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A big day at Leica yesterday… The famous German camera maker announced the new Leica M Monochrom ($8,000), the new X2 ($2000), and the new 50mm Summicron ASPH ($7200) along with a whole host of typical and tasteless special editions. As a diehard Leica fan, I find myself incredibly disappointed. It seems as though Leica is quickly becoming more and more focused on fashion and upscale retail rather than art and photography. It’s a shame…

In any case, you can get details on the new products here.

Let’s get this out of the way first. Fifty-bones is too damned expensive for a key chain bottle popper. Even so, I love the design aesthetic and the work behind the limited edition “Respect” bottle opener. In fact, I like a lot of things about the maker of this little jewel.

Details here.

I love photography. I’m not all that great at it, but I love it. What I don’t dig on is carrying around a camera. For years, I lugged around a Nikon DSLR plus lenses for work and grew to loathe the logistics of taking pictures. And then, compact cameras started to get really capable. Before I knew it, I had gotten rid of all my DSLR cameras and moved into mirrorless cameras like the Leica M8 and then the new Fuji X-Pro 1. Both are compact and both take incredible images. In fact, I doubt I’ll ever own an SLR again. I’ve, quite literally, seen the light.

One of the great things about these compact setups is that to carry them around you don’t really need a dedicated camera bag.  However, I still like to keep a compact bag around just for when I go out specifically to shoot. Recently, Think Tank Photo asked me if I would be interested in reviewing a bag from their Retrospective series. I agreed and a few days later, I had a Retrospective 20 in my hands.

First impressions… This bag is HUGE. No, really. The Retrospective 20 could easily swallow three or four rangefinder cameras, a number of lenses, chargers, etc… I’m pretty sure an entire Leica Boutique would fit into this thing. It’s that big. Even so, it’s amazingly light for its size and features pockets in just about every conceivable place you can imagine. Think Tank really did some thinking and it shows.

More than that though, I’m really impressed with the build quality of the bag. It’s made of a cotton canvas that feels a lot like well worn and super soft denim. And it’s hung by heavy duty nylon straps that are reinforced in all the right places and use a sort of antiqued nickel plaited hardware. From every aspect, this is just a really well done bag. I think maybe a video presentation would do more justice that words:

So there ya have it. The Retrospective 20 really is a nice bag. The only thing is, it’s a little too big for my needs. I typically carry two rangefinders with lenses attached and maybe an extra lens or two. With this bag, everything gets lost in space never to be seen again. It’s just so deep and so wide and… so BIG!

It would be perfect for a DSLR shooter and is completely capable of holding a couple of bodies and some big long zooms, but it’s not for the rangefinder man. Thankfully, Think Tank’s Retrospective series includes bags with smaller dimensions. In fact, I’ve been so impressed by the quality of this bag that I’ve decided to buy a Retrospective 5 or maybe a 7. Both feature the same build quality as the 20, but are smaller in stature.

I’ll let ya know how I make out.

If this works as well as it could… Well then, it’s absolutely brilliant. I use my iPhone/iPod in the car all the time and the dual interface mess it creates often sucks. And even if you do have a car with Sync or something of the like, the car’s interface can never quite live up to that of the iPhone. This little idea kicks the middle man in the ass.

Check it out.

I can’t help it. I love Filson… American Made and what not… This guy took a vintage “original briefcase” and made a camera bag out of it. Brilliant.

If you are in the market for a camera bag, hold your horses. We’ve got lots of camera bag reviews in the works.

Check this out… A .45 ACP super compact made out of titanium. Get yours here.

This is pretty brilliant… You know those velcro camera bag inserts that drive you friggin’ crazy? These folks having been thinking about that issue a lot and came up with what looks like a pretty damned ingenious alternative.

Check it out here.

My everyday in-ear headphones are made by Shure and cost me almost $300 a couple of years ago. They are magnificent instruments with sound quality second to no headphone I’ve ever owned. Hell, I might even go as far as to say that they are worth every penny I spent on them.

However, recently id America sent over a set of their Spark headphones and asked if I would give them a shot. They came in really nice packaging and even featured a little leather case for the unit that not only stores the headphones, but also includes space for additional ear inserts of various sizes. The headphones themselves are housed in aluminum and the design is inspired by a spark plug… Yeah, a spark plug. And, of course, they feature a microphone module that allows you to pick up calls, play or pause a song, and skip to the next or previous track. Standard headphone features these days…

What got me with the Spark headphones is how damned comfortable they are. Typically, in-ear headphones leave you feeling a bit “stuffed.” These, however, do not. They are light and not at all abrasive to your ears. The sound isn’t bad either…

I guess the easiest way to label them is to compare them to other units. Up against my Shure headphones, the highs aren’t quite as crisp and the lows aren’t quite as deep. However, the mid levels are right there. Up against stock Apple headphones? We are talking two different leagues here. The Spark units present a much more natural sound stage at all volume levels. No contest.

Here’s the kicker. The Spark units are only $60. I feel like a complete idiot for owning the Shure headphones now. Seriously.

In any case, more info here.

Yes. Please. I’ll take four or five… I don’t care if they are $100!