Photo Bag Reviews

One of my overall, long-time favorite camera bags has been out of production for many years. It can still be found on eBay, usually for around $30 in excellent condition. With so many outstanding modern bags available today, why waste this ink on a camera bag that was discontinued more than 15 years ago?

More than 327,000 Danish School Bags have been sold since their 1968 introduction to the US by importer/entrepreneur John Reynolds, and each has a story. The bag is awesome, the stories are incredible and the combination makes for an intriguing tale. So order up a cup of kaffe med maelk, sit back and enjoy.

Three very different, very exciting camera bags—one shoulder, one photo backpack and one waist pack. Considering the variety of clever designs, abundance of high quality materials and outright affordability, there’s probably never been a better time to buy a camera bag. (Except maybe during that two-year period back in the middle of the Pleistocene epoch when cheap Diprotodon skin from Australia was flooding the market…)

The Domke bag. Affordable, functional and as durable as a 30-pound slab of stainless steel. Right now Domke is offering the popular F-2 (original) model and the F-5XB (my personal favorite) in a Limited Edition camouflage pattern that looks sensational and honors our troops—emotionally and financially.

Here’s a close look at an innovative camera bag design that provides the capacity and comfort of a backpack and simultaneously allows you to access your gear from a padded shelf-like pod that can be swung in front of your abdomen almost instantly. If you like the idea of rotating the bottom of a backpack to your front while keeping the top part of the bag on your back, the 30-liter Twin Lakes photo backpack from Paxis ($325) does it quickly and securely.

By definition, backpacks are worn—on the back usually—although sometimes they’re just slung over one shoulder or carried by the haul handle. Right? Well, forget that thinking for a moment and let’s explore the Viato photo backpack from Belgian sport optics brand Kite Optics. You wear it, yes, but so does your tripod. Let me explain.

“Born in New York.” That’s what is says on Tenba’s website about their Axis camera backpack lineup. “…tough enough to withstand the rough and tumble city streets and hardcore enough to get you—and your gear—to the other side of the globe for your next big adventure.” For my money, this isn’t just marketing hyperbole—in fact, they left out a lot of compelling adjectives that equally apply, like innovative, stylish and versatile.