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Lowepro camera backpack review

Ratings
Link to product
Would we buy it again? Yes
Value High
Ease of use Easy

 

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For a while now we have been struggling with how to carry all of the kid-o’s stuff and all of the camera gear. It’s a funny thing, before kids we simply would leave the camera out and about or toss it in a simple backpack. That really does not work in the post-kid world, and keeping a nice camera in a bag that does not protect it is not the best idea either.

Our journey to the perfect way to carry the camera started with the Lowepro 250 Urban Photo Sling. It’s really a nice camera bag and served us well for a few years - it’s easy to use and can carry all of the camera’s stuff. Which brings us to the problem for us - it becomes one more bag to tote around with the other bags we’d carry for the kids.

old bagold bag

There are a bunch of things that we did like about the Lowepro 250 Urban Photo Sling though. The build quality was just awesome, we simply would toss the bag anywhere and it would never waver. The biggest plus to the bag was that none of our camera gear got hurt while inside the bag - the Urban Photo Sling simply kept it protected well. This made the next bags manufacturer a simple choice and gave us a starting point on our quest.

The new bag - Lowepro Hatchback 22L

After a long search, we found the Lowepro Hatchback 22L and liked it for many reasons. To start, this bag has a ton of storage. While not being too big, we were able to eliminate the diaper bag altogether when adventuring with this bag. All while still carrying all the camera gear.

Lowepro Hatchback 22L

Easy access

This it actually one of our favorite things about the bag. It clearly separates the storage area of the bag from the camera area of the bag. Another part which is awesome here is that the camera access is on the backside of the bag - making it a easier to get the gear out of because of the directness of the access.

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Back of the Lowepro Hatchback 22L The camera compartment on the back of the Lowepro Hatchback 22L

Note: In the camera section there are three cameras and three lenses safely tucked away with room to spare. You can even take the camera section all the way out of the bag if you need more temporary storage.

Built in organization

The top of the Hatchback 22L has a enough organization to help you through the trip and really makes it nice to be able to separate the kids stuff from the camera gear. We can keep all of the general camera accessories away from the kids support items such as snacks, toys, and of course a change of clothes for each of them! The bag also sports a rain cover, which is in its own section on the bottom of the bag.

Inside of the Lowepro Hatchback 22L

Really using it

In theory all of features are great, but when you start using a camera bag you’ll see where it shines or fails. Happily, the Lowepro Hatchback 22L delivers on those promises. As of this writing it’s been on multiple camping trips, a trip to Legoland Florida, and on a cruise to Bahamas - the photos in We visit Jetty Park Campground were actually shot from the cruise ship. One of the really nice things that we have discovered with this bag is that going through anything from theme park security to customs in multiple countries is a breeze with this bag because every part of it is so accessible - more importantly the kid-o’s snacks are too.

Overall

The Lowepro Hatchback 22L is a camera bag which is big enough to meet our family’s needs to carry the diaper bag essentials, snacks, and of course camera gear - while not being a burden to carry or screaming Look at me I’m a bag with hundreds of dollars of camera equipment inside. The build quality is great and it has a lot of the little things built right into the bag making it a joy to use. We really like that you don’t have to take everything out of it to access the bottom of the pack, and that it has a spot for a drink on each side of the bag. If your in a similar situation to ours - where you need to carry the kids stuff and your camera gear the Lowepro Hatchback 22L should be on your radar to check out.