The Mountainsmith Swift FX camera bag is a versatile waistpack with an option to carry it around your neck (using the padded shoulder strap) or around your waist (with the hip straps).
For me, the best thing about this bag is the fact that there are all sorts of pockets and sections that allow you to carry everything from spare SD cards to a water bottle. In all, you’ve got:
- zippered main compartment
- interior pocket with Velcro panels allowing flexibility for the size of your equipment (and the interior is yellow, making it easy to find things)
- front zippered pocket that’s padded – great for keeping your phone or a small digital camera
- zippered waistbelt pocket to give you easy access to smaller items (batteries, SD cards, etc.)
- side mesh pocket for water bottle
The main compartment, by the way, has plenty of room for a DSLR and a spare lens (or even 2). I love that it it so well padded and bonus points go for this being made of 100% recycled PET fabric.
So, here’s the caveat… While I really like using a camera bag that’s separate from a day bag (in which I might carry a guidebook and other items), this bag is a little bulky to carry during travels (likely because of all that great padding). In a perfect world, I would have a camera bag that I could pack (empty) into my luggage. Something that would squish down relatively small and then, upon arrival, I could use for walking around during the day. (As a side note, I have a nifty section in my big day bag where I safely keep my camera and a telephoto lens while I’m flying and I then transfer them into into a smaller walking around bag.)
All in all, for me this is a totally great camera bag for going out for a local hike in the mountains, for a day of sightseeing in Seattle or for a weekend getaway where I’ll be driving (and don’t have a space constraint). But it is a bit much for me to take with me on an international trip where my space is super limited – remember, I only ever take a carry-on even when traveling abroad.
This would likely work well for someone who has more space in their checked or carry-on luggage than I ever do. But you space mongers? Fuggedabout it.
Available from Amazon for less than $60.
Travel Well,
Beth
Related links:
Christine says
I don’t use a “camera” bag much, because it draws too much {unwanted]attention. 1 DSLR + 3 lenses (in soft cases), a P&S camera + batteries & memory cards + the normal stuff from my purse go into my day pack & are all easily accessible.