Last year Cree and I racked up over 60 flights traveling around the globe…I’m not sure it is a good thing when the United gate agents recognize you and say hello! But we love to travel for our photography adventures, and along with that comes carrying a lot of camera gear. One thing I learned early on from road warrior news photographers was to avoid carry huge backpacks loaded with gear through airports. You can spend hours standing around (ticket lines, customs, taxi lines..etc) with a large pack strapped to your back waiting at airports, and through the years your back and neck will suffer. So I started using rollers to carry my gear through the airports. I would pack my photo daypack into my suitcase and fill it full of clothes to utilize the space it took up. When I got to my destination I would transfer my photo gear into my photo backpack, and use the roller to store gear I wasn’t using during the day. This is the system I still use today (except Africa where I do carry a backpack due to weight limit restrictions).
The challenge with any luggage, and especially carry on luggage, is how heavy it is before you start loading camera gear into it. Many rollers are 10 pounds just empty, and those extra pounds add up. I started to use the Think Tank AirPort Advantage roller as my carry on. This roller is close to six pounds without gear, and does a great job carrying multiple lenses, standard bodies and speedlights. Better yet it fits in small commuter jets, and can even fit under a seat. But I had one problem with the Airport Advantage: my large Z9 camera bodies would stick up above the dividers, the case just wasn’t deep enough (although you can squeeze them in!). To solve this problem, I recently bought the Airport Advantage XT.
The XT version is about one inch larger on the main dimensions, and fits a vertical grip full flagship camera like the Z9 perfectly, it doesn’t rise above the dividers (note photo at top). Better yet, I can put my 400mm F2.8 in this to carry when needed. And the Advantage XT comes in empty under 7 pounds, very light for a carry on of this size. The case comes with plenty of dividers to customize the inside, and a rain cover for the outside. These cases wheel through airports like a breeze, and protect your gear in the overhead compartment. I’m headed to Finland and I will carry two z9s, lenses and an Elinchrom Three flash all in this roller., it is the perfect size.
I’ve used Think Tank rollers for most of my career, and they are built to last. The Think Tank Airport Advantage XT costs around $345. If you need a lightweight roller, this is a case worth considering.