The best camera bags you can buy by Kyle Schurman on Oct 2, 2017, 11:00 AM The Insider Picks team writes about stuff we think you'll like. Business Insider has affiliate partnerships, so we get a share of the revenue from your purchase. 
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Don’t spend a few thousand dollars on camera gear and then skimp on the way you carry it. The best camera bag to carry all of your gear while keeping it fully protected is the Think Tank Photo Airport Accelerator. It’s really big, and it’s not cheap, but it will work great for carrying whatever gear you need for your photography jobs, no matter how far you have to travel. One of the biggest mistakes photographers make has nothing to do with shooting a photo that’s out of focus or that has someone making a rude gesture in the background. It’s spending hard-earned money on camera gear — perhaps a few thousand dollars or more — and then carrying the gear in whatever extra bag you have lying around. Photography gear needs protection from all kinds of dangers, and the right camera bag provides such protection. It uses padding in its exterior and interior to prevent the gear from bumping into things. Compartments inside the camera bag tightly hold your camera bodies and lenses in place, preventing them from cracking into each other. If you’re someone who doesn’t watch where you’re going, a great camera bag even can protect your gear from you. Throwing your camera gear into your kid’s old SpongeBob SquarePants school backpack isn’t going to provide the same protection, no matter how handy that bag is to use. Key considerations for camera bags Camera bags are available in multiple shapes and sizes, as well as various materials and colors, as What Is Digital Camera, Light Stalking, and eBay discuss. - Capacity: The bag’s size needs to be able to accommodate all of the gear you want to take to a particular shoot. We’d recommend buying a large camera bag that can handle the largest amount of gear you would take. A small bag is lighter and easier to carry, but you’ll be very frustrated the first time your small bag cannot handle all of the gear you need to take.
- Carrying comfort: Some bags are more comfortable to carry than others. Many photographers like a backpack style camera bag that offers a lot padding in the shoulders, for example. Some large bags even have wheels and a retractable handle, almost like luggage.
- Compartments: Camera bags should have compartments on the interior. These areas will tightly hold your camera gear in place, ensuring it doesn’t move around as you’re carrying the bag. Some bags will use Velcro to allow you to adjust the position of the compartments, making sure they fit your gear.
- Exterior protection: Camera bags should have thick walls and padding in the lining of the bag. And if you plan to fly with your gear, a hard-shelled camera bag that's more like a case provides the most protection.
- Fabrics: Strong nylon, canvas, cotton, and leather all appear as the primary fabric in camera bags. Some camera bag fabrics offer waterproof capabilities, while others resist damage from snags, which can be a nice feature when you’re hiking in rough terrain.
- Padding: Camera bags need padding to protect your expensive gear from bumps and bruises. Padding should be included as part of the lining of the bag, but it also should appear in compartments on the bag’s interior to prevent pieces of gear from cracking into each other.
- Straps, latches, pockets, and buckles: Finding just the right quality and quantity of latches and pockets on the camera bag can be a challenge. Some people will want fewer buckles so they can gain access to the gear faster. Other photographers will want sturdy and trustworthy straps and latches, ensuring that the gear inside will be safe, even if it takes longer to open the bag.
- Weather resistance: Camera bags should offer some protection against water. Even if the bags are not designed to be submerged in water, they should resist rain and blowing dirt.
Camera bag sizes vary quite a bit and offer several different features. Selecting the right camera bag requires thinking about how you plan to use the bag and the type of photography situations you’ll encounter. B&H, Manfrotto, and The Wirecutter explain the different use cases to consider when shopping for camera bags. Depending on where you’re traveling, you may not want to make it obvious that you’re carrying camera gear. A shoulder bag will do the trick here. Some shoulder camera bags look more like a purse, a shoulder briefcase, or a diaper bag, but they have the padding and compartments inside to hold photography gear safely. Meanwhile, hard shell cases are great for when you have to fly with your gear, but they're not ideal for shoots out in the field because they are more cumbersome. At the other end of the spectrum, if you are carrying a small camera or won’t be changing lenses on your DSLR, you can make use of a camera holster or a sling bag. This almost looks like a fanny pack, so if you want to reject it immediately on fashion principle, we’ll understand. But this bag gives you the quickest access to your camera. A backpack style camera bag works well for carrying a lot of heavy camera equipment comfortably, especially when you don’t need to grab the gear quickly. You’ll have to take off the backpack camera bag to gain access to the gear unless you have a twistable backpack. We've done the research to round up the best camera bags you can buy to protect your gear when you're out on a shoot. We've included hard cases, backpacks, and shoulder bags to accommodate a variety of styles and use cases. Read on to see which of our top picks is best for your needs. The best camera bag overall  Why you'll love it: The Think Tank Photo Airport Accelerator camera bag offers an extremely tough design that will hold and protect all of your camera gear and then some. The Think Tank Photo Airport Accelerator camera bag may have been designed to help photographers carry their gear safely when traveling by plane, but it has become a popular bag for carrying photography gear almost anywhere, especially in places where a wheeled bag is not practical. The Think Tank bag holds an impressive amount of camera gear, including multiple lenses, battery packs, flashes, and other necessities. It has many compartments to hold everything in place securely as you move around. It's a backpack style bag with sturdy handles and straps. In its review, Photography Life highlights the lightweight design of the Accelerator bag, which makes it easier to carry than heavier bags that have wheels. One Amazon buyer reports having had great experiences traveling with this camera bag. Think Tank is known for its outstanding construction, and this bag's build quality is also excellent, according to The Digital Picture's review. Even though this is an excellent bag, the Points in Focus review points out that the large size of the Airport Accelerator bag may exceed the carry-on bag sizes for some airlines, making this bag less usable for frequent fliers. Pros: Extremely tough camera bag that provides plenty of protection for cameras and lenses, large bag that accommodates a lot of gear, works well in areas where wheeled bags are impractical, strong brand name for camera bags Cons: Price is a little high, camera bag may be too large to be used as a carry-on bag with some airlines
The best backpack style camera bag  Why you'll love it: If you want easier access to your backpack style camera bag, the MindShift rotation180° Horizon Camera Backpack has a rotating section, allowing you to access your gear without removing the bag. Backpack camera bags are popular because they’re comfortable to wear, spreading the weight of the bag across both shoulders while keeping your hands free. However, some photographers dislike this style because you cannot access your gear quickly. The MindShift rotation180° Horizon Camera Backpack fixes that problem, using a patented rotational design that allows you to access the bag’s contents without removing the bag from your shoulders. The Shutter Muse loves this aspect of the Horizon bag, mentioning that you won’t have to remove the bag and set it down to grab your gear. However, one Amazon customer was disappointed in how little camera gear fits inside the rotatable portion of the bag. Inside of the bag, you'll find a lot of compartments and pockets for storing your gear. In its review, Improve Photography discusses the strong build quality of the MindShift bag, as well as its lightweight construction. A reviewer from PhilliPreeve used to carry two bags for gear, one for fast access to cameras and one for gear used less often, but the MindShift rotation180° camera bag allows for carrying one bag. One Amazon customer loves hiking with this backpack, as it protects camera gear well, yet provides fast access when a photo opportunity pops up unexpectedly. Pros: Backpack-style camera bag is comfortable to wear, portion of the bag rotates to front of your body without taking it off, good construction quality in the camera bag, great option for hiking with camera gear Cons: Above average price, rotating portion of the bag is small
The best hard-sided camera bag/case  Why you'll love it: Nothing keeps your cameras and lenses safer when traveling than the hard-sided Pelican Air 1535 Case. First things first: Technically, it would be more appropriate to call the Pelican Air 1535 a camera case, rather than a camera bag. After all, it’s hard-sided with wheels and an extendable handle, not exactly what you’d naturally think about as a camera bag. Still, it fits on our list because it is made to transport your photography gear safely and efficiently … with an emphasis on safe. As the Fstoppers' review says, this Pelican camera case is extremely tough, ensuring your gear will not suffer damage from external dangers. One Amazon buyer says it’s the best way to protect camera gear when you must check your bag when flying. DP Review acknowledges that the Pelican Air 1535 is bulky and tough to carry, but its ability to completely protect your photography gear is worth the hassle of carrying it. Although this Pelican case will be overkill for most people, for those photographers who need top-end protection, the 1535 delivers. Carryology recommends it to those who have lots of gear and really want to protect it. It’s also nice that the case comes in four different configurations, so you can pick the best type of padding for your needs. One Amazon buyer appreciates how the Pelican 1535 is a bit lighter than previous models but wishes Pelican’s designers had kept the carrying handle on the top of the case. Pros: Best camera gear protection available, hard-sided case will keep cameras and lenses safe, different padding configurations available, weighs less than older Pelican cases, works great when flying with camera gear Cons: Hard-sided case is bulky and awkward, carrying handle location moved from previous versions
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