I also got an Athlete, and I'm really liking it! Although I do get an ache in my hips when most of the weight is there. I use full-frame mirrorless and I don't think it'll be a problem for the kit I intend to have, even if I was going for the best of the best (which I can't afford!) - Atlas have pictures of setups on their Instagram page if anyone wants to check to see if theirs would fit. I had them cut out one of the drop-down side pouches, leaving just the zip pocket on the hip belt, which is perfect for storing batteries easy-to-access. I'd also say: go for the larger rain cover from the Adventure bag, so it works even with a tripod on the side. And the money - yes, it's a lot, but it's not that much more than a major competitor, Shimoda. I think the Athlete cost me about £30 more including import etc, which was worth it for how much it compresses where the Shimoda ones don't.

Enjoyed this very much! I admit to having too much glass, but the one that stays on the camera is the 12-100. The 14-150 stays on the M5iii. Got to agree with you about the Peak Design clip. It’s useful on many things. Peak Design makes great gear. Your Atlas bag looks wonderfully convenient, but I couldn’t pick it up with all that stuff in it. I have to travel light unless I’m working from the car. Thanks for the information on the Topaz. I’ll look into it.

Camera bags, Back packs, which one to buy will always be a problem for most people, there's never been a perfect bag/backpack.....so I am glad you found yours, I don't carry much equipment in fact I hate carrying more than I need, so I guess I am lucky. Thank you.

Purchased mine around a year ago. Attracted to it for pretty much same reasons. Started off with same system as you but recently changed to Sony A7 3 and currently have 24>70, 70>200 & 200>400 in bag. Love cavernous too pouch. Great bag shame about import costs

I’m always in airports and just don’t have the stamina for a backpack. There I need wheels. I can easily trek for hours on end at a good clip with a properly supported backpack, but can’t stand stationary or slowly shuffle in a long queue for more than a few minutes before my broken and abused spine has me gobbling up the heavy medication. I have a camera backpack that rides my hips nicely, but it lacks a reliable way to secure it to the collapsible handle of my carry on roller bag. So I compromise with a Timbuk2 messenger bag that I love for travel reasons, but absolutely detest as a camera bag. Knowing you’re not a gear review guy I was unsure what to expect, but this bag and company warrants my further investigation. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and especially your decision process about this.

Nice video David, now you got thinking about the Atlas!

I hope you and yours are having a great Festive season, D Griff. Your channel is very likely my best KZread find of 2020.

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

Wow, thank you! Far too kind 😊👍

Excellent. Video. I have the same bag expensive yes but so comfortable I. Had a Nikon d850 70 200 lens. 16-35 lens and 24 70 lens all fit in. Camera. Section. Tight but worked Keep up the great work mate

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

Wow I take it all back about full frame then - that's good to know! 😊👍

Absolutely no excuse, Dave!! Very useful answers there, and I would also like to endorse the power of the Topaz plugins. I found them incredibly powerful when processing my bird photographs...

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

I reckoned you wouldn't even tune in, let alone stick around that long! Or did you use my sneaky trick where you skip forward to the end to find something to comment on to make it look like you watch the entire thing. Oh! Did I say that out loud? 😁👍

@GaryNormanPhoto

3 жыл бұрын

@@DGriffGallery How very dare you Dave!! Ok, I may have skipped a small part of the bag review 😬😂

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

Hahaha gotcha!! 😂

@GreenMorningDragonProductions

3 жыл бұрын

Being inherently rubbish is an excuse, and I am, so na na na na naaaah! Happy 2021 :)

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

@@GreenMorningDragonProductions hahaha 😁👍

Love the brolly! 👍👍 - Cheers David - T🙂

Photography is not an inexpensive hobby,but as one increases experience you can see the benefit of better gear. I just found Topaz sharpen . Amazed by the results.

Absolutely superb, that atlas bag looks like it ticks all my boxes! I’m not sure Hannah will let me spend £300 on one sadly, I might need to build up a case to present to her! Really enjoyed this video David, thank you!

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Sam, I was faced with a similar dilemma! Maybe once this damn virus is history and you 2 are back out and about more regularly you'll be able to swing it? If we manage our meet-up one day you can check mine out ... 😊👍

@BosePhotography

3 жыл бұрын

@@DGriffGallery I'm sure 2021 will be the year, I might need you to help me persuade her, she has just called out from the other room saying 'Damn straight you're not allowed to spend £300 on one!' 😂

Thanks David. You covered a couple things I was particularly interested in. Think I am one step closer to getting a couple Topaz Programs. Denoise and sharpen and may get the one that increases size/pixels. Thanks again.

I like your practical approach.

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

Many thanks Neville 😊👍

I absolutely love those clips..... I used a makeshift system many years ago that was no where near as good as those when I took a trip to Nepal many years ago. Sadly I have not seen them since 🥺. Senior moment I guess. Love the way you take just the kit you need.... you are much braver than me😔. I like to take everything just in case but there again these days I am reducing kit load as my body is not getting any younger. Nice vid as always Mr G

Nice to see that you mentioned the Peak Design clip. I'd been undecided on one for a while now, but it seems to be great on your setup. That bag does look amazing. Nice to see a kit review that shows how it used in the field. 👍

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

I'm a bit like an F1 team, always looking to shave a 10th off lap times. When I'm out, anything that irritates or could bear improvement is considered, then looked at against a cost with a value judgement. I'm pretty happy with how it all works now and that was part of waiting so long to do this sort of review 😊👍

Excellent video, as usual Mr. Griff. I liked your primer on lens changing--that's exactly how I've been doing it for years. My original E-M1 gets lens changes on pretty much every single outing; but thanks to always holding the camera face down, minimizing the lens change time, and probably the excellent sensor clean technology built into the Olympus, I have literally never had to deal with sensor dirt. My approximately one year old EOS R, already has a spot despite rarely changing its lens--not sure how that happened, but it does illustrate how quickly these problems can crop up. Now, as for packing your equipment, finding a backpack or shoulder bag that works for what you do, is worth its weight. A bad bag will quickly take the fun out of photography. My favourite bag is my first, an old Tamrac Velocity 5x. I have almost worn clean through the back simply due to use. Not the most expensive bag when it was still being made, but its dimensions, weight, and storage pockets made it just about perfect for my M43rds equipment. I have been less fortunate with recent purchases, one backpack, a Peak Design unit was such a poor fit for me that I wound up giving it away after just a couple of uses. That was an expensive mistake! I still need a good backpack, so I'll have to take a look at the Atlas products when I can afford to. I've tried all sorts of software over the years, and have settled on DxO PhotoLab 4. It's noise reduction algorithms are, in my opinion, superb--much better than previous iterations, and hands and feet better than Lightroom (again, that's just my opinion). I still use Lightroom, as well, for all my cataloguing and uploading, but DxO has become my primary raw editor. It really seems to handle Olympus files especially well. I did try Topaz plugins at some point, but they never really impressed me. It could be that I didn't give them sufficient trial time, I don't know. Anyway, thanks again for the informative video.

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Christopher, I always panic when I see people taking a lens off the camera when it's on a tripod and then fishing about in their back to find its replacement!! 😊👍

Good balanced discussion on the bag Dave, such a minefield on what to choose and pleased it works for you - i have recently decided on the Osprey Atmos 50 litre bag everything i need and nothing i don't - even has a full U zip opening on the front as well as the traditional top opening so using a camera insert bag will be great and will also use it alongside with my wild camping gear too so hopefully best of both worlds, as for camera clips i use a cheap chinese knock off based on the peak design, seems to work ok but time will tell lol 👍😁

@russellsprout2223

Жыл бұрын

Dick, how does the Atmos cope when attaching a fairly heavy tripod, please? Perhaps it doesn't have to in your case... Thanks.

Denoise is excellent i shoot with a 5D iv and have had great images with no visible noise at as high as iso8000 after running it through Denoise

An interesting review on the Atlas Athlete backpack, most of which I agree with, with one huge exception. I've had one for almost 2 years now and like you got hammered with the import duty to the UK. I'd been looking for a backpack that would take more than just camera gear for ages, one that could take your flask, food, waterproof, jackets etc., without too much faffing about. After watching several You Tube reviews this seemed the ideal solution. After liaising with Atlas direct to make sure I was getting the right size, I took the risk and ordered one. I love the design of the Athlete pack but without doubt this is the most uncomfortable backpack I’ve ever owned, and I’ve had dozens, and that includes many walking and camera backpacks. The problem is that I’m on the large size, 6ft 2” and with broad shoulders and for me there is an inherent design flaw with this bag. The top of the shoulder straps where they attach to the backpack are at an angle, ie., they are not horizontal, plus the straps are excessively padded which makes them very stiff and inflexible. Unfortunately this means they won’t lie flat/parallel to my shoulders and the edge of the shoulder strap digs into the back of my shoulders. This is irrespective of whether I use the waste belt or not. I’ve tried all sorts of adjustments to try and improve this but nothing works and I find after 3 or 4 miles it’s unbearable. I had hoped after time the straps would become more flexible with use but they are still excessively stiff after almost two years. I think for most, with a smaller frame than me, will be fine. For those who are tall and/or with broad shoulders, unless you can actually try this bag first, I certainly would not recommend risking that amount of cash. If anyone has suggestions of how I could improve/modify this bag I'd be interested to know. Oh, and don't bother with it if you're full frame. I could get my 5DIII in but only at a tight squeeze. I now use an EOS R which fits fine.

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks for that input John, that will be really helpful to people of a larger stature. Of course, being a total shortarse it works just fine for me as you saw! But that is quite a good cautionary tale when it is such an expensive bag and I wouldn't want people to feel they wasted their money based on my ill-informed recommendation. Although, some other people have written in saying they also have no problem with full frame equipment and as I mentioned a friend of mine carries full frame equipment all over the Lake District with no problem in this particular pack. Of course, in the event that you have a very large selection of lenses that would be a problem but I think the standard trinity does seem to fit okay by all accounts. 😊👍

@Mrbluesplayer43

3 жыл бұрын

@@DGriffGallery You can get a EOS 5DIII in vertically but it's a tight squeeze and the top pushes against the backpad, so not ideal. Had the compartment been 1/2-inch deeper it would fit absolutely fine, so their website is a little misleading as regards to full-frame if you've got a Canon.

@AtlasPacks

3 жыл бұрын

Hey John. Just wanted to let you know you can connect with us via chat on our site and setup an online fitting session. We guarantee that you will love the fit of your Atlas Pack and are here to help. It sounds like the hip belt may not be in the right spot or not the right size and it's putting too much pressure on your shoulders. Please do connect so we can get you sorted out. Thanks, Allan

@Mrbluesplayer43

3 жыл бұрын

@@AtlasPacks Hi Allan. I've tried just about every adjustment possible and tried with and without the waist belt, but no matter what the adjustments are, it's the angle and the inflexibility of the shoulder straps that makes this backpack so uncomfortable for me across my shoulders. If you read my comments thoroughly you'll know this. I have many other backpacks, both photographic and hiking and have used a multitude of backpacks for over 50 years but never experienced one as so uncomfortable as this. I'm a large frame with broad shoulders which therefore poses the problem.

@Mrbluesplayer43

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Dave, I have another query on your Atlas pack if you don't mind. You say the the waist belt is easy to remove but I find it a right pain in arse to remove and put back and wonder if I'm missing something here. The side flaps that contain the fold-out pockets are attached to the main waist belt with straps with threaded buckles and I find theses awkward to undo and even more awkward to re-attached as the end of the straps are folded over and stitched making threading them back through the buckle quite difficult. Are yours's different to mine, or do you just leave them undone? Why they didn't use some buckle clips here is beyond me.

Mountains don't move much! Are you kidding? A photography friend of mine will beg to differ, he has plenty with motion blur. 🤣 Look forward to seeing you in the hills again Dave.

I've had an Athlete for around two years now. Yes it's expensive, but fairly similar to Shimoda and other high end brands where I live. Excellent pack IMO, but it's not deep enough for tall cameras to be stored with a lens on. Works fine for me though (MFT-equipment). I'd wish for more stretchy fabric in side pockets and some stretch for a tighter fit on the lid, but no major complaints.

Great video mate. A camera bag is so personal isn’t it! Looks like a great bag though! Hope your keeping well mate

Nice set-up you've got there Dave, the pouch idea is a good one. Good advice about exposures Sir 👍 - Regards, a landscape photographer that spends all his time in the studio 🙂

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

Hahaha I was thinking of someone not too far from you! 😊👍

love following The Leader

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

Cheers Gary!! 😁👍

Hi Mr Griff, I have had a capture clip for over a year, but has started jam up when your getting the camera off. What am I doing wrong please. It seems worse in cold weather. Might get me one of them back packs too. Great video.

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

My clips have worked fine, but the fit is snug to prevent rattling. A little spray of WD40 might ease it ... 😊👍

Plenty of CCKO Peak style camera clips on Amazon - mine was

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

As you know I'm a big fan of CCKO, but trusting one to hold a couple of Kg is a big ask when you're climbing! 😊👍

Nice video. What post processing software would you recommend?

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Philip, I use Adobe, so Lightroom & Photoshop, although PS is a result of using it professionally every day since 2003! I'm not sure its necessarily the best for new users though, although there is a huge amount of tutorial resources because it's a the biggest player and kind of the industry standard. So, if pressed, I'd have to say that as long as you're prepared to accept the learning curve then Adobe would be my choice if I was starting again. Also in terms of understanding processing as "an art" the investment of time and effort gives a great return from this software because you kind of, by extension, get a good understanding of the underlying principles of image processing. Adobe doesn't "hold your hand" outside the fundamentals. There are few click and point easy features which have been promoted by other software. But Adobe forces you to understand and develop a craft which will stand you in good stead over many years. In my case, 17 of them so far!! 😊👍

@philipmorgan6210

3 жыл бұрын

@@DGriffGallery Thank you.

Hello! Thanks for the video! Two things I was looking for - the link to your friend Tammy review of the Atlas bag, and a link in your gear list for the umbrella. It might be the revoltingly (joking) early hour on a Sunday morning but I came up short on both. Might you please indulge me? My use case for both is almost identical to yours and the equipment could be a real boon! Thank you!

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

Hello Cat. I've added the link to Tammy (kzread.info/dash/bejne/rGiplrx-eZzFfqQ.html)m and the umbrella can be found at www.sixmoondesigns.com/. Hope these are helpful, and thanks a lot for watching 😊👍

@CatMilton1

3 жыл бұрын

@@DGriffGallery Thank you very much! Have a lovely day, and as a fairly recent new subscriber I'm much looking forward to your next video(s) 🙏

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

@@CatMilton1 Thanks so much for tuning in 😊👍

I love the idea of having a Peak Design clip, but I use an L plate on my camera, which unfortunately precludes the ability to use the clip

@neilt

3 жыл бұрын

Yup, me too.

@DC.images

3 жыл бұрын

And me

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

3 Legged Thing do a combined L bracket and PD clip 😊👍

@hyphenphotography

3 жыл бұрын

@@DGriffGallery really? I'm on the case 👍

@bosiefoobar

3 жыл бұрын

@@hyphenphotography Yup, i have been using that for a while, works great: www.3leggedthing.com/store/ellie-pd-c or attach the peak design clip onto the bottom of the l-plate. you shoudl be able to 'chain' it (at least works on my l bracket). edit: FYI the 3 legged thing l bracket only works with the latest version fo the camera clip

When he said "Back in the day, when exposure was a real art" I thought he was going to say a when exposure was a real arse!

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

Hahahah I should have!! 😁👍

Click bite? Thank U! =D

So, you got a huge backpack, while actually all you need can be handled with that small pouch on your hip, and the CCKO Peak style camera clip :P Not being sarcastic, bit more like, you can be a minimalist.

@DGriffGallery

3 жыл бұрын

Well, I'm afraid you are incorrect for a few pretty obvious reasons. Firstly that I make videos and therefore carry quite a lot more gear than the average M4/3 shooter. Since my photography is important to me and the ability to capture images in all types of conditions and styles I carry additional lenses from extremely wide angle to very long telephoto. For video purposes I also carry a drone. And, of course, there are times when you are quite right I can travel light especially if I am just on one of my local beaches. However, even if I were not a photographer I wouldn't contemplate travelling into the mountains without basic safety equipment, food, water, clothing layers, medical kit, emergency busy, map, compass. All the sorts of things that I would be embarrassed not to have with me in the event that it was necessary to call out mountain rescue volunteers. That, and of course, the fact that they might save my life. So I would have a backpack whether or not I was a photographer. 😊👍

@eddelarie8161

3 жыл бұрын

@@DGriffGallery it was done with a wink, but yeah, you need a lot of gear. Your photostyle demands it. I try, let me emphasize that, try, to get out minimal, and end up like holiday is starting.

Hahaha, about fools spending a fortune on glass! Absolutely spot on! Just wait till your subscribers get beguiled by Sony Northrup and buy into FF and spend an even greater fortune on very very expensive FF glass and expecting to find the Holy Grail of Sharpness!