The Ledger at NAB: a Camera Bag Field Test (REVIEW)

Ledger Camera bag by DOMKE/PHOTO: Odin Lindblom

Just looking at a camera bag, packing it with gear, carrying it around a little and then writing about it seemed like I’d be letting the bag off too easy if I called that a review; however, bringing that fully loaded camera bag to the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Show in Las Vegas for a week, now that would be a true field test.

First Impressions

At first sight the Ledger camera bag from Domke is an impressive yet understated piece of American made craftsmanship. The black Cordura helps keep the product from standing out as a camera bag which is good if you’re going to locations where it good to blend in. Upon close inspection of the Ledger, you’ll find high quality zippers, snaps and fittings as well as heavy Cordura nylon that is well stitched. The interior movable padded dividers and expandable front and side pouches seem very versatile, but what catches the eye most is the red interior pocket and the long red zipper for the thin padded laptop pocket with its soft cloth lining. The bag looks highly functional but how easy is it to pack?

The Pack

Ledger Bag interior/PHOTO: Odin Lindblom

For NAB, I knew I’d be shooting video and stills so I’d have a heavy load. A Canon DSLR, three lenses, a flash, large on-camera led light panel, audio recorder, handheld microphone, mic cable, earbuds, memory cards, filters, a lens cleaning kit, extra lens caps, an extra quick release plate for my monopod, business cards and batteries for everything (even to recharge my phone) all had to fit into this bag. When I laid out all the gear, I was certain it would not all fit.

Packing the Ledger was a breeze. The interior dividers were easy to arrange, and the side and front pockets expand to hold a lot of gear. The movable red pocket inside the bag looks like it was made for a phone but fit about thirty business cards. As for the laptop pocket it’s big enough for a 7” tablet and a 5” smart phone. I put my memory card wallet in there since if I lost the wallet, I could lose a whole day’s footage from the show. All my gear fit in nice and snug with a little bit of room left over. With the bag fully packed, it weighed in at over eighteen pounds. That’s a good size load to carry around the show.

For the last few years I’ve carried camera backpacks with the idea being that they would split the weight of the load between my shoulders so carrying all that gear would be a little easier. The Ledger is a single shoulder strap bag so I was a little nervous as to how my shoulders were going to feel.

Vegas!

I made it to NAB on Sunday for the sessions and events that took place before the show floor opened on Monday. Monday through Thursday I walked about 5 miles a day thru the exhibit halls, meeting rooms and hallways of the Las Vegas Convention Center with the Domke bag on my shoulder and hanging by my side. To my amazement, being able to switch shoulders made the bag more comfortable than a backpack. Having the bag at my side as opposed to on my back made getting to my gear a lot faster.

Designed to Perform

Top flap of Ledger Bag/PHOTO: Odin Lindblom

Some of the advantages of the Ledger become more apparent with use. Many camera bags similar in style to the Ledger have a top handle that is directly attached to the top flap of the bag which covers the main section of the bag where you’d store your camera and lenses. The only problem with this design is that if you forget to secure that top flap and you go to pick up the bag, it can tip over and spill out your camera and gear. The Ledger’s top flap has both Velcro and steel hardware to secure it but no attached handle. Instead the bag has two large D-rings on the sides of the bag which a short hand strap and the shoulder strap attach to.

The zipper on the top flap was handy; it allows you to open the top of the bag and get to anything in the center section without undoing the hardware that secures the flap. The zipper opens up wide enough that it was easy to get my camera out and place it back in. Thru this same opening, I could get to all of the gear in the center section of the Ledger. Even in a dark room, I could look down into the bag and see that red pouch I put my business cards in.

The Ledger has Velcro closures for both the top flap and flaps over the side pockets. These Velcro squares have small tabs you can fold over on to them that effectively disable the Velcro so that you can get into the bag quietly. This also was very handy.

Ledger Bag side pocket/PHOTO: Odin Lindblom

DOMKE Bag/PHOTO: Odin Lindblom

There is a small steel tag under the top flap of the bag that has the website and phone number for Domke as well as an ID number for the bag in case it is lost and someone finds it. Having once found a camera bag full of gear with no identifying markings on it or in it, I know first hand how valuable this can be.

I Worry Too Much

As soon as I had the Ledger packed with all my gear for NAB, I looked at it and started to worry. The top flap has steel hardware to hold it closed as well as Velcro, but the flaps for the side pockets only have Velcro. Those Velcro squares looked a little small. I got nervous about having my camera batteries and microphone in the side pouches. If I ran with the bag, would they fall out? Could the flaps blow open? I was going to Las Vegas so I wasn’t worried too much about rain.

A few days into the show the winds picked up. There were gust up to 50mph, and I was walking about a half mile back to my car as sand and debris flew around me. The flaps of the Domke bag didn’t open. When I got back to my hotel room, I was pleased to see that there was no sand in the bag. Those small Velcro squares were a lot stronger than I initially gave them credit for.

Final Thoughts

Ledger Bag DOMKE/PHOTO: Odin Lindblom

Overall, the Ledger bag from Domke was a pleasure to use at NAB. It made my work at the show a good bit easier. It can hold a surprising amount and provides a lot of protection for your gear. Domke offers a wide range of accessories to go with the bag as well as similar bags in smaller and larger sizes. They are all viewable on Domke’s website at tiffen.com/domke. With its $289.95 retail price, the Ledger proved to be well worth the money with its ease of use, features and quality construction. It was so easy to use I forget to get a picture of the bag while I was in Las Vegas. I kind of forgot it was there. Now that’s a good bag!