Hey guys,
Any recommendations for a good SLR and Laptop bag? I am eyeing the Lowepro Fastpack 250, but reviews I have seen say its uncomfortable.
What I'm looking to carry is:
15" laptop (MacBook Pro)
Canon 40D (and maybe a 5D in the near future) with 24-105 Lens attached
One or two additional lenses, one of them a telephoto
Accessories like chargers and cables
A comfortable backpack would be preferable, but a shoulder bag is fine too. Want to keep it under $100.
Im using a Lowepro Compu Trekker AW and quite like it, have had it for over a year and no complaints.
It holds for me anyway:
15" Widescreen laptop
power brick for laptop
Canon 40D
70-300 IS lens
17-40 F4L
10-22 canon
50mm F1.8
Tamron 2X teleconverter
430ex flash
18-55 rebel kit lens
GF lightsphere
Sometimes stuff the Rebel XTi Body in there as well
misc cords, batteries, cables and what ever else I can stuff in it lol.
Its comfy to hike with and given I have a bad back that's a BIG bonus :)
I have the Lowe Stealth 650 shoulder bag. I refer to it as the "kitchen sink" because it holds so much gear.
A bit out of your price range tho.
isn't it uncomfortable to hold 10-15 lbs of gear in a shoulder bag?
No, mine weighs more than that, but with a waist belt, the load itself is quite manageable. The problem is one of bulk more than anything, that and my hesitation to bring along a bunch of stuff I don't need. Mostly, I don't use it much because I just never need to have the computer there when I'm shooting. It's much better to have a second bag for it. It mostly sits in the closet as a sort of mother-ship for the gear I'm not carrying in my smaller bag.
I have the Kata DR 467 and it is currently at a good price via amazon--well below 100 bucks
It holds a large laptop, , has a padded compartment for camera with lens attached, other lenses, gear, etc. The bright yellow lining makes it easy to see what you are after, and it comes with a rain cover.
I used it on an overseas trip and loved it. Very good pack. Doesn't shout Camera Gear either :-)
The Lowepro Compu Trekker AW has been my bag of choice for over 2 years now. It holds tons of gear. I weighed it once when it was fully loaded and I was surprised to find that it was just over 29 lbs! It will fit in any overhead compartment on a plane but there are some planes that it will not fit under the seat in front of you. As heavy as it was when fully loaded it felt very comfortable because of the strap design and the padding. I do carry a smaller Lowepro bag with me for day use and the Compu Trekker serves as the 'mothership' as Spazmo99 mentioned.
If you're planning on doing actual hiking around with it, the whole AW line from Lowepro is also useful because of it's fold out rain cover. Granted, you can always buy a separate pack cover, but then that takes up space, costs more money, and isn't custom sized to your bag.
When I travel by air, I take a carry on size roller bag, put my camera bag in there and that way I don't have to worry about my gear getting heavy as I travel. If, on a smaller plane, the airline wants to gate check it, I just pull out the camera bag and let them take the roller bag. There's also room for a jacket, books and other travel stuff. My other carry on is a messenger bag that I put my laptop in. I put the laptop in a padded sleeve before I put it in the bag. When I get off the plane, I just extend the handle on the roller bag, put the messenger bag on top of the roller bag, strap them together and roll away.
There's no clue that my bag contains thousands in camera gear instead of dirty underwear like every other travelers' bag.
wow a lot of great suggestions. good thing i didn't get a chance to go to B&H yet, now i have more options to compare.
i see B&H has the Kata DR-467 for $80 with a free monopod, which seems like a steal (here). i think if the build quality feels good, i might pick this one up. chromeydome, do you know if this fits under airline seats?
otherwise, its going to be the CompuTrekker AW, that seems to be getting the most votes of confidence, though its a bit more than i wanted to spend.
Another vote for the Lowepro Compu Trekker AW. Comfy, stows on all planes, lots of room and not ugly. Also doesn't scream "steal my stuff!"
A truly awesome bag.
I travel frequently for my job and this is the bag I carry ... holds all of my gear, laptop and the top compartment works well for my travel essentials (sweater, book, purse, etc).... I'm gonna put in another vote for it ... be aware that it can get pretty heavy when totally packed though, but I LOVE having my hands free to deal with other things ...
wow a lot of great suggestions. good thing i didn't get a chance to go to B&H yet, now i have more options to compare.
i see B&H has the Kata DR-467 for $80 with a free monopod, which seems like a steal (here). i think if the build quality feels good, i might pick this one up. chromeydome, do you know if this fits under airline seats?
otherwise, its going to be the CompuTrekker AW, that seems to be getting the most votes of confidence, though its a bit more than i wanted to spend.
That monopod won't be of much use to you. It is only rated for 2.2 pounds. Your body alone weighs in at 1.63 lbs. Plus head if you don't want to mount directly. I thought the same thing- Sweet! Free monopod! But the monopod is so lightweight it is nearly worthless for many of the times when you would want to use one (IE heavy/long lens).
That monopod won't be of much use to you. It is only rated for 2.2 pounds. Your body alone weighs in at 1.63 lbs. Plus head if you don't want to mount directly. I thought the same thing- Sweet! Free monopod! But the monopod is so lightweight it is nearly worthless for many of the times when you would want to use one (IE heavy/long lens).
the bag is the same price with or without the monopod, so may as well get it :)
without monopod with monopod
i have this bag - and am happy with it. it does stow overhead, but on the tiny commuter planes it doesn't. one nice thing is there is a sleeve that pulls out from the bottom and zips up to stow all the straps when travelleing and has straps to latch it to the handle of a roll around suitcase. it also comes with a rain skirt that came in handy while we were in poland...
I vote for Lowepro Compu Trekker AW for the travel only. It is not a daily usage bag for my needs. But I can suggest Lowepro SlingShot 350 AW as an laptop and SLR usage. I'm planning to buy SlingShot 200 AW for the SLR usage only. It is very easy to handle for SLR usages, at least seen from the product's photos on their web site.
I vote for Lowepro Compu Trekker AW for the travel only. It is not a daily usage bag for my needs. But I can suggest Lowepro SlingShot 350 AW as an laptop and SLR usage. I'm planning to buy SlingShot 200 AW for the SLR usage only. It is very easy to handle for SLR usages, at least seen from the product's photos on their web site.
i actually have the SlingShot 300 (camera only), and while its a really well-built bag, i don't like the single strap design. i'm actually thinking of selling it if you're interested, its in perfect condition.
wow a lot of great suggestions. good thing i didn't get a chance to go to B&H yet, now i have more options to compare.
i see B&H has the Kata DR-467 for $80 with a free monopod, which seems like a steal (here). i think if the build quality feels good, i might pick this one up. chromeydome, do you know if this fits under airline seats?
otherwise, its going to be the CompuTrekker AW, that seems to be getting the most votes of confidence, though its a bit more than i wanted to spend.
As for airline seats, I don't use it that way (I am tall, need that space for my feet), but I did have to put it under there once (painful flight!). It is not an unusually large bag--it should fit if it is not overstuffed or something. Kata makes great bags, I use a different version for work every day. By the way, I neglected to mention that the padded section will remove as a unit, freeing up the bottom section for other uses if you are not toting gear. I sometimes drop that padded section in a canvas messenger bag when that is the way I want to tote :-) Reading the reviews on amazon can be useful for learning more about the features :-)
