I think it is time to explore the Domke bag range and how it does or does not service the needs of the modern photographer.
Please excuse the motley collection of workman-like pics (or not), I have been a little busy lately and grew tired of writing this and not getting the shots done.
I will rate these bags from 1-5 in the following criteria;
Handling smaller (M43) gear. This includes the “floating” lens issues bigger bags can create.
Handling bigger pro cameras which means big bodies with integral or added grips and fat zoom lenses.
Accomodating all of the other stuff you may need from lights to phones etc.
Last but not least comfort.
F2 Shoulder Bag
(New Ballistic and 40 year old faded black)
After a year of constant use, it still looks neat, but the 40 year old one is not much different.
The F2 is the very first Domke and shows it’s 50 year old thinking, but that is maybe not a bad thing.
The 1970’s when it was made, was the era of the slim mechanical film camera and prime lenses. These lenses were also fairly conservative and regulation in size. Some of us dreamed of the legendary f1.2 or 1.4 super primes, but for most the reality was more like f1.8 to f4 with a 49mm to 58mm filter thread. If you want examples, look at the legacy lens collections of some working videographers.
The F2 was designed to take 2 bodies with or without winders with 3-5 lenses in the cross-divided middle section and ends. A flash, note pad, film and filters rounded out the set. This was the working kit of so many news photographers.
Kits usually consisted of something like two bodies (FM2/3, F1, LX, M4) a 20 or 24 f3.5 to 2.8, 28 or 35mm f2.8, 50mm f1.8 to 1.4, 85mm f1.8 to 2, 135 f2.8 to 3.5 and 180 or 200mm f2.8 to 4, although many shooters dropped one or more of these tending to skip every second length as unnecessary (maybe a 20/28/50/135 or 24/35/85/200).
With the recent shift back toward smaller cameras and prime lenses, away from the monster zooms and bulky AF SLR’s of the 90’s and after, it has become again the most useful of bags.
The bag has great end pockets, decent front pockets (note book = modern phone size), two thin pen pockets (that I love), a good lid, full length rear pocket, ideal for many slightly bigger items and the inner dividers that could take the above kit or modern equivalent.
This full length rear pocket is the lung it needs.
Fits; EM1 (with optional grip because it can sit on top) + 40-150 f4 nose down in one of the cross sections, G9 + 12-40 f2.8, 17, 45 & 9mm primes, with a flash*, off camera controller, small LED, OSMO, small reflector and large note pad in the back pocket, phone and mic in the front).
*My only complaint and the reason the F7 is my current work bag is the Godox 860 flash struggles to fit in the end pockets.
My news paper day kit before the F7 came back from Japan with us. 2 Bodies, lenses which cover from 18-300 (ff) over two zooms and three fast primes, three lighting options, the OSMO and a decent mic. The small front pockets are handy enough and the height of the bag helps keep small primes easy to reach.
Small kit 4.5. Fits the above neatly and smaller items do not get lost. If I was an all primes user (close to that Nirvana), it would be a 5.
Pro kit 3.5. One fat lens tends to undo the inside layout and no way it can be mounted without gutting the bag. I did experiment with two pro cameras with mounted zooms (EM1x + 12-40 and EM1x + 8-18) and it worked with a slim twin lens divider, but no room for a big tele zoom.
Other stuff 3.5. The full length rear pocket and decent end pockets make all the difference.
Comfort 4. Sits well on the hip and is “boxy” enough to provide a good surface to put a note pad, but it does roll around in the car.
F7 Shoulder Bag
(Sun-faded black)
My “special edition” gunmetal grey F7, is actually a light faded black display model, bought for half price. For a working bag, a real win.
The “Twin AF” is an odd one. Designed apparently to take a pair of big AF cameras and the holy trinity of wide, standard and tele f2.8 zooms, I fail to see how that would. It has 2 almost square compartments and a slim double lens compartment. The bag is essentially a tall F2, so a big camera and big lens mounted simply do not fit without taking out both of the square inserts, which only leaves you with two lens holes. These are deep and reasonably wide, but still a push for a 14-24 f2.8 Nikkor for example.
From a M43 shooters perspective, the 8-25 and 40-150 f2.8, with maybe a 17 and 45 1.8 for speed would actually work or maybe the 8-18/25/40-150, but you need to make the holy trinity a divine double!
The height advantage (dis-advantage?) of the F7 is slight, but handy, about the depth of a camera body or taller lens.
The big square pockets are oddly near useless for their intended kit. They take a small camera and zoom face down, but the F2 can take the same side on. The height suits big cameras, but not with large lenses mounted. The small divided compartment is good for lenses as large as the 40-150 f2.8, but not with its big hood (I use a screw-in metal one). Personally I would have liked something along the lines of a full sized compartment, but more modular.
I put the same kit in it as the F2 above, with more room to spare and a general feeling of everything easing off. The front and end pockets are bigger and the bag taller, but it lacks the rear pocket (used as belt loops) and the lid is decent, broken into more compartments.
The small primes are a long way further down than in the F2, the 9mm hidden under the EM1.
Small kit 3.5. It is roomy for M43, but the extra height can cause its own issues. It does not actually hold much more than the F2, with the exception of handling some slightly larger lenses and feeling “roomier”.
Large Kit 3.5. Designed for this as the name suggests, but the inserts seem to fight that.
Other 3. No rear pocket or inside insert pocket means bigger items like a 60cm reflector, A4 note pad or small computer have nowhere to go. Unlike the F2 it falls over but does not roll. The top flap is my favourite and folds back well and has separate velcro pockets for batteries etc.
Comfort 4.5. With the Domke shoulder pad, it is very comfortable with the exception of a couple of decent seams running down the back where the belt loops are. It potentially could hold more than an F2, which might be too much.
F802 Satchel
(Green cotton)
My first serious work bag, even though I had others.
This bag was the ideal for my early kit, which used the 40-150 f2.8 exclusively. That lens forced a height over width thinking and did a great job. The issue and it could be a big one, was the height with smaller M43 lenses.
Old kit, but a good array to show the massive capacity of this bag. Note, it looks less green and more worn in these days. Where did the little 25mm end up? Mostly forgotten as it goes. I never carried this much, but a rain jacket, water bottle, even a laptop did make it.
Putting a couple of primes in it meant either stacking them or wasting a lot of space. Neither is ideal. My “A” game kit (EM1x, G9, 8-18, 12-40, 40-150, 15 and 75) would be ok but not great. My current day kit would be a disaster of fishing around in the depths for lost bits.
The Tenba insert I bought for it is seemingly made for the space (better than any Domke inserts), which helps, but only to a point.
I felt this would not be deep enough for a grip mounted EM1.2 or EM1x (so I bought the F804), but it turns out, that was not the case.
Width of the bag can be deceptive. I bought the F804 to accomodate an EM1x sized camera with lens attached, but it turns out the F802 does that fine.
It does however have good rear and internal A4 sized pockets, two decent outside flap pockets (which can also be too deep), two huge front pockets and the ability to take (and I have these) two large or huge pouches on it’s ends.
This is a huge advantage over the F804, which lacks the raised external main strap for the pouches to slip under.
The top flap folds down nicely against the body, just remember to zip up the outside flap pockets! I “lost” three batteries one day, finding them the next day in the rear pocket.
Small kit 2.5. Just too deep and roomy for smaller gear.
Large cameras 4. Deep and tall enough for pro gear, probably the ideal bag to live up to the F7’s promise. I believe that with the big end pouches, this may well hold the most of all the shoulder bags.
Other stuff 4.5. Big reflectors, multiple flash units, a rain coat and lots more. It is probably my best non-camera, camera bag truth be told.
Comfort 4.5. The satchel shape seems to take weight well and the rigid top keeps the bag straight and “right” feeling. This is the one bag I will continue to wear while shooting thanks to its slim-line dynamic.
F804 Satchel
(Black cotton)
The problem solver that basically failed. The only real use I have for this bag is as a haul bag option with my roller case (it has a rear slip-over panel for the case handle) or a big lens sports bag that I can wear more easily than a backpack. This means it tends to be my day bag for stills when the 217 roller is taken for video.
As a travel bag it is good, a camera bag less so.
It is huge and with that comes the same issues as the F802, but the F802 is more practical and more comfortable to wear. Basically if you take the F802, remove the rigid top panel and make the top flap stupidly long, then add about 3” of extra depth inside with the (owner provided) insert, then remove the option of end pockets and the back pocket, you have a bag that takes a decent kit of big items, but for me, what and why? It is probably a better F7 as the F7’s intended use.
The top flap is excessive and without the F802’s reinforcing, less useful.
Small kit 2. Just huge, like the F802 only deeper.
Large kit 4. The provided insert (the Tenba or another from Ebay) are required or it is just a huge hole.
Other 4.5. Probably a better non-camera bag and likely that is what it will end up being. As a travel bag with a small camera bag inside it, it may be ideal.
Comfort 3. I find the size less hip-hugging than the F802 and the large seam running along the base rubs noticeably. The top flap can be flipped backwards when used, but unlike the F802, it actually hangs below the base of the bag. For its size it is a good weight bearer.
F3x
(Olive rugged wear)
This is another “old school” bag, one that I have owned a few times and usually parted with as it is a poor choice for M43 kit.
The shapeless blob that is the empty, light weight “rugged wear” F3x. The Olive RW is rare as, coming from a few Bic Camera stores in japan, some now gone all together. A must have, I would happily swap it for a Ballistic nylon one (which I had).
The F3x is a dream never realised. I chased a Ballistic one recently, but switched to the F2 because it was available and that was probably for the best.
It is the contradiction of a small bag for large items.
A large camera like the EM1x, a D6, Z9, EOS 1D or the like, with a decent standard lens mounted, a pair of f4 wide and tele zooms could fit well. The main compartment is divided by a single thinly padded wall (missing from the image), that also holds the two sewn-in side pockets out.
If I could bring myself to be a one camera-zoom only shooter, it may be the “one bag” answer.
Still shapeless, which I guess can be a benefit, it is the ultimate hip hugger (but watch light coloured clothes as the oil can rub off). It has the rear, front and end pockets that do make a difference. Probably best as a single camera, three or 4 lens bag.
Designed to take a large SLR with lens on, a flash and a couple of pro zooms in sewn-in pouches and blessed with the little slip pocket inside, a rear one and decent end pouches, it holds a surprising amount, but not enough for me and the rugged-ware cloth feels, ironically, less robust than the regular cotton or ballistic nylon.
It would be the ideal fit for the front pocket of the 217 roller which was designed for that.
Small kit 2. All the compartments are aimed at larger items and the sewn-in pockets are not grounded so smaller lenses can float. You need to add an insert to it (The F2’s works) and then it lacks room for any large kit. I had the most success with a two part Billingham divider, but sadly, not enough to use seriously.
Large kit 4. Oddly, being the smallest bag here, it takes a decent amount of larger kit.
Other stuff 3. A surprise here, sporting many of the pockets that some larger bags lack, the long pockets are paperback sized and the end pockets are the same as the F2’s.
Comfort 4.5/5. There is a photo I saw somewhere of a photo journalist with an over stuffed and well worn F3 looking like a time loved pair of jeans (that he was also wearing). It has that very Domke hip-hugging shape with the added benefit of not being able to take too much. This is as Domke as a Domke can be. The rugged wear is thin feeling, which sometimes means you can feel gear on your hip, but a little padding like a note pad or soft cloth in the back pocket can fix that.
217 Roller Case
(Black nylon)
Bought as a day to day kit hauler for my job at the paper (I park 1km away), I soon re-purposed it as a video kit home. My video kit is just that, video. For more cinematic gear I use a 511 Range Ready bag.
This has the magic dimensions of both useful practical area and decent depth. The lid in particular is expandable and the inside and outside pockets are huge and useful. I can even leave a handle on a rig and it works, but worries me a little.
It is U.S. airline sized, but I have not pushed it locally.
The top pocket can take a Portrays 5” monitor in its box, tool kit and cable, the bottom takes a 13” M1 Air or a camera bag (F2/3x) and the whole lid is expandable. The inside lid has a full sized deep expansion pocket and two pockets (M1 sized).
As a base to work from, it is ideal.
This can hold my entire S5 and G9II video kit* with cages, handles, 62/67 filter kits and 8 lenses. The extra depth means many lenses can stand up, which is a massive advantage.
The G9II and S5 caged, my Lumix lenses for both (the hole is for the 35mm still coming), the fast Sigma, handles, filters etc. The whole compartment is removable, so the bag can be a regular suit case as well. Even the 85mm with tall hood on does not touch the lid. The square “bumper” stickers are for video lenses, round ones for stills and bigger squares for cinema. My coverage is 16-120 in M43, 20-130 in FF, with many longer M43 options available.
Small kit 2 or 5. It is a suit case for better or worse.
Large kit 5. A decent sized suit case.
Other 5. Still a suit case.
Comfort 3 or 5. With wheels.
*The 511 Range Ready Bag is better suited to the massive cinema lenses and accessories, mat boxes, rigging gear etc.
*
My ideal Domke?
A ballistic nylon F7 in dark green with the F2 rear pocket (but bigger) with a velcro bottom to allow water release and to slip over a suit case handle, and F802 style outer lid pockets.
I have had other Domke bags and may even have others in the future, but these days, all my bags fill a need or they go, simple as that.
Other than Domke?
The above mentioned 511, the big Neewer backpack for sports gear, several shoulder bags, mainly to look less Domke, more regular camera bag.
*G9II, S5, gages, handles, 35/50/85/20-60 Lumix S, 12-60/8-18 Lumix G, 30 Sigma, two filter stacks, two small LED’s. It could also hold my entire full frame video kit including cine lenses.