Subscribe to RSS feed
Print article
I have taken many, many trips with my beat up, inexpensive rolling carry on. It’s been stuffed into overhead compartments, placed under the seat in front of me, and gate-checked on regional jets.
Equipment List
- Canon EOS 1D Mark II
- Canon 500mm f4 IS
- Canon 400mm f5.6
- Canon 70-200 f2.8
- Tokina 28-70mm
- Canon 1.4x and 2.0x TC
- Canon 25mm (2) extension tubes
- Canon 550EX
- Canon 580EX
- Canon flash cord and Wimberley Modules 1, 2, 3, 6, 9
- Wimberley Plamp (2)
- FX-3 Better Beamer
- 2 Canon EOS 1D Mark IIn batteries
- 2 sets of 4 AA PowerEx batteries
- NatureScapes.Net Skimmer
- Canon 500 D Close-Up Lens (77mm)
- Circular Polarizer (77mm)
- Storm Jacket
While I can get just about every item in the list above into it, I may choose to move a few items to my checked bag as needed. I place the gear in one item at a time, carefully wrapped in a t-shirt or two for padding. (In one case when my checked bags didn’t arrive, it was nice to have some clothes to wear from my carry on.) The hard sides of the bag offer some protection from bumps. Placing the NatureScapes.Net Skimmer in the front pocket provides additional protection from the front.
Left: My $20 hard-sided rolling carry on bag. Right: Think Tank Photo’s Airport International bag.
For comparison purposes I also packed the similarly-sized Think Tank Photo Airport International. While I couldn’t get quite as many items into this bag (due to the flexibility of loose padding in the standard carry on as opposed to the customizable dividers), I was still able to get almost everything in there. The bag and its dividers offer great padding, plus the Think Tank Photo bag is made of exceptional quality, has TSA locks, a security cable, and other features to benefit the traveling photographer.
The Think Tank Photo Airport International, packed with a 500mm f4 and other assorted gear.
Back to Top
