I have been using Lowepro sling backpack bag for my photography for years, and did not think I would find a bag that I like better. However I found that I like Dolica sling bag better for the following reasons:
1. Dolica bag has much wider more heavily padded straps and thus I find it to be much more comfortable
2. Dolica has a stabilizing strap goes around your waist, in addition to the strap that goes across your chest. The Lowepro bag has both stabilization strap and the main support strap that go around your chest. I found Dolica system to be much more comfortable and give better support when I carry a heavy load. It feels more balanced on my back, while keeping all the convenience of being able to reach my gear by just swinging the bag around. I am able to change lenses, filters, batteries without having to sit down or put down my bag.
This bag has generously sized straps that would fit larger framed people comfortably: up to 45" waist strap, up to 64" chest strap.
The empty bag weight 1.5 pounds. It comes in two colors Red(SB-015RD) and Black (SB-015BK). External dimensions are 14" high, 6" wide, 10" long. Internal dimensions of each compartment are detailed below.
I am attaching a collage of 7 photos numbered 1 through 7 that I will be referencing in this review.
I am using the Canon SLR camera to demonstrate the relative size of various compartments of this camera bag. My primary lens is 17-85mm (4 inches). The second lens is 75-300mm (6 inches).
There are a total of 6 compartments in this bag.
COMPARTMENTS
* The main compartment is extremely well padded. Its orange liner makes it easier to see the content at the bottom of the compartment.
Photos #1 and #2 show how my camera with primary 17-85mm lens fits into the compartment with plenty of room to spare. This compartment has a neoprene sling which attaches to the Velcro on the sides of the compartment to keep the camera very secure even when you are hiking/jumping. Photo #3 shows the camera out of the bag for relative size.
The main compartment is 8.5 inches deep, 7" by 4" wide at the top of the compartment, 5" by 3.5" at the bottom of the compartment.
* The second large compartment is large enough to hold my 75-300mm lens. See photo #5. Photo #6 has the lens out of the bag next to the ruler for relative size (the lens is 6" long). The camera description says that this compartment is good for holding lenses up to 200mm, but as you see my 300mm fits and has room to spare. This compartment is padded but not as well as the main compartment. My 75-300mm has a padded case, but the lens in its padded lens case does not fit, and without its case it fits a bit loosely. So I would probably put a scarf in the compartment to create some additional padding/filler.
The lens compartment is 8 inches deep. It is triangular shaped with three sides measuring: 4" x 6" x 5.25".
The front of the camera has two narrow pockets (best seen in Photo #4)
* The first opens on the top and is 6.5 inches wide tapering to 4 inches, it can be opened about 1 inch wide.
* The second opens on the side and is 5.5 inches wide tapering to 4 inches, it has a pleat and can open to about 2 inches in the center.
These two pockets are ideal for filter, camera remote control, your sunglasses and so forth.
* The side of the bag has a long narrow compartment (7" by 3") with 2 mesh pockets (see photo #4) this pocket is ideal for memory cards and spare batteries.
* The bag strap has a triangular shaped pocket (6" x 5" x 3"). This pocket can be easily reached even when the bag it on your back, so I see putting lens cleaning solution in there so I can clean my lens without having to open the bag.
The front of the camera has strapping sewed to it which can be used to attach things to the camera bag with straps or rock clips (see photo #7). One strap is included, it is sized to attach a tripod to the camera bag. On the opposite side from the strap there is a square open pocket which is designed to hold the feet of the tripod. See Photo #7 where my Manfrotto tripod attached to the bag. Perhaps my tripod is too long, but I found carrying it on the camera bag unbalanced and uncomfortable. I don't think I will be using this feature.
The case has a nice heavy duty handle to carry it as a bag. The sling strap has another loop/grab handle. It can used to tuck away straps when you carry the bag by the handle on the main compartment.
I started out by comparing this bag to Lowepro bag. Does Lowepro bag have any features that this bag does not? To be fair, yes.
(1) I really like the waterproof cover that can be pulled out of the bottom of the Lowepro bag to cover the entire bag. This keeps the entire bag including all zippers dry so when I finally need to get into the bag there is no chance of any drops going in. Dolica is build out of waterproof material (I have not tested this yet), but the zippers are exposed to the rain.
(2) Lowepro bag has Velcro-based dividers that I can place into main compartment to create extra custom-sized compartments. I like using them to keep some odds and ends that are not often used out of the way.
However, the overall comfort of the Dolica bag made me move all my gear from Lowepro bag to Dolica bag.
I received Dolica Sling Backpack for testing from the manufacturer to write an honest and unbiased review and I described both pluses and minuses of my experience in this review. If you have any questions on features I covered I am always happy to answer comments.
You can find it on Amazon by following this link.
Ali Julia review ★★★★★
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