Excess baggage…
So I’ve been looking for new camera bag. I’ve had a Domke F-3X for, um, 20 years and it’s still great as a “day bag” but I’ve been wanting something else for a while now. Something that can store the bulk of my gear when I’m not using it but still serve as a carry-on in the event of a plane trip. Oh and I want it to be able to hold my laptop as well.
Basically here’s what I’m after:
- It has to be carry-on compatible (i.e.: 10″ x 16″ x 24″ in the case of Southwest)
- It has to carry a goodly amount of gear if possible (2 bodies, 4-6 lenses, 2 strobes and other photo-y nicknacks)
- It has to be able to hold a 15″ Mac Book Pro
- It has to be rolling
Now I thought I had the answer with the Tamrac CyberPack 6 backpack but one thing not mentioned in my Dinseyland post was that I managed to tweak my back with it in the airport which royally sucked. At that point rolling became a must have.
Then I discovered Tenba’s “Roadie” line. I got all sucked in by the slick YouTube video but the video overlooked one important titbit about the large Roadie case - it’s freakin’ huge. This is very cool and all, but no amount of “carry-on compatible” labels and tags would make it fit into the the little box at the Southwest ticket counter.
Even the “small” Roadie has printed dimensions that are larger than most carry-on limitations. They’re nice cases, but how they can say “carry-on compatible” with a straight face is beyond me.
So, I fear my next step in this hunt is to accept the fact that a rolling case and separate laptop case is the only realistic way to go. By eliminating the laptop requirement my options increase quite a bit so we’ll see.