Carry-on Camera Bag Advice

[skearse]

I'm in the same boat-new rig, looking for something to travel with. I was looking at something like this: Alta Sky 45D Camera Backpack - Black/Gray

Dimensions look to be a little smaller overall and a little heavier than the Endurax (and $$$).

 

[Daebado]

I'm in the same boat-new rig, looking for something to travel with. I was looking at something like this: Alta Sky 45D Camera Backpack - Black/Gray

Dimensions look to be a little smaller overall and a little heavier than the Endurax (and $$$).

That's a really nice looking bag, though and looks to be well built! Only a couple inches taller than my current bag so I don't know if it helps me much but it might be perfect for you depending on how much gear you take with you.
Expensive, yes but I would pay that for the right gear bag.

 

[skearse]

That's a really nice looking bag, though and looks to be well built! Only a couple inches taller than my current bag so I don't know if it helps me much but it might be perfect for you depending on how much gear you take with you.
Expensive, yes but I would pay that for the right gear bag.

Yeah, that's about where I was with it too. Compared to the equipment, it's cheap protection. I was thinking camera in housing (LX10 compact in Nauticam, so a little smaller; hopefully w/o removing the tray & handles), strobes, lenses, computers, lights, laptop/tablet, batteries, cables, cards, chargers, etc. and then maybe the arms & whatever else may fit. We also usually put BPWs, regs, masks, etc. in a carry on roller bag so I was looking for something that (a) would qualify as a 'personal item' and (b) had a strap for the roller handle [maybe a little silly, but it's a 'thing' for me].

 

[cleomagic]

We travel with a ThinkTank Airport Commuter. This bag hold a lot of stuff, should fit under the seat (never tried this), and tends to look smaller than it is. In the picture below, we have and Sony a6500 housing, lenses, and ports, an RX100 housing, 2 Sola Video Lights, 4 YS-01 strobes (since replaced with YS-D2J strobes which fit), and a bunch of ancillary camera stuff like diopters, kraken ring light, 45 degree viewfinder, wet fisheye lens (under Solas), .... We check our arms, clamps, non-Lithium Ion batteries, ....

The downside is that it holds tons of stuff. If anyone ever weighed it we'd come in way overweight. Our normal load stored in this bag is about 35 pounds. It doesn't carry like 35 pounds.

If you are looking more for a stealthy bag which holds a lot of stuff, albeit not as conveniently as this bag, you should consider the Tenba DNA 15 Slim Messenger bag. Outwardly, this appears to be a small laptop bag, but internally it has all the features of a camera bag. If we're worried about someone weighing the ThinkTank, we move some of the heavier objects into this one. The ThinkTank is definitely easier to carry though as it is a backpack and not a shoulder bag.

 

[2ndjetty]

Here's an article on how I've been Packing Photo Gear.

This is personal preference, of course. I carry all the cameras, lenses, lights, 2 strobes in a discrete backpack that rarely gets weighted. Note that this backpack is heavy and many folks will opt not to have a heavy backpack. My carry on-roller, which gets weighted every flight to Asia, contains just my housing with a camera body in it and smaller ports. If hassled for being 10-11 kilos instead of 7, I just show them it's camera gear. At worst I remove the camera body, put it on the counter, reweigh the bag and get the Ok, then put it right back in the bag as soon as I walk away from the counter.

I use a padded bag with chargers, extra batteries (*this can be a risk), extra strobes and lights, etc in one of my two checked bags.

If traveling to a destination with a lot of carrying the rig around, I'll throw a cooler bag into my dive bag to use on site (just like a number of divers mentioned above). It's awesome. For most of my diving out of the car here in California I also keep the rig in the cooler bag, and somethings bring the extra port, batteries, etc in a padded case inside a peli box that keeps it safe camping and all that.

So so many ways to approach packing! The key considerations are 1) your gear, 2) what airlines you use (e.g. how strict they are on carry on weight) and 3) the type of dive op you'll be using (e.g. how you'll move gear around onsite).

 

[ScubaMarc]

Most of mine are carry-on; but airlines have become far more restrictive in recent years, especially in Asia. There is always a bit of overflow and some calculated risk nowadays. Get a decent equipment-specific insurance policy . . .

Some airlines(china southern) have specific warning about not wanting any camera's or batteries in the checked baggage and will wave overweight restrictions on my backpack with all my camera gear.

 

[JackConnick]

We have a new blog article on Packing your UW Camera gear that may be of interest.

Packing Camera Gear for Dive Travel

 

[kelemvor]

My wife and I use pelican air cases. We carry them on and store them in the overhead bin. They're just the right size for a carry-on (American Airlines). I'm not sure if you could fit them under the seat. I usually carry a large laptop backpack as my personal item and this is what goes under the seat.

Pelican Air Cases | Up to 40% Lighter | Pelican

I think that's what is in the pic that was posted above this.


We got them with the "pick n pluck" foam but ended up removing every bit of it. Our camera gear completely fills the case. I put most smaller items inside a sweat sock to protect them, unless it's something that has a case from the manufacturer that isn't absurd in size.

 

[Daebado]

Great replies and ideas, everyone!
I think this truly is one of those things that comes down to every diver having their own way because every diver has different equipment and needs.
I was fine until I started adding more stuff! But I think from looking at what you all have done, I can come up with a way to pack my gear using my current bags and luggage.

I have typically always carried my camera backpack as my carry-on and my regulator bag as my personal item. I always try to carry on my camera equipment, reg set, dive computer, ipad and mask. These are the items I absolutely want to make sure arrive with me at my destination. Believe it or not, it all fit pretty nicely in the two bags mentioned.

Because the reg set doesn't really take up all the room in the main compartment of my reg bag (due to the hoses being coiled around the inside perimeter of the bag), I'm pretty sure I can get my strobe arms and maybe even the tray/handles in there to free up a little more room in the camera bag. If not, I may have to figure out a way to start using a small roller bag. I'll just have to experiment a bit more once my new strobe arrives and I have everything together. Should be fun!

 

[hilljo88]

Think tank airport international v2 roll aboard. I have YsD2’s and Sea and Sea housing. The housing with port attached is awkward shape but I stuff bits and pieces of kit around it, plus socks, etc. float arms also take up a lot of space. Anything with a lithium battery, dc, spare dive light, etc also goes in. I carry lenses and A7r3 body on board in my backpack. I usually sail through baggage screening everywhere except when leaving Grand Cayman. For some unknown reason (I’ve asked) they always take my bag apart.