Q&A | Carrying Gear
From Carla in California:
Q: How do you carry gear during a shoot?
A: For the past 20+ years I have carried my gear in either a rolling case or a bag attached to wheels. As photographers we have enough issues with back and neck injuries, why throw on a backpack to add to the pain? Obviously if you are a nature photographer you don’t have a choice but for the rest of us…Wheels! There have been many advances in carrying systems over the past few years and I have found some great new products that keep me mobile and keep the weight distributed properly. If you look at the picture below, this is how much gear I used to take on a shoot and that doesn’t even count lights, a tripod and reflectors. I found that I mainly used my 35mm 1.4, my 85mm 1.2 and a 70-200mm almost exclusively. So I reduced my gear by half in the past year. I took off the motor drive/vertical grips as well. Some Pros worry that it doesn’t look professional but I craft my shots, shoot slowly and just don’t need the extra weight. I take my ego out of the equation. If my gear is lighter and more accessible I am going to shoot better.
So that brings me to what I do now ;-) The system I use is based off of two new products that were just released in the past few months. One is called the Spider System which is a belt mounted quick release holster with a plate mounted to the camera. It keeps one camera at waist level ready for quick access. The other one is the Luma Loop which is a fantastic new camera strap that’s positioned horizontally across your body. The camera is mounted on a clip that can slide up and down the length of the strap so you have super fast access to your camera which hangs down by your side. They both distribute weight very well and you hardly notice your gear’s weight. The last piece of the puzzle is a Think Tank belt that holds an extra bag and lens pouch . I keep my 85mm in there as well as a flash and some extra batteries. If I am shooting a high end event or wedding and am wearing a suit than I skip the waist belt and use a small roller bag in conjunction with the Luma Loop and Spider Mount. I use the Spider on my regular belt but they are set to release an adapter to mount it to the Think Tank belt.
The one other product I would highly recommend is the Boda Bag which is a lens carrying bag. It is very well thought out and manufactured out of the highest quality materials. There are a few other lens bags out there which may look “cute” but aren’t necessarily professional grade. You need to buy gear that will last and that has had extensive usability testing. If it doesn’t let you create with ease than what is it worth?
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