Jump to content

Recommended Posts

Advertisement (gone after registration)

I prefer Billingham Pola. Leica M fits perfectly in it. It can also be attached to a belt

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

Edited by Smogg
Link to post
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Just received a black Wotoncraft 7L Pilot. Almost perfect bag, except for one thing: it's too big for my everyday casual carry... So guess I'll have to also get a 3.5L as well, because I'm keeping this bag! The 2L is tempting, (esp in leather, and the 3.5, but not going to happen, and one loses weight savings on top of wallet savings with leather) but the 2L seems a bit on the small side, esp as I like having a 135mm APO with me, unless one plans to always carry the camera (which I often do). The 7L blows the Peak Design 10L out of the water. I esp love the big pass through on the outside of the bag that is perfect for looping a light shirt through or perhaps a small tripod. The outer side pockets with the scrunch close are also perfect for extra lenses, or a place to put lenses while working. 

A bag is only as good as it's strap, and the so far the Wotoncraft strap seems pretty superb. The adjusting takes a bit of counter intuitive getting used to (not quite there yet), but the comfort is the best I've ever had (my left shoulder still hates it, but that's another story). Also the lightest yet sturdiest bag I've used. After walking with it almost forgot about it (almost - it's still a camera bag). I think I will prefer my Think Tank Mindshift Turnstyle 5 for activities like skiing though, with it's more upper back fitting form. I could see the Pilot 2L being great when just going out free with he camera and for a couple of extra lenses and phone, battery, etc. Since the Pilot 7L can take a MacBook Air, it will replace my old travel standard, the Think Tank Photocross 10. The 7L comes with a long divider for an iPad/laptop, just not pictured. My couple of small Hadley Pro's I have I love, but just don't cut it for comfort like these do (but look the part, for sure). Plus I'm over the pill factory interiors of the Billingham's. 

Still getting a handle on the dividers. Using dividers from old bags to split down the middle for lenses. The dividers are not perfect, but may just need to figure out the optimum placement and order a couple of extra to play with. Tripod straps on the bottom come off easily. A paperback book fits perfectly in the back pocket. Everything is just thought out to a tee, yet simple and basic. If I was asked to design a bag, it would be very close to this. Only thing I might do differently is have a zip open extension pouch for a laptop/iPad at the back of the bag. With extra padding at the bottom of the pouch. Otherwise, this is it. Modern functional design meets traditional fishing bag aesthetic. Really well done. Now to sell some other bags and collect the set. I don't normally fan boy out on gear like this, but what can I say, I love these bags! 

Note: M10-R has a 135mm on it. Kitchen towel for illustrative purposes only of holding an extras shirt, light hoodie, rain jacket, etc. How often have we had to Improvise that? At least I know I have. And there's a hidden pocket in there for things you want out of the way but can't afford to lose (passport, etc).  Inside there's a zip opening that's the inside of the front flap (clever) with two not too big, not too small, inner web pockets for things like batteries, card holder, filters, etc. The entire pocket itself could hold a Profoto A10 or smaller flash, a book, another body, etc. You can stuff a lot of gear in one of these - but It will get heavy. It's the gear, not the bag, dummy. There's no denying physics. :) :)

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

  • Like 1
  • Thanks 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

On 4/24/2024 at 1:25 AM, charlesphoto99 said:

Just received a black Wotoncraft 7L Pilot. Almost perfect bag, except for one thing: it's too big for my everyday casual carry... So guess I'll have to also get a 3.5L as well, because I'm keeping this bag! The 2L is tempting, (esp in leather, and the 3.5, but not going to happen, and one loses weight savings on top of wallet savings with leather) but the 2L seems a bit on the small side, esp as I like having a 135mm APO with me, unless one plans to always carry the camera (which I often do). The 7L blows the Peak Design 10L out of the water. I esp love the big pass through on the outside of the bag that is perfect for looping a light shirt through or perhaps a small tripod. The outer side pockets with the scrunch close are also perfect for extra lenses, or a place to put lenses while working. 

A bag is only as good as it's strap, and the so far the Wotoncraft strap seems pretty superb. The adjusting takes a bit of counter intuitive getting used to (not quite there yet), but the comfort is the best I've ever had (my left shoulder still hates it, but that's another story). Also the lightest yet sturdiest bag I've used. After walking with it almost forgot about it (almost - it's still a camera bag). I think I will prefer my Think Tank Mindshift Turnstyle 5 for activities like skiing though, with it's more upper back fitting form. I could see the Pilot 2L being great when just going out free with he camera and for a couple of extra lenses and phone, battery, etc. Since the Pilot 7L can take a MacBook Air, it will replace my old travel standard, the Think Tank Photocross 10. The 7L comes with a long divider for an iPad/laptop, just not pictured. My couple of small Hadley Pro's I have I love, but just don't cut it for comfort like these do (but look the part, for sure). Plus I'm over the pill factory interiors of the Billingham's. 

Still getting a handle on the dividers. Using dividers from old bags to split down the middle for lenses. The dividers are not perfect, but may just need to figure out the optimum placement and order a couple of extra to play with. Tripod straps on the bottom come off easily. A paperback book fits perfectly in the back pocket. Everything is just thought out to a tee, yet simple and basic. If I was asked to design a bag, it would be very close to this. Only thing I might do differently is have a zip open extension pouch for a laptop/iPad at the back of the bag. With extra padding at the bottom of the pouch. Otherwise, this is it. Modern functional design meets traditional fishing bag aesthetic. Really well done. Now to sell some other bags and collect the set. I don't normally fan boy out on gear like this, but what can I say, I love these bags! 

Note: M10-R has a 135mm on it. Kitchen towel for illustrative purposes only of holding an extras shirt, light hoodie, rain jacket, etc. How often have we had to Improvise that? At least I know I have. And there's a hidden pocket in there for things you want out of the way but can't afford to lose (passport, etc).  Inside there's a zip opening that's the inside of the front flap (clever) with two not too big, not too small, inner web pockets for things like batteries, card holder, filters, etc. The entire pocket itself could hold a Profoto A10 or smaller flash, a book, another body, etc. You can stuff a lot of gear in one of these - but It will get heavy. It's the gear, not the bag, dummy. There's no denying physics. :) :)

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

i use pilot 7L for daily "office" bag, with macbook air 13". i have the leather pilot 3,5L and khaki 2L.  i prefer the 2L more, because i often bring just M9 with 50lux or 35lux. The 3.5L is better, if you always brought 2 M body (w/lenses) or 1 body (w/lens) with additional 1 - 2 lenses.

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

  • 2 months later...
On 4/24/2024 at 6:21 PM, stefanusj said:

i use pilot 7L for daily "office" bag, with macbook air 13". i have the leather pilot 3,5L and khaki 2L.  i prefer the 2L more, because i often bring just M9 with 50lux or 35lux. The 3.5L is better, if you always brought 2 M body (w/lenses) or 1 body (w/lens) with additional 1 - 2 lenses.

For the 2L, are you able to fit another small lens on the side or bottom with the M9 + 50/35 lux attached?

Link to post
Share on other sites

The 2L is excellent for carrying a body and 2 lenses for me.
 

1. set: Leica MP + Voigtlander 28 Nokton 1.5 + Leica 50 Summilux

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

  • Like 2
  • Thanks 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

Advertisement (gone after registration)

2. set: Leica M10-R + Voigtlander 50 CS 2.2 + 21 CS 3.5 + 28 CS 2.8

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

  • Like 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

What I love about my Domke F-5XB bag, besides the cool look, is the strap with interwoven non-slip material, and due to the rotating fasteners it never gets twisted.

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

  • Like 3
Link to post
Share on other sites

+1 for Wotancraft bags..........I'm a recent' "convert" and now have the 7l Pilot and the 3.5l Pilot bags for my Leica M kit/s. The Wotan Pilot series is the first camera bag that has rivaled my decades long use of Domke camera bags in their many shapes and sizes, also the same with my other favourite small M kit bag the Crumpler Proper Roady II, though both bags still have outings none the less.

Domke bags are always great to use, the only downside is the hard to open spring clips on the flap top/front and the over-use of velcro on the same.......both negatives fixable as I like others here I see have ditched the nasty spring clip/s for other better options and taken away the velcro too, both things vastly improving what has always been a great "honest" no-flash camera back.

The Crumpler Proper Roady I have yet to find any real downside to, it's really is a great bag and cheap as far as good camera bags go........Ideal for M kits, I highly recommend it.

Back to the Wotancraft Pilots, whilst they are very very well made they are not perfect, ( what camera bag is? ), I find the front and rear zippered pouches hard to open easily and small things can easily get lost at the bottom of those pouches, they should, or at least one should, be gusseted so that they would be easier to access as has been suggested here in this thread. The bags too I find a a little too deep for M kits but obviously the bags have to be designed for other camera types too and many mirror-less and DSLR/SLR cameras are larger than the M's, so it is what it is............Despite the few criticisms the Pilot bags, and especially so for me the 7l, are far and away the best bags to have arrived on the scene these past couple of years and I believe that they will only improve as the line innovates and develops.

Link to post
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, davidnvh said:

The 2L is excellent for carrying a body and 2 lenses for me.
 

1. set: Leica MP + Voigtlander 28 Nokton 1.5 + Leica 50 Summilux

Thank you for the photos - so helpful! Do you think having a half-case on the camera and a rope strap would make it too tight in the 2L? 2L looks really perfect for my needs - the 3.5L is a very big jump in space.

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, TheEyesHaveIt said:

Thank you for the photos - so helpful! Do you think having a half-case on the camera and a rope strap would make it too tight in the 2L? 2L looks really perfect for my needs - the 3.5L is a very big jump in space.

I think it will be fine, I just slimmed down my lens collection so do not have a bigger lens than 50 lux to try. 

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

  • 1 year later...
On 7/12/2023 at 10:35 AM, Huss said:

I know, right?  
 

Funny how all three of my Fogg bags have aged like this - and none have seen weather nor anything required of them but to pamper my Leicas.

and yet there are others here that refuse to post pics of their Fogg bags but claim they are the bestest thing ever, but trust them, they just don’t have time to post.  You know how long it took me to post it?  Including taking out my cell phone, oh, about 30 seconds.

Anyway, $1000 bag.  Up to you if you think that’s worth it.  

 

I have never owned nor have any interest in Fogg bags but dye loss like this is strictly cosmetic and viewed by many as desirable. It’s usually a result of a faster fading sulphur based dye and a rope dyeing process (the sort of process most denim is dyed with, and why denim fades as it does - the dye is only really on the surface of the yarns and reveals the undyed or bleached cotton cores). 
Anyways, you may not like it, but it’s really not an argument one way or another as to the actual quality of the construction or even the fabric. A lot of dyes that stay colorfast better are actually cheaper reactive chemical dyes that are considered much less desirable to many. 

If this were my bag I’d be fine with it. 

Link to post
Share on other sites

vor 9 Stunden schrieb mmanda:

Oberwerth have released a small version of their sling too... I bought one and returned it in favour of the pure sling, as I just wanted a bit more space.  But I can totally see the small version being an awesome one camera bag!  

https://oberwerth.com/en-int/products/sling-bag-small?variant=56292085662077

 

As Ican see (is it really treue??) there are lots of metal parts. I do not like that as they scratch the camera.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

  • Like 1
  • Haha 3
Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...