Thanks for all the advice! I've been poking around some more on web sites
and stuff, and came to the same conclusion as one already posted:
> I seem to require 3 different kinds of "bags". 1) a small belt pack, 2) a
> backpack with zoom & tripod carry capability, and 3) a regular style
camera
> case (the dimensions of which get bigger every month...) for
> vehicle/home use. If there's another way, I'm all ears.
sigh.. the question is thus which to go for first. I guess the
big-bag-for-everything can probably wait, because I can still just pile
lenses in cases into an existing normal bag for the time being.
Except that I'd probably invert the size of the belt pack and backpack; if
I'm going to be carrying a lightweight kit, I can afford to have it on my
back and not worry about weight. The problem with larger ones is that I
don't need anything like the capacity of the big ones, and in the midrange
-- I tried the Mini Trekker on in a shop, and it's exactly the wrong size
for me..
The 'waist strap' sits precisely under my ribcage, providing no support,
and no small amount of discomfort. I'm not all that tall (6'1) but having
ridden with a backpack containing camera kit and tried to keep it in place
with a strap there, it was plenty uncomfortable. If I go for one of the
smaller backpacks, I can still fit a long lens in there, but it should be
lighter and not rattle around as much. Riding without the waist strap on a
backpack that size tends to have it all shake loose a bit more than I'd
like.
(other considerations -- when I want to take cameras snowboarding, I
_really_ don't want them in a waist pack. I fall on my back relatively
infrequently compared to how often I fall on my butt -- and at the same
time, I'm not really going to need to haul macro kit and flash off up the
mountains, so I can trim things down to long zoom, wide-angle, a 50mm or
somesuch, and one of those tiny desktop tripods. Snow up close looks pretty
much the same at the bottom of the hill as it does at the top, and if I'm
going to stand the camera on anything it's going to be a rock, unless I can
find a tripod with snowshoe attachments..)
So I guess I'm looking at the LowePro Micro Trekker 200 (which is small
enough that the 'waist' strap will probably come across my chest -- not
great for taking weight, but it should help stop the rattling around), and
probably the Off Trail 2 or Off Road as a belt pack, leaning towards the
latter because I might be able to get away without the side pouches at all
there, making it a bit less conspicuously a camera bag.
(side note: Lowepro's web site is _great_ for researching this sort of
thing. Much kudos to them..)
Thanks again for all the advise!
-- dan
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