Lowepro Nova 5 AW has a couple of what looks like belt loops on the inner side, so I could give that a try, assuming that's what they are there for.

Mike

bohdank wrote in post #8675889
A lighter tripod/head can easily knock 3-5 pounds of the total. Other than that, if you need all the stuff, you need all the stuff. Not much you can do.

One of my friends has a Gitzo carbon fibre tripod, which is very light, but also very expensive. Something to consider for the future though.

I might remove my tilt-shift lens for now, and save a couple of pounds, as I could get away without having that with me most of the time.

Mike

6.8 Kg's walk to around the tracks with; But I have a second bag in the car at all times that has rubbish bags, Step ladder, spare batts and flashes, laptop etc...

Things that are great to have but a pain in the butt to lug around

I rarely do the "out and about" thing but if I do it's just a camera body, lens and maybe flash plus spare battery & CF in my pocket. I can't do photography if I'm weighted down.

However my backpack, which holds pretty much everything, weighs over 55lbs.