Spring has officially arrived. Sure it may, and most likely will, leave us shortly, but let’s enjoy it while it’s here. A couple Seattle pictures, shot from the bike, the ferry and the sea kayak.

View photos at SmugMug

View more Seattle pictures and photos of the surrounding area. Fine art prints are for sale.

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I love outdoor gear. My ‘office’ is crowded with bikes, skis, soft-shell jackets, etc…but really, when I look at it all, I’m pleased that all of it gets used. Very little of it collects dust. So as much as I would enjoy contributing to our ailing economy by buying even more stuff, I’d much rather prefer buying gear that works well in all types of environments and will actually last more then a year. I’m not sure why it is than, but I seem to be having a hard time finding a camera bag I really like. There are literally hundreds of camera bags on the market, so why is this such a challenge?

Lowepro Slingshot 200

The problem: I’m often outside, in the elements: snow, rain, mud, sand, salt-water (and sometimes the sun.) Furthermore, I’m typically on skis, a bike, in a sea kayak, while photographing. The result is, I typically don’t have a warm, dry car to escape to, or somewhere I can load up my photography gear, including a tripod, camera, lenses, towels, etc etc. Matter of fact, most of the time I only carry my digital Canon Rebel XT with a 17-85 IS lens, polarizer, some batteries and memory cards. The tripod typically stays home (although this may change as I just ordered an Ultrapod, a tiny tripod that will be coming with me to SE Asia in a couple weeks.) This is why I was looking forward to receiving the new Lowepro Slingshot 200 camera bag this past Christmas. It appeared to offer a utilitarian combination of space for cameras, lenses, etc,  but was small enough to mountain bike with, skate ski with, go backcountry skiing with, even act as a combo backpack/camera bag if needed for day trips.

Has it been a satisfying experience? Mostly. It’s worked great (most of the time) for a 2-3 hr skate ski, when I usually only carry the camera, polarizer filter plus some food and water. I can’t really use it for backcountry skiing, an activity that requires too much avalanche gear, extra clothing, food and water for an eight hour adventure. (For these trips I strap on a small TLZ-1 Lowepro bag that hangs from my chest.) The Slingshot does do well in these adverse conditions though. The bag repels water (and snow) well. Not sure how it would hold up in a downpour, but I think it would be fine, for a short while (the zippers aren’t sealed, so water would surely leak through these eventually.)

I am having some issues mountain biking with it, as I found out last weekend on a short ride outside Seattle.

Lowepro Slingshot 200 - just ok for mountain biking

The whole idea behind all Lowepro Slingshots is that you can access your camera quickly, without having to remove it, by undoing a single buckle and sliding it around your waist. And yes, it does work. The problem I have, and I will try to retrofit this, are the two existing straps don’t provide a tight enough fit if you’re actively moving around, be it on skis or while riding a mountain bike for example. What it needs is a waist strap.

Also, the bag doesn’t have any additional straps to carry a tripod, an obvious oversight in my opinion. It does contain a two small separate sections for all those little accessories and the inside will easily fit a DLSR and a few lenses (but probably not a big zoom.) I’ve never really been happy with Lowepro zippers…they just don’t seem to last very long.

Not sure why, but I always end up with Lowepro camera bags. If you’ve used another bag or have some recommendations for something similar that may be better for outdoor use, please let me know.

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It feels good to give back. I’m currently in the process of framing this beautiful Mt Rainier photo for this weekend’s Lunafest film festival here in Seattle. I’m always happy to consider donating a framed photo, so feel free to contact me if you’re a business or individual raising money for a cause.

Spray Park, Mt Rainier National Park

For a limited time I am offering a 16×24 canvas gallery wrap of this image for only $200. Get one before it’s too late!

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