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OmegaBrandess launched the Pelican Photo Safari roller case. A redesign of their previous convertible backpack roller, this bag was made small enough to fit as carryon on most major airliners. This brown case has leather trim, with a fully customizable camera insert that will even hold long lenses, with additional room for a 17” laptop.

Pelican Photo Safari

Think Tank Photo added the Retrospective series of soft-sided shoulder bags ($149-$179). In addition to the more traditional camera bag, this series includes bags that carry two or three lenses alone (sans camera) to facilitate quick changes on the fly (from $99). The Logistics Manager ($599) is a roller that holds lighting and camera gear in a fully customizable, padded interior, adding combination locks for security.

Think Tank Photo Logistics Manager

Vanguard debuted the UP-Rise series ($49-$149 street), which can be made to hold more gear via a zippered expansion system. These bags feature an orange interior and are available in messenger, zoom, shoulder, sling, and backpack styles. The messenger bags come with a removable camera insert and hold a laptop. Also new are the Sydney and Pampas shoulder/messenger bags, ranging in price from $29-$89.

Vanguard UP-Rise

What are my top picks for this category this year? My first comes from Boblbee (HP Marketing Corp). The Megalopolis and Peoples Delite backpacks are hard-shell, water- and impact-resistant, conforming to your back with the aid of a bucket-seat harness system. The Megalopolis backpack features a computer sleeve for laptops to 15”, while the smaller Peoples Delite holds laptops up to 13”. An optional fully partitioned/padded camera insert, which can be carried on its own, converts the bag to a photo pack.

Boblbee Megalopolis

AIRBAK (ToCAD America) is my second pick. These photo backpacks were designed to alleviate back stress through the use of air-filled pockets on the back of the pack. These air pockets are said to maintain their integrity even when the bag is dropped. The AIRBAK U120 ($99 MSRP) is fully compartmentalized to hold both camera gear and a laptop to 15”, while also accommodating a tripod and water bottle on the outside. The camera section is removable, letting you convert the bag to a daypack. The bag should easily fit in the overhead bin on commercial jetliners.

AIRBAK U120

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