equipment advice - long lens bags

Good Morning All.

I could do with some advice on the best way to carry my gear when out shooting. I currently use the Lowepro Naturetrekker 600AWII. Its good if i only want to take othe one lens and body and i can just about fit a spare battery and TC'S in but thats it. I have thought about buying an army issue bergen and making some form of padded sleeve for the kit to allow me to carry a change of clothes and food etc.

does anyone have any recommended methods?


Thanks in advance

Andy

There's a new Andy Rouse bag out that would probably suit your needs - Warehouse Express sell them.

I've got a bag from Cotswold Aquarius for long lenses, and that suits my needs -
http://www.cotswoldaquarius.co.uk/products.php?function=view&productid=202

HTH's

Thankyou Graham, ive just had a look at the Andy Rouse bag, £300 will have a look at the link you posted aswell.

The Cotswold Aq. bag is the design Tom 'refreshed' a couple of years back - it's an excellent design, and works well. Unlike some variants of it, it isn't overburdened with extra pockets that are too large. That also means that you're not tempted to overload the bag...

I too have the cotswold bag. Its well designed and can carry the big lens with body and hood attached . There are three pockets on the outside. I usually carry a macro and a wide angle and a few odds and sods. Its comfortable and seems to distribute the weight better than normal bags. The weight is higher up and doesn't put too much strain on the lower back.
I would recommend it.
Pete

Thanks for the quick replys

I will have a look at the bags mentioned, Julian the AR bag you mention could be good. will wait and see what the pricing will be.


Thanks

Andy

Andy,

You can also get another varient of those bags from Tripods Heads and Gimbals , it is sized between my redesign (as sold by Cotswold) and the Rouse Monster.

I would suggest that you consider your style of photography before you buy.
My design was meant to be a no zip answer to moving fast over mountains/moors/forests with the ability to quickly deploy the camera from a streamline bag i.e. it is no wider than your body, but is is a 500/600mm and one small other lense bag.
Tony has made that a bit more generally versitile with a bigger front pocket but that means, potentially, more weight carried in kit but may be better if you carry a number of small delicate accessories.
Andy's on the other hand can hold nearly everything and, if filled, would be heavy. I see it more as a Lowepro ProTrekker equivelent and it has its niche. Horses for courses.

All are made by Cotswold...

T

If I read this question correctly you are looking for something that will take your camera gear and a change of clothes plus a flask and food etc.

There is probably no single camera based bag for big gun lenses that will meet this criteria. Turning the question on its head and thinking out of the box, the mad Aussie way of travelling around Europe may fit the bill, ie using a smaller secondary rucksack slung across the chest from the harness of your existing camera bag is likley to be the cheapest option - You could adapt the camera bag with some D rings on the shoulder straps and use lightweight carabiners to make this work - but most ordinary 35+ litre rucksacks usually have the D rings ready sown in as standard these days

FWIW I actually use the method you were contemplating, ie an army surplus 30 litre rucksack with internal baffle/tube for the lens made out of old sleeping mat foam to carry my camera gear as the padding and shoulder straps are better designed and more comfortable than the usual camera rucksacks when doing longer distance yomps plus it is fully waterproofed rather than just shower proofed, no external zips etc - but the 30 litre jobbie doesn't leave much room for clothing and food, a bigger army bergen would give you more room, but the lens would need securing better than a single tube to stop it moving about as you walk.

Hi Mike, yes your thinking along similar lines to me, my thought process is to take some measurements of the lens and get a custom built sleeve made from some thick neoprene or something similar that will cushion the lens and keep it secure. It would probably need a modification inside the bag also