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Alright, /Now/ You Can Make Streetwalker Jokes

So, as promised, I finally got down to the floor and loaded a ThinkTank Photo Streetwalker Backpack with a 50D Canon digital SLR camera, some Canon lenses, some mixed Induro camera tripods, and some of my usual junk.

I’ve got it uploaded to YouTube, as I always do, and you can find the embedded video below. For those of you just joining in, this is also available (as well as all past installments) on our Podcasts page.

Quick links to mentioned equipment: Induro A013 6M Aluminum Alloy Tripod, Induro DM01 DM-Series Ballhead, Induro MC14 Carbon 8X Monopod, Canon 50D Body, Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM, Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 Macro USM, Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM, Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM, ThinkTank Photo Streetwalker



What’s In a Bag?

ThinkTank Streetwalker (Please, Withhold All Jokes for Later)So, it’s been a while since we’ve hit up a Raw Footage (my camera-man has been busy the past month), but I’m going to try and get a packing exercise done later for the ThinkTank Photo Streetwalker, which is actually a surprisingly trim and still roomy backpack (and of the tried-and-true “strap a camera tripod to the back” variety at that”).

And, while I’m thinking bags, Chuck forwarded me a mail yesterday, in which a reader name of “Greg” said he’d like to know what we over at Roberts shove into our bags. You know, Greg, I think it’s a great idea, although I’m not sure I’ll be able to con anyone else into talking. Might be fun to try and get a shot of Jody’s gear, though…

But, I thought, hey, I may as well talk a bit about the various odd bits and digital camera accessories that’ve sorted themselves into my Crumpler since I shot the footage of me packing it:

1. Olympus digital camera kit. Anyone who reads this blog knows I shoot an Oly kit. E-3, 50-200mm, an old 50mm Zukio f1.8, and a Lensbaby 3G. I’m angling to add a 14-54 to my kit sometime (hey, how about it Oly, you wanna hook me up with an old demo one? Eh? Eh?)

2. A Nikon SB-25, which I found in our venerable Used Department. I use it with a Wein peanut slave as an off-camera key light.

3. Two custom flash modifiers.

4. Two medium plastic spring clamps. And a little 2″ metal c-clamp (hey, you never know, I might need that!)

5. An LED flashlight (never know when you need to shed a little light on the subject).

6. A Roberts card wallet with a selection of mismatched flash memory cards.

7. A Lensbaby creative aperture kit.

8. A Crumpler beer bottle opener (in true Crumpler style, called “The Boozer’s Friend”)

9. An Altec Lansing Orbit portable speaker (for jamming out when shooting models outdoors)



Waiting for a New Bag

7 Million Dollar Home So, I tok the dive and decided to upgrade my bag. This is a big step in a man’s life, maybe not as important as his first date or his first cup of coffee, but important nonetheless. Dozens, maybe hundreds, of variables have to be carefully weighed and examined before a choice can be made. What equipment do I have? What equipment will I have? How much do I want to carry day-to-day? What style? What color? These days there’s a dizzying, near-infinite combination as answers and a different bag for each (here at Roberts alone we have around 800 different style/color options available).

So, I sat down, and I thought about my “tackle.” An Olympus digital camera, mid-sized. A fairly chunky but not huge telephoto zoom. A standard zoom. A Lensbaby 3G. A very tiny Zuiko prime from the 70s. An aging but still excellent SB-25 (found in the Nikon flashes down in our used store). I’ll be adding a Metz 58 AF-1OP as soon as the funds come up next year. I’ve got a Gorillapod SLR-Zoom with an Induro SA-0 on it (a nice substitute for camera tripods, useful for remote flash work.) A slew of the usual digital camera accessories: an extra battery, some cables, the aperture for the Lensbaby, a spare compact flash memory card or two.

In the future there might be another lens or two, and I might start carrying around a back-up body, so I need a bag with a lot of space and a bit more I can milk out of it.

But I hate those monolithic black ballistic nylon backback bags. Don’t get me wrong, companies like ThinkTank Photo make some very slick offerings in that style. But it’s not for me.

So I have a Crumpler 7 Million Dollar Home on its way, in the tasty brown/oatmeal/green (they’ve apparently done away with the brown/green/blue version) color combo. Expect some pictures to come as I attempt to fit everything inside it.



Tuesday Comics

As I drove in this morning in the bumper to bumper brake jam-fest I was trying to come up with a subject for my next blog. The five lanes of traffic curving away ahead in the in-between light of near-day looked to me like a giant undulating snake with ruptures of fire shooting out from under its brake-light scales. Still I was drawing blog blanks while tapping car brakes. Patterns changed, I lost my train of thought as the train of cars ahead pulled out of the stationary. I lost any ideas I had as I had to attend to the traffic ahead.
It’s times like these that I wish I had bought an Olympus voice recorder for that “on the spot inspiration capture.” I know!  I could get a small holster-like Tamrac, Tenba or Lowe-Pro belt case and carry that along with my new 1030SW Olympus digital camera, my extra sandisk cards (flash memory cards), my leatherman tool and utility knife, my cell phone and my store keys.
“I’m Batman!” Come to think of it I should carry my old Canon camcorder, and my Bogen Manfrotto tripod (the Nano video/compact camera tripod one) too. I could get a quiver style over the shoulder case for the camera tripod.
I’m “The Green Arrow!”
It’s a good thing I don’t routinly carry Professional Studio Lighting, after all, I’m not “The Flash!” I think what I need for all my gear, gadgets and digital camera accessories is a thinktank  Modulus belt system (shoot, there’s even room to carry a portable USB card reader).  Now if I were to attempt air travel with this menagerie of materials I’m sure the security systems would think “I am Iron Man!”

See how the mind has wandered today? If I had the Olympus voice recorder, if only recorded those original thoughts… I promise to have a blog worthy blog next time kiddies. Same Bat Blog, Same Bat Channel.

I’m Outta Here!



You Can take it with you

As I promised, (and I always try to keep my promises) this time I am going to discuss  larger camera gear carrying solutions. Tenba, Tamrac, Lowpro and ThinkTank all carry a wide variety of bags that fall into this broad catagory.
One of the newest players, and one that is making a lot of noise among the professional community is ThinkTank. ThinkTank offers a comprehensive line of bags and accessories, that can carry everything from, Nikon, Sony or Canon’s top end SLR systems and flashes to memory cards and readers, to professional studio lighting stand and tripods. They even have belt systems that would make The Batman jealous.  If you need to carry a water bottle, a gitzo tripod or a whole Digital SLR camera system ThinkTank has a solution.
For you shooters who can still afford air travel  ThinkTank offers a multitude of options in their highly rated Airport line. From backpacks to multiple camera systems. From laptops to HD Camcorders there is a fit from ThinkTank.
Airport international photoInternational bag layout
The Airport International rolling case (pictured above) meets all international travel requirements and will hold a ton of stuff (be aware of the carriers maximum weight restrictions before trying to carry a ton of stuff on a plane!), it even comes with a three tumbler padlock that meets TSA requirements. Click here or on the open bag to see more configuration options from ThinkTank.
If you are not leaving the confines of the 48 contiguous states then the Airport Security V2.0 will even carry a bit more gear than its debonair cousin. At any rate there is a ThinkTank solution for you gear hounds.
If you still don’t believe me read a few online reviews about the ThinkTank Photo line. Here are a couple I found helpful. Camera Dojo review. Professional Photogaphers Magazine review.




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