advice needed: domke and A&A bags

[beaudoin]

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Hello All,

 

I had been using a Domke F-5XB as a walkaround bag, as well as a Lowe Pro bag for hiking. That approach was fine with my M8, two lenses, and a few accessories. But now I have added a few new Leica products: 18mm, 18mm finder, tabletop tripod and head, and cable release. That makes it especially problematic with the Domke F-5XB. (The problem comes when needing to find a comfortable and secure sleeve for the tripod and head.)

 

I have read a bunch of previous posts and have three additional satchels in mind for this rig. (As with the F-5XB, I really want a bag that doesn't obviously look like a camera bag.) In a perfect world, one of the below bags would carry the above items, as well as, perhaps, a 90mm or 135mm someday.

 

Domke J-803

Domke F-803

Artist & Artisan ACAM-9100 (“Oscar’s one day bag”)

 

Thanks for any input.

 

R

[karl101]

I have a Domke F-803 while is very well built and everything I find the main compartment is a little on the small side, it takes my M8 with a 35mm lens attached, a 90mm lens and a flash there's not much room left over for sandwiches and a flask of tea. It looks like a posh laptop bag that's a little on the small side.

 

But the satchel only having one clip does make getting the camera out and ready much better than one with a zip or buckles.

 

Shame that the J-803 is only a little bigger:

F-803: Main compartment 13L x 4W x 9"D.

J-803: Main compartment 13.5L x 4.5W x 10"D.

 

Karl.

[glenerrolrd]

The J803 is a perfect size for my street requirements. The key is to buy the wide insert for the original domke ..not the one for the J803. When traveling..I can fit two M bodies and 4-5 lenses plus all the necessary cards,batteries etc.

 

This is a little tight for taking the bodies in and out frequently....I would typically have both bodies out and the bag wrapped behind me on my hip. This makes it easy to use for another 3 lenses..more than enough for most shoots .

 

The F803 and the AA bags are both highly thought of ....but really only work as a one body bag or as a working day bag. I would rather have the slightly larger J bag for when its appropriate to pack everything tightly. The key is getting the oversized insert.

[ljclark]

An F-803 is my main bag.

 

I use two of the two-cell inserts for my M8 and six lenses (the M8 goes into the bag without lens). I use double rear lens caps and carry two lenses in each cell: 15mm C/V & 18mm Zeiss, 25mm Zeiss & 35mm Summicron, 50mm pre-ASPH Summilux & 75mm C/V. If you want to carry a camera with lens mounted, use one two-cell insert and on double insert.

 

The inserts are important because they give the bag shape and keep things from just lumping together and smashing against each other.

 

Batteries, meter, viewfinders, and spirit level go into the front pockets. Small Manfrotto tripod mounting plates and lens cleaning stuff go into the flat pockets in the flap. I can clip a folding umbrella to one of the F-803 ends.

 

I don't bother putting the table-top tripod into the bag. It's just "stuff" and I can hang it on the outside of the bag with velcro or elastic "blousing" straps, stick it into a small backpack, or into a pocket.

 

One great thing about the F-803 (and this took several years for me to discover) is that it fits nicely into a Pelican 1450 (with the lid insert remaining, but the foam or main insert removed). There is room along the sides for a Manfrotto table top tripod and head, and for the charger. I don't plan on checking the Pelican, but when I swing it up into the airplane overhead bin, I have no worries about any other baggage dinging my camera stuff.

[Knomad]

The J-803 is my favorite bag, in fact I've just within the past few hours returned from a week long Chicago trip where it saw extensive use. I travel a little lighter than some of the previous posters, usually an M8 body and up to three lenses (one on the camera... with a 35mm Summicron and hood on the body it slides perfectly into the insert that comes with the bag), the battery charger, a spare battery, a pouch of SD cards, a packet of model releases, my notebook and pencils... and still have room to spare. It has plenty of small pockets and enough space on the back to slip a small book, a folder or two, and plane tickets in where they're easy to reach in a hurry.

 

It doesn't scream "camera bag" and it's compact and light. It's also durable, and I wasn't at all worried about getting off the plane in light rain a while ago.

 

If carrying more lenses than this, I'd suggest getting a second insert to help compartmentalize.