![\"MindShift](\"http:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2026\/09\/mindshift-camera-bag-600x800.jpg\")
This bag is more backpack-like and less obviously a “camera bag.” It has less structured padding, but it still holds and protects my gear just fine. It is also big enough to hold all of my camera gear:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Panasonic Lumix GX7 camera<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- 4 lenses\n
- \n
- Lumix 12-35mm <\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Lumix 20mm f\/1.7 pancake lens<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Lumix 45-200mm Zoom<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Voightlander 25mm f\/0.95<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- My various filters:\n
- \n
- Conkin ND (neutral density) filter<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Set of 3 Conkin ND grad (graduated) filters and the mount for them<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- 2 polarizing filters (for the different size lens mounts)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- A variable ND filter<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Remote shutter cable<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Spare battery<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Memory cards<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Battery pack (for my phone)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Flashlight<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Red night flashlight<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
On top of this, it has room for my phone and my wallet, along with a keychain hook to hold my keys, and an external pocket that can hold a water bottle or my mini-tripod. It also has straps on the back where I can put a jacket, umbrella, or other things, there’s an internal compartment big enough to hold a small (13 inch) laptop or anything else flat like that, and it came with a rain cover which fits in one of the pockets. Even with all this, nothing is packed in super tight and there’s room for other things should I need them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"MindShift](\"http:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2026\/09\/mindshift-bag-interior-800x600.jpg\")
There’s plenty of room in this bag for all of my gear without being crowded<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n Overall, this is a great bag – and for many years, it was my only <\/em>bag, and it served me well and traveled all around the world with me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, in recent years it has started to become somewhat problematic, particularly when traveling by air due to the more restrictive policies regarding carry-on baggage. Also, sometimes when I’m on vacation I don’t like having to carry absolutely all of my camera gear with me – depending on the location or the type of trip, I may only need a small fraction of that gear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So for these reasons I decided to try and find a smaller bag, something more like a shoulder bag rather than a backpack. In the end, I got a Peak Design “Everyday Sling” bag, which not only looked quite stylish, but also had a mounting point for a quick-connect on the side, so I could mount my camera there and access it quickly. Despite being called a “sling” bag, it was more of a shoulder bag – the strap goes across your shoulder and the bag sits at your hip rather than on your back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"Peak](\"http:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2026\/09\/peak-design-camera-bag-800x600.jpg\")
The Peak Design bag is a very different style (and much, much smaller)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n This setup was the complete opposite of my MindShift bag – a very deliberately minimalist setup. The Peak Design bag could hold my camera and perhaps 1 or 2 other lenses, and that’s it. It has a very small pocket for the spare battery and memory card, and a front pocket that is just barely <\/em>big enough for my phone (and nothing else). <\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"Peak](\"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2026\/09\/peak-design-interior-800x600.jpeg\")
There’s not a lot of room inside the Peak Design bag, and it gets cramped quickly<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n The Peak Design bag does have a clever system of hooks and straps that let you attach something to the bottom of the bag – such as a jacket or a water bottle or some umbrellas (all of which I’ve used and carried this way) but it remains a very small bag. It’s great for when I know I don’t need (or want) to have all my gear with me, and I just want something really, really lightweight. The quick-connect mount on the outside is also super-handy for when I’m on vacations doing sightseeing – it keeps my camera secure and locked, but lets me grab it quickly. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
All that said, however, the Peak Design bag still takes up a bit of room in my luggage when I travel, despite the fact that it doesn’t hold very much camera gear. So although I like it quite a bit, I still felt like I needed something more middle-ground, between the Peak Design and the MindShift bag.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The most recent addition to my bag collection is that exact “middle ground” bag, and what will probably be my new de-facto travel bag: a Think Tank Photo TurnStyle Sling bag. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"Think](\"http:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2026\/09\/think-tank-camera-bag-600x800.jpg\")
The Think Tank TurnStyle bag is an excellent middle ground between my other two bags<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n The Think Tank bag is just the right size to hold my “main” camera setup: my camera, plus the 3 lenses I use most often (the 3 Lumix lenses). It also has space for a spare camera battery, a battery pack for my phone, plus room for a few other small things. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2026\/09\/think-tank-interior-800x537.jpg\")
My camera and lenses fit comfortably, but there’s not room for much else<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n Despite its small size, the Think Tank bag still has a rain cover (tucked into a small pocket at the bottom) and a fold-out pocket on the side that can hold a water bottle (just like on my MindShift bag), so it has that utility going for it as well. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Best of all, the Think Tank bag is only just a little bit bigger than the Peak Design bag, yet it holds much more. It takes up only a little bit more space in my luggage, but lets me bring my full setup – perfect for when I’m traveling but want to have access to multiple lenses (or I can swap out a lens to carry filters instead). <\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"All](\"http:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2026\/09\/all-3-camera-bags-800x600.jpg\")
My three camera bags<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n With this, I now have a complete set of camera bags – instead of trying to make one bag do everything, I have 3 bags that each fit a different need:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- MindShift bag for when space isn’t a concern, and I want to have all my gear with me (such as when I go for a photowalk locally, or travel where baggage space isn’t a concern)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Think Tank bag for when I need to travel light, but still want to be able to take enough gear to cover multiple shooting scenarios (such as when I’m traveling by air but want to bring a decent setup with me for photos)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Peak Design bag for when I really want to travel light and just take my camera and maybe one lens (such as a day trip into New York City or somewhere else local where photography maybe isn’t the main focus, but I still want to have my camera with me)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
While this does mean that I have to shift my gear from bag to bag sometimes, I think it’s worth it to be able to have the flexibility of choosing the “right” bag for a given situation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This setup also highlights one of the main reasons I continue to shoot with micro four-thirds, even in this day of compact full-frame sensor cameras: size<\/strong>. My gear covers a tremendous range of shooting situations, yet it remains compact in a way that most full-frame (or even APS-C sensor) shooters could only dream of. Even my bigger MindShift bag is relatively light and easy enough to wear all day, and the other bags are even lighter. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Overall I’m very happy with this selection of camera bags that I’ve ended up with. I know “camera bags” aren’t exactly the most exciting of topics, but I get a strange joy out of crafting just the right setup that fits my needs. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
This is the story of how I arrived at my current set of 3 camera bags, and what my thinking was in picking each of them out.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":31623,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"webmentions_disabled_pings":false,"webmentions_disabled":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"activitypub_content_warning":"","activitypub_content_visibility":"","activitypub_max_image_attachments":3,"activitypub_interaction_policy_quote":"anyone","activitypub_status":"federated","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[204],"tags":[477,294,92],"class_list":["post-31615","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-photography-pictures","tag-camera-bags","tag-micro-four-thirds","tag-photography","entry"],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pimUj-8dV","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":5328,"url":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/2019\/06\/06\/on-camera-bags\/","url_meta":{"origin":31615,"position":0},"title":"On Camera Bags","author":"Keith Survell","date":"June 6, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"A while back I decided to upgrade my camera bag - my old one had served me well and had traveled around the world with me, but it was starting to show its age and also it was a bit of a tight fit for all my gear. The larger\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "My Opinion"","block_context":{"text":"My Opinion","link":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/category\/personal\/my-opinion\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2019\/06\/camera-bag-lowepro.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2019\/06\/camera-bag-lowepro.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2019\/06\/camera-bag-lowepro.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2019\/06\/camera-bag-lowepro.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2019\/06\/camera-bag-lowepro.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2019\/06\/camera-bag-lowepro.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1520,"url":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/2008\/11\/20\/telescope-tale\/","url_meta":{"origin":31615,"position":1},"title":"Telescope Tale","author":"Keith Survell","date":"November 20, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"This is a story about a stupid mistake. I'm sure that many people who read this story will figure out the mistake before I get to the end, but needless to say, I didn't figure it out, and neither did 3 other camera\/telescope experts. So, perhaps there are other people\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "My Life"","block_context":{"text":"My Life","link":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/category\/personal\/my-life\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1018,"url":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/2008\/01\/07\/digital-photography-blasphemy\/","url_meta":{"origin":31615,"position":2},"title":"Digital Photography Blasphemy","author":"Keith Survell","date":"January 7, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"I know this is going to sound like blasphemy to many digital photography fans out there (and to gadget geeks in general), but I have to say - it is very handy to have a no-frills point & shoot digital camera around sometimes. Before you dismember me, let me explain.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "My Opinion"","block_context":{"text":"My Opinion","link":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/category\/personal\/my-opinion\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1328,"url":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/2008\/09\/11\/carrying-photography-stuff\/","url_meta":{"origin":31615,"position":3},"title":"Carrying Photography Stuff","author":"Keith Survell","date":"September 11, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"I like to take my camera with me when I go walking in the woods - I find \"nature\" photography very relaxing - but there is a serious downside that's been bugging me for some time now. Because the \"best\" light for taking really nice photos just happens to also\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "personal"","block_context":{"text":"personal","link":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/category\/personal\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1447,"url":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/2008\/10\/26\/new-camera-toys\/","url_meta":{"origin":31615,"position":4},"title":"New (Camera) Toys","author":"Keith Survell","date":"October 26, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Some new toys have begun to trickle into my hands... starting with this: Not quite a Digital SLR, but it's close enough for what I do. That's my venerable Canon PowerShot S3 IS with my new toy - a LA-DC58E Conversion Lens Adapter (58 mm mount) and LH-DC40 lens hood.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Photography"","block_context":{"text":"Photography","link":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/category\/pictures\/photography-pictures\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"my camera with new conversion adapter and lens hood","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/farm4.static.flickr.com\/3009\/2975106768_b927c6aa64.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3700,"url":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/2011\/12\/14\/new-year-new-camera\/","url_meta":{"origin":31615,"position":5},"title":"New Year, New Camera","author":"Keith Survell","date":"December 14, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Keith gets a new camera, and proceeds to totally geek out over it, as expected.","rel":"","context":"In "Photography"","block_context":{"text":"Photography","link":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/category\/pictures\/photography-pictures\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"canon powershot s3 is vs panasonic lumix dmc-g2 - from above","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/farm8.staticflickr.com\/7158\/6507762599_d902bae9b5.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2026\/09\/all-3-camera-bags.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31615","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31615"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31615\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31637,"href":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31615\/revisions\/31637"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31623"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31615"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31615"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31615"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}