When it comes to obvious accessories for your photography, a camera bag is probably one of the first things that come to mind. However, do you really need one?
In his latest video, James Popsys discusses whether you need a camera bag or not. With his underplayed English humor, he makes several points about camera bags and goes through the ones he has owned. It, of course, comes down to what you actually need, and there is no definite answer that covers all photographers. An important point Popsys emphasizes is that you do not need a bag that is specifically designed to carry a camera. If you do not carry 20 pounds of camera gear into the wild, a regular bag might even be the better solution, as it does not draw too much attention to itself.
If you do go for a dedicated camera bag, there are many, many things to consider, and the market is saturated with bags in all forms and shapes. Popsys’ bag of choice is the MindShift Backlight 26L, because it is very practical to him. He compares the MindShift with the Lowepro ProTactic 450, which is a bag I personally own. I agree with him that it is not as practical as you would like it to be, as it mainly only holds camera gear. If you do not have much camera gear, you can of course always put in a sandwich or a bottle of water, but it fills up rather fast. If might be just perfect for you, though. You can, of course, just go big and get a 50 liter or bigger that can hold your entire arsenal of lenses, drones, clothing, and whatever else you need. That, however, comes with the caveat of becoming very heavy, very fast. In the end, it comes down to what is practical for you, and you might even need different bags for different purposes. I personally own five different camera bags, and I definitely do not use my 50-liter bag unless I absolutely have to. Check out the video above and let me hear your thoughts down in the comments. What is your experience with camera bags?