Best Camera Bag and Backpack for 2025

LowePro has been a staple of the photography bag world for years and with the ProTactic 450 it's easy to see why. This rugged backpack opens fully from the back, although there are side and top quick-access points too. It provides a wealth of storage slots for a DSLR, multiple lenses, filters, batteries and other accessories -- I even stuffed a small drone in among my gear. 

If you can't quite fit everything inside, you can get additional accessory pouches that attach to the outside of the case, where you can also attach your tripod. It's comfortable to carry thanks to both chest and hip straps, it's made of durable materials and it has a zipped compartment for laptops up to 15 inches.

Thanks in part to its stylish design that doesn't look anything like your average photography bag, Peak Design's first-gen Everyday backpack was a hit, with models adorning the shoulders of urban photographers the world over. The second-gen model keeps the modern aesthetic and quick-access side zips of the original but makes subtle tweaks to the magnetic clasps (among other things) to make this backpack better than ever.

It's my favorite everyday bag to use, and my original has clocked up hundreds of hours of use on some extremely rough-and-tumble photoshoots. The hard-wearing, water-resistant materials put up with serious abuse, which will come as peace of mind to professionals and amateurs alike. 

With materials that include soft German leather and naturally weather-resistant Scottish canvas, Compagnon's backpack Gen III manages to be both beautiful to look at and feel extremely luxurious to use. It's also handmade, resulting in an exceptionally well put-together backpack that feels like it'll put up with years of use. 

Its generous internal storage area can be customised to fit your camera and lenses, while a canvas roll top section expands upward to give extra space for storing a jacket or snacks. I took this bag on a photography hiking holiday in the Welsh mountains and found it to be extremely comfortable as an all-day hiking backpack. Two expanding side pockets proved essential for carrying both a tripod and a water bottle.

If you're concerned about keeping the attractive canvas clean over the years then you may want to consider Compagnon's Elements backpack which is physically similar but made from weatherproof ballistic nylon, which may make it easier to keep clean. 

Camera slings are great choices for those of you who tend to just carry one small camera. Slings are easy to throw over your shoulder, providing quick access to your camera whenever a photo opportunity arises. They're superb choices for street photographers working in busy urban spaces. Wandrd's Rogue is one of the my favorite examples, being both comfortable to wear and made from sturdy, weather-resistant materials. 

The 6-liter option I tested was big enough for a compact camera -- or a smaller mirrorless camera with a prime lens -- while still leaving additional space for filters, spare batteries or other small accessories. Its multiple zippered pockets also provide handy places to pop your phone, wallet or passport. The thick rear padding makes it comfortable to wear either as a cross body bag or spun round to sit out of the way on my back. 

At just shy of $1,000, the Oberwerth Matterhorn is not a backpack for everyone. This camera bag is firmly aimed at the more luxury end of the market, being handmade in Germany from full-grain cow hide resulting in a truly exquisitely built bag. Its plain black design means it doesn't look like a typical technical-focused camera bag either, meaning it'll carry your cameras on your city photowalk but still look totally at home when you venture into a fancy cocktail lounge at the end of your day. 

Its internal camera unit provides plenty of space for multiple cameras and lenses, while its front zippered pocket is ideal for memory cards, filters, wallets or other smaller accessories. A separate rear compartment provided space for 13-inch laptops or tablets. I've spent more of my testing time using it without the camera insert, treating it as just a regular bag and simply putting my camera in a padded wrap inside the main compartment. I'm glad the insert is removable -- that luxury price tag at least allows you to use this bag for everything, whether it's photography-related or not. 

Oberwerth targets most of its products at Leica customers, with even the vibrant red interior of the bag being color-matched to the red in Leica's logo. That makes a lot of sense; Leica cameras are luxury items costing many thousands of dollars, so pairing your fancy new camera with a fancy new bag is a no-brainer. 

Manfrotto bags are common sights on the backs of photographers the world over and there's a good reason; its products are well thought-out and built to handle a rugged life of being thrown around on photoshoots. The Pro Light Frontloader is no exception. It zips fully open at the front of the pack (hence the name) to reveal a large internal storage space with a variety of dividers for safely storing your camera gear. 

It can comfortably hold two mirrorless bodies, with additional lenses, or in my experience, a DSLR, two extra lenses and DJI drone plus controller. There's a capacious front pocket too that's ideal for shoving in a sweater or light jacket, top and side pockets for holding other accessories and an expanding side pocket for holding a tripod or water bottle. 

The Wandrd Prvke backpack's outer is made from a rubberised material that's not only extremely weatherproof but feels exceptionally hard-wearing. It's also essentially wipe clean, in case it gets spattered with mud on your adventures. Its zips are weather-sealed too, so getting caught out in the rain while looking for your next photo opportunity is no problem here. It zips open from back, revealing a generous internal space for your equipment. 

I tested the 21-liter model, which is best suited for mirrorless cameras with maybe a couple of smaller prime lenses, but you can get it in 41-liter sizes if you want to carry more gear. As it uses a removable camera storage unit, you can even use the bag just as a regular backpack, simply putting the camera unit back in when you want to take images. 

It's comfortable to wear all day, while its roll top design makes it easy to cram in a jacket, snacks or other accessories into the top compartment. It makes it an ideal backpack for urban photographers wanting to stay out exploring the city with their cameras all day. Carrying heavy gear? Go for the Pro Photography bundle, which includes an optional waist strap.

The small size of Compagnon's Little Messenger bag makes it the ideal sweet spot between a sling and a full-size messenger bag. It's a great option for small mirrorless camera owners -- I found it to be the perfect bag to carry my Leica Q3 but still giving additional space for my DJI Osmo Pocket 3 to shoot video, along with spare batteries, filters and memory cards. 

The small front pocket is ideal for accessories or a wallet, while the closing mechanism automatically fastens using a magnetic latch system. It makes it extremely quick to open and close, allowing me to access my camera and get shooting with no delay. 

It's handmade in Germany from environmentally conscious leather, which also makes it naturally weather-resistant and hard wearing. While I love the look of the bag right out of the box, I'm looking forward to it picking up the natural scuffs and scrapes to develop a unique patina as it ages. With care -- and some leather treatment once in a while -- it's a bag I can absolutely imagine giving me many, many years of use. 

As with other packs in the F-Stop range, the Ajna comes as a base backpack into which you'd fit one of F-stop's small, medium or large camera storage units. It's a handy system as it means you can use a smaller unit if you're going out with only one camera and lens, leaving the rest of the bag available for storing other items.

And there's a lot of room for other items, with a generous internal space, expandable side and front pockets and storage in the lid. Its lightweight design makes it great as a hiking backpack for those of you wanting to get your cameras deep into the mountains, while the IP64-rated outer fabric will help keep all of your kit safe from pouring rain. The backpack bundle includes the backpack, an insert and a rain cover.

The Hadley Pro 2020 messenger bag eschews the urban, technical designs of many of today's photography bags, instead leaning toward a more classic aesthetic that'll go just as well with a shirt and tie as it will a mountaineering jacket. It's made in England from real leather, brass and waterproof-treated canvas and feels robust enough to tackle a jungle expedition. 

It holds my Canon 5D MkIV with 24-70mm lens, while comfortably leaving space for an additional lens with two generous pockets on the front for other accessories. The padded inserts that protect the camera can also be removed, allowing you to use the Hadley Pro as a regular shoulder bag.