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I cut/pasted the review here, so you don't have to leave the page to see it:
http://www.timsnowphotography.com …AirportInternationalsmall
http://www.timsnowphotography.com …rtInternationalsmalllabel
Since Think Tank came onto the block, I have been in love with their products. I have used Lowepro, Tamrac, Domke and some no-name bags, and have always felt that something has been lacking. Some of the bags have had poor quality control, some of them have just been badly designed.
I have become a bit of a Think Tank fan boy. I push their products so hard that I may as well become a salesman of theirs. All of their products are well designed, and the workmanship is incredible. It doesn’t have a production line feel, but rather a high-end quality which is lacking in much of their competition. Also, they offer you one color choice: black. It is like clothing, black goes with everything, and you can wear it anywhere. Try going into the head office of a major, stuffy corporation with your gear in a dayglo Crumpler pack.
Ironically though, I don’t own a ton of their stuff. I have very specific needs while on assignment; I am either running and gunning with my Skin system for most newspaper, music and wedding assignments, or slowing down with my Airport International for portrait and product assignments. I use a Think Tank Digital Holster 20 in my daypack while hiking. This covers 95% of my work, twice a year I need a backpack and I will be picking up one of the Think Tank Retrospective Lens Changers for street shooting. The other bag I can see myself using is one of Think Tank’s belt packs, either a Wired Up or a Speed bag, for use when I don’t need the whole Skin.
Also, I did not just recently purchase this bag. I have used and abused it for over 2 years now, so my findings are definitely concrete. This is not an “out-of-the-box” review, but a real world one. It has traveled with me by road and air, has seen some interesting things and has lived to roll another day.
So, what do I put in it, and how do I pack it?
Camera bags are very personal, find 100 Airport International owners, and you’ll find 100 different ways to arrange them. This is how mine is set up, and I am sure it will change if and when I eventually pick up Canon’s 24mm f/1.4 and their 85mm f/1.2! Wishful thinking, right?
Here’s the breakdown:
1 – Canon 1d MkIII
2 – Canon 5d MkII
3 – Canon 24-70 f/2.8L
4 – Canon 16-35 f/2.8L
5 – Canon 70-200 f/2.8L – AA battery holder on top of padded divider
6 – Canon 550ex flash
7 – Canon 580exII flash
8 – Hoods for all of my lenses carefully inserted into each-other, Omni bounce covers for flashes, Think Tank Pixel Pocket Rocket for memory cards
9 – Hoodman Hoodloupe 3.0, Canon Angle Finder
10 – Canon St-E2, Spare Canon batteries for 1dMkIII and 5dMkII
11 – Canon 45mm f/2.8 T/S under a Canon 50mm f/1.4
12 – Canon 1.4x Teleconverter under a Sigma 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye
13 – Canon 135mm f/2
14 – 2x Pocket Wizard Tranceivers, Sony ECM-MS907 Microphone, Olympus WS-200S Recorder
15 – Canon RS-80N3 cable release, Pocket Wizard cables, extra eyecup for 1dMkIII
16 – Hoya 77mm Circular Polarizer, Lee Filters 3 Stop Graduated ND Filter
17 – Business Cards
18 – Whibal White Balance tool, Hot shoe attachment to connect speedlight to a flash stand or tripod.
Holds a lot, huh?
That’s the beauty of a bag like this, you can hold your entire kit in one convenient location and have it ready to go at a moment’s notice. The downside is, of course, you will overpack for certain assignments, but I tend to be the kind of shooter that if I leave, say, my 50mm f/1.4 at home, that is the lens I am going to want on location. I would rather have it all with me, and be prepared for anything.
So, how much does all of this weigh? I don’t know! Another plus for this bag is that it is a rolling bag! A bag on wheels! All you have to do is pull it behind you! Remember how I mentioned that the Think Tank bags are all black? This makes them blend in with the plethora or professionals running around airports and city streets hauling their rolling laptop bags/briefcases. I do not have a big glowing “please steal my $25,000 camera bag” sign hanging over me anywhere I go. Think Tank have also been nice enough to include combination locks on the Airport line of bags; the first one locks the main compartment of the bag closed, and the second one is in the back compartment of the bag attached to a long wire allowing you to lock the bag down on immovable objects sch as airport benches, inside your car trunk should you leave the bag in your car trunk (a really really bad idea BTW), or in my case, to an iron bar on the wall in my office for extra security when I’m not there. The combination locks are customizable so you can choose your own 3 digit combo, mine is…
So, how does the bag hold up? Montreal is known for our crappy winters, and for the most part, the bag has held up will. If I know I will be wheeling the bag around through slush and snow, I will make sure to lube the wheels a bit so the bearings do not rust up on me. If it gets really bad, I just carry the bag. No biggie, I need the exercise anyways. The retractable arm works fluidly, the I like that it gets zipped up to protect it.
As with all Think Tank products, you get way more dividers than you will need. I have a pile of unused ones in my closet. I have also cut some of them to size to fit between the items I stack in the bag.
Any complaints? Well, a few nitpicky ones. First, the front pocket on the bag is advertised to hold an Artificial Intelligence 15″ or 17″ laptop bag. I have never been able to do so. I have a hard enough time keeping a magazine or two in there, let alone a laptop. In fact, my 15″ laptop does not fit in the pocket with or without a case. It’s just too tight. Also, since our winters are so harsh, it could use slightly bigger wheels to help roll through the muck, but that would be at the expense of a bit of interior room. That’s pretty much it.
You will not use it if you are going to go on a summit bid, that’s what a backpack is for. You will not use it if you need to run and gun, that’s the Skin’s territory. If you are looking for an easy way to cart around a ton of gear, set up on location and make your photographs, this is the bag for you. From the car to the plane to the hotel and back again, this is the answer. If I have to fly, I will pack my Skin in my checked luggage and re-pack it for my shoot at the hotel.
A direct link to the Think Tank Airport International V 2.0 can be found here. You will find way more photos, specs and reviews.
Think Tank are a company created by photographers for photographers, and make the best bags I have ever used. Please visit the at www.thinktankphoto.com to see what they are up to.
I really hope you enjoyed my review, please forward the link to those you feel will enjoy it, and please visit NewWindWorkshops for details of upcoming events. Also, you can see my personal work at www.timsnowphotography.com or on twitter at www.twitter.com/TimSnowPhoto
