Tis the Season!

As the festivities come to an end with 2016 just around the corner, I thought I'd write a quick post about some new gear I got given for Christmas this year. I'd been wanting a new camera bag for a while as I don't like taking my chunky black Lowepro when I photograph weddings, and I happened to come across a company called Johansen who create stylish camera bags that look just like ordinary handbags! After a bit of research I came across the perfect one for me and luckily it was waiting for me under the tree on Christmas day!

I chose the Jo Totes Abby bag in a colour they call Marsala (a deep reddy purple).

The bag comes with velcro dividers so you can make as many compartments within the main bag as you'd like, which is great if you want to change it around each time you use it. For me, I have made 2 sections for my spare lenses and then my camera fits nicely in the middle with a lens attached. I will mainly use this bag if I'm going on a day trip or maybe a city break somewhere like Rome (hopefully one day!) when I'd like to take my camera but don't want to take my big camera bag as well as my purse. I will also use this bag for wedding photography as it looks a lot nicer than my Lowepro! If I took out one of the dividers and just took one spare lens for weddings then it leaves plenty of room in the main compartment for my flashgun and spare batteries etc. There are also 4 pockets on the bag which are perfect for holding my phone, memory cards, keys, business cards, and any other extras I might need to take with me. It also features 2 different straps - a long one for wearing it across my body and a short one for just having it on my arm.
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Overall, the bag looks great and has plenty of space for all the essentials plus any extras. I'm really excited to try it out as I've not really had the chance yet! 

Aside from my lovely Jo Totes bag, I was also bought a rucksack camera bag which is another thing I've been meaning to get for ages! When I go hiking and walking I always end up taking a rucksack for my walking gear (drink, map, gloves, phone etc.) and then my camera bag as well, but it can sometimes make it tricky having 2 bags when you need both hands to scramble or climb. My camera bag goes across my body so it makes me lose balance easily if I'm trying to clamber up a rock face, so I began researching camera rucksacks. However, I found that a lot of them, including the really well known brands such as Lowepro and Manfrotto, only had enough room for camera equipment and not any space for other essentials. This is not ideal when going on a long walk when you need to take a drink and a map with you, plus food, your phone and car keys! Eventually I found one made by a brand called Cristal. It was not a brand I had ever heard of before but the bag seemed like exactly what I was looking for! It has one large compartment at the bottom with padded edges where your camera and lenses go. It also has the removable dividers so again you can design it how you want. Then there is another large section at the top where all your walking gear can fit, with another smaller zip pocket on the front for things like spare batteries. 

I tried this bag out on Bank Holiday Monday on a short walk up Scout Scar and it seemed very comfy with plenty of room for everything - I'm looking forward to testing it out properly when I take it to Iceland with me in just over a week!

Apart from two lovely camera bags, I also received loads of gear ready for Iceland, a globe to plan out my next adventures, money to spend on a new lens, and a book on how to keep goats (it's a dream of mine to have pet goats)!

I hope everyone reading this has had a lovely Christmas with friends and family, and I wish you all a very happy New Year! Thankyou for reading my blog and for all the lovely comments I've received about my work over on my Facebook page and my Instagram account - please like and follow if you haven't already, many thanks!

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