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| The Lowepro Vertex 300 AW backpack. Probably one of the best big travel camera backpacks ever. |
Before our trip to Maine, I knew that my
Lowepro Flipside 300 bag isn't enough to carry all the stuff i'm bringing in to our vacation. Maine is a pretty big area for photographs. The photo opportunities there is endless. From wildlife to landscapes...I know I need to bring a couple of my lenses to make the most out of our trip.
My Lowepro Flipside 300 backpack basically will hold one body with a large telephoto lens attached, 2 extra lenses and a speedlight. Or 2 bodies one with a telephoto attached and one extra lens and a speedlight. I need more than that on our Maine trip so I decided to look for a large travel backpack that can hold at least 2 bodies 2 large telephotos, and 2 smaller lenses plus a speedlight and a tripod. So I browsed online for a large travel slr backpack with a not so stellar price.
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| Both sides of the bag feature the glide lock system used to hold a tripod or a light stand. |
I ended up finding the
Lowepro Vertex 300 AW backpack. I found one online for less than $200, a price that I am willing to spend on a very good travel backpack. Usually it is priced around $250-$299. I was lucky I found one cheaper so I ordered it and it arrived 3 days later.
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| The front features a detachable tripod catch, multiple pockets and a tripod strap. |
My first impression when I opened the box was that this bag is huge! I guess I got what I asked for. It is huge but not obnoxiously huge like a hiking bag. I actually can walk around with it in my back and not worry about bumping anything when I turn around. Surprisingly the bag alone is pretty light.
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| The back features padded shoulder straps for comfort. |
The front features a tripod strap and a tripod catch at the bottom. The tripod catch comes in unattached. It really is up to you if you want it attached or not. I find it really helpful when carrying tripods so I just leave it alone in there. The strap features a system called Glide lock which enables you to move it up and down for your tripod height. A feature not found in other bags.
The sides of the bag also has tripod straps and Glide locks. I find these really nice when you're going on a shoot and bringing in your tripod and light stands. I use the sides for light stands. It is so convenient that you don't need a separate bag for 2 stands.
The back has the padded straps for comfort. The straps are padded thickly for extra comfort during long hikes. It also has a waist strap to keep the bag steady along with your body...and those straps are padded too.
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| If you are not using the straps, the bag has a cover so you can zip it up and it becomes a carry on bag. |
How good is it as an outdoor camera backpack? The Vertex 300 has a built in rain cover which you can hide in the bottom compartment. This is a very nice feature when you're outdoors and carrying expensive equipment under not so good weather. Unfortunately, I haven't had a chance to use it so I can't tell if the rain cover is that good. By the looks of it, it seems like it's pretty weather resistant.
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| It has a built in rain cover. |
The bottom has a compartment where you fold and keep the rain cover and also the back cover if you don't want to use the shoulder straps. Both flaps just fold into the compartment. You wouldn't even know that it's there. It closes by a strip of velcro.
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| The bottom pocket used to keep the rain cover and the back cover. |
Now we go to the most important part...the inside of the bag. As what the photo shows below this paragraph, this bag has a ton of room for your equipment. As like other camera bags, the inside dividers are detachable using velcro. You can basically set the dividers however you want them to be. The top most part houses a body as well as the bottom part. I use the side compartments for lenses and other stuff.
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| The dividers are detachable for easy setup to however you want it. |
The front panel of the bag that is inside has pockets that can hold your filters, manuals and anything that's flat. This is where I store my
FX5 better beamer flash extender, since it stores flat.
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| This is where all the flat stuff goes. Filters, manuals, etc. |
Now here is where the Vertex 300 shines...the room. I basically carried 2 bodies, 2 long telephotos, 3 extra lenses, a video camera, about 5 batteries, 3 chargers, a teleconverter, 1 speedlight, a shutter release, a tripod, 5 memory cards, a portable hard drive with power supply, a tablet, about 3 filters, a flash extender, a first aid kit, and I can't remember what else. It is like bringing your studio to a vacation. I love how you can carry 2 bodies with lenses attached facing each other. Now you don't have to worry about attaching the lenses when you get to your location.
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| The only thing that will limit you with this bag is the ability to carry it with all the stuff inside |
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| The tripod holders are a plus with this bag. It has 3 of them! |
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| The front pocket has 4 memory card compartments. In addition to 4 separate pockets. |
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| The other side has 2 zipped pockets for batteries or whatever, plus a pen holder and another pocket. |
The Vertex 300 has a buch of pockets in the front compartment. I use this to store my batteries, cleaners, wipes and swabs. A pen holder that can hold 3 pens is useful when you're on the go. On the other side the vertex 300 has 4 separate memory card holder. Of course, you can also put your memory cards in whatever pocket you want to.
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| The top front has a separate laptop sleeve that can hold a 15" laptop or a tablet. |
The laptop sleeve can hold a 15" laptop or a tablet, I use this for a tablet which is really useful for seeing the previews of the photos that you take when you're on location.
There are endless pockets and compartments with this bag. Basically the only thing that will limit you with this bag is the ability to carry it with all the stuff that you can put in it. The construction is pretty tough, even the some of the zippers are protected from the elements.
Lowepro did a good job on this bag. I've always loved the Lowepro brand when it comes to bags. For the price, there is just no way to pass on this good deal.
