MTN Bike pics and a DIY camera case

MtnMama here!

I had a blast yesterday riding mountain bikes with Yeti and some friends! It was awesome to ride but also a great opportunity to get some sweet photos. Before the ride, I struggled with the idea of taking my bulky heavy camera or not (so much risk of damage but also risk of missing a great shot). I chose to take it… but couldn’t find a case small enough, light enough and tight enough around my back to carry it in. I searched though my closet and found a very old Lowepro TLZ1 camera case.

I had used this camera bag before when traveling light but it always had one shoulder strap so I had NO idea how I would make it work for a bike. I searched though my closet again and found another strap that could hook onto the bag. One strap went around my head and right arm, the other around my waist. During the ride, it was very easy for me to get off the bike, pull the bag to the side of my right hip and pull out the camera.

The camera was also around my right arm and head to make sure it didn’t fall out of the bag. I can’t believe how easy this was and how light the pack was. I couldn’t even tell I was wearing a camera! I also packed an extra battery and a few SD cards just in case. The bag held up great, hardly moved on my back, and even protected the camera well when I took a digger!!! I’ll post photos soon of the camera bag and how I did it but first, here are the results from the day!

CAMERA….NEVER LEAVE HOME WITHOUT IT!!!!

Here is a great link for more info about mountain biking with a camera. SLR Camera bag for MTB

UPDATE: 10/9/08

The biggest tip for making a DIY camera case is to be creative. Find what works for you, make sure the bag’s straps are tight and that your camera is strapped in/on securely! Here are the photos:

View from the back. Clips are attached to four plastic D rings on the bag

Side shot

Front of straps

The major goal of making this bag was to make it easily accessible to the camera without taking the bag off