Product Description

Domke F-6 Little Bit Smaller is an exceptionally discreet bag with a low profile exterior. Similar to F-2 Original Bag, but scaled down for less equipment, such as 1 or 2 cameras with or without motor drives, 3-4 lenses, flash, film and accessories.

Product Details

• Brand: Tiffen
• Model: 700-60D
• Released on: 2006-03-21
• Dimensions: 7.00" h x 6.00" w x 12.00" l, 2.00 pounds

Features

• Exceptionally discreet bag with a low profile exterior
• Ideal for one or two cameras with or without motor drives, three to four lenses, flash unit, film and accessories
• Nine compartments and pockets include two full-length zippered pockets
• Padded four compartment "short" Insert
• Adjustable non-slip Gripper Strap

Customer Reviews

A superior working pack, less so for equipment protection
Some general thoughts:

- The bag is smaller than I thought it would be. I bought it to use with a Canon 300D, 50/1.4, 100/2, 70-200/4L, and the 18-55/3.5 kit lens. This kit will fit, but it's slightly more cramped than I'd prefer. Since then, I've moved to a 40D, 28-135, 10-22, 50/1.4, 200/2.8, 1.4X TC, and a 430EX flash. This is really the maximum for this bag. One or two middle lenses less would be ideal.

To mold to your hip, the F6 has to have two open spaces in the center partition. It's really designed for people who have some other bag to *store* their gear, and want a quick working pack for travel. It's not supposed to be full. If you've got a big superzoom (100-400, 70-200 IS) or an equipment list similar to what's above, move up to the Domke F-2. It's nearly as discreet, but a lot more spacious.

- The only interior layout this bag has is a four-part partition held in place by velcro. If you remove the partition, it's just an empty space. On either side of the partition are larger areas that, in my case, hold the 430EX and the 200/2.8. The partition itself was designed for manual equipment; long and thin lenses, and film bodies without deep grips that could be slotted where I have the prime and the flash. That's Domke's graphic, anyway. It's both difficult and inconvenient to fit a DSLR in those areas, though, and you have to remove the lens.

The better solution, and the one I was forced to use because I have more equipment than before, is to have a moderately heavy lens like the 28-135 mounted to the camera at all times. Then you just put the camera face-down over an empty partition space. The malleable nature of the partition and the weight of the lens hold the camera in place, with the added bonus of freeing up space and having the camera ready to shoot.

While it's also possible to do this with the 50/1.4, the bag starts to feel slightly top heavy, so you'd want to have at least one side of the cover clipped to keep everything secure.

- There is no side padding on this bag. It conforms to the waist better for that reason, but don't buy it if you're worried about bumping your SLR. The front pocket, bottom pad, and the partition keep the lenses in the middle decently protected, though. If not for this light padding, the bag would not hold its shape.

If you fill the bag with the equipment list above, it'll feel like a brick on your side and will cause your shoulder to ache after a few hours. This could probably be mitigated with a padded strap addition.

- People tend not to assume that this Domke is a camera bag. On two occasions, I've been able to enter a sports venue without the ticket-checker bothering to look for equipment. While the front pocket is not padded, it can hold quite a lot. I was able to "hide" the 70-200/4L inside with little change in the bag's outside appearance.

- There are comparable Chinese rip-off bags by Mekko and Safrotto. They're high quality, and they cost about 30% less than this Domke bag. I bought the Domke because the olive green color wasn't available in the others, and the Mekko bags in particular have too many ostentatious logos I didn't feel like removing. Otherwise, they're worth a look.

- The rubber embedded in the strap is great if you wear the bag like a purse, but I loop the strap over the other side of my neck and across the chest. When I do that, the rubber makes it difficult to shift the bag in front of me without binding my shirt. No big deal, there's no rubber on the opposing side; it can be turned over.

- The two metal clips stink. They're small, fiddly, and difficult to unclip. There's no easy way to remove them, but if you're willing to reduce the resale value of the bag, you can replace them with superior mini-carabineers.

In general though, it's a handsome, functional bag that I'd buy again.

Well made, but a little small...
I ordered this bag because I wanted an alternative to the standard Lowepro/Nikon/Canon camera bags. This bag definitely looks like an everyday shoulder bag, very low profile, so it did not disappoint me in that respect.

I like to have my camera and lenses (Nikon D40 with 18-55mm lens, Sigma 10-20mm, and Nikon 10.5mm fisheye) with me at all times, however, which means that I like my bag to be able to hold other small things - a hat, my IPod, keys...you get the picture. Unfortunately, this bag was too small for that purpose and did not have as many separate storage areas as I would have liked. So, I ordered the Domke F-2 Original bag in olive (love the olive color) and am much happier with the storage options, as well as the removable padded bottom insert, which is not removable on the F-6.

Anyhow, this would be a great bag for travel and a small kit, to be used exclusively as a camera bag. But, if you're like me and like lots of outer pockets and storage options, I would suggest an upgrade to the larger F-2.

Domke F-6 : Great medium sized camera bag
So I bought this bag just two months after purchasing a 6 million dollar home bag from crumpler.

Interested in knowing why I didnt like the Crumpler(read on): The reason is, the crumpler bag had too much padding, I mean, I'm not going to throw the thing. And so I didn't have much room for my gear! Also, the Crumpler bag's main flap is a huge chunk of velcro and so there's no such thing as being discreet at a wedding or any other important event.

DOMKE F-6 REVIEW

Appearance: i love that it's not an obvious camera bag. I mean these days everyone owns a DSLR and it's just asking to get stolen in a typical camera bag which can be spotted a mile away. I got the olive color because everyone has sand. It's a bit greener than the photo appears, but I imagine that with use it'll become more army green.

Pockets: there's a front zippered pouch that goes aross the length of the bag. Fits a bunch of stuff. extra batteries, cards, my rocket air blaster, lens wipes, card reader, etc. There's a top zippered pocket on the main flap as well. I tend not to use that as much since my bag is pretty full and it adds strange bulkiness.

Clips: some people complain that they're too hard to unclip.. not really. I have very weak hands that shake after shooting for an hour but have no problem with the clips. If anything, you'd WANT them to be strong to ensure your gear won't fall out.

Mold: it's true, the Domke bag molds to your body. I like it because I know it won't fly off my shoulder or swing out in front of me when I bend over.

Padding: some people complain about the padding. Compared to the in store type of bags like Lowerpro/Canon/Crumpler it's true, it's definitely not as padded as those bags. The bottom comes with a thicker board for padding. Domke bags are used by some serious photographers, you'll never see them carrying something you can just buy at BestBuy. I'd think if you have expensive gear, you're gonna be careful with it. Ultra padding gives you a false sense of security, allowing someone to think that they can slide or toss their bag across the table/room. You do need to be careful with this bag but.. I would think you're being careful to begin with.

WHAT DOES IT FIT: here's an important question. This bag comes with a 4-section insert. Personally, I don't like this set up. With a 4-section insert, you can do one body with a short lens on it and scootch the insert all the way to the far end and stick other lenses and flashes, what have you. If you put the insert in the middle, you can put in two bodies but with no lenses attached.

WHAT I DID: I swapped out the 4-section insert with a 2-section insert. I have 2 lenses in there or 1 lens and a flash. And then two bodies with lenses attached to them.

- Canon 50D with 24-70 lens
- Canon 30D with 50mm lens
- 70-200mm L lens
- flash/another lens

And it fits fine. The bag actually stretches and molds around things so it's fine. I'm no professional, but i love this bag and it fits my needs perfectly.

4 stars in the end because i wish you could select your insert.. wishful thinking I know. but i'd much rather have two bodies with lenses on them and 2 additional slots vs. 2 bodies with no lenses on them. I want to be ready to shoot when the moment arises. Having to put on a lens .. you risk missing the shot.