Billingham 445 Nytex

Star Rating Superb for most users

Billingham 445 Nytex in Khaki I purchased my first Billingham Camera bag in 1981 to replace a Tenba P211 that I had outgrown, I was saddened recently to have to buy my second billingham bag late last year, however, I probably shouldn't complain, 24 years of being ragged about in the boot of the car, and generally abused would be enough for anyone.

The new Billingham bags are a great improvement over the old ones, the one that I have replaced had a plywood base covered in closed-cell foam, that had pick out sections so that you could insert dividers. In the 20 odd years that I owned it they never really stayed put, no matter what I glued them with, not only that the dividers when they got knocked out of shape (even if for 30 seconds) would remember their new position and not got back to the place that they had spent 10 years sitting in.

Even though the bags are a great improvement over the 1981 vintage, they have kind of been left behind by the technology. Cameras are substantially larger than they were, lenses are substantially larger than they used to be, and we carry far more ancillary equipment than we used to.

With two motor-driven bodies and 5 lenses, 30 rolls of film, a dozen spare batteries and assorted other gubbins, plus a change of underwear and socks, the Billingham coped very well in the 1980's. Now 20 years later trying to use a Billingham for 2 EOS1D bodies, a 16-35mm, 28-70mm and a 70-200 F2.8 and two 580EX and a laptop just doesn't cut it.

The inserts supplied with the bag (and it is the second largest bag they do) are two small to hold the lenses. There is little, if any room for spare batteries and as for charging equipment, forget it.

On a recent trip to Rome, I had the basic outfit, plus a Casio EX-z750, 6 EOS1d batteries, two pairs of socks, skiddies, spare shirt toothbrush and it was rammed. No laptop charger, no battery charger, and a fleece beneath the grab handles, and it just fitted in the overhead locker. Had I been there for more than a few days then alternative arrangements would need to be made.

However if you are dealing with older 35mm film equipment then this is the bag for you. Despite the fact that getting any of my kit to fit in the bag is a real pain in the arse, I still love this bag, and use it when I travel or require just the lightweight kit.

The attention to detail and quality of materials is every bit as good as it ever has been. If you fancy a Billingham do not go for the Canvas option, it is heavier, not any harder wearing, and in the event that you do get water soaking into the bag, it will take longer to dry out.

These bags don't claim to be waterproof (any material that is stitched will struggle to be) however in all the years that I have had a Billingham I have never had any water ingress. which when you consider where these bags have been is remarkable.

This bag is great for the traveller, whip out the camera equipment and the partitions and you have an ideal weekend bag, enough room for a change of shoes, trousers, shirts and toiletries etc (obviously no god for the female of the species, who generally need to call Pickford's Removals just to leave the house for 20 minutes).

Billingham have made a number of updates since the early version I started out with, they've improved the padding just about everywhere, they can supply a laptop pouch for the 15" Powerbook (which is a good snug fit) or the 12" iBook.

The one change that I do not like is that the change to the fastening on the uppermost lid, and the fact that you can no longer clip the top edges of the bag back, so that you can gain unimpeded access to the main compartment of the bag.

Do not buy one of these bags on a whim, they were expensive, and when they changed distributors a year or so ago, they leapt in price, so now they are ridiculously expensive. Take you kit into your nearest retailer and try every combination and find one that suits. There is nothing worse than buying a bag and finding it less than adequate, whilst you will marvel and the craftsmanship and the quality of the materials, if it is sitting in the back bedroom, it is never going to get that lovely aged look to it.

I will continue to use the Billingham, although as the inserts are not an awful lot of use for modern AF kit, I am looking for an alternative method of protecting the equipment. LowePro pouches are no use as they are too bulky. Which is a shame as I have a lot of them.

One of the options that I am currently investigating are the Domke inserts and the Domke Wraps, which are reviewed elsewhere on this site.

If you have any experience with the Billingham inserts that are more favourable than mine please let me know.

Please feel free to contact us on 075 88 66 95 80

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