thinkTANK-I THINK I Love You!

I have a lot of photo bags. It all started 16 years ago when I purchased my first camera and lens. It was the meager beginnings of a fanny-type pack that held one body, one lens, some film, and a couple of filters. Now times have changed. I cannot fit everything into my monster Lowepro Super Trekker AW II, so I need to have multiple packs for multiple situations. If it has been designed I have owned it, in a never-ending quest to find the most perfect bag. I have even custom-designed a couple of my own packs for use on special projects. The reality is that I doubt there is a pack that works for every situation a photographer can find himself in. Thus my motley crew of packs. But thanks to Think Tank Photo’s new Shape Shifter backpack, I think I will now be able to thin out the collection.

Upon receiving my Shape Shifter, my initial reaction was one of astonishment. This pack is well constructed and full of features that even I, with my slew of packs, have yet to see. The first thing that hit me was the fact that instructions and photos of the features of the pack are included. I really like the idea of suggestions; show me what you were thinking when you designed it, then I will figure out how I want to use the space. This feature alone expanded my creativity in using the pack.

The next thing that hit me was the fact that there are pockets for everything. In today’s age of digital photography, I have as much support gear as I do actual lenses and camera bodies. There are pockets, sleeves, and pouches for well…you name it. All of those pockets and compartments allow me to store the gear in an organized manner, and not just stuff it all together in the one left over pocket that seems like an after thought.

This pack also changes its size, hence the name Shape Shifter. I can compress the whole pack by simply zipping a zipper, and this allows me to just carry my new Apple 17 inch MacBook Pro (review coming in the near future) if I am headed to a meeting or a presentation. But what is the maximum it can it hold? A lot! You can see here everything that I can fit into the pack, with the exception of my 600 mm lens. Which leads to the suggestion that Think Tank produce a Shape Shifter that will allow me to carry that lens with this whole set up as well.

Another really great feature to this pack is that it holds all of my photo equipment in drawstring closure “pouches”. This feature has all of my equipment laying flat, which means that it takes up much less room. The standard method of velcro dividers does not exist here, which is an improvement.

So are there negatives? Well, I wouldn’t say that there are features that I don’t like, but there are a few things that I would like to see added in the pack’s next generation. I would like to see some compression straps added to the sides of the pack. This isn’t so much to tighten the items inside, but just in case one or all of the zippers failed on an expedition, the compression straps would allow you to at least close up the pack and easily carry out all of your gear. The lower corners of the pack could use a little extra padding, especially in the laptop compartment. I am pretty hard on my gear and if I accidentally drop the pack, having a bit more in those lower corners would keep me from dinging that new Mac Book Pro. Also, if all of the photo gear pouches were mounted on the opposite side of the compartment than where they are currently located, the pack could be placed on the ground with the harness system facing up as to not put it in the dirt. This is a feature I currently have on another pack, and I find it to be very useful. Finally, I would like a beefier waste belt. If you load this pack with what it is capable of carrying, the waste belt is insufficient to carry the load, and would likely be uncomfortable on a multi-mile walk. Think Tank currently offers the Pro Speed Belt that will retro-fit with the pack, but it would be nice if it came with the pack.

I am absolutely astounded with the thought and design that has been put into this pack. I can tell that Think Tank pursued the opinions of many photographers when creating this item; it works, and it works well. I will be watching for upcoming new releases from this company. The name says it all – Think Tank, a company whose creativity is allowing me to pursue my own creativity with much greater convenience.

Add-One other item that I ordered from Think Tank was their Pixel Pocket Rocket compact flash card holder. I was looking for a card holder that was compact and held more than 4 or 8 cards at a time, well, I found it! And it is perfect! You can store your business card in it just in case you loose it, and it compresses to about the size of an iPhone. What else do you need to know, go buy one now.

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This entry was posted on Monday, March 23rd, 2009 at 5:49 pm. It is filed under articles, reviews and tagged with article, jay goodrich writer + photographer, photo equipment review, Pixel Pocket Rocket, Shape Shifter backpack, Think Tank Photo. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.