Had this bag laying around and figured it'd make a nice camera bag. Looks like it is more suited for a walk around bag, as it allow for faster gear swaps than a backpack. Oh and its substantially lighter.









Bag was free -- Can be had for ~$25 online right now, I think I paid $10 years ago at a local A/N Surplus store
Fabric cost me $3
Padding cost me $10 -- but I have enough to make 2 more bags. I picked this stuff up at Sears in the Tool area, diamond plate foam floor mats that interlock.. perfect thickness/consistency.

Win.

very nice dude! I've been meaning to get to a ANS store to check their bags like that, but the NPT ones are all closed... Looks great! If anyone else likes this idea but is less crafty with inserts, that looks like the tenba insert would also fit w/o any work ($25 shipped).

Link to the sears item?

Originally Posted by jacobsen1

Link to the sears item?

+1

Must've been on sale when I bought it in store.. but here is the link:

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_1...criptionAnchor

6 sheets at 2' x 2'

If you make your own stuff.. definitely worth the investment. If you don't, maybe you need some anti-fatigue flooring for your workshop? Haha

UPDATE:

So to prepare for this weekend I packed up this bag with the following items:

Westcott 43" Collapsible umbrella
Nikon SB-25 Flash
Xti
5-in-1 22" reflector (11" folded)
85 f/1.8
17-50 f/2.8
50 f/1.8
8 x "AA" eneloop
eneloop 4 x "AA" charger
2 x Canon NB-2L
Canon Battery charger
Rocket Blower Large
Sandisk CF Reader
3 x Cf cards
lens pen
Cybersync transmitter
Cybersync receiver

and the strap folds over just fine.. and doesn't look like its exploding

GREAT

I also hit up an A/N Supply store in downtown Boston and these bags are selling for $25

I would definitely suggest this bag if you're a DIYer.

Thought I'd update this as I have new gear and I'm really impressed with the capability of this bag. The main compartment holds the following gear:

70-200 f/2.8L IS
85 f/1.8
16-35 f/2.8L II
5DMKII
XTi

This obviously eliminates the space for the umbrella and flash, but wouldn't be a problem to carry 2 - 5DMKII with the two pieces of L glass.

Very impressed with this bag's size.. perfect for me, and I love that no matter how little gear I stuff in it it'll hold its form and sit on my side/back the same way. No sack sag here!

nice! 2 bodies and 2 big lenses isn't easy.

Gripped body would probably not fit. The main compartment is long, however its width is about the height of a 5DMKII..

The dividers are adjustable, so you could definitely fit a gripped body in the bag; however, it would limit your lens capability.

You could carry the grip in one of the front pockets though.. I'll grab picks later that show what is currently in the bag. Gotta use a P&S but it may be worth it to some of you.

Updated pics, as you can see it definitely all fits, and it's not smashed in there.

So looks like ThinkTankPhoto has a similar bag coming to the market. Mine is showing it's age and questionable construction.. looks like I may be using our new affiliate.

http://www.thinktankphoto.com/produc...ulder-bag.aspx

Very cool setup. You can walk around and no one would know you have 5 grand in your bag.

Originally Posted by jjswee

Very cool setup. You can walk around and no one would know you have 5 grand in your bag.

Yea.. that's pretty much the idea behind my bag now.. it looks like some ratty beat up piece of ****. I don't always like people knowing I'm carrying a couple grand worth of gear at my side.

exactly, and yeah, I'm looking hard the the retro 20 myself....

Originally Posted by Blazin

So looks like ThinkTankPhoto has a similar bag coming to the market. Mine is showing it's age and questionable construction.. looks like I may be using our new affiliate.

http://www.thinktankphoto.com/produc...ulder-bag.aspx

I like the look of this bag but it doesn't look like it has a whole lot of padding to it.. It is a very nice looking bag though. I like that worn black fabric style for it.

Yea, I'd definitely need to go and feel these bags in person.. the one I created seems to have more padding, but I can't imagine them designing a bag aimed at people using PRO gear that has no padding. I'm thinking a slight modification/redesign is in order for my bag to have it fit the 5D II w/Grip better. I sewed the bag to its minimum width rather than it's fully expanded width to fit the lenses snuggly. Perhaps, it's time to expand the bag a little and increase the capacity of my bag.

Think tank has "thin" padding (or none in their skin line) ON PURPOSE!!! They've had a bunch of pros come to them and ask specifically for bags that are less bulky as they don't BEAT on their bags. So there is some padding but not a ton. I LOVE my UD30 because it's got slim/thin padding honestly. But yeah, it's not for everyone.

Eric, they have a VERY good return policy though. If you think you'll like it, I'd order it and see IRL. They're hard to find in stores... Adorama has them in NYC (you'll have it in a day and can return it there as well but I miss my % and you miss your freebie) and HUNTs carries them if you're lucky and they have the one you want in a local store (they'll try to get you to pay BEFORE they order it into the store otherwise)...

Originally Posted by jacobsen1

Think tank has "thin" padding (or none in their skin line) ON PURPOSE!!! They've had a bunch of pros come to them and ask specifically for bags that are less bulky as they don't BEAT on their bags. So there is some padding but not a ton. I LOVE my UD30 because it's got slim/thin padding honestly. But yeah, it's not for everyone.

Eric, they have a VERY good return policy though. If you think you'll like it, I'd order it and see IRL. They're hard to find in stores... Adorama has them in NYC (you'll have it in a day and can return it there as well but I miss my % and you miss your freebie) and HUNTs carries them if you're lucky and they have the one you want in a local store (they'll try to get you to pay BEFORE they order it into the store otherwise)...

I've got a niece and nephew that I'm around a lot... so yeah.... I need padding on my stuff... lmao.

Hmm yea padding isn't needed that badly what I have is probably a bit overkill but I don't worry as soon as these are out ill try one out. For the time being I may be going back to the drawing board on my own design

Originally Posted by Bone

I've got a niece and nephew that I'm around a lot... so yeah.... I need padding on my stuff... lmao.

like I said, it's not for everyone. TT even has some bags with NO padding, then others with their SLIM padding. Buy what works for you, but there's a reason thin works for OTHER people.

Yea... I just really need to see if the bag is sloppy if it's not fully loaded. I hate bags that flop all over the place when they are not fully loaded with all your gear. Get the inside word on when that bag's hitting the streets for me.

their bags WILL NOT be floppy. I have a skin bag, it's much smaller, but the materials they use are nice and stiff.

Good.. I guess it's just a matter of time then.. tell them to hurry up and release these things