Originally launched last September, famed photographer Peter McKinnon is updating his lineup of camera bags with NOMATIC, this time featuring a smaller and easier-to-carry size as well as a few other bells and whistles. I’ve spent the past 24 hours or so with a new NOMATIC Peter McKinnon 25L Camera Backpack as well as the 8L Camera Sling, and these are my thoughts.
Peter McKinnon and NOMATIC have done it again with a photographer-inspired bag
Those of you who have been around for a while know that I love bags. So, when presented with the opportunity to check out the latest bag from NOMATIC and Peter McKinnon, of course, I couldn’t say no. Peter, being the beloved photographer that he is, designed a bag that he would actually like to use while out traveling. In fact, it’s a bag that I plan to use while traveling with my photography gear.
While Peak Design is great for a multi-function bag, and there are many elements of photography built into many of their bags, there’s something that the Everyday Backpack and other bags from the company just don’t nail: simple camera gear organization. I’ve been using the Everyday Backpack V2 for the past year or so, but it has a few shortcomings when it comes to gear organization that the NOMATIC improves on by leaps and bounds, and you can tell that it has a photographer’s touch.
Organization is at the heart of the NOMATIC Peter McKinnon 25L Camera Backpack
The original NOMATIC Peter McKinnon Camera Pack was a 35L bag that expanded to 42L for those who needed the absolute most amount of storage possible. But, Peter himself ended up saying that, while the bag was nice for longer trips, he didn’t carry it around day to day due to the size. That’s where the new 25L Camera Backpack comes in. Similar to the 35L Camera Pack, the interior of the NOMATIC Peter McKinnon 25L Camera Backpack is organized with a cube system. The bag I received has the large Camera Cube, which is the one that I would have chosen regardless. It has room for a large DSLR with a telephoto lens at the center, and then three pockets that flank either side of the setup. Of course, the dividers are all customizable and you can remove or replace them in any configuration you want.
“My favorite part about the backpack is I can use it to carry my camera gear, or I just remove the cube and it becomes my everyday office bag,” said McKinnon. “I didn’t think we could top our last design, but I have to say, these bags are on another level.”
For other storage, you’ll find a top pocket with interior places to store things, a magnetic flap on the inside above the cube section that can be used for holding larger items, and a laptop pouch around back capable of handling most devices 16 inches or smaller.
Something else I love about the NOMATIC Peter McKinnon 25L Camera Backpack is that it stands up on its own without slouching over, which makes me confident when I set it down that things aren’t going to take a tumble.
The NOMATIC Peter McKinnon 8L Camera Sling is perfect for smaller outings
While I love the size and versatility of the 25L Camera Backpack, the NOMATIC Peter McKinnon 8L Camera Sling is actually be something that I plan to use fairly often. Sure, having a larger bag means you can carry more gear on you, but sometimes having just a camera, one, maybe two lenses, and a phone is all you need. That’s where the 8L Camera Sling comes in.
Now, I’ve used slings before, and the thing that always made me not like them is I had to unzip and rezip each time I got something out of it. I know, I know. But, when it’s a smaller bag, sometimes I would access it frequently to change things around on my camera or to just grab other accessories. Well, the 8L Camera Sling has a unique feature that many others don’t: an elastic strap. Sure, it sounds simple, but the way it works is pretty great. Essentially, there’s a strap inside of the sling itself that wraps around a pin on the top of the bag. This allows you to easily close the bag whenever you’re not accessing it, but also allows you to not have to zip the bag to keep stuff from falling out. It’s perfect if you’re going in and out of the bag frequently switching lenses or grabbing other stuff while on a shoot.
Pricing and availability
The NOMATIC Peter McKinnon 8L Camera Sling will start at $129 on Kickstarter while the 25L Camera Backpack starts at $199. Shipping is slated to begin in October of this year.
9to5Toys’ take
Though I’ve only had a few hours with the new NOMATIC Peter McKinnon 25L Camera Backpack and 8L Camera Sling, I already know that they’ll be my go-to bags whenever I go out on a shoot. In fact, I’m traveling to the mountains soon and plan to bring both bags with me, using each one in a variety of situations depending on what gear I need at a given moment.
I love how simple things are and how easy they organize your gear. This lets me not have to worry about which side I put my camera in and whether something will fall out when I unzip my bag, which is something I have to think about with my current Peak setup. All in all, I think that the NOMATIC Peter McKinnon lineup is a great choice for any photographer looking for a new bag.
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