Best Camera Bags In 2021 - Bags to carry your camera equipment for every budget
Finding yourself with too much camera equipment and not enough hands to carry it all? Then what you need is a top-notch camera bag to keep it all in! There are hundreds of bags on the market to look at, each with varying styles, sizing and uses. You can be 100% sure that the perfect camera bag for you is out there somewhere!
With so much choice though it can be hard to come to a decision. So we’re here to help you narrow your list down with our top picks for camera bags in 2021!
best camera bags in 2021:
Yuhan DSLR Backpack
Best for beginners
Peter McKinnon x Nomatic Backpack
Best for travel
Lowepro ProTactic 450AW II
Best for professionals
Peak Design Everyday Backpack
Best for versatility
ThinkTank Retrospective v7
Best for weddings
Duragadget Backpack
Best budget camera bag
Lowepro Powder Backpack 500AW
Best for adventure
If you are looking for a more detailed analysis on why I chose these camera bags as the best to use in 2021 then keep on reading!
There are a lot of different aspects to consider when buying a bag. Your style of shooting, how much equipment you have, and your lifestyle will all play a part in making your choice. To be perfectly honest, there is no such thing as a perfect ‘one size fits all’ solution when it comes to camera bags as everyone has their own tastes and personal needs when it comes to choosing a camera bag. That said though, I think some of these bags are as close to perfect as they can be! At least they are for me anyway!
As you’ve seen already, I have tried to cover a multitude of different styles, professions and needs with the list above so let’s jump right into why I think these bags are perfect for their niches.
Best Camera Bags In 2021
Yuhan DSLR Backpack
This canvas backpack is in my opinion a fantastic starting point for any beginner photographer or filmmaker. It’s lightweight, fairly durable and crucially has two different main compartments built into the bag. The bottom half for your camera gear and the top half for everything else.
Why is this so important? Well, it means you’re able to easily access your camera gear while still being able to bring along other important items like food, lightweight raincoats or anything else you might need!
There are also straps on the bottom of the bag to attach a small tripod or gimbal to.
The drawbacks of this bag are that the construction of it means that your equipment probably will begin to cause strain on the seams as you upgrade over time. Professional lenses and cameras weigh more than ones aimed at beginners and hobbyists so this camera bag may not provide all the protection that you would like for higher end systems.
However, as a beginner, this bag will encourage you to be able to bring your camera plus an extra lens or two, along with whatever else you might need for a daytrip, light hike or a short shooting session. Being able to bring more than just your camera equipment will make every shoot you have more enjoyable, and the more fun you have the more likely you are to keep practicing and learning!
If I were starting out from scratch then this would be the bag I would get without any hesitation.
Best for beginners
Yuhan DSLR Backpack
Peter McKinnon x Nomatic Backpack
If you don’t know who the Youtube sensation Peter McKinnon is then I HIGHLY recommend that you check out his channel. He’s the perfect blend of entertainment, fun and knowledge. But this isn’t about Peter, this is about the bag that he created alongside camera bag manufacturer, Nomatic.
Just as with the previous backpack, this one has two main compartments, however, it is split into a front side and a back side. This kind of design is absolutely amazing for two reasons. First, it means that you can fit larger and heavier camera gear into your bag, and secondly, it keeps your camera equipment safe from damage, dirt and even makes it more secure as the camera compartment opens from the back.
This bag was designed with world travellers, YouTubers and professionals in mind as it ticks almost every box you could possibly want. There is more than enough room for all your equipment, the front facing compartment is perfect for storing and compressing additional clothing into, the build quality is fantastic and there are side zips to help you get to the gear you need quickly. For me, this camera bag is as close to perfection as it can get.
The downside? It’s pretty pricey, almost always out of stock, and there are a lot of other neat additional extra features that don’t come with the bag as standard so you’ll have to pay extra for those… If you are serious about becoming a professional photographer, YouTuber or filmmaker though then I reckon it’s worth investing in this bag.
Best for travel
Peter McKinnon x Nomatic Backpack
Lowepro ProTactic 450AW II
When it comes to fully protecting your camera gear you genuinely can’t go wrong with this bag. The Lowepro ProTactic 450AW II (that’s such a mouthful) is tough, built like a tank and is the perfect size to bring along to almost every kind of professional shoot you might have. The internal dividers of the bag are very easy to move around and reconfigure to whatever layout works best for your equipment.
The camera bag opens from the back, perfect for keeping your gear extra safe and making sure you don’t get the straps and back of the bag dirty when you access it. It also can store small, easy to access things in the side panels of the bag. The ‘webbing’ on the front of the bag is also perfect for modifying and attaching tripods, gimbals or anything else you might need to it.
I own the older version of this camera bag and it has lasted me well over 5 years of constant use. It’s been brought into busy cities, lugged up the sides of mountains and has been squeezed into more overhead cabin bins than I can count. And throughout all that it has kept my camera and lenses safe, dry and damage free. It’s about as purely functional as a camera bag gets!
Best for professionals
LowePro ProTactic 450AW II
Peak Design Everyday Backpack
This bag is probably my most used bag of all time. It is almost perfectly designed for the way that I shoot when I am working on personal projects, travelling for fun or off on a daytrip. The Peak Design Everyday Backpack comes in two sizes, a 20L size and a 30L size. I opted for the smaller 20L size to force myself to carry less equipment and become more creative with the limitations of not having all of my equipment at hand, and I’m glad to say it worked perfectly for me!
It may seem strange at first but the layout of this camera bag means that you don’t have access to everything all at once by opening one compartment. The access points are at the top and at both sides of the bag, meaning you have to decide what equipment is important to have at hand and place it near those openings. It takes a little getting used to but it makes accessing your equipment much faster when you can swing the bag off your shoulder, open the magnetic lock or unzip a side and immediately grab what you wanted.
This small, strange bag is honestly one of the best designed and durable backpacks on the market right now and it can be used for a multitude of different things. As I’ve said, this bag is almost perfect for my personal needs and has been able to put up with everything I’ve thrown at it so far, including protecting my camera equipment when I wipe out while skiing!
Best for versatility
Peak Design Everyday Backpack
ThinkTank Retrospective V7
When it comes to weddings it’s not really practical or comfortable to use a backpack to store your equipment. When you’re shooting in a fast paced, live environment like a wedding you only have seconds to react to capture what could be a beautiful moment. As such, we’re changing from backpacks to a shoulder bag for this one!
Any wedding photographer or filmmaker will know how important it is to have their gear with them at all times. It is literally the difference between getting a shot or not. So that’s where the Think Tank Retrospective 30 comes in. This canvas style shoulder bag has a deceptively large amount of room for a bag that goes over your shoulder. It works better with mirrorless cameras as you can fit more bodies with a lens in however there’s still plenty of space for DSLR users too!
Aside from the main compartment where the cameras and lenses live, there are also plenty of other pockets and compartment for storing batteries, camera card cases, audio equipment, flashes and there’s even room for a laptop!
While you probably will still want to fit more stuff into your bag (I know I always want to have more with me on a wedding day) the Think Tank really does strike a good balance between bringing what you need and still giving you room for all those little extras.
best for weddings
Thinktank Retrospective V7
Duragadget Backpack
If you have looked at all of the other camera bags on this list and despaired at the price then don’t worry, I have you covered. This camera backpack is perfect for beginners and hobbyists on a strict budget!
The Duragadget camera bag is a great, cheap alternative to spending big money on camera bags while you’re still finding your feet with photography and filmmaking.
As with pro level camera bags, you are able to move the internal dividers to fit and accommodate all of your camera gear so you can keep rearranging them as your collection of lenses and cameras grow! There are mesh pockets and additional zipped compartments for holding your batteries, accessories and anything else you might need, as well as adjustable straps to attach a small tripod to.
When I started out I bought a bag very similar to this one and it served me well until I began upgrading my equipment and the bag began to strain under the additional weight. As such, I would only recommend this camera bag for beginners or those who don’t plan on expanding their arsenal of camera equipment any time soon as you will likely outgrow this camera bag very quickly. Between this and the Yuhan DSLR Backpack I would choose the Yuhan as it will likely last you longer and be a much more fun bag to use.
best budget camera bag
Duragadget Camera Backpack
Lowepro Powder Backpack 500AW
If you are planning on taking things to the absolute extreme then all of the bags I’ve mentioned before won’t even come close to cutting it for what you need. If you hear the mountains calling to you and you know that you want to pack your bag, leave your house, hike for several days and come home with pictures most photographers can only ever dream of then you’re going to need a specialised bag to keep up with the demands.
The Lowepro Powder Backpack 500AW is probably one of the most specialised bags on the market right now as it’s aimed at mountain lovers, particularly those who do off-piste snowboarding and skiing.
Rather than think of this as a traditional camera bag you will probably want to look at it as primarily a bag for multi day hikes, with loads of room for your food, clothes, straps for attaching heavy external equipment to, with a few camera bag-like features thrown into the mix.
I own a similar, now discontinued, brand of bag and I can honestly say that having a reliable, spacious bag that puts hiking and adventure first and photography and filmmaking second will be essential in making your big adventures more comfortable and enjoyable.
Every adventure is different so only you will be able to make the best call on what you should be packing but the Powder Backpack is designed so that 50% of the space can be used for non-camera related items. As well as being able to remove the camera compartment entirely should you decide to use it as it’s own hiking bag. It offers back panel access to quickly grab your camera rather than having to unload your entire bag to get to your equipment.
Overall I think this is one of the best adventure camera bags on the market right now.
