Lowepro Classified 200 AW
Classified 200 AW in action photo ©Scott Jontes
I have been searching for a new camera bag to use on location while I am on an assignment. I own a Lowepro Compu Trekker back pack that I really like. In fact I love the bag, it has been a great bag for me. However I need something smaller once I am at the shoot that I can use on the baseball field, or for street and Equine photography.
My main requirements that I look for in a bag are:
1. I do not want it to be bulky for moving through the crowds at the ball game to do fan photos . I also want it to be out of the way while I am on the field.
2. For the hot summers in Florida I want a bag that will not be to hot while I am wearing it.
3. Quick access to my gear.
4. All weather protection is key with the rain storms that pop up in Florida.
5. I would like for the bag to hold a non pro body and a few extra lenses (17-40, 24-105 sizes) my 580ex flash, off shoe cord, a few filters, extra memory cards, and a rain cover for my 300mm 2.8 lens and Mark 3.
I have recently tried some of Lowepro products to try to see which one would fit my specific needs for the different types of photography that I do. I tried the Inverse 200 AW, Outback 300 AW, and the S & F Deluxe Waist belt with harness. I originally thought that I would like a belt pack so that I could put it behind me to have it not interfere with my shooting. I will try to explain my thoughts on the bags and my decision on the Classified 200 AW.
I really liked the Inverse 200. It was small and compact so I could easily move it out of the way when it was not in use.I did feel that the bag when loaded with that amount of gear that I use that it was not my best choice.
The next product I tried was the S & F Deluxe Waist belt with harness. I am sold on one of those and I plan on getting one for photo trips when I do not need an extra camera with me. I found it to be a bit bulky when I added extra SlipLock cases for a camera, extra lenses, flash, memory cards etc.. This is my opinion on my types of shooting with extra gear. This setup is definitely comfortable and distributes the weight very well.
The 3rd product that I tried was the Outback 300 AW. I liked this bag the most out of the other 2 systems that I tried with plenty of storage space. I did find it a little to big for the shooting that I do, other than that it is a great bag. I really liked the extra lens cases that come with the bag.
The last product that I tried was a suggestion from Lowepro’s photography evangelist Derrick Story. He had written a small post on the Lowepro fan page about the Classified 200 AW. I contacted Derrick and explained what I had tried and how I plan to use the bag. He wrote me back hours after I sent the email to him and explained to me how he thought it would be a good fit for me.
I have been using the bag for about 3 weeks now and I could not be happier with how well it is working out for me. I have loaded the bag with a Canon Mark 3 with a 70-200 2.8 attached, Canon 5D with a 24-105 attached, a 580Ex flash, 50mm 1.8, and all my extra small gear. It makes the bag a bit on the heavy side fully loaded, but I would expect it to be with all of that gear. I mainly have a Canon 5D and the 24-105 or my 70-200 plus my flash and other small items in the bag. It is quite comfortable to me. I am really happy with the top access that makes it very fast to get your camera in and out of the bag.
Classified 200 AW at work on the Baseball Field/Photo ©Sean Mcneil
One of my main uses for the Classified 200 Aw is on the baseball field. I need to be able to carry an extra body and a shorter focal length lens with me to take photos for head shots to be used on baseball cards and for closer action shots. Most of my action shots are with my 300 2.8 but sometimes I like to have the variety in my card photos. I really do not like having an extra body hanging on my shoulder so I leave the bag unzipped and then I have quick access to the other camera in the bag. The Classified has a camera keeper on the shoulder strap that does come in handy when I do not have time to slip the camera back in the bag. The way I wear my bag is cross shoulder so I reversed my strap and camera keeper around so it works on my opposite shoulder. If you watch the video on the Classified 200 product page you will see why I reversed the strap and keeper for using it cross shoulder. I use the extra storage in the bag to hold the roster sheets and line ups and any media guides that I pick up in the press box. My other 2 big concerns while on the baseball field is the heat in summertime in Florida and the rain storms that pop up. The Classified 200 AW has a all weather cover so it should be no issue with the rain. I got caught on one of the back fields at the Atlanta Braves training complex in Orlando and I had to walk through the rain back to my car. My Compu Trekkor had a all weather cover and my gear stayed dry. Since that day I have been sold on the All Weather Covers. The other biggie is the heat. Yesterday I shot a day game at 1:00pm and it was a little warm. I did not really notice the bag adding to much extra heat while I was wearing it. So it is looking good so far for baseball.
Equine Photography with the Classified 200 AW/Photo ©Scott Jontes
The other big part of my photography is Equine Photography. The bag does a great job for this type of shooting for me with quick access to my extra body for close up shots. I usually use my 300mm 2.8 or my 70-200 2.8 when doing my equine shoots. If I have the 70-200 as my main lens I generally just use the bag to hold a few extra lenses and equipment. When I am doing the Equine photography I use the 3 point strap that comes with the bag, because of how much I move around. I like that it keeps the bag in one place.
The Classified 200 Aw is a great bag in my opinion, it can be used for various types of shooting and if you are looking for a camera bag that does not look like a camera bag this could be a good choice for you. The other models in the Classified series are 140, 160 and 250. The 250 is made to hold up to a 15 inch laptop with the 160 and 200 you could fit a smaller device such as an iPad.
Scott
Sunny Afternoon
I had a equine portrait shoot with a client yesterday afternoon that ended up with a nice little bonus. After I was done with the portrait shots I had a chance to take a few photos of a little foal that is only a few weeks old. It was a quick session but with the perfect sunny afternoon light the photos turned out great.
Scott
Shuttle Launch
Well it is not the greatest photo I have taken but considering I had about 2 minutes to set my tripod and camera up it did not turn out that bad. It was a really nice looking launch today and I am just happy I got a chance to see it. It is really sad that there is only a couple of them left.
Scott
Day 2
This was my favorite shot of the day yesterday and actually one of my favorite skydiving photos. I have also posted a video below of how I got this shot. I strapped a GoPro camera to my SLR camera lens and took some video of the view I had while taking the photos.
I think that it is a really neat perspective to see exactly how close and fast everything is when they are swooping by.
I really like the feel of this photo I picked this one instead of a shot with him really close to show a different prospective of how low he is going across the ground. The video will show you exactly how fast he is going when he swoops by.
This was the last photo that I took for the shoot. Everybody went up on the sunset load and made a fun jump. With the setting sun and the plane on the taxi way I thought that it mad a fitting photo for the last shot.
Scott
Work on a Friday?
I normally have off on Fridays but we set up a 3 day photo shoot so I had to “work” today. But when you get paid to do what you love is it really work? The above photo was one of the first from the day. The pilot is of Niklas Daniel who is awesome camera flyer and great canopy pilot. I was doing most of the ground shots for the day and most of those shots consisted of me laying on my back to and letting the guys swoop over me. The photo below shows how I set up for most of the shots today.
And this photo shows the end result.
I took a lot of photos today that I was happy with, and the guys in the air nailed some great photos and videos that are just incredible. I have a few more to share with everybody and then I need to get to bed, I have a full day ahead of me tomorrow.
And if you are curious exactly how close he is to me in the above shot. The photo below was the next frame…
Even with a 15mm fisheye that’s close.
Scott
Site Updates
I am doing some site updates today so you may notice some crazy stuff going on. It should be back to normal tonight.
Scott
The Shot
In my last post I shared some of my photos from when I was the team photographer with the Jacksonville Barracudas. I wanted to keep that theme going for one more post. The set of photos below is from a player taking a shot from the blue line where I was able to capture the entire sequence of the shot.
In case anybody was wondering it was not a goal, but turned out to be a cool sequence of shots
Scott
How I got started
Jason Cassells
Believe it or not the reason that I am a Baseball Photographer today is because of Ice Hockey. I got my first big break in sports photography as the team photographer for the Jacksonville Barracudas hockey team. It was one of those situations of being in the right place at the right time. I was attending one of the games and was looking at some of the photos they had for sale and I asked if they had a team photographer. I was told that they did not and that they might be looking for someone to do it. The lucky part for me was as I was asking the question Ken Vezina the Director of Media was walking past the merchandise counter. I was introduced to him and told me that he would give me a shot at the next game.
Ryan Webb
After that night I was the team photographer for the next two years before the team ultimately folded and is no longer in Jacksonville. Of all of the sports that I have shot hockey is still one of my favorites and I wish I still had the chance to do it. My time in Jacksonville was truly enjoyable to me and I met a lot of great people up there. So you are probably asking yourself what does this have to do with me being a baseball photographer. Enjoy the rest of the photos in the post and at the end of the post I will share the answer.
Greg LeColst
Kahil Thomas
Steve Zoryk
Jim Murphy
Matt Meacham
Kahil Thomas
Cory Graboski
When my last season of hockey was coming to an end I knew baseball was getting ready to start. I contacted Derek Ingram of the Daytona Cubs and he told me that they were looking for a team photographer and asked if I would be interested in coming in for an interview. I met with him about a week later and ultimately got the job and he told me one of the main reasons he hired me was because of my minor league experience. So that is how I got my start and where I am at today thanks to Ken and Derrick and a little work by me along the way. I saved one last photo below that has always been one of my favorite hockey photos. I should do a post one day on just this photo and tell the story of what took place.
Steve Zoryk, Pat Doherty, Jason Cassells
Scott
Horsing Around Again
On Sunday I was out taking more photos for a website project that I am working on and I wanted to post a few of them for everybody to see. One thing that I have found out from my project is that I really enjoy Equine Photography. I hope to have the chance to do a lot more of it in the future.
And of course I had to do a few just for fun photos while I had the chance.
Thanks for reading and I hope to have more up soon.
Scott
Quick Post
I wanted to post this photo tonight that I took this weekend. I have a few more from this same day that I hope to have up in a few days.
Scott
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