Bag poll:What exactly do you use and how
 

much did it cost?

In about a week or two I'll finally get one and was curious what everyone is using that's moderately priced.A non-hardshell solution is preferred... something with sufficient padding and size.The A1 will only occasionally be tranported to church and back..otherwise it stays home so it doesn't have to be rock solid durable.

Any reccomendations appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Bruce

Porta Brace
 

Porta-Brace - Model: CS-DV4U Mini-DV Camera Case

This is the soft carrying-case I purchased and it works great! Very well padded and with enough room for even the Canon wide angle lens and several other accessories.

Look here http://www.portabrace.com/productA-CS-DV4U

There are many others such as the Petrol PCUB-1N U-Bag 1 Camcorder Bag with PRC-HDV (will fit Canon XH, the Sony HDR-FX1 or HVR-Z1 or similar size camcorders with accessories). If you do a search, you will find several threads on this subject...

I have the Kata CC-193 Shoulder Case ($130).
For the price it's a fantastic bag. No complaints.

I use a lowepro bag in England it cost about £170 so in America I guess it's between $80-$100. In england at least Lowepro are giving back 30% on all bags purchased.

http://www.lowepro.com/Products/Shou...act_AW_DV.aspx

By the way the Lowepro is an excellent bag - lots of padding, it's just what kind of bag you think you will need. When I bought the camera I had no idea how expensive the bags would be, but I guess for the price of the camera it is worth getting something decent.

I also use the Kata CC-193 since it came with the package from B&H. It works well for me.

Here's the arrangement with a Canon XH A1...

Kata CC-193. Is it perfect? Not quite, but it may be about as good as it gets anywhere near the price point.

I needed something that didn't look like a camera bag, was easy and comfortable to carry, and, of course, protected the camera well.

Went for this-

Crumpler Zoomiverse (great name)

http://chipchick.com/wp-content/uplo...bagsphotos.jpg

Fits the camera, hood, couple of tapes, batteries, charger, filters and documents. I won't lie, there is hardly any space with all that in, but it's very well protected. Cost me £100. Best of all it looks like an ordinary rucksack- great for trains and cities etc

I got the Petrol PCUB-1N for the XH A1, although I've used Portabrace for years for other camaras and gear. I like the Petrol because it has a hard bottom and little feet that keep the bag slightly elevated. It comes with a lot of velcro'd pieces I took out, leaving in the U-shaped part to keep the camera from sliding. There's also a velcro strap you can wrap around the camera that might be good if you travel on airplanes and need to lay the bag on its side in an overhead compartment, but I don't normally use it. Lots of room in the side pockets for batteries, tapes, wireless mic, power supply, etc.

Kata CC-193 here too, works just fine for me. :)

Having just returned from London, that would be closer to $350.

Sorry Jack you are totally right I got my figures wrong - im used to working dollers into pounds so i got it back to front - pardon the mistake
I guess it's a very expensive bag then!!

Some folks have recommended using a diaper bag. Not as likely to be stolen by the casual passerby as an obvious video camera bag.

Samsonite / North Face
 

I'm using a Samsonite backpack/rollerbag combo. Depending on how I'm dressed I can look like a student/beach bum or a travelling businessman. For more serious outdoor treks, I outfitted a North Face snowboarding backpack with nice thick hip straps.

I highly recommend getting a rollerbag, it's so much more efficient, and saves your energy for shooting (do I sound like an old geezer now?). But a good backpack/rollerbag combo, is nearly the perfect bag for taking almost anywhere.

Thanks to all who participated in this poll
 

and it gave me some very good options to consider.

Right now I have the reccomemded Kata bag made to accomodate the GL-2 but doubt it will be big enough for the A1.

Again,this was very helpfull!

Regards,
Bruce

Canon bag and lots of equipment
 

I was given a deal on a Canon soft-case bag (uncertain of model) with my camera. It's about 1 1/2 ft long by about 10 inches tall and wide. I thought it less than an ideal size at first. It is not quite long enough for the XH-A1, so I have to set the eyepiece at an angle, and I am careful not to squish the microphone. But, over time, the case has become molded to the camera's contours and it is a snug fit.

It had a bit of extra room on the sides. I just bought a 8 inch Ikan budget monitor. I also got a small HV-20 as a deck and b-camera. Now, I have room to get all of these things, with padding, all the cords, several tapes and accessories, in the one bag with some creative packing.

I'm able to carry around my primary kit, including my tripod, a basic light assembly, and my giant bag of stuff. I don't think I could add anything else, though.

I do think I could have found a practical off-brand bag at a clearance store (like Ross) for much cheaper if I hadn't felt I needed one right away.

I use the r102 kata rucsack and it is the bomb. Comes complete with reinforced padding and adjustable sections.

i can fit the camera, tapes, cables, extra battery, light & light battery in it all at the same time...

in addition to that, it also has a place to mount your tripod

Kata 207
 

I decided on a bigger backpack because I intend to do some hiking to get to some shot locations. I also wanted to have the security of "on my back" when traveling. As you can see there is plenty of room for the A1 plus gear. The harness is fully adjustable and most of the weight is on my waist/hip band.

I'm using a Kata OC-82 (http://www.kata-bags.com/Item.asp?pi...d=4&ProdLine=4) which they market as an SLR case but it makes an excellent XH-A1 case if you're looking for something compact. It's about as small as you can go, but it will hold the camera & charger, cables, tapes, etc if you don't have a lot of large accessories. It also has a front pocket which will accommodate up to a 15" powerbook or similarly sized laptop. Though technically it's a soft bag it has very rigid internal reinforcements and protects the camera well. It's also small enough to work as a carry on, even on smaller commuter planes I've taken in europe.

It can be heavy fully loaded with camera & laptop but the small size makes it easy to manage. It runs about $150 at B&H, just search for it by model number as it's not classified as a video camera bag.

Hey Evan, just came across your A1 bag suggestions. Sounds like what I'm looking for: as small as possible, sturdy but light weight and can fit it in most backpacks (for mountaineering). Do you have to take the lens hood off to fit it or do you just place it diagognally in the pack (since the interior length is listed as only 13.3")? Thanks.


[QUOTE=Evan Donn;732037]I'm using a Kata OC-82 (http://www.kata-bags.com/Item.asp?pi...d=4&ProdLine=4) which they market as an SLR case but it makes an excellent XH-A1 case if you're looking for something compact. It's about as small as you can go, but it will hold the camera & charger, cables, tapes, etc if you don't have a lot of large accessories. It also has a front pocket which will accommodate up to a 15" powerbook or similarly sized laptop. Though technically it's a soft bag it has very rigid internal reinforcements and protects the camera well. It's also small enough to work as a carry on, even on smaller commuter planes I've taken in europe.

what do you guys think would be the best/cheapest bag for an xh and an m2 attatched with rails? Can anyone fit this setup in there bag?

No, it fits perfectly lengthwise with the lens hood on and the eyepiece flipped to the vertical position. I'd post a picture but I'm just about to head out the door for a weekend trip and my camera is already packed - I'll try to put one up when I get back next week.

It might be too large to put into another bag for mountaineering - though it's small it's also noticeably deeper than the camera due to the front laptop pocket and ribbed protection on the front panel.

I use the Kata Shell-03. It is not that much bigger than the camera itself but will hold the charger, cables, tapes, etc. It isn't really a hard shell case like a Pelican. The walls of the case actually have a bit of flex to them.

[QUOTE=Westberg Onder;736337]Hey Evan, just came across your A1 bag suggestions. Sounds like what I'm looking for: as small as possible, sturdy but light weight and can fit it in most backpacks (for mountaineering). Do you have to take the lens hood off to fit it or do you just place it diagognally in the pack (since the interior length is listed as only 13.3")? Thanks.