Which Meesenger Bag?

[BPritchard]

I'm in the process of deciding a messenger bag to use everyday and on trips.
I have a Buzz shoulder bag which I used on our last trip.

It holds my Dell mini 9,JVC on ear headphones(in a case), and other little things. The Buzz worked OK somewhat,but was overstuffed. I kept the Mini 9 in a sleeve designed for a DVD player. It worked OK, but was cumbersome.

I used this sleeve to take the mini 9 to lunch to read my ebooks.

I have a Passport external drive and mouse. I've added an
external CD/DVD burner. I back up my photos to the hard drive and now will use the burner to create additional backups. Overkill, but no lost pictures.

At this juncture I am using the Buzz for everyday and using a larger DVD bag for the Mini 9, hard drive,mouse, and slim cd/dvd. I'd rather carry one bag.

I have an excellent backpack for my camera eqiupment and other accessories. This I use as my carry on.
Then the Buzz as personal item. Fits underneath the airline seat.

The size of the Buzz for my current usage is lacking in that I need about a couple of inches more on the width. Plus, on trips, something to keep other things in, such as a windbreaker.

So I'm looking at the Imago,ID, and EGO. The ID and EGO seem to be about the same size.
The Imago may be too small.

The EGO seems to kinda trapesoid, like it would fit under a seat better than the ID.
I'm mocking up the bags with newspaper cutouts to get a better idea of size.

So, any suggestions will be welcome. Wish I could look at the bags at the store, but I'm in Florida and it is a long drive.

My wife and are planning a trip to Washington State next June. So maybe I'll get a chance to visit the store.

[ozone]

... depends on your needs and workflow...

Well, I have to ask... are you a hardcore photographer? From what you describe, it seems that all the additional backup redundancy you add really adds to the weight and bulk you have to carry.

The other thing to consider is if you plan to use the same shoulder bag for your camera as well. I'm assuming you're using a dSLR.

I have an ID bag, and I normally shoot with a Nikon D300 and carry around 2 to 3 lens if I'm on vacation (as opposed to a dedicated photoshoot). If I have my MacBook Air with me, it's pretty tight to stuff a D300 with lens AND computer into the ID. Doable but not the easiest.

[BPritchard]

Thanks for your response.

I'm not a hardcore photographer. I have a Canon S1 IS super-zoom. Most likely will migrate to a Canon XS dSLR.
So, I won't be carrying a lot of camera equipment.
My backup regimen is result of my mainframe programmer days when stringent backups were ingrained into our souls.

[ozone]

Well, if you migrate to a dSLR, I can almost assure you that you will carry more photography equipment! Or at least want to buy more...

My wife has the Imago. She's taking a beginner's photo course. She can carry comfortably a Nikon D40 (Nikon's smallest dSLR), a regular sized flash, and some other odds and ends (e.g., water bottle, some snacks). These takes up most of the bag.

The ID, which I have, is considerably larger, but is constructed more as a messenger bag to fit the dimensions of documents, folders, and a laptop. The longer-than-thicker form factor is great for general use, but not the best for camera equipment. Keep in mind though that depending on your travel needs and destinations, you might want more a "general" bag as opposed to a camera only bag, which is what it sounds like you're leaning towards. The advantage is that once you reach your destination, you can use it for multiple purposes. For me, when I go for conferences, I try to get in at least one or more days of just wandering around. A laptop dedicated bag with a built in sleeve or a camera dedicated bag with built in sections means you have less flexibility when you need a bag for other than the purpose it was constructed for. So, in that respect, the ID bag is very good. My wife and I went to Italy for a conference last year and I used the ID bag during the days at my conference, and then for hauling in various villas around Lake Como and Milan afterwards for the following 4 or 5 days.

I didn't go for the Ego because I felt the ID bag in black/steel is reasonably acceptable in business type settings.

You probably have researched cameras to no end, but this site is pretty good for advice:

http://www.photoseek.com/camera-buy-table.html

Good luck.

p.s. If you want some photos of my bags filled with photo equipment and odds and ends, send me a private message and I'll see what I can do.

[timothy]

The first Bihn bag I bought new is a Super Ego. For all the awed talk of how very big it is, when I got it was actually happy that it seemed to be a perfectly reasonable, *not* overbig size, and I was glad to have chosen Super vs. (regular) Ego. However, I have actually ended up carrying incredible loads in it when needed (like walking by the grocery and realizing there are "just a few things" to pick up) -- also glad to have Super-sized me on these occasions. It never folds up to pocket size, but when it's not loaded out, the Super Ego isn't a parachute-dishwasher-dumptruck, either -- I think it slims down pretty well.

timothy

[thorn]

A site I found many years ago and is my main source of professional camera reviews for expert and novice is this one: http://www.steves-digicams.com Provides a search, best list, and the awesome reviews are lengthy and easily to browse through the specs, features, views of camera, pictures taken with camera, conclusion with last paragraph bottom-line overall analysis.

[BPritchard]

Thanks for everyone's responses.

I have decided on the EGO.

I did some mock-ups using newspapers to get an idea of sizes and how they would look. The EGO and ID dimensions are quite close. But I think the EGO's extra space over the ID may help out on trips when carrying a light jacket or poncho.

I will also get the Q-AM shoulder strap. I like the concept of cinching the strip to allow carrying on the back or front with stablization. Good for tight places such as an airplane aisle.

I don't have to consider the looks in a business environment. Being a programmer, business attire is jeans, tee shirt, and sandals. My favorite food is coffee and favorite scent is pizza.