Standing Out In The Crowd: ColorCase's Pelican Cases

I see it all the time. There are places in the world where photographers flock. This usually results in about a dozen black hard cases spinning their way around the luggage carousel. This gives every photographer in the arrivals lounge a chance to pick up every case and inspect it. Telling one Pelican from another is a fool's game. Even my stickers don't always help, as everyone else puts stickers on their cases as well. Solution: ColorCase.

ColorCase has made it much easier to tell which case is which, either upon arrival at the airport carousel, or out in the field.

Given that these are authentic Pelican cases, products sold through ColorCase are of the same quality and exceptionality as any other case bearing the Pelican name. Of course, this includes Pelican's lifetime warranty.

ColorCase provided me with two cases to test. ColorCase had no input on this article, and no advance copy of this article was provided to ColorCase.

I tested the larger Pelican 1595 Air ColorCase in trekking green with orange handles and latches.

I also tested the carry-on sized Pelican 1535 Air ColorCase, in deep pacific with teal handles and latches.

Weight

The new 1595 Air is a beast of a case. Positioned between the carry-on size and the largest checked baggage size, the 1595 was large enough for me to load all of my electronic gear for a headshot shoot in one case. Despite the fact that I jammed the case full of gear, I appreciate how light the Air versions actually are. I could easily roll it from location to location or check it with an airline. If I'm traveling by air, the case protects my gear, while its light weight means I can pack more options for each shoot without overweight fees. Given how much I'm traveling with my gear, this provides me with much-needed flexibility.

The 1535 Air is designed to be the perfect carry-on. The original 1510s are quite heavy, weighing in at 12 lbs. The empty case alone takes up a good chunk of my carry-on allowance. The 1535 Air, on the other hand, is only 8.7 lbs. This means I can get more into my case. On my part, I'm fitting in an extra Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 in here. It seems that every single check-in desk employee at every airline is aware of how heavy Pelicans can be. I've never managed to get a Pelican by without a weigh-in. Using the 1535 Air gives me confidence that I'll be able to get my gear on board with me, where I can treat it with care if necessary.

Quality and Security for My Gear

Pelican is proud of their super-light proprietary HPX Polymer that allows their cases to be light and crush-resistant. Pelican is known industry-wide for their robust cases. I work in extremely taxing environments. Some days I'm shooting in Canada's sub-Arctic, other days I'm somewhere below the Antarctic Circle, while other days see me in the middle of an African rainforest. Flying around the world with my gear for work is made much simpler with the Pelican Air cases. I can depend on their robustness while taking advantage of the lighter weight construction to pack more gear.

The new Air cases also come with "Press and Pull" latches. I rarely use locks on my checked bags; if someone wants in, they'll get in. I do put zip ties on my cases as a minor deterrent. That said, the two-step process required to open the latches and then open the case means that an accidental spill is less likely. The 1595 comes with five of these multi-step latches. With this kind of security, there is only the smallest chance that this case will be opened accidentally by luggage workers at the airport.

As I've mentioned before, I work in wet and very demanding environments. These Pelicans are certainly rain-resistant. Pelican Air cases are built with o-rings meeting IP67 ratings, sealing the contents of your case for up to 30 minutes while it's submerged in just over 3 feet of water. Related to the water resistance, there is also a pressure equalization valve on each of these Pelican cases. I didn't realize the value of this feature until we were out shooting and the temperature and related pressure changed significantly. I heard my case hiss. This hissing equalization protects the waterproof value of the case. So, you can dunk me and my case in 90 degrees, and you can also dunk me in the Churchill River with the polar bears right around 30 degrees. If I wanted, I could even jump into an Antarctic polar plunge below freezing with my case. If I wanted.

 

The IP67 rating also means that the cases will protect your gear from dust, making them ideal for both transportation and storage in dirty environments.

Colors

Offering a wide variety of colors and the ability to mix and match your case with different color latches and handles makes pulling my case out of a lineup fast and efficient. Of course, a fluorescent orange case is going to attract the wrong attention in airports around the world. So, ColorCase offers a variety of muted but still distinguishable colors.

You can also choose the typical Pelican black and accent your case with a unique handle and latch set. Unique is easier to see than the ubiquitous black.

I feel this also provides me with a bit of extra security, as I can distinguish my cases in a pile of other Pelicans from a distance. This means I can tell if someone is rooting around in my now-unique case instead of their own.

That being said, if you're using your case for storage or for local shooting, there are some wildly fun colors to choose from. The oxblood is striking a particular aesthetic chord, reminding me of my teenage and Doc Martens years.

One Small Nitpick

I really liked the three handles on the larger 1595. I could pick my case up from almost any direction and easily maneuver it into the back of my car using three different touch points. The three handles also allowed me to get a better grip and secure my case more than a typical one- or two-handled large-sized case.

The 1535 has two handles. As a smaller case, it doesn't really need three handles. The main suitcase handle is robust and allows for a good ergonomic grip. However, the vertical handle is much narrower and bites into my hand when I'm packing a heavier load. I understand that this handle is narrower than the vertical handle on the traditional 1510 to save weight, but I'd rather have a few extra grams and a more robust and ergonomic handle.

One Clear Con and a Potential Solution

These aren't cheap cases. But it does bring to mind the often-repeated advice: buy something cheap and buy it twice. Given how sturdy these cases are, they're a buy-it-once type of investment. These are clearly expensive, but they will last.

Perhaps you're not ready to go and buy a whole new series of cases. Thankfully, ColorCase has a huge selection of colored handles and latches to personalize your case. You can quite easily install these on a typical black Pelican and make your case easy to identify.

All images provided by ColorCase or are my own, as noted.