taking my Nikon DSLR along??

I wrap my d40 in clothes im not wearing, cool until you wear them! I saw somewhere on here, someone made a "case" out of bubble wrap and duct tape, was pretty cool, and looked very light…

saw another thread and i'll take a look at the Lowe Rez case. i might just buy a new thin digicam that i can just put in my hip belt pocket

The camera and lens are pretty durable I don't do anything too crazy with mine. Often on canoe trips my Nikon D90 is in a dry bag and buckled to the thwart. I had a D70s that I drug all over the place for a few years without ever worrying about it. My D90 has been banged around a bunch with no ill effect. I do keep my spare lens in a Tamrac lens case if I bring one.

Before I got my hiking camera bag for easy access I would just keep it in the top flap pocket in my pack. If it was raining it would be in a dry bag.

i'm going to try and make a padded case for the camera for storage in the top flap of the pack. i don't typically take pictures of things that move quickly so stopping to get the camera isn't a big deal.

i'm mostly concerned with snapping a lens of the F mount.

“i’m mostly concerned with snapping a lens of the F mount.”

Steve,
Just in case you missed this earlier post –

CJW says “The camera itself hangs down a little under my arm, which I feel might protect it. But it does take the occasional bash, and it may break in a bad fall – but ask yourself if you want a pristine camera that has never taken a good shot, or a broken one that has taken thousands…?”

More of his discussion can be found here.

I’m not advocating this particular approach for you, but I have use a similar arrangement, have bashed all the paint off the corners, and still had a camera and lens that worked.

They are really pretty tough, provided you’ve got a steel and not a plastic F mount ;-)

I'm a Canon shooter, not Nikon, but I won't hold that against you. I've been carrying SLR film cameras and then D-SLR cameras for almost forty years. I've carried them up and down mountains, through the snow, and even on ultralightweight backpack trips.

You have to decide one thing first. Are you going to need to keep it out and halfway ready, or are you going to keep it protected in the top of your pack? Either way, there are compromises. What I've used for about 13 years now is a so-called camera holster. If I am in ugly weather or ugly terrain, I can keep it all in the top of my pack. However, if it is decent weather and a pleasant trail, I will have the camera holster hanging on its shoulder-neck strap, so it will be riding somewhere around the top of my right pants pocket. If a wildlife target pops up, I can have it out and shooting in a matter of seconds. I have a short holster if I am using a short lens (<200mm). Then I have a longer holster if I am using a longer lens (<400mm). For a lens longer than that, it won't be in any holster, and it will be on a tripod unless I have it in the big Lowepro lens case. Most camera holsters are somewhat flexible on the outside, but they have a semi-rigit plastic shell inside to protect the equipment. Most have a semi-weatherproof top lid.
–B.G.–

I've moved from hanging my D80 from a biner on my pack to using a Spider Holster (http://www.spiderholster.com/#spider-pro). At >200g, it's hardly a lightweight option, but it's the most comfortable, accessible and durable solution that I have yet found.

Hi Chris–thank you for mentioning my Holster.. just wanted to let you know that we are in the process of designing an adapter that will secure the Spider and will host most thick/padded waistbands including various backpacks.. If anyone has any questions, I will try my best here to answer..
Shai
Spider Holster