Whew! Finally trying to get back to some kind of normalacy after spending 10 days at Disneyworld! To the review!
In anticipation of your mega-trip to Disneyworld, I began looking at camera backpacks. I knew the slingbag and the messenger bag could not hack 10 hour days in the parks for 10 days. I also wanted a bladder system, which narrows choices even further. After some research, I came across Clik-Elite systems. As a bonus, the company is local to my area.
Some intro photos....
The ONE thing I did NOT like about this bag was that the camera storage was on the bottom of the bag. Now, I understand weight distribution, that placing the camera and gear on the top might make things off-balance; however, I did not relish the idea of forgetting my stuff was there and dropping the bag and damaging stuff. But that never happened. If you're a bit anal retentive as I am, I was constantly aware that I had the gear and always set the bag down lightly.
The camera storage area fit my K-5ii snugly, whether the DA 40mm was mounted or the 18-135 was mounted. The very bottom pouch held a large flash diffuser and the 18-135 was stored in the top pouch. A Pentax p&s fit in the middle, back and my A 50 1.7 fit in the middle pocket looking thing there.
I kept an extra battery and remote in here. My flashcards were in a carrier in another pocket.
In this large, second main compartment, I carried all our snacks for the day. It held more than enough food/snacks for 8 people for 10 hours at the park.
Here's the H2O bladder pocket.
Finally, I bought some nylon webbing and had a local shoe repair shoppe/cobbler add some daisy chains to the shoulder straps.
I added the daisy chains for the sole purpose of using Optek's backpack straps.
Final impressions: I LOVE this backpack. I loaded it with my new K-5ii, DA 40mm, DA 18-135, misc. camera gear, 3 liters of water, and a ton of snacks. This was a lot of stuff, and yes, the bag was heavy. BUT it never felt too heavy; my shoulders NEVER hurt. It never felt too overstuffed or like it might break or fall apart. There is a built-in rain hood (that I forgot to take pics of) that I had to deploy nearly every afternoon. Even the rain hood performed well, keeping all my gear dry while still providing access when necessary. With the shoulder straps adjusted and my hip belt adjusted correctly, this backpack was comfortable all day. On the rides and roller coasters, it fit between my feet but just barely. I wouldn't take a bigger bag. Thank goodness we had the water bladder on those hot, humid Florida days.
This backpack is expensive. It cost $150. That's a lot of money for a camera backpack, but given it's unique set of features, it's worth the money. If I lost this bag tomorrow, I'd replace it with the same bag. I highly recommend this bag if you need great camera protection and the bladder.
Probody Sport | Backpacks | Clik Elite