Cast your mind back to the 1994 September edition of PHOTOpro (Photon's predecessor in print) and you may remember an article we ran on photographic vests.
Apart from demonstrating that a cardboard box made a better model than your editor and myself, it also showed that there were only five manufacturers of this item. Compare that to the number of camera bag manufacturers and it did seem rather strange. Secondly, some of them were not exactly well designed and were more suited to a day's fishing on The Tweed than a day's photograhy. (Don't ask me how I know this by the way, it could get me in trouble with the editor!).
Billingham have now decided to produce a vest to complement their bags and I have no hesitation in saying that in my opinion it is a superb piece of kit.
First of all it's made of a double layer of Ventile cotton, the same material as Billingham's outdoor jacket which keeps you warm as toast in the coldest conditions. It�s extremely comfortable to wear and because it "breathes" I didn't have that annoying trickle of sweat running down my back even after half an hour's climb up a steep crag.
Ventile is a waterproof fabric so there is no chance of water soaking through to your gear. Storm flaps protect the outside pockets whilst even the two deep breast inside pockets are zipped for extra security.
Like all Billingham products a great deal of research has gone into this and the result make interesting reading. For a start there are no pockets at the back which meant I could sit in the car seat with the window down to work, as well as leaning against walls without feeling a lens digging into the small of my back.
There are sixteen other pockets although you wouldn't think so when you see the flattened jacket. What is clever here is that the pockets have been designed with a bellows operation which means they expand to take oodles of kit.
The weight of a camera system has always been one of the problems with photographic vests and Billingham have got around this by designing this product so the weight is spread across the shoulders, not the back of your neck. There are removable pads under the shoulders that help to balance the jacket and spread the load.
This is a super product that Billingham have come with here, both the main upper pockets have quick release flap there is even an angled light meter pocket to ensure it doesn�t jump out when you're running.
For my type of photograhy this is easily the best photovest I have seen yet and have no hesitation in recommending you have a look at one. It comes in two colours khaki and dark navy and in four sizes and is priced in the UK at around �114 (ex VAT).