Okay, full disclosure right off the top…I own a lot of camera bags. Big, medium and small and I love them all – each for their own purpose and attributes. But for travel, I only use three; A small cross body bag for my smart phone and other small things, an over the shoulder for one of my bigger cameras and for serious trips, a full size Think Tank Airport Commuter. There are a million types of camera bags on the market today, but here is a brief description of each of the ones I use myself and why you should consider them for travel photography.

First. The cross body bag. Perfect when all I need is my smart phone and maybe my eReader, a charge cord and maybe my passport or other ID and credit cards. One of the benefits of the cross body bag is it pretty much eliminates the issue of pick pockets. As the contents of the bag are right across my chest, nobody is going to get their sticky fingers into any of the compartments. The bag I use also has a built in RFID to protect my credit cards, etc from being read by bad guys. I mentioned this bag in a previous post but have just returned from a photography trip (May, 2024) where I used the bag extensively both on flight days and photo days and can say it was perfect.

Check it out here: OSOCE Sling Bag

My medium size bag is an over the shoulder that can take my full-size camera, another small lens, an extra battery and other related stuff…and snacks! I have had this bag for years and it is great for walking around town, a forest walk or just any time I want the full sized camera but not much else. I prefer the over the shoulder style to a backpack style for this purpose because I can slide the bag around to my chest to get at the contents and then slide back to my side to get it out of the way.

There are many makes to choose from and the one I own has been replaced by a newer model but here is my choice: Click on the pic….

Finally, for big trips and/or where I want all the stuff I could need for a trip where one of the main focuses is going to be photography, I go with Think Tank’s Airport Commuter. This is big enough to carry multiple camera bodies, multiple lenses and everything else I could use on a photo trip as well as my 15” laptop computer. And yes, it is still small enough to fit in the overhead baggage compartment of most airliners (As of time of writing)

On the left, my thinkTank Airport Commuter sitting in the carryon luggage size-o-meter with room to spare. On the right, the same bag nestled in the overhead compartment of a CRJ900. (A smallish regional jet. I have also successfully taken it on a DHC Dash-7 which is an even small aircraft.

For more information on the thinkTANK Airport Commuter, click on the pic….

You can gether from the above that I am a big fan of thinkTANK. Intelligent design, high quality and a wide lineup of products for every possible use. Check them out here:

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