Jon Sienkiewicz Blog

Last year Lowepro launched the ProTactic Series of gadget bags. They immediately earned high marks in my book because they are durable, highly functional and provide superb protection for the gear inside. Initially just two bags, the lineup has grown to six in total, three backpacks and three shoulder bags. Here’s a quick rundown on what they’re all about. 

What can you say about a camera bag that raised $4,869,472 on Kickstarter and won the hearts of 17,029 backers? Quite a bit, actually, starting with “Wow!”

This question has been bugging me since I first looked into the waist-level viewfinder of a Yashica D twin-lens reflex camera more years ago than I care to admit. I haven’t been more than three feet away from a camera since then, and clearly I am neither artist nor scientist. Explore a couple differing points-of-view with me and then please leave a comment and share your opinion.

My best friend’s daughter just left to study design in Europe and was given the standard litany of safety precautions by her parents. One city she’s visiting is notorious for street thieves—pickpockets and their ilk—so she was advised to be extra vigilant. I won’t name the city for fear of maligning it as a risky place for tourists, but I will divulge that citizens there eat more pasta per capita than anywhere else in the world. Lots more.

To say that the photo backpack category is a little crowded is like saying that a few people try to board the subways in Tokyo during rush hour. If you’ve ever been to the Land of the Rising Sun and attempted to take mass transportation around 1800 hours (6pm) you know what I mean. Hand-to-hand combat is easier, but probably no harder than trying to find a niche for a new product in this overpopulated photo accessory category.

A few years back, while waiting for a beautiful but thoroughly flakey model in the parking lot of a restaurant near Liberty State Park, my boredom was interrupted by a black Lincoln Town Car that slipped suspiciously past me and parked a few spaces away. After several minutes, two men exited the sedan. They were wearing tuxedos and looked rather serious. The trunk lid popped open. Ignoring me completely, they rummaged through the trunk. One of the men removed his tux jacket and strapped on a large black holster. A moment later, the other did the same. I slid down in my seat, wondering if I was about to witness some weird reenactment of High Noon, right there in Jersey City.

The concept isn’t new. Gamers have been using dedicated yokes, rudder pedals and throttles with Flight Simulator and aerial combat games for at least three decades. Even Super Mario racing games can be purchased with steering wheel controllers. But the Palette Kit from Canadian firm Palette is the most comprehensive set of alternative input hardware interfaces for Lightroom and Photoshop ever.