CAMERA OPERATOR EMERGENCY BACKPACK FOR EVERY JOB.
For news and daily video production.
I have never done a vlog or a podcast of my own and really have little interest in doing one. However, one thing I do love to see is people talk video gear and why they have their own specific workflow. For this reason I will be posting a video on this and will show you all the items I keep in my backpack.
Being a news cameraman (in my opinion) is a lot like extreme camping. You never going to know what you’re doing until you have to do it. This is why I am constantly adding things to carry with me in my bag. Many of these things rarely come out. But when I need them, I sure am glad I did pack them. Everything I have packed I have used at least once, whether it was for news, sports, wedding or corporate. I pretty much have this bag at all times.
Since I started to work in TV news one thing that I’ve learned is that it’s even more important to BE PREPARED!!! Daily I find myself adding more things to keep in my car for those “just in-case situations”. I have a bag I always bring with me on the job. I have a rain-clothing bag that I put on if I see it is raining heavily. I have a spare clothing bag for those situations where I got stuck in bad weather (and wasn’t expecting it). And then I have my “seasonal bag supplies” that I keep in my closet of my home office but ready at a moment’s notice (so I don’t lose them).
Daily “Never-Know” Bag
1 – Backpack with strap system on it.
1 – Small Bag Style Cooler
1 – Pair of Mechanic’s Gloves
1 – Pair of BMX Gloves
2 – Icepacks
1 – Insulated water bottle
1 – Sandwich or salad
1 – Protein Bar
1 – Molle Pouch
1 – Flashlight
1 – Head Lamp
1 – Leatherman Wingman
1 – pocket knife
2 –Ballpoint Pens
1 – All Weather Notepad
1 – 1/4” Stubby Flathead Screwdriver
2 – Small Spring Clamps
2 – Heavy Duty Carabiners
1 – 1 foot of para-chord
1 – 1 large Ziplock Bag
2 – Earbuds/Headphones
20 – Business Cards
1 – Cooling Towl
1 – Microfiber Towel
1 – Jar of bug spray
1 – Sunblock
1 – Small Jar of Excedrin
6 – Bandaids
6 – Rubbing Alcohol Wipes
2 – Shout wipe and go
1 – Extra pair of socks
Daily “Never-Know” Bag Electronics
1 – 32 GB 95mbps SD Card
1 – USB Thumbdrive
1 – iPhone Thunderbolt Power Cable
3 – USB Chargers
1 – Micro USB Charging Cable
1 – Powerbank
1 – NP-F550 Li-ion Battery
1 – 2-3 foot BNC Cable
1 – 25 Foot XLR Cable
8 – AA Batteries
2 – 9v Batteries
About 1 week ago I was working on a story about some bridges being constructed and the day was nice out until I had to do my mid-day as-live. There was a 70% chance of rain and it didn’t look like it was going to be a bad day and it being the middle of August I figured “Oh I don’t need my rain jack/pants.” I really wished I packed them. I got SOAKED!!! I wear quick dry convertible pants made by Eddie Bauer almost all summer long and everything got drenched. Pants, boxers, sneakers socks shirt jacket.
After we were done filming for the day I got back to the station and didn’t have a change of clothes with me (only had spare socks) and then they got wet cause I needed to go outside cause a fire alarm went off. ( You cannot make this up) I still had to cut my story and the editing suite I was in was very cold. I swore after that incident I would always carry extra clothing to change into if this ever happened again.
I got stuck in the rain and I am only half done bag
1 – Pair of sweatpants
1 – Pair of fresh socks
1 – Pair of sneakers
1 – Fresh T shirt
1 – Fresh Zip up Sweatshirt
1 – Fresh pair of boxer shorts
For the winter months I take out the bug spray and sunblock and am usually wearing most of this to go to work (snow pants I only wear during storms) but I usually keep an extra pair of boots in my car incase something gets soaked.
Winter Seasonal Items
1 – Good Winter Gloves
1 – Head Beanie/Hat
1 – Balaclava
1 – Extra Pair Wool Socks
2 – Pairs of Hand warmers
1 – Pair of Snow Pants
Well I hope you enjoyed my article and find it useful. I will be adding the video later to this. The video will go more in depth as to why I have some of these items in my bag/bags. If you have any questions feel free to contact me directly.
Cheers