This photo of my photoalbum was taken in Okinawa.

Lowepro is an international company known for producing carrying solutions for sensitive electronics and specifically, photographic equipment. Their premiere product line caters to professional photographers and photojournalists but, they also provide a number of product options for consumer use. The brand effectively began in 1967 when climber, Greg Lowe, invented the world’s first internal frame backpack in his Colorado work shed. In 1972, Lowe introduced the world's first foam padded, soft-sided camera bag. Lowepro / Lowe Alpine have also been responsible for the introduction of plastic buckles, compression straps, and stabilizers which are now standard in most modern back packs. Lowepro is distinguished from their cousin company, Lowe Alpine, by specializing in protective equipment for cameras. Their engineered bags are typically equipped with significant padding and movable foam inserts to customize the internal layout. Bags range in size from small pouches for point and shoot cameras, to large volume, fully waterproof packs for extreme conditions. Lowepro's unique protective cases are also becoming increasingly popular for laptop / notebook computers. Lowepro is the world’s largest producer of camera support packs with distribution in 107 countries. Lowepro’s worldwide headquarters are located in Sebastopol, CA, with offices in Australia, Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom.

The Manfrotto Group is manufacturer of camera and lighting supports based in Bassano del Grappa, Italy. It is owned by the UK company Vitec Group. Manfrotto is generally regarded as producing high-end, but not always superb products, while high-end products are produced by sister company, Gitzo. However, Manfrotto products still attract use from professionals. In the US, Manfrotto products are distributed by Bogen Imaging under the brand name "Bogen" however because of the digital revolution and global nature of information, most Americans better recognize the Manfrotto brand name. The hardware is identical regardless of the brand it winds up being sold under. Manfrotto/Bogen's main competition on the low end is from such brands as Velbon, Canon and Slik, and on the high end from Gitzo. Manfrotto is distinguished from the likes of Slik by virtue of not making one-piece tripods; the legs and head in all cases are sold separately, and interchangeable.