Toolbox: D-SLR Camera Bags

We’re always searching for the perfect camera bag, but much like the Holy Grail, this can prove to be an elusive, if not impossible quest. The result is often multiple bags in a storage closet. Owning several bags can be a very good thing, however—unless you’re asking an annoyed spouse.

I have a large collection of styles: shoulder bags, waist packs, backpacks and sling bags. They all fit a niche for me because, depending on what I’m shooting, I may need only a specific selection of my camera equipment. The days when I’d carry everything I own in an off-the-shoulder bag are long over. Physical therapy doesn’t come cheap these days.

Traveling light can be advantageous, which is why I like having a bag that can accommodate a single camera, a couple of lenses and a few accessories. Keeping it simple helps keep me shooting rather than focusing on the physical discomfort of carrying too much for too long.

Here’s an assortment of bags that offer unique ways to help you travel and work light.

Pelican 140 Soft Bag
The Pelican 140 Soft Bag offers two convenient ways to access your equipment. The bag opens from the top or the side and features front and side pockets for other accessories. Capable of holding a camera and a couple of lenses, the bag fits into the Pelican 1400 hard case for maximum protection against water and impact. List Price: $75.

Tenba Shootout Mini Backpack
The Tenba Shootout Mini Backpack shows that a backpack doesn’t have to be big and bulky. With enough capacity for a D-SLR, lenses and a flash, the bag provides ample protection for gear, but also makes it easy for you to carry a small assortment of equipment. Adjustable web straps at the backpack’s base make it easy to carry a monopod, umbrella or ground cloth. Estimated Street Price: $100.

Naneu Pro TS-35
The Naneu Pro TS-35’s unique bump-proof design helps safeguard your camera and lenses from those accidental impacts we occasionally experience. Its thick padding and water-resistant fabric protects gear, while external and internal pockets provide space for the small but essential accessories that we have to take along when shooting. Estimated Street Price: $34.

Billingham Hadley Small
The Billingham Hadley Small provides camera storage in a timeless and classic design. In addition to space for a camera, lenses and flash, the bag features a waterproof canvas exterior and side weather flaps. Its bellowed front pockets, dual expandable exterior pockets and a Superflex partition system make it easy to accommodate your large and small accessories. List Price: $189.

Kata SB-902 Small Reporter
The Kata SB-902 Small Reporter Shoulder case is a bag that allows you to customize its rigidity by including or removing components of its internal padding kit. The bag’s quick-access flap makes it fast and easy to access the D-SLR and lenses that you place in its main compartment. Two generously sized side pockets can accommodate other accessories, such as a flash or battery charger. Estimated Street Price: $145.

Lowepro Rezo 120 AW
The Lowepro Rezo 120 AW is a feature-packed shoulder bag that offers ample protection in a lightweight design. It includes a well-padded interior, a brushed-tricot lining and a generous main compartment. The bag features front and side pockets, a memory card pouch and a soft, microfiber cloth to help clean your camera’s LCD or lens optics. Estimated Street Price: $29.

Crumpler 2 Million Dollar Home
The uniquely named 2 Million Dollar Home camera bag from Crumpler offers a hip alternative for the shutterbug. Consisting of a water-resistant shell, it includes a rip-stop nylon lining and multiple pockets for accessories, cables and memory cards. List Price: $28.

RoadWired Podzilla
The RoadWired Podzilla is a camera bag for photographers who carry a variety of small gadgets and accessories with their camera and lenses. Along with a camera and an attached lens, the uniquely designed case can accommodate cables, extra batteries, a GPS device, a cell phone, media cards and more. Its multiflap design makes storing and accessing items easy and efficient. List Price: $49.

Adorama Pro Slinger
The Adorama Pro Slinger’s versatile design allows it to be worn as a waist bag, shoulder bag or even a backpack. The spacious main compartment can accommodate a pro D-SLR with a moderate zoom lens and a couple of smaller lenses or a flash and other accessories. The interior includes adjustable partitions and two mesh pockets, and the exterior is water-resistant. List Price: $55.

M-ROCK High Sierra
The M-ROCK High Sierra bag is ideal for those who use a long zoom lens. Capable of accepting a D-SLR with a zoom lens as long as six inches, the holster-type bag offers numerous compartments for extra media cards, batteries and cables. It features unique bungee straps for carrying some items below the bag and a protective weather jacket. List Price: $48.

Think Tank Speed Demon
The Think Tank Speed Demon was designed specifically for photojournalists who require speedy access to their equipment. Its compartment easily accommodates wide-angle zooms with a large front element. The bag includes multiple pockets and compartments for numerous accessories as well as a removable Pixel Pocket Rocket that can hold up to 10 CompactFlash cards. List Price: $95.

Domke F-803 Camera Satchel
The Domke F-803 Camera Satchel is a camera bag that doesn’t look like a camera bag. Made of waterproof cotton canvas, the bag has space for a D-SLR and features two interior compartments for lenses or other accessories. It also offers two external and expandable cargo pockets with individual weather flaps. Estimated Street Price: $85.

Tamrac Velocity 7 Photo Sling Pack
The Tamrac Velocity 7 Photo Sling Pack is a backpack-style bag that can easily be made to swing to the front of your body for quick access to your equipment. The sling-style design helps to distribute the weight of a D-SLR and multiple lenses or flash. A smooth nylon pocket provides a safe place for filters, and its Memory and Battery Management system makes access to the essential accessories for your camera a breeze. Estimated Street Price: $49.