Compact yet roomy, and enough room for iPad or netbook too.

Even though I’m not on photo assignment for this trip, I’m still a photographer and want to have a good kit with me. One of my favorite bags for these situations is the Lowepro Classified Sling 180 AW. I like that it holds my DSLR (Canon 60D on this trip) with 70-200 f/4, 16-35 f/2.8, 50 f/1.8, and 18-55 kit zoom. Plus I have flash, filters, and all of the accessories. The front pocket holds an iPad, netbook, or 13″ MacBook Air. Yet the entire package is very compact. (You can see a short video about how a MacBook Air 13″ fits in the Classified).

The other thing that I really like about this bag, is that it’s made of premium components. The fabric, zippers, strap, and compartments are all top notch. When I walk into a meeting with the Classified, I feel like a professional.

Derrick Story is the Photography Evangelist for Lowepro.

Traveling by private charter is the only way to go — no lines, no security checks and they actually feed you! We arrived in Churchill to find snow on the ground and temperatures below freezing — perfect for a polar adventure. I wonder how Buchachon is taking this, though. The climate is definitely (forgive the pun) polar opposite from his home in Thailand. I’ve peeked over his shoulder to see some of the images he’s been taking and definitely understand why he is our contest winner. I’ll try and share one or two in future posts.

A couple of folks saw a polar bear on the ice when we were landing — and we had a wonderful encounter with a red fox this afternoon. Highly inquisitive, he meandered all around us for a full five minutes, winding his way closer and closer. We also saw the kids from Project Polar Bear — and we’ll catch up with them again for interviews and polar bear watching in a couple of days. We checked out the polar bear jail — a holding facility used for bears who won’t keep their distance. This is a great program that relocates the bears thus protecting both them and the residents of Churchill.

Tomorrow will find us on the Tundra Buggy and it promises to be a great day. There are a lot of bears around waiting for the ice to come in — so far, both the river and the bay remain unfrozen. For a sneak peak of what’s in store for us, check out this video: Blog from the North.

Our group is an interesting mix of pros and enthusiasts. We have a videographer from New York and a National Geographic photographer with us — more on that in coming posts. We’ve also had some Lowepro sightings — a Flipside and SlingShot are being put to use by two of the members of our group. And, of course, Buchachon is using his new Flipside 500 Limited Edition bag (sorry, it’s not available for sale).

Stay tuned for more tales from the north…..

Today I’m headed to Winnipeg, Canada, where I’ll be meeting Buchachon Petthanya, the winner of our My Favorite Things photo contest. He’s coming all the way from Thailand — and here’s a little travel alert that made for a bit of excitement on our end. If US visas are required to visit the US, then they are now also required for any connecting flights through the US. This was something we didn’t discover until Buchachon was checking in at the airport. Argghhhhh!

Thanks to a great ticket agent at United Airlines, we averted disaster and got Buchachon rerouted through Tronto instead of Seattle. Here’s a picture of him receiving some of the other prizes from Dejchart Buranabunpot, our distributor in Thailand.

During the trip, we’ll be spending a couple of days on one of the Tundra Buggys, operated by Frontiers North Adventures. These are really cool, monster Humvees — and should give us some great photo ops with the polar bears. We’ll also be catching up with the kids from the Project Polar Bear Contest and the folks from Polar Bears International. To say that I’m excited is an understatement!

For this trip, I’m packing my Fastpack 350 — and it’s packed to the gills. I have a Canon T1i with two lenses — a 28-300mm and a 16-35mm; a Canon SD1200 IS point & shoot, an Exacti compact camcorder, a laptop, card reader, extra batteries and chargers, cords, cables and adapters — plus all my personal stuff. Did I mention before that I never quite learned how to pack light?  Amazingly enough, with the padded waistbelt, it doesn’t feel heavy at all.

So watch this space over the next few days. I’ll be sharing pictures and hopefully video of our adventure up north.

Another of my favorite components in the new S&F System is the Quick Flex Pouch for your flash. It’s SlipLock compatible, so you can use it with a variety of Lowepro bags and belts. The sloped shape keeps it from feeling bulky, and the spring-loaded flap closes after you remove your flash. I have a short video where Tim Grimmer demonstrates how the Quick Flex Pouch works.

Derrick Story is the Photography Evangelist for Lowepro.

One of the many things that I like about PhotoPlus Expo in NY, is chatting with the photographers who visit the Lowepro booth. They’re interesting and are happy to share their knowledge. We provide a place for them to show off their stuff too.

Here’s a short video featuring Lou Jones. I first met Lou at PhotoPlus last year. He’s a master with portable, off-camera flash. So I asked him how he’s packing his Pro Roller x200. Here’s what he had to say.

Derrick Story is the Photography Evangelist for Lowepro.

When building the right Street & Field system for you, the choices you make for the foundation components are very important. I noticed today, in the Lowepro booth at PhotoPlus, there were lots of questions about the different belts, harness, and technical vest. If you’re curious about these pieces, I have a great video for you. Tim Grimmer walks you through each to help you make the perfect choice for your S&F system.

Derrick Story is the Photography Evangelist for Lowepro.

When you have to make flight connections during a cross-county trip, it’s great to have all of your gear onboard with you. As long as it’s manageable, that is. You don’t want to be the guy trying to force a full size suitcase in an overhead bin. With my Lowepro Pro Roller Attache x50, I had no problems making my connection today.

Plus, I discovered a feature I hadn’t noticed before. Here’s Scene 2 in this series, shot in the Phoenix airport.

Stay tuned for the next installment: hitting the streets on Manhattan with the reconfigured Attache x50.

Derrick Story is the Photography Evangelist for Lowepro.