The readers of our PiercingMetal Musings Product Reviews might remember that I discussed the “Urban Disguise 30” in this area several months ago and for those that don’t – it was a product review of a very stylish photography equipment carry bag that came courtesy of the folks over at Think Tank Photo. The bag was perfect for those photographers who had the bare essentials in terms of the gear they were trekking around with and towards the tail end of the product dialogue I mused aloud about how if you were one of those who carried a lot more stuff than someone like me did – that perhaps you needed to look into a different type of bag to serve your purposes. Now while I cannot take credit for instilling the ideas in the company’s head about this additional spacing thought it does seem that the timing was rather fortuitous as they deliver what they call “The Streetwalker Hard Drive” backpack to the consumer. I got my eager editorial hands on one of these backpacks recently and dug into it to see just how it would work out for those of you who had read my Urban Disguise 30 piece and crossed their fingers about something just a wee bit larger for your use. Let’s get down to business shall we…..”The “StreetWalker Backpack” is exactly what it sounds like and is a line of sturdy, school bag type carry all of your gear holder and depending on which model you opt to purchase offers up varying sized spaces inside for you to bring your business of photography out into the world. The model that I am reviewing is called the “Streetwalker Hard Drive” because it is large enough to fit a 15” laptop in one of its pouches and offers said device sufficient protection. Below you will find a graphic of the whole bag and see how the laptop fits snugly inside.
As you can see based on the size of the DSLR that is positioned next to it, the bag is rather sizable and will allow you to slip your laptop into the sleeve that would be against your back when wearing the pack. I’m currently using a Dell Inspiron 6000 and when measured corner to corner this laptop is 17” but it still fits in the bag. I need to inform the reader that while it’s a bit tight it was still nice to find that I was able to do this even though my system was a good 2” larger than spec. If this is a major concern to you then the Hard Drive bag is not for you or you need a smaller laptop. I’m one of those writers/photographers whose finding that a lot of his time is spent at the laptop and so based on that I prefer the larger screen. Now let’s take a look at the inside of the bag to see how everything gets placed in there.
As you can see there is a whole lot of room for you to play with inside the bag and all of the compartments can be configured to fit whatever it is you like for the space. I’m currently dealing with a standard DSLR and its smaller lens along with the zoom lens 75mm-300mm and if you configure the compartments just right you can leave the camera and lens together and store them in the bag for ease of grab and shoot scenarios. Of course when it comes down to my own stuff that is it as far as hard core gear goes, but I also love to bring along my little point and shoot Olympus and extra cards and batteries. The numerous different configurations allow for me to safely keep all of that other stuff with me as well, and even leaves me the room to bring the chargers along or a card reader for the laptop as well as that laptops own AC Adapter. Let’s face it, you don’t want to be in the field and need to transfer your photos to the laptop and find the battery dead and needing a burst of juice. That being said, there are those who might fear having all of their eggs in one basket so to speak but let’s face it, we always risk our gear when we adventure out with it so one just needs to be mindful of who is watching it and where it is should it not be in our hands or attached to us when we shoot. Caution and paying attention are always recommended actions when doing this stuff anyway, so keep that in your head. All of this gear is accessed by one main zipper pouch that covers the entire length of the bag. Depending on the weather and other things you need to carry around, I found that there was room to store a small box of business cards, a small flashlight and even a bandana and baseball cap. I know this stuff is not really photo related but its nice to know that the bag serves the purpose for some other minute needs.
Much like the front zipper pouch of a conventional school bag we find the pouch where one can keep the pens and paper or keys and other small necessities. We see the photographer using the bag here is keeping his battery and memory card in this section but I generally prefer to keep them in a little more secure space inside as opposed to an external space. I did store my music player in here though and liked that I was able to access it while I wandered the city in search of my next photographic task. The bag also comes with Think Tank Photos standard rain cover and if you have not seen one of these before it’s a very standard “rain hat” for the bag. It covers the entire thing and keeps the contents nice and dry even if you are not. There are side expanding pouches where the wandering photographer can store a bottle of water or umbrella or other small items. The shoulder harness straps are really strong and most important of all, are comfortable. You will not hate wearing this bag as you walk around and depending on how heavy your stuff is you can secure the belt attachment as well. My stuff weighed in total of about 20 pounds and that was not as bad but again each of us is different and can thusly handle different weights.
The only downside is the price, but this is the cost of dealing with a quality provider of equipment carry alls. The old saying of “you get what you pay for” is certainly true and if you do this for a living you sure don’t want to place your tools of the trade in an inferior or shoddy bag that would jeopardize the items integrity or well being. Of course, the smaller bags in the Streetwalker line might be better suited to you should you NOT need to carry your laptop around. There is a smaller one which holds a little less but that could be perfect for you and if that is the case I urge you to investigate further by clicking the link that we have provided below. The company does make some really cool stuff and I have been happy to have had the chance to discuss some of their products in this area.
PiercingMetal.com is a ThinkTank Photo Affiliate: That’s right and we want to continue to support this great company by letting you in on it as well. Just click the LINK to go to our official affiliate page. You’ll know you are there when you see the “Welcome Friend Of Piercing Metal” words. Anyone that orders $50 or more from the site while using our page will receive a gift of some kind. In this economy that is always a good thing.
Important: If you have questions or concerns about this product you can leave them as comments under this posting and they will be addressed accordingly. Please understand that based on existing editorial demands that such inquiries via direct email contact will not be answered.
Official Website: http://www.thinktankphoto.com