Domke F-3x Review

I have been wanting to post my opinions of this bag for sometime as it has been grab and go bag for sometime. Let me give one caveat to start. This is not a professional product review, it is my review of how I use the F-3x, nothing more. I will discuss how I load it, etc. so read on if you find such things interesting.

We all know about the pluses of Domke bags. The durability, flexibility, room, etc. is almost legendary, and if you don't know about these things Jon at POTN will gladly remind you. What I want to discuss is what fit in this Tardis like bag (that was for the Dr. Who fans out there). So lets take a look at what this bad boy can do.

Lets start with a shot of everything I load in it as my grab and go F3-x. (Excuse the pictures, batteries in my 40D were dead so I used my wife's P&S)



Here is where everything goes.

Main Compartment:

• 5DII with grip and L-Bracket attached
• 24-105 f/4 L hood reversed attached to 5DII
• 17-40 f/4 L in wrap around pouch
• 85 f/1.8 hood reversed in wrap around puch
  

Front Compartment:

• Hood for 17-40 f/4 L
• RRS B87-B flash bracket
• Extra AA batteries
• Memory cards
• Body & Lens cap
  

End Compartment #1:

• 580EX II
  

End Compartment #2:

• Pocket Knife
• Flashlight
• Rocket Blower
• ETTL cord courtesy of FlashZebra
  
• Glasses
  

Back Compartment:

• Lumiquest ProMax System

Here are two shots of it loaded up.

Front:



Top:



Everything fits well and access to the items is very easy. Only catch is that I must remove the 5DII to get to my other lenses. But that is not an issue since I only need them when changing lenses so the 5DII is already out of the bag.

And for everyone's reference here is a shot of the F-3x with the main compartment open, just so you can see how things look.

Extra lenses only:



With 5DII:



I have to be honest that it took me some time to come to this configuration. I started out by not pushing the bag any and as a result what I fit in it was limiting. However, over time I found myself adding this then that, and eventually learning the beauty of a Domke, its ability to continue to take what ever you throw at it. In fact, I'm sure I could fit more if I really wanted to.

The only thing to be aware of is that the bag can get heavy fast as you continue to load it up. That is what led me to get a Postman's Pad. The pad is amazing, it makes carrying the bag no matter how full a breeze.

One question I often get is if a 70-200 will work in the F-3x. I'm sure it would, but I have to be honest in that when I use my 70-200 f/2.8 I move to my F2. I like the extra room.

I hope you find this useful. As I mentioned the purpose of this post is not be a formal review but to provide an idea of what can fit in the F-3x. I guess the final question is "would I recommend this bag?" My answer...without a doubt!!!

L-Bracket Heaven

So I finally knuckled under and got an L-Bracket for my 5DII. Thanks to my friends at POTN I was referred over to the folks at Really Right Stuff who make some fantastic products.

You might be wondering what the purpose of an L-Bracket is. Its a good question. But also a very simple one to ask. An L-Bracket is designed to keep you lens over the center of the tripod head regardless of shooting in Landscape or portrait mode. The prevents the camera from hanging off the side of the head, creating more stress on the head and most importantly prevents the aspect of the shot from changing. In one simple change you are able to move the camera from one orientation to the other and still have things line up. If you want a nice review of the L-Bracket advantage go check out this link at Really Right Stuff.

On to what I got...

I decided to use the L-Bracket on my 5DII only as my 40D is for sports and I don't currently have a pressing need for an L-Bracket. Since I always shoot with a grip I got the BGE6-L model which places the bracket comfortably on the camera with the grip attached. Below are a couple pictures of the bracket on the camera. (Note: I took pics myself, but the below from RRS are much better so I'm linking over to them. Thanks RRS!)


As you can see it fits very nicely. I was skeptical getting a bracket as I thought the size and weight would be an issue. Its not! This thing is light and I really don't notice it when shooting. I'm trying to leave it on all the time so I don't have to worry about putting it on when needed. Also, it attaches with a screw on the bottom which would make it a bit tough putting on in a pinch, so leaving it on has benefits.

Now there is one caveat to getting an L-Bracket, you'll need a clamp on your tripod head which can hold an Arca-Swiss type plate. As I use a Manfrotto 488RC2 I needed to make a change as the plate would not work. I ended up getting the RRS B2 LR II which is designed for the Arca type clamps. In the end all I had to do what replace the Manfrotto plate with teh B2 LR II and I was good to go. (Note: If you have a 488RC2 the Manfrotto clamp will be hard to get off as they use locktight on it. Just heat the clamp with a hair dryer to soften the locktight and it will come off easy enough.) Below is a picture of the B2 LR II on my 488.


In the end this setup works fantastic. The 5DII is a dream to mount with the L-Bracket and the clamp is much easier to use than the Manfrotto, I'm very glad I made the change. Let me know if you have any questions on this, I'd be glad to help out where I can.

Product Comparisons & Reviews

As you may have picked up already I like to use this blog to share information. Below are links for product comparisons. Just click the links and you will be taken to the sites. I will add to the list as I find new resources.

• PhotoNotes.org Complete EOS Lookup Page
• The Digital Picture Lens Comparison Utility
• Fred Miranda Product Reviews
• PhotoZone Product Reviews
• CF/SD Performance Database