Travel, and especially air travel with bird photography gear is always a challenge as long telephotos are large and relatively heavy. When travelling with other family members it is sometimes possible to spread the load over more than one hand luggage allocation. When travelling alone with a 200-400mm f4 or 500mm f4 it was always a challenge and a photography vest with cavernous pockets was one way to spread load into clothing. The Nikkor 500m f5.6 PF made this a much simpler affair but the Nikkor 800m f6.3 has added a bit more bulk if not much more weight.
In my post Nikkor Z 800mm f6.3 VR S – Another Evolution in Bird Photography I mentioned upcoming air travel and that I would report back on my experience. I have since been down South by air again so have 2 trips experience of air travel with the Nikkor Z 800mm f6.3 VR S. The first trip was by jet so plenty of overhead bin space, the second on smaller turboprop aircraft with smaller overhead bins. Previously my long term bag has been a Gura Gear Bataflae that took a 500mm f4 on one side and managed 2 DSLR bodies and another 3 or 4 lenses on the other. This is a lovely compact bag that doesn’t attract any attention but is a little deep to easily fit into the smaller bins. On a trip South at the end of 2021 I took a mixed DSLR and mirrorless system and used a MindShift Gear BackLight Elite 45L pack. The reason I had got this pack is that I needed something that would take a 15in laptop and well as some extra clothing, neither of which fit in the Gura Gear.
MindShift is a sub-brand of Think Tank Photo and I have long used and been impressed by their gear. The My 2nd Brain 15 laptop bag has done duty for years and is as good as new and their ShapeShifter is a convenient way to compactly get a lot of gear onboard when using Pro/gripped DSLR bodies and using a family member’s carry-on allowance.
At 45L it is a significantly larger pack and despite being advertised as within airline carry-on dimensions (with the top compartment removed) it is just too large for me to comfortably use as a carry-on bag and definitely would not fit the overhead bins in smaller aircraft. The magic part of this bag is that the internal padded gear cell is easily and quickly removable and has integrated backpack straps. This is small and neat, attracts no attention and fits easily into small bins.
In the above image the cell is holding my current travelling gear. Nikon Z9, Nikon Z7, Nikkor Z 800mm f6.4, Nikkor Z 100-400mm, Nikkor Z 24-200mm, Nikkor Z 14-30mm, Nikkor Z 1.4x TC and spare battery for the Z9(which I haven’t yet needed even for a busy day of shooting).
I pack the outer part of the MindShift Gear BackLight 45L with detached belt into my checked in barrel bag. There is no need to unpack the outer compartments. I place my tripod and the waist belt into the cavity of the bag and then fill it with my clothing cells, loading bulkier layers around the outside.
I have now used this system for 3 trips and it suits me perfectly. Previously I was always anxious about the size and weight of my carry-on but now the internal cell from the MindShift Gear BackLight 45L is so compact that it flys right under the radar. One of the secrets to bird photography is to avoid attracting attention to yourself and this is a useful strategy when getting gear onboard as carry-on luggage. Once at destination it is a very quick operation to get the main bag out and install the camera cell so that everything is ready to go.
As my small carry-on item I take my old ThinkTank My 2nd Brain 15 laptop case (sadly no longer available) with my MacBook Pro 16 M1, 3 Samsung 2 TB SDDs (Photo files, Photo backup and System clone), card reader which takes CFExpress and XQD, and 2 USB C chargers with cables to charge my cameras, noise cancelling earbuds, iPad, iPhone and watch. I do not take a camera battery charger as I find the in body charging works fine for the Z7 and Z9. I do take my laptop charger as, although I can charge it via USB C it is slower and both USB C chargers are usually busy when I’m working on my laptop. This bag fitted into even one of the smaller overhead bins on top of the MindShift insert.
This combination of carry-on bags has attracted no attention and conveniently carried everything I need. The harness and belt is the best I have ever had on a camera bag and makes it comfortable to carry.
