Billingham Hadley

Every keen photographer should one at least one Billingham - and a Hadley at that. I have a number of Lowepro bags - 2 shoulder bags and 1 large backpack and think they are great. But for taking a small kit "out and about", nothing beats a Hadley - the materials used a superb; the style is neat and functional; the look is not so "camera bag"; the comfort os good; the padding protection is one of the best in the game. The leather trimmed canvas looks, feels and performs superbly - a pleasant relief from the usual nylon materials around. The removeable well designed and modular padded inserts are the nicest and maybe the best protection in camera bags. This design enables the bag to be multipurpose - laptop bag; general travel bag; camera bag etc.. Most of all there are 2 omissions I really wanted and the Hadley has nicely omitted them - velcro and zippers! I hate the noise of velcro and the damage risk of zippers - scratching bodies or lens glass. Mostly I use my hadley for my Leica M gear - right size for a body (or 2) and 3 or 4 lenses; film; bits and pieces and filters. I also use it for my Xpan. If I did not already have my Lowepro bags I might have also go a larger Billingham for my MF gear. Yes, they come at a premium price, but the best always does. They are also very very durable and I cannot see mine lasting anything less than a life time. Finally, Billingham's web site makes it easy to feel your way around models and styles to select the best for your needs. As a personal accessory this is one of my favourites - bags are a personal choice and like cameras one often needs more than one - different horses for different courses. I really like the front leather straps that connect to a stud as a closure mechanism - easy to use, adjustable and no noise when one wants to be discrete.

Quality of materials and finish. Excellent well thought out design. A lovely accessory for any purpose.

None. Maybe a bit expensive despite the great quality - but quality does come at a premium price.

Lowepro, Domke and camera manufacturer bags over the years.

None required. Great web site to chose a bag to suit.

I own the small Billingham Hadley photo bag, black in color. Handy front snap pockets for small items. Inside the bag, there are 2 spaces for thin items like booklets, notepads or pens/pencils. In the rear, there is an undivided space for much longer items like 8.5x11 note paper folded lengthwise or a thin filter pouch. You could really store anything in these areas as long as they fit. The padded storage section is organized with 3 handy removable padded velcro dividers. The padded section can be removed leaving an unpadded shell. With the padded section, this bag allows for 1 35mm SLR cam with normal lens and one lens apprx 120 mm. Remove the padded section and you can fit 2 35mm's with strd lenses. In the 2 front pockets I described above, you could carry 1 or 2 thin or very compact digital cams or point and shoots easily. If you have lots of gear, purchase a larger bag.

Handy front pockets and removable padded storage area. Padded velcro protects well. Low maintenance bag. 2 leather outer straps secure the bag nicely. Easy to access gear while walking. Quality construction and materials used. If you do not like a lot of clutter and have a small amount of gear, this bag can be for you.

Carry across your neck and shoulder due to shoulder only creep unless you support bag from underneath with your palm which gets annoying. Could use a neck pad along the top of the strap. Price might guide you to a more economical choice. As nice as this bag is, it is too small should you plan on adding lenses and camera bodies.

n/a

None required.

Good for small stuffs. If you love to take out your cameras for your city life, this is the one of best bags. Good enough space for small 35mm stuffs. And also can carry middle format cameras in this small and shapely bag.

Well made. Big space for it''s size. Antique design.

Price

Trim Trekker/Lowepro

Not needed.

Great bag but very expensive. It is worth every peny I spent. The Hadley Pro is particularly good with the built-in handle on the top flap. The Hadley Pro can also have Avea pockets attached to the sides. I also like the classic styling. The quality is superb where ever you look.

It can handle a huge amount of equipment. With a bit of stuffing around (though not recommended), I manage to squeeze in one Canon EOS5 body and a 24mm and a 70-200 lens, and a Hasselblad 2000FCW with 80mm and 150mm lenses. Great for travelling as it has lots of places for putting things like maps, tickets, brochures, etc. Upon removal of the lining, the bag will turn itself into a useful day bag.

None.

LowePro

No experience.

It is a great bag for a compact system. It does not stand out with a "CAMERA BAG" label on it. Great material used for the bag and provides enough protection to my gear.

1) Great bag. Lots of room and fits my needs. I use the Contax G2 system with 4 lens, compact tripod, and flash. Fits great and still have room for my shades or my compact digital camera.
2)Take out the padding and you can have a great weekend bag!

3) Really waterproof!

Lack of accessories. Billingham has all these side pounches/ pockets, tripod straps, backpack harness...etc, but none of them would fit the Hadley.

Domke, Rowi

Poor, I mean Billingham. I have sent them around 3 emails on issues of accessories and they have never replied any...

For Robert White, the replies were prompt and informative. Answered all my questions. They have the best price over the net too!! For the price I paid for, that comes with a shoulder pad too!