Peak Design Everyday Sling 10L $149. 95 | PeakDesign. com Peak Design's Everyday Sling 10L. It seems almost impossible to talk about camera carrying options without mentioning Peak Design.
I use the brand's Everyday Backpack to carry all my gear when shooting events like multi-day music festivals. But when carrying everything isn't necessary, the Peak Design 10L Sling has become one of my favorite bags.
It combines the sensibilities of traditional camera shoulder bag with the stylish and sleek design elements that Peak Design has become known for. The 10L comes in at $149. 95 and is available in three color options including Ash, Charcoal and Black (we reviewed Black). There's also a $99. 95 5L option which I'll come back to later.
Specifications
Interior volume: 10L
Exterior dimensions: 16 x 9 x 5. 5in / 40 x 23 x 14cm
Tablet/laptop sleeve size: 12. 5 x 8. 65 x 0. 75in / 32 x 22 x 2cm
Weight: 1. 5lbs / 680g
Compared to other bags
It's worth noting that the price tag - as with other Peak Design products - is on the high side. Ruggard, for instance, sells a similarly-sized bag for about $55. In fact, before I got the sling, I was using an older model of this Ruggard bag and it served me extremely well for several years with few issues. That being said, comparatively, Peak Design's bag offers a much more rugged construction and MUCH more weather resistance. It also looks a lot nicer in my opinion.
Compared to the similarly-priced MindShift Exposure bags, Peak Design's sling looks distinctly less like a camera pack and more just like a cool bag. Options like ThinkTank's Retrospective series feel a bit flimsier and less protective than the Peak Design Sling, while their style-focused Signature series cost quite a bit more for the same size. And both of those options weigh nearly twice as much as the Peak Design.
Design and construction
A look inside the Peak Design Sling.
Like every Peak Design product, this bag feels very sturdy. The weatherproof 400D nylon canvas exterior is protective and easy to clean. The two outer zippers have weather sealing and all the exterior hardware is made of anodized aluminum offering strength while maintaining a light weight. The interior 'poly-spun mixed twill' material is soft to the touch. And the high density EVA foam Flex-Fold dividers we've come to know and love continue to feel protective and secure, while offering versatility.
These Flex-Fold dividers are similar to those included in other Peak Design packs.
The bag ships with 2 dividers which open up like origami, allowing for multilevel storage.
In use
When it comes to usability Peak Design has made their reputation around listening to the needs of those photographers buying and using their gear. This bag exemplifies the company's approach. It can fit many varieties of camera and lens combinations comfortably and ultimately that's what you're buying here: a sling that you can mold and adapt to whatever system makes sense for you.
It can fit many varieties of camera and lens combinations comfortably. . . and can mold and adapt to whatever system makes sense for you
For me, I usually carry a full-frame DSLR body with 2-3 lenses. I can pack the Everyday Sling 10L with a Nikon D750, 28-70mm zoom, 35mm F2 prime and 50mm F1. 4 prime and still have some room left over for additional pieces. The Peak Design website shows the bag with a full-frame body and 70-200mm zoom, but in my experience a lens that large on a body doesn't fit very well.
The bag also includes two anchor points for Peak Design's Capture Clip system, though that system makes a lot more sense attached to the shoulder strap of a backpack than it does on the side of a sling.
Here's a look at one of my setups (Clockwise from top left): 20mm prime lens, Nikon D750 w/ 28-70 2. 8 attached, Nikkormat FTN with 24mm Prime, memory card case, Moleskine notebook.
Accessory-space-wise, you've got an interior zipper pocket on the inside of the "lid" that can fit cards, hard drives, filters or spare batteries. While this pocket is spacious, it's still limited mainly by the fact that you need to be able to zip close the lid, so you can't really pack it with a ton of stuff.
. . . getting the zipper around the corners of the lid flap can be a little tough/awkward
Speaking of the zipper, one of my few complaints with this bag is that getting the zipper around the corners of the lid flap can be a little tough/awkward. This might be due to the way I'm wearing the pack at my side - it also might loosen up and be easier to close over time.
For more accessory space, there is a front zipper pocket (see below). According to Peak Design's website this pocket "holds jackets, snacks, and other everyday carry. " I think jackets is a bit of a stretch but I'm sure if you had the right jacket and the elbow grease you could get it in there, but you'd suddenly have a much bulkier bag. Still, this pocket is really useful to separate your non-camera oriented things such as wallets, passports, pens, chapstick, snacks, etc.
One of my favorite parts of this bag is that it can fit very snugly on my back. I'm fairly skinny but tightening the strap allows me to wear it flush against my body regardless of how much weight I have in it. That being said I can also loosen the strap quite a bit and wear it more like a messenger bag at my side.
A 'quick adjuster handle' (see below) allows you to make the transition between these two modes - it works really well but does feel a bit flimsy. It doesn't really "hard" lock the strap and though I haven't had any issues with it yet, if there was something that was going to break on this bag, I'd expect it to be this piece. For more permanent strap adjustments you simply adjust the strap tail where it meets the bag.
The 'quick adjuster handle' makes it very easy to change the length of the strap, but we worry about its longevity.
There are also two adjustable straps on the front of the bag that can be loosened too to cradle a tripod/other items or cinched to compress the outer accessory pocket. I wouldn't recommend using the straps to carry a tripod though as it really limits the comfort of the bag.
What's the bottom line
The rugged exterior of this bag is durable and weather resistant.
This bag does have two things missing that I'd love to see in future iterations. First, a quick releasing option for the lid. Most Peak Design bags offer a MagLatch for easy and fast access to your gear, a nice alternative to constant unzipping and re-zipping. Secondly, I'd love to see some kind of metal carabiner attachment options on the sides of the bag (near the Capture Clip anchor points). The main reason for this is that there isn't really a good place on this bag to carry any sort of water bottle and something as simple as a carabiner-ready loop would make solving that problem very easy.
This bag really does a great job at filling the needs of everyday shooters and travelers while maintaining style and comfort
This bag really does a great job at fulfilling the needs of everyday shooters and travelers while maintaining style and comfort. I find that when I'm going out with the intentions of shooting, this bag is my first choice. The only time I choose the Everyday Backpack instead is on days that I need to bring a wider range of options to a shoot (such as a full day wedding shoot requiring multiple lenses, flash, etc. ).
If you shoot mirrorless the 5L Everyday Sling may be a good option as well though, I wouldn't recommend it as a primary shooting bag if you're using any full-frame DSLR or similar sized camera (My Hasselblad fits great in the 10L!)
What we like
Comfortable
Lightweight
Compact
Customizable and expandable
Stylish
What we don't:
A little pricey
Zippers can be tough to close
Quick adjuster handle a little flimsy
2018-9-14 16:00
