On This Day, My Friends

Today I woke up and looked out the bedroom window onto a beautiful landscape. Frost encrusted every surface, ice formed sculptures on the river bank, smoke puffed cheerily from chimneys, the sky was bright and clear, and everything from the ground to the rooftops glistened like crystal. I smiled.

And, then I remembered.

This beautiful countryside with its quaint villages of red tiled roofs, frost covered hillsides, and lazy river isn't my home. My home sits on the other side of the Atlantic, big and wide, full of lazy rivers, and frosty small towns and hillsides, and humming cities. Smoke curls out of chimney roofs there too. While I write this, the first slice of that country will be waking. They will be looking out bedroom windows too, as they rise to go to work or school or to whatever the day dictates. Home is where most of my friends dwell. Home is where my family makes their lives. Home is a place I only get to see once a year, twice if I'm lucky. Home is the place I cherish above all others. I think about it every single day. I love it and I miss it.

But, it is dying. In these few hours it's breathing its last rasping breaths. I won't be there when it closes its eyes and leaves this earth. I will probably never see it again. Home will be gone.

I, like so many of you, am grieving. The coming inauguration is the worst possible result I could have imagined of that horrible election cycle. There are still days I can't believe it happened. The thought of what it means still catches the breath in my chest. But, this is where we are now, my friends, and it is time to move forward.

To my fellow grieving Americans, now is the time to see what we're made of. Now is the time to live up to the hype. We had our three months to grieve and cope. Now we must pick ourselves up and face this day, face it in a way that our forbearers would be proud of. They created a government and system that is designed to resist tyranny. But, it cannot do that if we, The People, embrace tyranny or stay impassive and silent. Patriots aren't people who go to Fourth of July parades, or buy bumper stickers, repost impassioned memes, or wear patches and pins. Patriots get up and participate. They call their representatives over and over and over. Patriots march. Patriots give their money or- if they don't have money- their time to organizations that defend the rights and ideals of their nation that are under threat. Patriots look past differences in their fellows and they unite against their common foe. They discuss. They sacrifice and they give up their petty wants for the sake of others, their contemporaries and those yet to be born. Patriots are vigilant. Patriots pursue the truth. Patriots resist. Please, my fellow Americans who do not rise in celebration on this day, be patriots. The future depends on it. More than we know.

To those Americans who rise on this day with elation, go ahead. That's your right. I know there is nothing I can say that will change your minds. That is ok. But, I'm sorry for you. I truly am, and I do not say it to be patronizing. I was very angry with you for a long time. Sometimes I still get angry at you. But, my faith doesn't allow me to stay in that place so on this day, I've decided to set that anger down. Pity fills that space that anger left behind. I know where you're coming from. I know you. I understand your fears and anger. I'm from Akron, Ohio. I know what it's like to search in vain for work, to see the rot, to feel hopeless and forgotten. I know what it's like to be told your heritage and culture is not something to be proud of. I'm in agreement that a lot of this is caused by the decisions of our past leaders. Yes, the Left has done a lot of damage. I get it, I really do. I respect the fact that these are real problems. However, I in no way agree with your solution. I feel sorry for you because you don't yet understand what today means or worse, you do and refuse to admit it. We've all been in that headspace at one time or another and it isn't a good place to be. My hope is that you will be willing to step out of it and be a part of the movement to clean up the mess. We'd be happy to have you. Until then, know this: any attempt on your part to persecute or strip the rights of innocent citizens of this nation will be met with strong resistance. That behavior will not be tolerated. We will not tolerate it in the elected officials and we will not tolerate it from you. We will stand in your way. And, as much as it breaks my heart to say this, it will not matter if you're our friends or our family members. We will stand against you. This is going to hurt all of us, and I'm truly, truly sorry.

To all my international friends, those who are scared and nervous about today too, please lend a hand. Trust me, I have not been proud to be an American for several months and I get why it's so easy to blanket the entire country is far right fools. However, if you followed the US Election at all you know by now that this result is not the will of the people. This man did not win the popular vote. His victory, is the result of many factors- foreign actions and flawed internal systems. Please keep that in mind when things get scarier. There are many Americans on your side. They are going to be sacrificing a lot to stop this darkness from destroying our country and they will need your encouragement, words will do. The world is at a tipping point, and this day is a death knell. It could easily lead to the dark takeover of your nation too. The rumblings of coming thunder can be heard in the words of Farage, La Pen, and Petry just to name a few. The darkness is at every gate. So, please, please don't turn your backs. Don't mock and throw up your hands and resign us to our fate. We're in this together and we're all going to need to stick together.

Today is not a normal day. Tomorrow won't be normal either, and nor will the day after that and the day after that. In my heart I know no day will ever be normal again. But, I will not cry anymore. After I turned from my bedroom window, I did what I promised myself I would do on this day. I started my resistance. I purchased a subscription to The Washington Post. I donated to the Committee to Protect Journalists. We're going to need the courage of investigative journalists more than ever. I donated to local Akron arts and culture non profits. The arts are always some of the first victims of tyranny, and the new regime has already stated they plan on stripping support. Then, I hung the phone numbers of my elected officials above my desk so I can begin calling them. I promise I will be calling them, even from Germany. I will be sharing and retweeting information and news about what this regime will be doing to further destroy my home. I will do the best I can to keep speaking out against it. That's all I can think to do right now. And somehow, I hope that taking photographs will help too, even if it's just to keep myself sane.

We all have choices to make on this day, my friends. We all have to decide how we're going to go forward. I hope we can decide to move forward together, to not cower in the face of fear, to listen, to lift up those who cannot stand on their own, to learn, to speak, and above all to resist this darkness with some love and light.  Good luck to you all.

"Do not go gentle into that good night.

Rage, rage against the dying of the light."

Review: Peak Design Everyday Messenger Bag

Happy 2017! How are those resolutions coming along? I myself neglected to come up with anything this year. I could say I'll post more to this blog, but, eh, I think we all know that's probably going to fizzle out somewhere in mid-March. Or, I suppose I could say I'm going to ride so many thousands of miles on my bike, but I just don't have the desire to kid myself this year. Right now I'm just hoping the planet survives the next 365 days. I did manage to clean my office a little and organize my backup drives into a more streamlined system this week, though. Anyway, good luck to all of you who are more ambitious than I am.

I'm about eye level deep in pictures from Venice and there's no telling when I will wade out of that. Procrastinating to clean the office probably wasn't the best idea. But, it's a lot of photos, like 4 cards worth and I've already dedicated all of next week to the task. In order to keep on procrastinating I decided to do another gear review. Yay!

First off, however, I have a confession to make. As you can see from the photo below I have a bit of a problem.

Yes, I have a more specific version of G.A.S. (Gear Acquisition Syndrome)- C.B.A.S. (Camera Bag Acquisition Syndrome). The reason for this is that I don't like to use a neck strap most of the time. The camera swinging around drives me crazy. Also, I think a camera around your neck is a giant sign that screams "I'M A TOURIST!!!!!" A good bag keeps the camera out of the way when I'm not using it and it also keeps me from looking like an easy mark (the rest of how I look does well enough in that department, thank you very much). For the record, almost all of these bags in the photo have a purpose and they all get used. The wee Lowepro in the top right is for hiking on local trails when I'm just taking a macro setup or something else basic. The black leather one next to it is for dressier occasions (poor thing rarely gets used). The ThinkTank Retrospective on the top left gets used all the time when I'm carrying two bodies, filters, etc and I'm wearing earth tones. The ThinkTank Airport Essentials underneath is awesome. I use it when we fly or take the train because Brian the Tripod fits inside along with all my bodies, lenses, accessories, MacBook, iPad, and other travel essentials. It really is an awesome bag and I totally recommend it. That black bag in the middle of the pile is something I picked up in Germany to use for longer hikes and I need Brian to come along. Next to that one on the right is a Lowepro Slingshot that I dislike and never use. That generic German backpack replaced it and I haven't gotten around to getting rid of it yet. The brown leather in the front is my beloved Ona Brixton. I use that one most days. I love, love, love this bag. Finally, the one next to that is the latest addition to the bag collection, Peak Design's 15" Everyday Messenger. And, that is the bag that I'm going to review. Oh, that blue tube shaped one is Brian's. We use that if he has to come along with us all day.

We wanted the Everyday Messenger (ok, I wanted it), because my old black messenger bag was falling apart and needed to be replaced. Having bags that coordinate with what I'm wearing is important to me, yes, and I require various ones in earth tones, blacks, or grays. I had heard a lot of good things about the Everyday Messenger. It was kind of hard not to hear about this bag. If you're into photography you probably heard about it too since it was an incredibly successful Kickstarter project, was touted by Trey Ratcliff, and at one point was called the greatest messenger/camera bag of all time by a bunch of bloggers. So, when my old bag died the death, I didn't really need to shop around this time. As much as I appreciate the ThinkTank Retrospective, the size I have is a bit small for some projects, but at the same time can become oddly bulky. Plus, I can't carry Brian with it (hence, the use of the tripod bag on occasion). Also, it would be weird to have the same bag in two different colors. I was looking for a larger, black or grey messenger that was better quality than my old bag that I had stuff a padded camera pocket in. The Everyday Messenger fit the bill. It arrived just in time for our week in Venice and we used it everyday, as the name suggested we should. It was an intense test and I think I can confidently review the bag after that trip.

The new bag absolutely had to be a messenger bag. I prefer that style over a backpack because it's easier to get into on the go and that's important since I don't use straps. They also aren't another giant sign that screams "I'M A TOURIST!!!!!!" like a backpack is. Versatility was the next requirement. I wanted something that could carry my MacBook and iPad, could carry several bodies, could accommodate Brian if necessary, and still fit the other stuff one needs to carry around like sunglasses, filters, batteries, notebook, etc. And, if I didn't need to carry all the stuff then it would collapse down into a thinner form. Also, it couldn't be a bag that looked blatantly like a camera bag. It would be even better if it could function just as well as a regular messenger in case my husband needed a black bag. Yes, he has a thing about color coordination too, probably more than I do.

So here's my Everyday Messenger.

One of the first things I noticed was the construction of the bag. Unlike other traditional camera bags, this one doesn't come with a separate rain cover. The exterior fabric itself is water resistant. The exterior zippers are water resistant too, thus negating the need for a bulky and goofy looking rain cover. Also, the entire thing is padded, but it's not thick and awkward. The unique padding also stays rigid so the bag keeps its shape even when it's full and heavily loaded or nearly empty. This is a feature that really comes in handy when you're trying to get things out while on the move. Because of the construction, the bag expands when full, but collapses down tightly without any excess material getting in the way. The interior fabrics are sleek and protective as well. All the stitching is solid and tight, nothing catches on gear when it's being removed, and all the stitches survived a brutal week of heavy load carrying (probably around 20lbs at times) without a single fray.

Rear laptop/tablet pocket

Interior fabric and stitching

Felt lined tablet pocket

Interior fabric of the rear laptop/fabric pocket

Exterior fabric and stitching

Weather resistant zippers.

The next thing that makes this bag unique from others is the strap system. Normally bag straps are afterthoughts. Some of them are overly padded and bizarre looking, others are fashionable, but really uncomfortable. The strap system, yes system, of the Everyday Messenger stands out as being one of the things that was a priority for the designers.

Pivoting attachment point keeps the bag close to you, no matter how full it is or how
it is being carried. 

Flat and easy to adjust clasps

Folding strap handle so the bag can be adjusted on the go.

The strap is the same material as car seat belts. Since paramedics need a special knife to cut seat belts,
you know this strap isn't going to fail you.

The great thing about the strap system, besides the solid construction, it that it is easily adjustable. It gets tiring carrying a heavy bag around all day, no matter how it's made. It helps to be able to switch the positioning easily. There are two smaller straps stowed sneakily in the exterior of the bag that can be attached to the main strap to hug it closer to the body or to each other to create a waste belt. The folding adjustment handle makes it really easy to adjust the strap length while you're wearing it. This system would work great for those who cycle as it can place the bag higher on your back and keep it snug against you so there's none of that swinging that can happen with regular messenger bags. In addition to being able to do all of that, the system is designed so that there isn't any extra strapping flapping around. If you want to know more about the straps and how to use all the other features of the bag, you can watch this video (you may want to prepare some snacks beforehand, however).

Ok, now for the interior. The unique feature of Peak Design's bags are the main compartment dividers. Dividers in a camera bag are a necessary evil that serve a protective purpose, but can easily end up driving you mad. The ones in this bag are different than those chubby uncooperative ones. These are thin and rigid, and their construction makes it possible to fold them down to create inner pockets or to accommodate smaller items. They're pretty ingenious. Also in that main compartment there's a nifty little pocket at the top for essentials like passports, wallets, tickets, phones, what have you.

Foldable dividers make it easy and safe to stack other items on top of camera bodies
or lenses.

When the bag is closed the designers came up with the coolest solution for quickly grabbing items that doesn't involve opening the whole thing up. This feature is probably my favorite thing about this bag. When I'm in a crowded area like a full subway car or, as in Venice, a packed Vaporetto, I don't have the room to fully open these kinds of bags nor do I feel comfortable showing everyone around me all the equipment I'm carrying. Peak Design came up with a simple, yet genius solution- just put a zipper in the top flap! That's all you need to access the main compartment to grab your sunglasses or phone and even a camera!

Brilliant!

The smaller pocket on the front of the bag is also designed simply yet is perfectly functional. It features multiple inner small organizational pockets that sit flat when not being used, but can expand rather impressively. They're perfect for batteries, filters, change, and other items you may not need that often.

The pockets have red or green stitching so you can differentiate between full memory cards
and empty ones or between charged or used batteries. 

But, wait! There are other cool features about the Everyday Messenger that you should know about too! Let's head back to the outside of the bag to check out the clasp system. It's really quite lovely.

The clasp system is actually pretty remarkable. First of all, there's no buckles involved so you don't have to make any adjustments to it as your load volume expands or shrinks. Secondly, it uses a magnet (yes, digital safe), so even if you don't latch it, the clasp will find the hooks and with a little tension click into place. It's also easy to use one handed and without stopping. Plus, the hooks aren't sewn on, they're bolted on. Like everything else with this bag you don't have to worry about the clasp system falling apart.

There are also some nice, sly side pockets that are great for stowing small often needed items like lens caps. One of them also has a quick access key lanyard inside so you always know where your keys are. It features Peak Design's Anchor link system so you can detach your keys from the lanyard quickly, but they aren't going to become detached when you don't want them to.

Near these pockets are dedicated attachment straps for Peak Design's Capture Camera clip systems. I love the Capture Pro I got for hiking so much I now use it all the time. It works seamlessly with the Everyday Messenger. Using the Capture system makes my camera as accessible as it would be with a traditional neck strap, but it keeps the camera from getting knocked about or in my way while storing it out of general line of sight to others. Plus, its base plate works with Brian so I don't have to switch the plate out when using the tripod.

If we continue along the back side of the bag we come to the laptop/tablet pocket. It also has a weather sealed zipper and easily fits my MacBook and iPad. However, I never carry both at the same time in the same bag. That would just be heavy and redundant.

The last feature I want to highlight is the tripod carry system. This is another one of the main reasons I wanted to get this bag. Normally both my husband and myself carry a bag. Sometimes I need to take the tripod with me all day. It's not an ideal situation, but the schedule may not allow time to run back to the hotel to drop it off after an early morning shoot or pick it up in the evening. Our schedule in Venice made this the norm, especially with the short days of December. In the past, it was really irritating to have to carry Brian in his own bag in addition to a camera bag. If we didn't need Brian every day all day on a trip there isn't really a need for a backpack and neither of us likes to carry those anyway. So, a messenger that can accommodate a travel tripod without being ridiculous about it would be really helpful. The Everyday Messenger can do that. Inside the main flap is a sleeve (it also has a pocket in it) that you can slide a tripod leg into to affix the tripod to the bag. They also send along a silicon ring (Or fashion accessory. You decide.) to loop around the leg ends to keep the tripod from sliding out.

Tripod Storage system

Sleeve opens on either end to slide a tripod leg through.

It also includes a pocket that is perfect for storing cables.

Tripod ring...or BRACELET!

Brian hanging out on the Everyday Messenger, happy as a clam.

Ok, so how did this bag do in Venice? Well, to be honest, you'd probably have to ask my husband since he carried it most of the time (it matched his outfits better than mine that week). But, he made sure to give me some thoughts throughout the trip on how it was fairing so I will do my best to sum them up for you.

Bottom line, he said, "This is probably the greatest bag in the world." Yep. He basically raved about it for an entire week, even more so after we remembered the additional straps that could adjust the position of the bag as needed. His favorite thing about the bag was that it wasn't bulky. We had the X-T1 in it with the 55-200m lens, the 10-24mm lens, plus all sorts of miscellaneous items and sundry, not to mention Brian. It was pretty full, but didn't look full. His second favorite thing about the bag was how easy it is to use. The closure is a piece of cake to operate. Also, he could tighten and loosen the strap without taking the bag off, the keys never got misplaced, the laptop pocket was perfect for carrying documents, and the flap zip access made it easy to grab stuff quickly. Using the bag wasn't a production and it never slowed us down. If I asked for the X-T1 (I was carrying and mainly using the X-T2 with the 16-55mm in my Ona Bag ), he could pull it out quickly for me and I didn't miss the shot. His third favorite thing about the bag was its style. It is a great looking bag and he didn't feel like he stuck out at all like one would with a typical day bag. He also appreciated the solid construction and the protective material on the bottom that makes ok to set the bag down on the ground. The front pocket also received a good review since it can be opened wide therefore he never lost anything down in the bottom of it. Keep in mind, camera gear, let alone camera bags are not something he generally thinks about, but by the end of the week he was ready to write Peak Design to tell them how much he loved the bag. He may still.

There are only a couple of things that did't work out so well, but we only noticed them since we were carrying a lot more gear than usual. The zip access in the flap is totally awesome, but we found that it doesn't work well to get larger camera bodies in an out of the bag. For grabbing the X-E2 with a small lens or the X70 it works great, but it's a bit of a struggle to get the X-T1 or 2 with the 16-55mm. Another slight issue was discovered with the strap, but I think it mostly had to do with the weight of the load. Over time there was some creep, and it had to be adjusted a couple of times a day. Thankfully, doing so is incredibly easy so that wasn't a huge deal.

We were definitely carrying more than normal on that trip. I don't usually carry a tripod, cable release, and filters with me all day. We had to carry more batteries because of the cold weather. We also stuck gloves and hats in there. Then there were all the other non-photo related items that went in too. A souvenir got tucked in a couple of times as well. It was full and heavy. With that type of load, it would have been more comfortable to have a backpack. Definitely. The bag itself didn't have any trouble handling the weight (except for the strap creep), it was having all the weight on one shoulder that became uncomfortable. But, he said he still preferred this bag since it was easier to use and looked more stylish than a backpack. Fashion over comfort, right?

A sample of what can easily fit inside the Everyday Messenger.
I was using my MacBook and had Netflix running on my iPad so they aren't pictured here.

To sum it up, with all these features it really is an Everyday Messenger, meaning you can use it just about everyday for most shooting situations. The larger model is remarkably spacious, and could even function as a flight carry-on. The smaller model would definitely be the perfect everyday bag if you don't need as much room. I think street photographers would appreciate its quick functionality and unobtrusive looks. The bag is solidly constructed and clearly a great deal of thought was given to every detail. It can also work well for non-photographers! Remove the dividers or don't and it can become anything you need. It is beautifully made and looks fashionable, while being tough and versatile. So, yes, when it comes to camera bags, the buck may very well stop here. I'm so impressed with it, I'm considering picking up a tan one. And, since their messenger bag has changed the world a little, I might even consider their Everyday Backpack to replace that old German bag down the road...