ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

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Archive 2010 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

jdeaton21
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p.1 #1 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

Just got my 30 in this morning and I am already in love with this bag! It feels so nice and is very very well constructed. Im just going to do a mini-review of my first impressions of this bag.

As soon as I opened it up I could just tell it could hold a lot of stuff. The bag is very similar in size to my Crumpler 7mdh which I just sold, but it seems it will hold a little bit more stuff. Its not as padded as the crumpler which is a good thing to me at least. The bag is not as stiff so when carrying it, it forms to your body much better.

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Here is the bag loaded with my D300w/grip with 50mm 1.4d attached, on the left we have 85mm 1.8d with hood attached & 18-55mm beside it. On the right we have 17-50mm 2.8 and 55-200 vr. I know none of these lenses are huge, but there is still much much for room left in this bag for 2-3 more similar sized lenses.

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Here is another view of the lenses in the bag.

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Next you can see that the d300 with battery grip can easily fit in the front pocket and it has room to spare.

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Also the side flash pockets can easily hold a 50mm 1.4d or a 55-200vr with no problem.

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Here is everything I had in it.

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Even with all of that in there, there is still plenty of room for 2 bodys to fit in the front pockets and a couple more lenses or flashes. So far I am really diggin this bag. I will be trying it out a good bit this weekend and I will give more details of what I think of it in the near future.

May 28, 2010 at 05:22 PM

arashm
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p.1 #2 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

excellent
Thank you for posting
I want one of these bags

May 28, 2010 at 06:26 PM

tanglefoot47
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p.1 #3 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

I just got mine today and I am so happy I can just pee myself

This is one of the best bags I have ever owned. When I bought mine it was a tough choice between this 30 and the 20. I chose the 30 because it's larger but was worried I could not stand my 7D with the 70-200 2.8 IS attached vertically and to my surprise it fits perfect. I also like the fact it has some padding whereas the Domke doesn't. I also like the strap nice and wide and the pad is a nice extra. My only complaint is I ordered the Pinestone and it's nice but I think I would have liked black more. IMO this is the best shoulder bag on the market

thanks for posting and if anyone is on the fence about this bag? do yourself a favor buy it you will not be sorry

May 28, 2010 at 10:21 PM

mineymole
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p.1 #4 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

Just ordered mine in pine.

May 28, 2010 at 10:35 PM

jdeaton21
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p.1 #5 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

@tanglefoot47 It does have more padding than the domke and that was something I really liked about it. I always thought that the domkes looked cool and everything, but the lack of padding always bugged me. This bag is basically in between a domke and a crumpler. The crumpler had just a little bit too much padding so I think this bag is just perfect!

May 28, 2010 at 11:07 PM

tanglefoot47
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p.1 #6 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

jdeaton21 wrote:
@tanglefoot47 It does have more padding than the domke and that was something I really liked about it. I always thought that the domkes looked cool and everything, but the lack of padding always bugged me. This bag is basically in between a domke and a crumpler. The crumpler had just a little bit too much padding so I think this bag is just perfect!

I totally agree I have had both the Domke many different ones and the Crumpler and this is the bag for me. For it's size it holds a ton and it is imo close to the perfect bag

May 28, 2010 at 11:09 PM

AlexanderR
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p.1 #7 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

Thanks for the review. Please post a picture of it slung over someone's shoulder, just so I can get an impression of its bulk.

I have a Domke bag and the fact that it isn't bulky is part of what I like about it. This Retrospective series is pretty impressive though. I like the overall look/practicality of them.

May 29, 2010 at 12:22 PM

Jack M
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p.1 #8 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

For anyone that has the bag, how well does the velcro hold the flap secure? My concern is without a snap, the flap can open too easily and dump gear. I have the UD series bags and the velcro is strong but I would not trust it as the only latch.

May 29, 2010 at 02:12 PM

jdeaton21
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p.1 #9 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

@alexanderR I will take a picture in a little bit I need to test out a new b800 anyways

@Jack M the velcro is very secure, there is no way it will open on its own. Even when you have the velcro silenced the flap stays over the bag very well.

May 29, 2010 at 03:36 PM

jdeaton21
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p.1 #10 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

Heres a couple quick snap shots of the bag on me. Im not the smallest person im 6'1" about 185lbs. I think the bag size is very close to the size of the crumpler 7mdh and I do not feel that it is bulky or distracting at all. Its actually the most comfortable bag I have ever owned.

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May 29, 2010 at 03:57 PM

AlexanderR
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p.1 #11 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

Thanks. Perfect.

May 29, 2010 at 06:54 PM

tanglefoot47
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p.1 #12 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

Jack M wrote:
For anyone that has the bag, how well does the velcro hold the flap secure? My concern is without a snap, the flap can open too easily and dump gear. I have the UD series bags and the velcro is strong but I would not trust it as the only latch.

Velcro holds very well I ma not worried in the least. These are two nice sized Velcro plus the one thing I hated about the Domke more than anything is that stinking clip that is a royal pain to open.

May 29, 2010 at 11:07 PM

helimat
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p.1 #13 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

tanglefoot47 wrote:
I just got mine today and I am so happy I can just pee myself

Which is not terribly uncommon for a man of your... Er, 'vintage' is it?!

May 30, 2010 at 02:12 AM

tanglefoot47
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p.1 #14 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

helimat wrote:
tanglefoot47 wrote:
I just got mine today and I am so happy I can just pee myself

Which is not terribly uncommon for a man of your... Er, 'vintage' is it?!

Oh brother you got that right

May 31, 2010 at 04:39 AM

Jimmy Ho
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p.1 #15 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

erg...i wish i hadn't seen this thread.. now I want one.

May 31, 2010 at 04:44 AM

Beni
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p.1 #16 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

a pee?

May 31, 2010 at 09:39 AM

chaddoyon
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p.1 #17 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

Does anyone know how this line compares to the TT Urban Disguise line? I love my UD40!

-Chad

Jun 03, 2010 at 01:25 AM

hfgarris
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p.1 #18 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

I love the UD line, and I have several. I just received my Retrospective 20 and am liking it a lot as well. The biggest difference to me is the wide-open top as opposed to the zippered-slit of the UD bags. This makes it much easier to get the gear in and out of the bag quickly, especially the camera body mounted to a large lens. The bags are also a bit thicker to accommodate gripped/pro bodies. I don't have my cameras gripped, but I do have L-Plates on them, and the extra space does make it easier to work out of the bag.

I also like the mounting straps on the ends of the bag which can be used for hanging small TT modular bags from their modular belt line. This allows expansion for another lens, flash, or small "stuff" bag when you need it. I like to put my "support gear" such as chargers, card readers, cables, etc. in a separate bag that I can easily remove and leave in the room or car when I am out walking around shooting. It is nice not carrying the extra weight, and it keeps it all together so nothing gets lost or left behind.

-howard

Jun 03, 2010 at 06:50 PM

Jim Levitt
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p.1 #19 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

The only thing that worries me about these ThinkTank bags is the lack of end pockets for the oddball "stuff" that needs to be along on a shoot: blower brush, other lens cleaning items, pen/pad, cable release, spare battery, etc. This is something I really like about the Domke bags. Are there inside pockets on the Retrospective line for these sorts of items? Having to add another bag on the end kinda defeats the sleek design of the bag.

The problem with the Domkes is their divider system is stuck in the 1970's, designed as if we're all working with small manual focus lenses. Nobody there seems to have noticed that f/2.8 AF zooms have gotten huge.

Jun 03, 2010 at 10:04 PM

hfgarris
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p.1 #20 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

There is a unpadded expandable pocket at each inside end of the bag large enough to hold a 580EX flash, or other miscellaneous stuff. There is a velcro tab across the top of it to keep it closed and avoid snagging on a lens as it is inserted. There are also zippered pockets across the inside back and front of the bag.

I think they did make a mistake in not providing more stretch to the outside pockets on the ends of the bags. I like to carry a water bottle there, and they seem too tight on the Retrospective bags.

-howard

Jun 04, 2010 at 01:01 AM

Sam tran
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p.1 #21 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

I am one of those "vintage" folks, and one thing is concerned me about this type of trap-bag is for a long distant walk, it will weight like a ton on one shoulder, thus I would never go back to this design, instead buy one of the Kata's bag that allowed me to switch between a backpack (for long distant carry) and convert to swing bag (by remove one of the traps when I arrived at location) -which is easy to get my gear in & out. I gave up & sold the 6-millions bag for this reason.

Just my 02 cents.

Jun 04, 2010 at 01:23 AM

tanglefoot47
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p.1 #22 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

chaddoyon wrote:
Does anyone know how this line compares to the TT Urban Disguise line? I love my UD40!

-Chad

I would take this one in a heart beat over a UD40

Jun 04, 2010 at 03:40 AM

Savas K
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p.1 #23 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

Jim Levitt wrote:
The only thing that worries me about these ThinkTank bags is the lack of end pockets for the oddball "stuff" that needs to be along on a shoot: blower brush, other lens cleaning items, pen/pad, cable release, spare battery, etc. This is something I really like about the Domke bags. Are there inside pockets on the Retrospective line for these sorts of items? Having to add another bag on the end kinda defeats the sleek design of the bag.

There are places that sell zippered organizers with see through mesh that can handle the small stuff with a bag like the Retrospective. The organizers come in different sizes to suit. You give up a portion of interior space to accommodate the organizer.

Depicted are organizers I had on hand from computers bags long ago. I forget the make. The formerly useless pockets in my Tenba Messenger are now useful due to these mini-bags. The Tenba's upright slot pockets are too slim to get your hand into and things would be hard to find otherwise if you dropped stuff into them.

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Jun 06, 2010 at 01:49 PM

deepbluejh
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p.1 #24 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

Just reviving this thread to see if anyone else has this bag. Comments on it? How well does it handle multiple camera bodies? Also, any comments on stacking lenses inside the bag? It would seem like it might scratch up the barrels of the lenses.

Oct 13, 2010 at 04:52 PM

kennedyma
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p.1 #25 · ThinkTank Retrospective 30 review

hfgarris wrote:
I also like the mounting straps on the ends of the bag which can be used for hanging small TT modular bags from their modular belt line. This allows expansion for another lens, flash, or small "stuff" bag when you need it. I like to put my "support gear" such as chargers, card readers, cables, etc. in a separate bag that I can easily remove and leave in the room or car when I am out walking around shooting. It is nice not carrying the extra weight, and it keeps it all together so nothing gets lost or left behind.

-howard

This is one of the main reasons I'm glad I got the 20. I already have 3 lens changer 35s that I us on the speed belt. Now I can just attach one or two of them to the bag an bam I got a bigger bag, if needed. Also I can use the bag to carry a ton of stuff and then pop off the 35s and the bag now becomes a day bag.

A+++ for all ThinkTank products.

Oct 14, 2010 at 02:47 AM


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