In My Bag – by Adam Marelli | The Photo Brigade

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In My Bag – by Adam Marelli

Adam Marelli is an artist & photographer based in New York City. His projects explore “maestros at work,” the ancient crafts of building and design as they are handed down through generations. Whether he is photographing a master carpenter, dodging fish at a local market, or in the studio, he is constantly in search of the threads which bind our cultures together. When he is not at his drafting table, he teaches photographers, art historians and enthusiasts the lost lessons of Classical Design. He was recently named the “Resident Photographer” for the Leica Akademie 2012 in NYC, contributes to “Ask the Contractor” in the New York Times, was a featured lecturer at New York University, and continues to pursue projects at home and abroad. His writing have been featured on The Gothamist and in Phaidon Press. His work is represented by Invisible-Exports gallery in New York City.

“Photographers like things, otherwise we would be conceptual artists.”

My relationships with camera bags are not much different than my dating career. Essentially, they are all failures until you find one that works. Every bag looks great on line and even better in person. It promises to be the perfect arrangement of zippered slots and padded dividers, until you actually take them home. Then the funny quirks and charming habits turn that amazing bag into ex-girlfriend material.

Much like in relationships, I’ve discovered that the biggest problem with camera bags is not the bag, but me. How could I ever expect to find the perfect match, if I did not know what I wanted in the first place. I’ve never met a serious girlfriend in a bar and I’ve never found a camera bag at a photo shop. I find that the best bags were never designed with cameras in mind.

For a recent project “Master Craftsmen: An Endangered Species,” in Japan, I took a completely different approach to selecting a bag. The basis of the project was to photograph a series of multi generational craftsmen from Okayama to Kyoto. It allowed me to take a bag that was more like a traveling studio. Since they were all relatively closed workshops, I could bring all my equipment, set it down and carry just two camera bodies. It was a perfect. Me, my cameras and the craftsmen without the nagging pull of shoulder straps.

Jack Spade Canvas Shop Bag looked more like the tool bags from my days in construction than a camera bag. It fit all the gear perfectly and I did not show up looking like I have just walked out of a kevlar convention.