Lowepro Sling Shot 100 AW

I bought the LowePro 100AW because of its size (big enough for a body, two lenses and a small amount of extra gear) and its sling design. The idea of keeping the bag attached to me while retrieving the camera really appealed as it felt more secure, particularly in cities or when climbing through the west Wales wilderness.

I haven't been dissapointed so far. Access to the camera-only part of the bag (which is the whole point of the twin buckle design!) makes it safe to open the side panel when using the sling design. Your other gear remains safely tucked away and won't end up spilling into the mud or into a stream (or whatever I'm hovering over to get the best shot).

If you need to get at the rest of your gear it is no harder than using a regular bag... take it off your shoulder and undo thezip all of the way. It's not complicated and anyone who complains about this really should consider the consequences of having all of your gear accessible in some of the perilous situations you can get yourself into. If you need to change lenses for a shoot you should be trying to plan ahead, or lay the bag down like any other bag and access the gear like you would normally.

The bag also rides high up the back, so any mishaps like falling down muddy slopes on your behind are likely to leave your preciuous camera unscathed. Not that I've had experience of that you understand! ;o)

The extra pockets are handy although you shouldn't expect a vast amount of space. This is a small SLR bag, not a suitcase! The extra rubberised loops around the bag are extremely handy for velcro pockets... like the sort you might use for a mobile phone.

It all feels well made and tough enough for some pretty rough treatment. Mine will get quite an easy life so I expect it will last pretty much forever!

Perfect shape and size for easily retrieving your camera
Good size compartments for an extra lens, some filters and a battery
Tough enough for most situations
Great sling design!

Takes a little getting used to (it's worth it though!)

Regular rucksack (bad for camera, bad for the photographer!)
Aluminium case with inserts (tough but cumbersome and not very accessible at speed)

N/A

The photojournalist is right on about this bag. It's perfect for shooting on the go in all sorts of weather.

I use it for shooting skiing and snowboarding ON the mountain and I am riding a snowboard the entire time I am shooting. There is no other bag I have found that can be cinched down tight enough to stay put while I snowboard and still be ready to shoot in just a few seconds.

I have a Slingshot 100 for a photo only kit and a Slingshot 200 that gives me room to bring along a compact video camera at the same time. Overall size might be small for some but it's perfect for me because it stops my gear from bouncing around inside the bag.

Another great feature is the pull out rain cover. With the rain cover on everything stays dry and access to the camera is not limited at all.

In my opinion this is NOT the bag for loading up with a lot of heavy gear and hiking all day. Putting the weight on one shoulder is uncomfortable after a couple of hours and you really need a bag that puts the weight on your hips for that anyways... But for any situation where you want QUICK access to your camera this bag is awesome!

Lowepro's quality is unfortunately not that great... The design is awesome but construction materials is only OK. I've been through 3 of these bags in 2 years dues to failing zippers and stitching coming apart. Lowepro's warranty has been excellent and they have promptly replaced the bags with new every time but it would be better if the bag never failed to begin with... I would gladly pay $100 for this bag if it was better made.

SUPER quick access to camera
Very stable for skiing, snowboarding, Mtn Biking, etc
Great rain cover
Excellent warranty
Low price

Not good for heavy loads for a long time
Construction quality not that great

Tamrac shoulder bag

I'm a photojournalist and this bag was made for photojournalists.

It's compact and wears tight to the body.

Works well as a slingbag or backpack-type.

It works nicely to carry minimal gear in for photo assignments.

I think it's gone down in price too, around 60-80 now.

For the money, it's a great bag for what I want out of a a bag.

Compact, fits nicely to body.

Quick acsess to camera, without opening the full bag, is a nice feature.

Plenty of room for a good-sized camera, flashes and 4-5 lenses.

A great bag for the price.

The lens compartments are a bit small for larger lenses (they work nicely for primes).

none needed.

I'm surprised at the poor reviews others have given this little bag, but perhaps we don't have the same expectations. I use the Slingshot bag to carry a minimum of gear IN CITIES. It fits close to the body and with it on me I don't go bumping into people in the subway, knocking things over in shops, etc. It took me a while to get used to it - I had to downsize my wallet, notebook, etc to make it all fit in. This bag is definitely not my choice for a holiday where I need to carry around extra clothing, guide books, etc. The Rover light is clumsy by comparison but I can put much more gear in it.

Small size
Fits high on the body so I don't knock things over behind me
Like a side pack - easy to get camera out without taking pack off
Impressive capacity for camera gear - takes my D200+18-200 with no problem
Pretty secure - difficult for pickpockets to get into
Replaces my small shoulderbag
AW cape but so far I haven't needed it

Too small to put extra clothing, guide books, purchases
Really limited to point missions in the city wher I don't need a lot of gear

Lowe Rover Light
Lowe Mini Trekker
Hadley Billingham
Hadley 335 & 445

Not needed

I purchased this because it seemed like a great concept: carry it on your back and slip it around to the front to access. In actual use I did not like the design. The side open access provides a small opening and makes it hard to access anything from the "sling position" other than the camera in the main compartment. I did not like the design of the internal compartments and conacted Lowepro to send me a replica of the right angle divider so as to make an additional commpartment. None of the compartments were big enough to store my camera's manual (Nikon D70) without severely bending it. I ended up selling it to a friend who seemed to like it better than I did.

The sling design concept.

Access to contents and compartment layout.

I have owned 3 other Lowepro bags and have been happy with all of them.

Excellent.