A backpack or a duffel could be nice for weekend journeys, however generally they are often overkill for a day spent out and about capturing stills or video. When you need to journey gentle but additionally give your gear a secure, snug experience, this new sling bag from Gura Gear may be simply what you’re on the lookout for.
It ought to come as no shock that almost all of us within the pictures and videography world are typically considerably obsessive in terms of the bags that we use to move our treasured gear. Cameras, lenses, and the plethora of equipment that we use with them characterize a major funding for many of us, and there are comparatively few of us who don’t have a tragic story about gear being broken or ruined by being dropped, bashed, or uncovered to the weather. Just a few years in the past, I personally realized the exhausting means {that a} compact digital camera may not benefit from the refreshing summer time rain as a lot as I do! If you’re a working photographer, the monetary losses that may be incurred by your gear not surviving a visit can prolong nicely past the worth of the gear itself.
That stated, the brand new Kiboko City Sling 6L from Gura Gear is certainly not a bag aimed toward working photographers with a great deal of gear that they should transport to a job. This is a bag for someone who needs to step out for the day with a number of compact gadgets of photograph or video gear; have a secure and comfy solution to carry it; and make sure that all of it will get dwelling in a single piece. As I discussed within the introduction, I really feel that this can be a bag that properly fills that hole between carrying all the things in your individual—on a strap round your neck or in your pockets, for instance—and toting your gear with you in a backpack or a full digital camera bag.
Before we go any additional, I want to make it clear that though Gura Gear despatched me the Kiboko City Sling to check out, they gave me no instructions with regard to penning this evaluation. All of the opinions expressed listed here are my very own, and Gura Gear didn’t take part in any means within the writing of this evaluation.
I feel it’s price mentioning, earlier than we get into the heart of the evaluation, who the Kiboko City Sling isn’t focused at. This might be not a bag that you’re going to use to hold a big DSLR and its lenses. This may be potential with a few of the smaller digital camera techniques like Micro Four Thirds, for instance, or different compact mirrorless cameras such because the Lumix S9, maybe with one in all its compact prime lenses such because the 7Artisans 35mm f/1.4. But I might say that the Kiboko City Sling is extra squarely focused at compact photograph and video gear. For videographers for instance, this may be a great bag for carrying compact video techniques such because the Sony ZV-1F, DJI Pocket Osmo 3, Insta360, or GoPro cameras, together with their myriad equipment like filters, microphone techniques, batteries, and stands.
One of my day journey configurations for nonetheless pictures is constructed across the Leica Q3, which, though being considerably smaller than a full body digital SLR, is certainly not as compact as a few of the cameras I’ve talked about right here. I wished to see if the Kiboko City Sling might assist this setup, and after somewhat time spent rearranging the structure of the padded insert that comes with it, I used to be delighted to find that it might comfortably accommodate the Q3, a few spare batteries with their USB charger, a pockets for my spare SD playing cards, a transportable on-camera flash unit, a transportable tripod, and a microfiber towel that I wish to hold with me for drying off or de-dusting my gear. As a fast apart—any of you who’ve ever learn The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy will perceive the significance of at all times having your towel with you!
Even with all of this gear packed, the bag nonetheless has loads of pockets and areas left for different equipment and private gadgets similar to a cellphone, keys, and so forth. As I stated beforehand, this sling isn’t meant to switch a full dimension digital camera bag or backpack, however regardless of its comparatively diminutive profile, it nonetheless manages to accommodate a powerful quantity of stuff.
The inside of the Kiboko City Sling has been very thoughtfully designed with a view to organizing and defending your photograph and video gear. The sling has a point of protecting padding constructed into the edges and the underside of the bag, but it surely additionally has the sort of configurable, padded insert that you simply usually discover in digital camera luggage, with Velcro panels that may be rearranged to create the structure that’s perfect on your gear. One of the options that this bag has, nonetheless, that’s positively not widespread to all digital camera luggage, is that the insert could be eliminated completely and is even suitable with different gadgets in Gura Gear’s vary of bags.
This may very well be very helpful if, for instance, you need to transfer your digital camera gear into a bigger merchandise of Gura Gear baggage similar to a duffel for a weekend journey, whereas nonetheless retaining the insert’s group and safety. Being in a position to take away the insert additionally provides you the flexibleness to repurpose the sling itself for different makes use of, similar to day journeys the place you would possibly need to carry different kinds of things and don’t want the protecting padding for them.
One of the best and most considerate design options within the sling’s inside is the row of 4 built-in SD card pockets which can be positioned for straightforward entry when the zipper of the principle compartment is open. These pockets are color-coded with good stitching, two of them in blue and two of them in purple. This permits you to conveniently carry SD playing cards in a means that locations them shut at hand once they’re wanted but additionally permits you to distinguish between the playing cards which can be empty and the playing cards which can be full. I might personally use the 2 blue slots to hold empty playing cards and transfer every one to a purple slot when they’re full, however the way you select to make use of these shade codes is clearly a matter of private style.
In phrases of high quality, the Kiboko City Sling appears like a superbly made piece of bags. From the premium really feel of the bag’s supplies to the standard of the stitching, the zippers, and the inside, there’s nothing about this bag that feels low cost. I’ve not had the chance to check the sling in heavy rain but, however one intriguing function of it that I actually like is that the lengthy zipper on prime of the principle compartment appears to have a really good rain cowl built-in into it that completely pulls collectively behind the zipper as you shut it. This isn’t a kind of annoying cloth collars that at all times appear to get snagged within the zipper on backpacks and digital camera luggage. It seems to be to have been very fastidiously designed and crafted to cowl the zipper simply sufficient to maintain out the rain with out being extensive sufficient to get snagged in it. As I stated, I’ve not had the chance to check the sling in inclement climate, however this considerate addition to the principle zipper makes a number of sense if it really works because it seems to be prefer it ought to, because the prime of the sling is the place you’ll most count on (and least need) the ingress of rain or snow.
The removable shoulder strap and the properly contoured carry strap make this lovely bag a delight to hold, and even after I had it full of gear, it by no means felt uncomfortable or cumbersome on my shoulder. The Kiboko City Sling has simply been launched, and on the time of writing this text, is on the market in quite a lot of colours at a particular introductory value of $149.99 from B&H Photo—a saving of 20% on the common value. I might say that for anyone on the lookout for a compact, snug bag to bridge the hole between carrying your gear in your individual versus utilizing a backpack or digital camera bag, this thoughtfully designed and superbly crafted sling may very well be precisely what you’re on the lookout for.