By site editor Dan Chung:
We’ve featured F-Stop camera bags before on Newsshooter and they are gaining a reputation with shooters on the go who need a discreet, yet comfortable way to carry their gear. Their ICU system of interchangeable inserts allows for rapid reconfiguration of a backpack and a high degree of customisation. However, up until now F-Stop haven’t had a bag capable of carrying larger cinema camera kits.
The problem is well known – many owners of Canon C300 and RED kits who usually have to break down their camera rigs in order to fit them into a backpack for travel. Larger camera like Sony’s F5 and 55 often don’t fit into a backpack at all. This is a problem I encounter daily with my own kit. There are a few larger backpacks out there but none has really worked for me.
Enter the Shinn backpack with Master Cine ICU. The giant 80L bag is designed specially for cinema cameras. F-Stop claim it can carry a built-up Red Dragon camera kit and it should also be able to handle C300 and F5 kits with ease. My only concern is the depth of the bag and whether bulky jackpacks and EVFs can be accommodated without having to be detached.
Like other F-Stop bags it has a shares the company’s excellent suspension system and harness – which should make carrying for long periods off the beaten track less painful.
Clearly this backpack will be too large to carry on to most airlines – but hopefully it will fit directly inside a suitable hard case from the likes of HPRC or Pelican.
A bag of this specification doesn’t come cheap. Priced at $799 it isn’t scheduled to ship until March 2015, but if you pre-order now there will be a $100 discount and free global shipping thrown in. You can find out more on the F-Stop website.
