Domke have been making solid and dependable bags for many years, so they seemed like a good choice to protect my camera kit during 6 months on the road in Africa. Compared to much of the competition they seem pretty pricey, but its clear why once you handle them. Similarly priced brands like Thinktank and Billingham also make fantastic ranges with many of the same features, so I think it’s just a matter of personal taste and preference.

All this plus the camera and kit lens (not shown as i’m using them to take the picture!)

Unassuming appearence is perfect for Africa (Perhaps not in Black though!)

The perceived wisdom seems to be that in certain environments an obvious camera bag is a hinderance, so I wanted a bag that was small enough to stick in a backpack, but also that would blend well as a stand alone bag too. I went for the Domke F -5XB in black. I also removed the Domke logo from the front as I felt this ruined its stealthy, not necessarily a camera bag, appearance. This bag is to house my Olympus OMD- EM5, which along with 3 lenses makes up my main expedition camera gear (I will go into more detail in a later posts), and it easily all fits in with room for the HLD -6 battery grip a couple of additional batteries and a host of other small accessories too. The version I went for is not the toughest Domke ‘rugged wear’ version, but I felt that the ballistic nylon would easily be up to the task.

The proudly placed ‘Made in the USA’ label may or may not matter to you.

Its stood up well in the first 6 months, and has been with me on a number of trips. Much like the personally much admired Steve Huff it seems like I have found my perfect bag.  Lets hope it lives up to that billing!