With the F-Stop Gear packs, I can remove the ICU, zip it up, and allow the rest of the pack to be gate checked, while the camera gear comes with me in the cabin. Given that I’m carrying camera gear, which is both expensive and fragile, this is not something I want to do. My concern at the time, and to a lesser extent still, is that I might be forced to gate check my backpack when flying. Finally, because they’re designed to be modular, they can be easily removed from the pack when necessary. This includes a padded lid that can be zipped shut, a handle, and even d-rings for a strap. They provide all of the padding and organization for your camera gear. The ICUs are a completely self contained cases in their own right. The second aspect, and one that in some ways was more important to me, came down to flying. Conversely, when I need to carry a ton of gear, I can use a big ICU and sacrifice the free packing volume. If I didn’t need to carry a bunch of camera gear, I could use a smaller ICU and carry other stuff (like food, clothes, etc.). The flexibility offered by the ICU was a huge point that attracted me to the pack.įirst, it let me split the gear I was carrying based on my needs. Or you can completely remove the internal camera unit and use the pack as a internal frame hiking pack with no provisions for camera gear. With the ICUs, you can configure an F-Stop Gear pack’s internal volume to be almost completely camera gear with little room for hiking gear. The system is built around the idea of having a modular padded container that’s attached in the bag’s frame to meet the demands of each specific use. Internal Camera Units: Modular Organization for your Kitį-Stop Gear’s magic sauce is the Internal Camera Unit, or ICU. Second, they were marketed as having an unprecedented level of weather resistance, and keeping my expensive camera gear dry is important.įinally, and maybe most importantly, I really liked the concept of F-Stop gear’s internal camera units for organizing your gear. I feel like I’m less likely to be targeted by a potential thief because it doesn’t look like I’m carrying a bunch of valuable camera gear. This was attractive to me for a few reasons.įirst, the packs don’t really stand out as camera bag. One of the first things I liked about the F-Stop gear packs is that they’re hiking packs that are designed for photographers, not a camera bag that’s trying to be a hiking pack. However, in the end, F-Stop Gear’s had a couple of points that made it stand out to me from the competition. I looked at a lot of options in this process, including those by ThinkTank’s sister company MindShift Gear, LowePro, Guragear, and others. With these objectives in mind, I started looking for a new backpack. Staying hydrated is important, and one of the easiest ways to carry it and have it accessible is with a hydration bladder (i.e., a Camelback). However, the strap and belt positions can’t really be adjusted and that makes it hard for me to wear all day. The Airport Commuter has great padded straps.
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