Getting Gear to Church and reception?

[Denny Kyser]

I have been trying to find a good way of transporting gear from vehicle to church or reception. I have tried the Giant Pelican Case, that is just too big, but was nice to hold 2 cameras and gear in one case.

Now I am using 2 camera bags for the XH A1's, A tripod rolling bag that carries 2 tripods and 1 lightstand. And 2 Pelican cases, that carry Audio and video lights. This works ok, but still a lot to tote.

Any recomendations or tips

[Bob Hart]

Lawyer's fullsized courtbook trolley and straps? Plenty of places to stitch and chain a padlock through. There are also raincoats to be had for them. Not necessarily cheap though. It is a high-maintenance profession.

[Chad Dyle]

I was having the same problem. To many bags and they were crammed full of stuff. I ended up buying a rolling bag from Porta Brace (PortaBrace - Product Detail:WPC-3OR) a few weeks ago. It is completely open on the inside, but it comes with a few strips of dividers that can be cut down to make the bag work any way you want it to. I keep my cameras at the bottome of it and two Z7u's fit nicely side by side. I even built a compartmant with a lid for the batteries/mics.
If you look on the sides, you will see a bunch of plastic loops sewn into the bag. I bought some of the PB velcro straps and attach a tripod to each side. I use 503HDV head and 3221 sticks. I was nervous that the velcro wouldn't hold, so I bought some small bungee cords just in case. So far I have only used the bungee cords to attach the two tripods together so they wouldn't move while I was rolling the cart.
It is a huge freaking bag and I do have room left over. That isn't something I can say about a lot of the bags I've purchased in the past. If you don't need all of the equipment at the reception, you can always keep an old bag with you and just transfer what you need rather than taking it all in with you.
Hope that helps!

[Joel Peregrine]

Hi Denny,

I've used hardware cases and like the durability, price and the fact you can use them as something to stand on for higher camera angles. This is my current box:

Craftsman Sit/Stand/Tote Truck - Model 59627 at Sears.com

2 x XHA1, 3 x HV30, iriver+mics, batteries, lenses, tapes and Steadicam Merlin arm fit inside - basically everything except tripods, light stands and the reception light bags, which pack together in their own bag and rest on top of the box when pulling it on the wheels. I wanted something I could move in and out in one trip.

[Peter Chung]

Originally Posted by Joel Peregrine

Hi Denny,

I've used hardware cases and like the durability, price and the fact you can use them as something to stand on for higher camera angles. This is my current box:

Craftsman Sit/Stand/Tote Truck - Model 59627 at Sears.com

2 x XHA1, 3 x HV30, iriver+mics, batteries, lenses, tapes and Steadicam Merlin arm fit inside - basically everything except tripods, light stands and the reception light bags, which pack together in their own bag and rest on top of the box when pulling it on the wheels. I wanted something I could move in and out in one trip.

Joel,

How are you compartmentalizing your gear inside the case and keeping them from bumping into each other?

[Josh Laronge]

Denny,
Check out the Kata OC-84 and OC-82. The bags sit on the same trolley that comes with the OC-84. I fit 2 XH-A1s, Canon wide angle, Century fisheye, 6 970 batteries, 2 chargers and 1 remote in the 84. I do have the mic holders removed on my A1s. I use my 82 for some still gear but, you could probably most of your audio gear and camera mounted lights. The bags are really well built, offer a lot of protection and much lighter than Pelicans (although Pelicans are stronger).

--JL

[Joel Peregrine]

Hi Peter,

Originally Posted by Peter Chung

Joel,

How are you compartmentalizing your gear inside the case and keeping them from bumping into each other?

In the bottom compartment each camera is in a bubble wrap bag.