Carrying camera question

I've been reading about money safety and different ways to separate items in case of theft, and I will do that. It seems the theme is don't leave anything valuable in your pack - when you put it on a bus it could get picked through, stolen. So I am keeping passport and cards and cash all on me.

However, I love photography, and I plan on taking lots of wonderful photos of the region. Obviously it would preferable not to leave it in the pack for above reasons. So should that also be kept on my person without exception at all times as well? I plan on being careful by not putting my pack down and turning away, I'm pretty good at that, always check where my stuff is. But if I put my pack on top of a bus or something, it could be out of my sight for awhile - and targeted.

It is a fairly new nice digital. Any experiences from others regarding carrying/packing cameras?

i carry an upper end nikon and have never had a problem. however, i keep it with me and wouldn't consider putting it on top of a bus. if you take the same precautions you would take in any large city, you'll be fine. please share some of your pix when you get back......don

I always carry a small daypack as well that I take on the bus with me, and my camera stays in there. I keep it by my feet. It's tempting to put it in the overhead rack but I've met people who have had their bags nicked from there too. Especially on long journeys you may be asleep or just not paying attention looking out the window and listening to music. It's very easy for someone to pick up your bag and walk off with it.

same here. We take the bus from the Pacific side of Costa Rica all the way to the Panama border on the Caribbean side. We always carry a smaller pack that we carry in our laps during the trip. A more common place for you to get your pack lifted is if you are on a big enough bus that it has an overhead rack above the seats. We never put anything up there. Definitely have that extra day pack and keep it in your lap.

I find that a fanny pack that I wear where my dominant hand can rest on it is fine for camera and odds and ends. As for overhead racks, they are fine if you are NOT going to doze off and you either leave some part of it hanging over so that you can see your pack is still there or you leave it clearly visible across from you. If you may doze, leave it locked and cable locked to something solid up there.

nonetheless, ALWAYS BACK YOUR PHOTOS UP AS YOU GO, you never know whats going to happen sometimes and losing just a camera as opposed to hundreds of memories doesnt even compare. get them burned on a cd or better yet find an internet hosting site.

I use the same pack system as Mayaphile. A fanny pack for camera, ID, etc. and a small backpack that I keep on the overhead bus rack "across from me" where I can see it. I don't dose off on bus rides. It seems that everytime I read about a pack being stolen from an overhead rack the owner "just dosed off for a short while". If the bus isn't crowded I keep the pack on the seat next to me or on the floor between my feet.

Although I know that a lot of people burn CD's or download there photos to a web hosting site I have not had good luck with computer equipment at internet cafes and such. The less I have to mess with computers when I'm on vacation the better. I just bring several extra memory cards.

I've never tried putting my photos on the web as I go either but I travelled with some girls that were doing it and they spent HOURS in internet cafes.

I agree with #6- I try to have more smaller memory cards rather than one big one, in case one gets lost or corrupted. Or burning CDs would work.

The lock and cable is a good idea - I leave in 12 hours so I hope they sell that stuff in London or Miami airports!

I bought a bright and sharp looking North Face day pack - but now that just seems stupid. Better to buy some cheap Maya shoulder bag or something for a daypack, as people have mentioned on this site. So camera is now on me at all times. Thanks for the advice.

I will reiterate....do not put your stuff in over head racks on the buses. It's great that mesacrow doesn't dose off on buses........that is no gaurantee. It only takes a couple of seconds of being distracted or looking the other way. A friend of ours put his pack above him on the rack. he did not dose off. someone simply reached from a couple of feet behind him, casually took the pack from the rack while he was talking to someone sitting next to him. The theif simply walked to the back of the bus and got off at the next stop.......pack gone, travelers cheques gone, passport gone. don't take the chance or advice of someone that flippantly says "I don't dose off on buses". That is just foolish.

you'll notice the locals all chain their hard sided bags to the luggage racks...

my camera used to be in my day pack, which is always at my feet (even in a cab in the US) - often with a leg through the shoulder strap. If its not in the day pack, its in the crumpler camera bag slung across my shoulder/over my chest. Nothing valuable should be in the bag that is on the top of the bus. Including medication...

I see such dogmatism, dkt2u! I do doze on buses, so that is why I use a cable lock with a chosen combination. The next time you are on a local bus with overhead space, look and you will see a lot of straps hanging down and clearly visible to the owners. I think that even just tying a bag that is right above you to something solid would slow down or deter a would be thief. They have to reach a good distance to reach it and then ease it toward them. To each his own, though.

not dogmatism, just good sound advice. I agree "to each his own", but I will continue to give the advice to be "better safe than sorry". It is somewhat different for a very experienced traveler where you might be more aware of the tell tale signs of something being about to happen. tieing your bag to the rack or using a cable lock is an absolute minimum. Even then though, there is no gaurentee that your bag can't be opened and items removed without you knowing it. I think anyone would admit that the safest place for your belongings is in your lap.

dkt2u, your arrogance is amusing. I fail to see what is flippant about my stating that I don't dose off on buses. It is simply a statement of fact. I also can not imagine anyone reaching up to my pack "across from me" and opening it or pulling it from the rack without my noticing it. I do strap the pack to the rack when it is feasible and have used a cable lock on occasion. Of course keeping the pack on your lap is a good method but I find it to be pretty uncomfortable in a hot sweltering bus after several hours on the road. I doze off plenty when the situation allows it but on bus rides I don't want to miss all the scenery I have traveled so far to enjoy.

well, sorry you see it as arrogance............perhaps you are confusing arrogance with experience. Telling someone who is asking how to keep there stuff the safest as possible that your stuff is safe because you never doze off on buses, in my opinion is a flippant remark. I especially think it's a flippant remark now with you coming back and saying that you dose "doze off plenty",,,,,,,whether it is when the situation allows it or not, if you are sleeping and your stuff is not on your person, then you are at more risk of something happening. IMHO the best advice is keep it on if at all possible.

I carry my camera in a small day pack that never leaves me. My travel companion made fun of me and stashed her stuff in the overhead rack with a chain and then someone sliced open her bag and took her camera and get off the bus. Dont put anything on the overhead rack sd it just makes it at a good level for theives to get at. At your feet dosent work either. If you care about it clutch it.

I ALWAYS keep my important stuff with me.......

Firefly

1. get the eagle creek or whatever cable combo lock @ any outdoors type store, you will need this to lock your backpack/luggage to the bed or table or whatever is at the hostel/hotel.
   2. about the north face daypack - you can always put it in a 'mayan daypack' which is burlap sack with a strap you can wear across your body on the side. you can even cut the north face logo patch off.
   3. if you constantly take pictures a photog/journalist vest w/ 20 or so pockets could come in handy then you wouldn't need your daypack. most digitals are compact enough to fit in a shirt pocket.
   4. i carried my daypack on my lap like a baby on chicken buses & shuttles [i also saw about 1/2 the chicken bus riders (mostly students) put their book bags in the overhead , but the other 1/2 kept the bags on their laps or on the floor between their legs.]
   5. [last & most important] always keep serious $, atm & credit, travelers cheques & passport on your body -never in a daypack. [& yes i do mean body - waist, or 'body' money belt next to skin [again at the outdoor stores]. you can always have a few bucks for the day or trip in your pocket & a 'fake' wallet with a few bucks to 'throw down' in case of thieves.]l

I was referring to my actual carry-on pack for putting up on a bus rack and it should be locked when left, even in a hotel room. A day pack is small and can easily sit on one's lap. It would be a magnet for theft if left above.

It is probably buses with frequent changes of passengers and overhead racks that have the worst problems. An overnighter where you can place the pack in a compartment above and anyone would have to lean over you and click it open to get at it is probably the safest.

I would agree at the very least to put some kind of cable lock on anything you put in the overhead rack. The majority of buses through out Central America have only a metal rack and not an enclosed storage area like you would see on an airline. Our packs I guess are medium size. I am not a back packer, but I guess you would describe them as a day pack. A little bit larger than your average Jansport students pack. We still to be safe carry those in our laps. It makes it a little more uncomfortable, but well worth the lowered risk of losing our stuff.

Just bring a daypack (small backpack) for the bus -- keep your wallet, camera, etc in it and hold it on your lap while riding the bus.

I like the Stowaway daypack (see LL Bean website).

Just don't get one of those Photography daypacks that scream "Steal Me! I have expensive camera equipment in here!".

If you have an old school dayback (i.e. from college days) - that's even better. Less chance of a thief targetting an old ratty bag.

Also - just wrap the nice camera in a T-shirt to give it a little padding.

It would help to clarify what size pack we are all talking about here. If someone is traveling around for a week or more, living out of their pack, it is unlikely that it would be a small daypack. I think of a daypack as +/- 1,000 ci and a travel pack as 2,500 to 3,000 ci. Anything larger would not fit in an overhead rack anyway. Sure a daypack can sit on your lap all day but this is not very enjoyable with a carry on travel pack. Which brings up the question of where those who don't put their larger packs in the overhead racks do put them. Now I guess we can debate the risks of putting your gear in the outside storage compartments on buses. Personally I keep my carry on travel pack small and light enough that I can insist on bringing it on board with me.

good points mesacrow. I think most experienced back packers have the type of pack that have a removable day pack that seperates from the main larger pack. That is what you should keep your most important and most valuable items in and keep on your person on the bus. As you mention, it is not practical or possible to put a larger pack inside in the over head storage. You can easily put a cable lock on your packs or even suitcases in the underneath storage area. There are metal supports under there that a cable lack can easily be attached to.

Oh Poor Quicksand. Getting a nice dose of TT bickering. By the way that is the word dose, the word "doze" refers to a nap.

Anyway, to answer the question, we just returned from Guat with our brand new digital. The case I bought was made for it (a Canon) and had no shoulder strap, but a small loop presumably for a belt. We used a small carabiner to hook the case to our belt loops and it worked like a charm! The camera was always right there to grab for a quick shot and secure in the velcro-closed case. THere was no way for it to be taken without our knowledge. When on a chicken bus, no matter how crowded, we hugged our pack on our lap. But valuables were always kept on our person. And when I did carry a tote that I bought there in Guat, I carried it across my body, not over my shoulder. It was interesting to see that most (the smart ones?) tourists carried their packs on the front not the back when in crowded areas.

Don't ever put anything in the overhead rack. It's a risk to either (a) get swiped when you are not looking and/or (b) fall off and hit someone really hard on the head.

NYC_Girl_115, sure, a cable locked and zipper locked bag on an overhead rack stands a chance of disappearing when the traveler is not looking or even falling and hurting someone! The sad thing is that I don't think you are joking. I think you are serious.

My guess is (b) ......still recovering !

Cute, scoot, but possibly even correct. In time she will have gotten better.

I had a medium-sized backpack with my clothes and incidentals and a small daypack for valuables. I wore my passport and bank cards under my clothes and kept my camera in a pocket with the neck strap secured with a button (as much for dropping as risk of theft). I always kept the day pack on my lap in buses and clipped the clothes bag to the overhead rack with the waist belt. I always close the zipper with a small zip-tie for buses and planes, too. We never felt threatened or had anyone poking around our stuff. I took nearly 1400 photos (4 separate storage cards which I kept with my passport once full) and I'm having a BLAST sorting through them.

well I just flew to Yucatan and other travelers complained how digital camera battery chargers were taken by security and also cell phone chargers. So many problems now I just stuff everything in checked luggage except my film camera itself and money and hope for the best.