I’ve been shopping for a new photo backpack, and after much searching (and some buying and returning), I just received my new Kata 3N1-20 backpack! And yes, call me geeky for being so excited, but I LOVE my new backpack! It has a dual sling AND backpack function! I was reading a lot of reviews about the Lowepro Slingshot bag – you know the one that goes from “carry mode” to “ready mode” in seconds, but several reviewers said the weight gets uncomfortable after a while, with the bag being a sling on just one shoulder. But I really liked the idea of a sling and being able to pull your camera out very quickly, since my current camera backpack is kind of pain to take equipment out of. (Have to lay it down on the ground first.) So anyway, the Kata 3N1-20 can switch from sling to regular backpack to a sling-backpack cross (the “x”). It’s very well designed! Having received it now, I really like the sling-backpack function – basically, the arms of the backpack cross over your chest in an “x” instead of the two arms going parallel over your shoulders. When you want to take something out of the bag, you unhook the clasp on one of the arms, and then it becomes a sling. Kata has some great videos to explain the various carrying modes:
http://www.kata-bags.com/product.asp?Version=Photo&p_Id=19773&mp_mID=20#p7GPc1_4
Anyway, the “x” carrying position is VERY comfy! The 3N1-20 is the middle size (they have three sizes, plus additional models that add laptop slots), and it’s perfect for my height. The backpack fits very snugly and doesn’t move around on your back. The back of the backpack also has slits so that the various straps can be tucked into the slit if they’re not being used.
Now, the 3N1-20 will NOT carry all my gear. I won’t be able to use this backpack on jobs (maybe I’ll get the bigger one later), since I’d generally have to carry more gear with me, but the 3N1-20 will be good for me when I go on personal shoots for my fine art work. I can carry: (a) my Canon EOS 5D Mark II with 70-200mm f/2.8L IS lens (which is very long) AND my second 5D Mark II with 24-105mm L lens, plus a few odds and ends in the top compartment like a flash, remote wireless transmitter, etc.; OR (b) I could just carry one camera body and several lenses, flash, etc.
Another cool feature about this backpack that was one of the reasons that I bought it is that it’s designed to work with the Kata InserTROLLEY trolley, which is sold separately. The trolley fits through a section of the back of the backpack so that if your bag is loaded down, you can pull it instead of carrying it. Since I travel a lot, my heavy photo backpack with all my gear really weighs me down on those long trips, but I’ve never liked the idea of buying a rolling backpack, since that would just add to the weight of the backpack if I want to carry it. So I really like the idea of having a removable wheel base. The 3N1-20 isn’t all that big, and it doesn’t feel heavy even with all my gear, so I don’t think I really need the InserTROLLEY for it, but if I were to get the 3N1-33 later on (the 3N1-30 is the larger size, and the 3N1-33 is the 3N1-30 size + laptop slot), I would get the trolley.
So let’s compare this now with my current backpack. For the last 2 1/2 or 3 years, I’ve been using the Pro Urbangear N-120. It’s a good backpack, but I’ve traveled a lot with it, and it’s coming apart in the seams in one place. Plus, even though the backpack is a pretty regular size, it’s still kind of big and heavy, and I’m only 5’3″. I wanted to get a smaller backpack that I wouldn’t mind carrying around with me more. The good thing about it is that it fits a lot of gear and is pretty water resistent. One time, the backpack got VERY rained on – soaked – and the water didn’t sink in at all. I was quite impressed. It also has double protection, in that you unzip the backpack, and inside, there’s a whole second case that contains your gear. The inside case is removable and small enough to fit under the airplane seat. The disadvantage of the double protection is that you have to set the backpack on the ground and unzip the bag twice in order to get your gear out. It has all the various removable dividers inside so you can velcro and unvelcro as you choose to get the compartments you want. Anyway, it is a good backpack; I just wanted something smaller that I could more easily carry around with me when I don’t need quite as much gear.
So in my search (before I came across the Kata), I looked at various brands – Lowepro, Thinktank, Crumpler, Tamrac… Before seeing the Kata, I actually ordered a Lowepro DryZone 100 backpack (which is the middle size). Doing all the measurements of my Pro UrbanGear backpack, I figured that the DryZone 100 backpack would be smightly smaller, plus, I thought the 100% waterproof, float in water, thing was kind of cool. But to my horror, when I received the DryZone, it was even BIGGER than my Pro Urbanear, AND, it took me 10 minutes to get it open! When the waterproof zipper is “locked,” it can be difficult to open it! You really have to hold on and pull! Well, since I was looking for something that’d be EASIER to get my gear out of than the Pro UrbanGear, that Dryzone bag wasn’t going to work for me at all! Back to the internet search, and that’s when I found the Kata (which, by the way, at only $99 is half the price of the DryZone). Packed up that DryZone and sent it back where it came from!
Kata 3N1-10, 3N1-20, 3N1-22 (with laptop slot), 3N1-30, 3N1-33 (with laptop slot), and InserTROLLEY. Check’em out!!! (The 3N1-22 and 3N1-33 are new models and should go on sale soon.)
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