Should lenses and cameras be separately stowed (lenses not attached to cameras) in bag while traveling by airplane?

[Gov]

I couldn't find a thread here on this issue. Steve's "what's in my bag" videos show some lenses attached to cameras, but that could just be while in the field. A z9 with 800 attached is a tight fit in a Kiboko 2.0 30L and I wonder if that would possibly put too much pressure on the camera flange, especially when stuffing the bag in an overhead bin.

 

[Butlerkid]

I always pack my lenses unattached to the bodies. The bag might topple over, get dropped, or ???? Separating the lens from the body eliminates any stress that might occur at the mounting point for the lenses.

More importantly, I have more flexibility in packing and can take greater advantage of the space within the bag.

 

[DavidT]

I personally do not travel with lenses and bodies attached. I will however if on location at times keep them attached if moving around with a car etc.

 

[Calson]

It depends on the backpack and the kit being carried. Usually with a lens like the 600mm f/4 or the 800mm PF there is not enough room to leave a camera attached to the lens and have it fit inside the backpack. On the other hand I have a 18L backpack and I usually have a Z9 with the 100-400mm attached most of the time so I can grab it and go. Same with the LowePro Trekker that I used with the 600mm f/4 and I would leave a camera attached so as to avoid as much as possible having drit enter the camera while attaching it to the lens.

With TSA having no set procedures I had to remove my cameras from the backpack and have them placed by themselves in the plastic bin for screening and so I now use the cloth covers that have Velcro tabs to protect the cameras during this process.

 

[Ivan Rothman]

While a camera with lens attached is probably OK if well supported in a good camera bag, there is always the possibility of damage where the lens attaches to the camera if the camera bag is subjected to hard impact with a good fall. I also feel that keeping the camera bodies separate from the lens gives me more versatility in fitting a lot of equipment in the bag. So for travel by plane to and from my destination, I don't attach lenses to camera. Once in the field, I rearrange my camera bag and do keep a lens on each of my camera bodies.