In Search of a Better Photography Daypack

[Bruce Tolley]

For backpacking I usually carry my mirrorless camera in a shoulder pouch and an extra lens wrapped in foam in the top of my backpack. Now I am doing more day hikes for the express purpose of photography. I would like to carry my mirrorless plus 2 or 3 lenses and a tripod.  My trip weighs 2 lbs not counting my 14 oz Acratech GPSS ballhead (great product!). I have tried all the day packs and two different local dealers.  I find it very uncomfortable and off balance to carry 3 lbs of tripod on the outside of a pack that does not have any ability to compress. Not to mention that many of the packs from LowePro and Mindshift weigh 3 plus lbs before you load them with gear.   Is there a photography daypack that weighs less than 2.5 lbs, holds three f2.8 mirrorless lenses (35mm equiviance: 14-28, 24-80, 80-300 ) gear for a day out (lunch, rain gear, 10 essentials).and lets you pack the tripod inside?  Should I just stick with my daypack and foam wrappers?

Cheers.

[David Thomas]

I never had a ton of lens on a trip, but I always like a padded fanny pack, because I could spin it around in front of me, unzip and toss back the top, and work out it, storing one lens before taking out the next one.  It just seemed safer for the lenses to have only one in motion at a time.

The particular one I used was by Mark PackWorks and was padded around the perimeter and then I’d use additional padding between the lens or pack the lens in their cases.  The lid zipped open on top so I could see all the lens at once, kind of like this fanny pack does:

[Bruce Tolley]

Thanks David. My current bag is a waist pack and very similar to the bag in your photo, But since upgrading to a slightly bigger body, with the 24to 80 lens on the camera, I cannot fit the 2nd 80 to 300 zoom lens into the bag.

Cheers.

[Andrew Priest]

I am working through a similar issue but carrying less photography equipment than you (e.g., no tripod maybe just a couple of lenses). My short list at the moment is topped out with a Marmot Graviton 34 Panel Loader backpack. I think it is a bit on the big size for my usage however the panel loading feature really appeals.

It means I can use a insert at the bottom of the pack and easily unzip that part to access the camera gear without having to rummage through my bushwalking gear and vice versa.

I don’t know how it would go with your tripod but.

[Bruce Tolley]

Andrew
Very interesting idea. I only need 18 inches of length for the tripod.  What insert are you looking at to insert into the marmot?

Cheers/Bruce

[Andrew Priest]

In terms of an insert I have on to hand which I got with a Greenroom316 pack that I brought a while back. I also have a Lowe Apline one from one of their bags. I will probably try these first and see how they work out and if I need to take a more serious look at options.

[John S.]

Just for information. You may have already read it.

https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/our-favorite-camera-bags/

[Rex Sanders]

I’m on my fourth “professional” daypack for video and photo gear, and so far don’t like any of them.  Really dislike movable dividers – they never quite fit what I’m trying to pack.

Mostly I use an old 32L Patagonia daypack (no longer made), with camera, lenses, and other gear swaddled in foam-lined pouches or wraps, plus a travel tripod inside the pack. It even has a padded laptop slot. And it doesn’t scream “steal me, I’m full of photo gear.”

As for the Wirecutter recommendations – that’s why I bought the Peak Design Everyday Messenger. Putting a lot of weight on one shoulder/neck for long periods is a bad idea, no matter how cool the design and features.

My recommendation: Buy a comfortable, reasonably priced non-photo daypack with the features you need, including one large main compartment that opens wide, and a padded back panel. Add padded pouches or wraps for sensitive gear. Spend the money you save vs a heavier “pro” backpack on a travel tripod or monopod that fits inside, like something from Mefoto.

But that’s just me. Others probably love heavy pro photo backpacks with a zillion dividers. YMMV.

— Rex

PS – Apparently daypacks are the most returned items at B&H. Buy from a source with a good return policy.

[Charles Miles]

Thought I would share my current setup – this is absolutely more of a compromise hike/photo setup and if the waist pack above doesn’t fit your larger body + lens combo this might not have any interesting details for you… But I thought I would post it anyway since I haven’t yet found a photo pack I was

• Ultimate Direction Fastpack 15 – with OP/TECH straps sewn on to facilitate using a chest pack and modified longer chest straps to fit around the Pajaro mentioned below, I have been using the 15 for a couple of months, I used a older/larger UD Fastpack for about 1.5 years prior. ‘Vest’ style packs are not everyone’s preference but I like them and to me one notable detail in this setup is that while the UD is not at all a photo specific pack I think the UD Fastpack 15 is a great pack overall!
• Pajaro Grande Field bag worn as a check pack – I can easily fit my A7RII with Sony 35 Prime and the Sony 24-240 Zoom (or other lens) in OP/TECH Neoprene both in the main pocket, blower in the larger side pocket, spare battery/spare memory card/lenspen/grey card/.., in the zippered front pocket. This bag is not setup with dividers or any real padding to help protect your gear, but I have found the single large main pocket a very good/flexible setup. I can’t imagine that this bag would hold your body plus ideal set of lenses but for me it makes the camera easy to get to and hikes nicely so I am willing to stash more lenses in the pack bag.
• Sirui T-025X Tripod with the Center Column Removed in one of the outer mesh pocket – for me this rides really nicely in the outer mesh pocket but ymmv with other tripods (esp. if heavier or taller). I really have to take the pack off to get the tripod in/out which is fine for me (I can sort of get it out really awkwardly but…). (Also in the pocket I put the tripod in I put some thin closed cell foam in the bottom for the tripod to ‘sit in’ – in my last UD pack the mesh stretching over the hard corners of the tripod put holes in the mesh)

I take my A6000 in a small/inexpensive camera case as a chest pack if I am running or just want a lighter weight camera setup.

Hope there is maybe an interesting detail in here for you!

-Charles

[Noah K]

I like to carry a more substantial kit sometimes, with a FF body, 2 lenses, filters, and some accessories that I carry in an F-Stop case.  I’ve been using a gregory targhee for a while. Its technically a “skiing” pack, but the rear panel access is very convenient, and a tripod can either be put inside the front pocket (sized for avy tools) or on the side.

http://www.gregorypacks.com/backpacking/alpine-ski/targhee-32/5960TAR32.html

[Rex Sanders]

Relevant and funny:

— Rex

[Ian]

I’m currently using the Incase DSLR pro backpack to carry my a6000 kit and Sirui T025 tripod.   I’m buying a larger Sirui tripod later this year and am definitely getting an Acratech ballhead for it, but I won’t derail on that too much here.

I really like the Incase DSLR pro but I’ve only had it for a few months and haven’t taken it on anything more than a few miles.

My initial impressions

Pros:

Opening for the main compartment is through the back panel instead of on the front side of the pack.   I don’t have to get my straps and back panel dirty if I want to dig deep into the pack to retrieve some gear.

I can quickly access my camera and two other lenses from the top.

I can fit my T-025 inside the bag for the times when I’m transiting an airport or anywhere where I don’t want it hanging on the side of the pack.

It doesn’t look like a camera backpack or scream “come rob me”.

Plenty of room to carry my camera gear, jackets, feed bag, and any other essentials I may need for a long day hike.

Plenty of room to use this as my one bag solution for travel and have my camera gear and 1-2 changes of clothing.

Con (yes… singular)

The side pocket design really sucks and I don’t trust it to carry a water bottle. I have a couple ideas on how to carry 1-2 liters of water but they are not fully formed solutions yet and I still need to experiment some.

[joseph hawkins]

For a day pack the gossamer gear summit pack at ~15 oz and use Ape Case inserts for camera and lenses

[Les]

For day hikes….not backpacking I use the “mind shift rotation pro 180”. Yes it is heavy but perfect if you are on a day hike and you want to take all your stuff! get the filter nest with it if you use many filters. you will have room for everything you want plus a bit of food and extra clothes. kinda spendy but its like having an assistant there to hand you stuff because you can access everything without taking it off. I have been some pretty crazy places with it and when ya can’t set stuff down its the one to use.

For backpacking trips when I take my big camera and one lens i use one of the dyneema pods by hyper light Mountain Gear. I use some padded dividers from other camera bags to pad it and give it some compartments and it fits right down in your pack perfect. the pods are waterproof too.

 

Les

[Boyan B]

This topic has been beaten to death over on FredMiranda. My personal preferences are

For photo centric daytrips or overnighters I use an Osprey Kamber 42. My second preference would be a Gregory Targhee 40. After that the various dedicated hiking photo packs which are all ridiculously priced – Fstop, Shimoda, Mindshift (think $300+ for just the shell) I consider all mainstream photo packs unsuitable for hiking (Lowepro, TT, etc).

I backpack with a giantGregory Baltoro 95 Pro. About 40lb worth of weight go to camping gear and food, and 15 lbs+ are photo gear . When I go on multi day trips here in the Southwest I also need room in the Baltoro for about 1.2 gals of water per day.

 

[Noah K]

Most “skiing” packs have rear-panel access which is pretty nice for photography.  Ive been using a Gregory targhee 32 for a few years now with an f-stop insert. The front pockets are designed for avi gear and are huge, more than large enough for a tripod. Since the access is the rear panel, you can also load up the packs with gear like snowshoes without compromising accessibility. There are also some good looking options for dedicated “adventure photography” packs from companies like Shimoda or Atlas.

[George]

I don’t like camera gear in packs… I’m too lazy… I like it at my finger tips…  that lead me to…

https://kgear.eogear.com/

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