Bags of Room

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The Kata 502 is very sturdily made with large, heavy-duty zips protected by double-layer overlaps. If all else fails, and the camera gear is in peril, then there is a draw string rain cover which is cleverly designed with a silver side, so it might also act as a reflector.

The interior portion of the bag may be accessed from the top or by unzipping it all the way around, to reveal the entire contents of the front portion of the bag. Fully unzipped like this, the contents are as accessible as a conventional toploading shoulder bag. There are door flaps to the interior, for added protection. The storage is infinitely flexible with Velcro dividers and everything is made in very bright yellow, a significant advantage in dim conditions as might prevail in a bird hide. A laptop may be stored in a special back portion of the pack.

The base of the bag is reinforced externally with a plastic plate and ribbed feet. The distance from the base of the bag to the top of the compartment is 21 inches, enough for a DSLR and 600mm lens but not an 800mm lens (focal length). The depth of the compartment is 3 inches at the top and 8 ½ inches at the base, sufficient for a typical 400mm f2.8 lens (with a diameter of approximately 6 ½ inches), provided it is placed lens downwards.

Overall, though, the Kata worked quite well. It is, however, far too big for the majority of users in terms of storage space – it is hard to conceive hauling that much gear to a location and our weight calculations have not included spare food, liquids and extra clothing. However, if you were to chuck out some of the nine lenses, you could soon generate enough space for these essential items. Photographers under 5’ 6” tall are likely to find the bag a little too long up the back even with the excellent adjustment capabilities; it looked far more the part attached to Gallagher than McNamee!

TOP PAIR: The authors with their respective loads. The Kata 502 is too big for a McNamee-sized photographer. Fully laden it represents too great a percentage of bodyweight. By comparison the Trekker is a more comfortable fit to the much taller Paul Gallagher.

Paul Gallagher ponders over the set-up of the Kata. The job was done in too much of a rush and the price was paid (by McNamee) in sore shoulders! A subsequent trip with a correctly adjusted pack was much more comfortable. In the shot above, Lorraine Alexander, of Lowpro, sets up Gallagher correctly, at Focus on Imaging. A sound piece of advice is to wait until you can 'try and buy' at a trade show. That way you can get specialist advice to best meet your requirements; bags are like Goldilocks’ porridge – too big and too small are both unsatisfactory! A number of bag manufacturers will be present at the Convention in January.

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Photo Quote: These people live again in print as intensely as when their images were captured on old dry plates of sixty years ago... I am walking in their alleys, standing in their rooms and sheds and workshops, looking in and out of their windows. Any they in turn seem to be aware of me. - Ansel Adams