Best Shoulder Bag for Two Cameras

[Arthurwg]

I'm looking for a shoulder bag to carry two cameras (Nikon F6 and Mamiya 6) and little else. It has to be nondescript or even funky so as not to attract thieves. Will be used for travel (if travel resumes) and walking around.

 

[BrianShaw]

For me, with similar equipment, “best” has been a Domke F2. Mine has been in service since the 1980’s. probably bigger than you are thinking but when I used smaller bag I realized the amount of “extra stuff” I really needed.

If your really not toting extra lenses, meter, or film... I’d be looking at something like a Domke F3.

 

[jimjm]

I'll second the recommendation of the Domkes. If you don't need to carry much in the way of extra lenses, flashes, etc, the F3 or the F6 are great for a few bodies, a lens or two and some film.
The F2 adds a lot more capacity if you need it. I like the original canvas versions, but they also have some bags in coated canvas "Ruggedwear" or ballistic nylon, for better weatherproofing.
Over time, they sort of conform to your body and will start to wear like a comfortable pair of jeans, unlike bags made from synthetic materials.

 

[Pentode]

"Best" will, of course, always come down to what people are used to and what fits their individual needs... which may not fit yours.

I have several Tamrac bags from the 1990s that have held up extraordinarily well, considering the use they've gotten. They made a variety of sizes and shapes and I always found the way the compartments were laid out to be very inuitive... at least to me and the way my brain works.

I recently purchased a messenger-style Tenba bag that I really like a lot. It's the first non-Tamrac bag I've had in years and I'm pretty impressed with the layout and the build quality. Like you, I was looking for something that didn't scream that it was a camera bag and I think this does a pretty good job; It just looks like a bulky messenger bag. It's definitely big enough for the two cameras you mentioned plus filters, note pad, etc... perhaps another lens but they make several sizes of that bag so you can taylor it to fit your kit.

This is the one I got - one of several available sizes:
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1089670-REG/tenba_638_375_dna_13_graphite_messenger.html

The only complaint I have about modern bags is that they (understandably) don't easily provide for carrying film.

 

[peterlat]

I second the Tenba Messenger bag. Perfect for what you want to carry.

 

[Arthurwg]

I really like the Domke bags but the F2 might be too large (and shouts "camera"). The F3 might work, especially in Olive, which looks somewhat discrete. Also considering the Tenba 15 Slim.

 

[Pieter12]

The best way to judge if a bag is suitable is to take your cameras to the camera store and try the fit...not sure if that is at all possible right now. I have adopted the ThinkTank and MindShift bags, I use a couple of different sizes of the Retrospective in Pinestone (olive). Not cheap, but well made and thought out. Sometimes they come up used at KEH and Roberts.

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

All good recommendations. I like that Tenba Messenger bag, but don't own one myself. Domke is really easy to work out of and not too bulky--I have one (the traditional model). My recent preferences are for Think Tank bags, which are more nondescript, rugged, and practically designed.

 

[cjbecker]

Domke f2 for me, Ive had mine for probably 10 years now. Its the bag i use for all outdoor activities. With at least one camera in it, it will be in the bottom of a duck boat, in the marsh or on the bank, it will go fishing, it will be sitting on the ice while ice fishing. I’m considering getting the larger one also. The only reason I want the bigger one is, it will fit my graflex along with my 35mm in the main compartment ready to shoot.

 

[Ko.Fe.]

Domke is so yesterday. I have another American for more than decade. Tamrac Rally.
Much better ergonomic than Domke. It has different sizes and could be all black.
Two SLRs are not a problem. It has very sufficient compartment for keys, wallet, phone, knife and so on and two mesh pockets for water bottles, no Domkies are as smart as this.

 

[BrianShaw]

Domke is so yesterday. I have another American for more than decade. Tamrac Rally.
Much better ergonomic than Domke. It has different sizes and could be all black.
Two SLRs are not a problem. It has very sufficient compartment for keys, wallet, phone, knife and so on and two mesh pockets for water bottles, no Domkies are as smart as this.

Well if that’s your attitude, it’s worse than you think. Domke is so last millennium... or so last century at the very least.

 

[Ko.Fe.]

Well if that’s your attitude, it’s worse than you think. Domke is so last millennium... or so last century at the very least.

I'm OK with much better designed Tamrac. My bag from them was purchased more than ten years ago. It is my only and truly every day bag.

But look, here is my second bag if I need it larger. It happen to be Domkie.

So my one and only attitude is to tell what I know from my own experience. And I have this Domkie bag for many years as well.

 

[Pieter12]

The OP wants to put an F6 and a Mamiya 6 in the bag, along with lenses. Those are fairly big and hefty cameras, and one wouldn't want them crashing into each other in the bag. And if you add an additional lens or two, the bag needs to be pretty big and strong. And don't forget to bring along film in 2 sizes, a filter or two, lens cleaning supplies, spare batteries, a sharpie and a notebook...and a back brace.

 

[BrianShaw]

KoFe... you make a good point that is worth expanding... experience with gear is the best way to know what gear “is better”, or as the OP asks... “is best”. Opinions can get one started but it’s the real usage with ones own real cameras/accessories that counts.

Like you, I’m a long-term user of both Domke and Tamrac. Different gear in each: Domke stuffed full of Nikon 35mm since the 1980’s; Tamrac jammed full of Hasselblad since the early 2000’s. My RFs are in a bag that actually pre-dates the formation of Tamrac Corp... before the name, label, and logo. All last millennia; all high quality but different.

 

[guangong]

In this day and age a camera bag hardly needs to be nondescript. The famous brand names of most of our cameras belong to yesteryear are not even known or remembered by the general public. Perhaps only Nikon because of its prominence in digital cameras. As the years have gone by I carry less and less. Twenty five years ago my wife bought me a small Bellingham bag, which is my everyday go everywhere bag, used for books, notebooks as well as cameras. For past few days carried a Contax IIa and Leica R5. Bag shows wear but still holding up quite well and does protect cameras, etc.
If any interest is shown regarding my cameras it is: “Do they still make film?”
.
“

 

[Arthurwg]

Talk about a theft magnet, the Bellingham bags just scream "Steal Me." They are obviously very high quality and beautiful. The thief will be disappointed when he sees what's inside. I do have a Bellingham 445, which costs $500.00 new. I rarely carry it anywhere.

 

[Pieter12]

Camera inserts are available from a number of suppliers, allowing you to turn a messenger or shoulder bag into a padded & divided camera bag. I use one with a smallish Timbuktu bag for 35mm gear. I don't think you'll be able to fit your F6 & Mamiya 6 etc, though.

 

[MattKing]

I bought a used, high end, diaper bag that was designed to be fully washable.
Combined with appropriate inserts, it served well as a camera bag that was unlikely to attract the attention of thieves.

 

[Vincent Peri]

Domke f2 for me, Ive had mine for probably 10 years now... ...I’m considering getting the larger one also. The only reason I want the bigger one is, it will fit my graflex along with my 35mm in the main compartment ready to shoot.

I had the larger Domke bag. It was TOO big. I tended to fill it up with cameras and lenses, and it was too heavy and bulging every which way to use efficiently.

 

[Pentode]

The OP wants to put an F6 and a Mamiya 6 in the bag, along with lenses.

The OP hasn’t actually said anything about lenses. If he intends to carry only the two bodies with one attached lens each it paints a much different picture than if he intends to carry multiple lenses for each body. As you say, both are big cameras so the load won’t be tiny either way.

 

[Arthurwg]

Indeed I intend to carry the two cameras with lenses attached. The F6 with a 24mm AF-D and the Mamiya with its 50mm. I also have an 85mm F1.4 AF-D for the Nikon, but this is rather heavy. Not sure what to do with that.

 

[Bormental]

@Arthurwg I tend to carry around one medium-format and one 35mm camera in a single ONA Bowery bag. On the plus side:

• Very high quality
• Superb ergonomics with a quick access latch.
  
• No zippers, no velcro.
  
• Stylish and doesn't look like a camera bag.

Negatives

• Expensive
• Useless side pockets, nothing fits in them

I have never seen a Mamiya 7 so I do not know how it compares to C330 and M645 (my MF bodies) but the review above offers good photos.

 

[Pieter12]

@Arthurwg I tend to carry around one medium-format and one 35mm camera in a single ONA Bowery bag. On the plus side:

• Very high quality
• Superb ergonomics with a quick access latch.
  
• No zippers, no velcro.
  
• Stylish and doesn't look like a camera bag.

Negatives

• Expensive
• Useless side pockets, nothing fits in them

I have never seen a Mamiya 7 so I do not know how it compares to C330 and M645 (my MF bodies) but the review above offers good photos.

I have an ONA Bowery bag. It is pretty small, will carry only one camera body with a lens. It has a retro, hipster look, but little utility for more than maybe a rangefinder and a lens or two. Yeah, you could squeeze an SLR in there, but I would look elsewhere. I have put a TLR in it, but those are relatively compact and self-contained.

 

[Bormental]

@Pieter12 "squeeze an SLR"? Are we talking about the same bag? Here's a photo of my Nikon FM (and it's quite loose in that compartment). The extra empty space is usually occupied by one of my MF cameras. RB67 will not fit, but C330 and M645 are easy:

This probably wouldn't work with massive fast zooms, but my prime lenses (OP's situation) are easy.

 

[Pieter12]

Here's an F2 w/35mm in mine. Already bulging along the sides. Certainly wouldn't hold an F6.