Cons? It could be easier to get the camera out. It's a pretty tight fit, and though I've moved things around multiple times, the way that works best is still difficult. Also, this bag is not really all that light. So once you get your camera gear in there, a monopod on the side (it is also missing a dedicated tripod strap/attachment), reservoir and whatever other stuff you need/want, look out. For backpacking, it's fine. For biking (which is why I bought it), it's a little heavy. But hey, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, right? Heh... at least that's what I tell myself as I'm lugging my gear up the hill in this bag.
But those minor faults aside, this is a great bag that you can take just about anywhere.
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I have used this bag at least a half dozen times now. It is wonderful.My observations...
Camera area: Easily fits a bunch of gear. I carry a Canon 7D with a 28-135mm lens attached, a 75-300mm lens, an external flash with diffuser and I still have room for another lens or two. I own a Sony A100 also and have plenty of room to add that camera with a lens or two in addition to the Canon if I choose. Of course back packing / biking / skiing etc. ensures I keep my weight limit as low as possible but I could pack this additional camera with ease.
The rest of the bag:
-It comes with a water bladder (70 ounces). Yes, a little bigger would be better but this is the only pack I have found that carries any water at all along with my camera gear.
-Top section is not huge but it is sufficient. On a hike up a mountain I was able to pack a large sweatshirt, sandwiches x2, a bag of trail mix, gloves, hat and some other odds and ends. My light weight, cheapo, Wal-Mart tripod easily fit on the right outside of the pack (my good tripod would have been way to heavy). I also had a knife, military compass and 4 maps. There was also room in the front flap for an extra memory card and remote. I could have fit a little more in this bag had I chose to.
Comfort: I spent 20+ years in the Army. Many of those years were spent carrying rucksacks. This bag rivals the best the Army could provide. Of course this bag carries a lot less but, I found it to be extremely comfortable. The bag is heavy when compared to the lightweight packs on the market today but none of those will protect your camera gear nor will they organize it like this bag does. In addition, I doubt those lightweight bags have the build quality this bag possesses.
-The ladder system is excellent for comfort control. I am 6'1 and weigh 205. I tried several adjustment until I found the one that worked well for me.
-The shoulder straps are pretty good. A bit wider might be better but they are padded very well and do not tire my shoulders out.
Speaking of build quality: I can't say enough. This is a rough, tough bag that should last for many years to come.
***I took one star off Quality of Build because the chest strap stitching came undone. The strap was fine but the stitching broke. I noticed the poor stitching on this one spot when I first received the bag. Sure enough the strap disconnected. Rather than return the bag i will simply sew it myself. I inspected the rest of the bag and this seems to be the only spot where the quality was less than great. Though I am not happy about that, the rest of the bag appears rock solid.
-It comes with a rain cover that hides away underneath and is easy to pull out if heavy rain starts.
-I also bought the chest pack with it. The back and chest packs work awesome together.
Bottom line...
-This bag is $20ish more expensive than it's rivals but I found it well worth the cost. It is a great product.
If you want a bag that carries your photo gear, gives you room for other gear and let's you carry some water, buy this pack.
Perfect bag for the active outdoors person.
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I'm regularly evaluating the camara bag options on the market, searching for the perfect choice. For travel and hiking with a decent-sized set of gear, this is the best one I've found so far. I prefer a single bag that can be both a carry-on for travel and a main day trip hiking bag once at a destination.When I first got the bag more than a year ago, I was turned off by its weight and by the limited space in the lower camera compartment, but the Clik Elite really proved its worth in the field.
It doesn't have the mammoth equipment capacity of a large dedicated photo backpack, but those other backpacks are not going to have the same level of durability, comfort, or versatility. The balance of space in the lower and upper compartments is adjustable, because the separator between the two is velcro on three sides. I was able to make enough room in the bottom compartment to fit two larger lenses (70-200 f/2.8 and 300 f/4 with teleconverter) and my camera with mounted mid-range zoom (17-55 f/2.8). The upper compartment was still quite large and had room to carry additional photo gear (small flash, 1-2 smaller lenses in individual cases, filters, or even an extra camera), plus food and other gear like electronics, notebooks, and clothing.
There are plenty of zip compartments both inside and outside to secure specific items like sunglasses, a phone, wallet, filters, memory cards, remotes, and so forth. The big mesh outside pocket can easily take two water bottles. I don't use the inner hydration sleeve, but it's there if needed, and if not is easily tucked away with a velcro strap. There are a number of small touches like this that make you realize a lot of care was taken in the design of this bag.
The main straps are very comfortable and adjustable, and that plus the non-camera storage was what really pushed me towards using this pack over others. It was easy to get most of the weight onto the hip belt, with the right level of stability and support from the shoulder straps.
The rain cover is huge, which means you can have all kinds of stuff crammed into or hanging on the outside of the pack and still cover it all in the rain. I prefer to carry my tripod strapped to one side of the bag, which is easy to do, and the rain cover can handle it without issue.
The pack has no problem fitting into overhead bins on aircraft. I haven't tried stowing it under a seat, but I'm guessing it would be a tight fit.
The other new bag I tested was the LowePro Flipside 400, with its main advantage being the novel reverse access to the camera compartment: it's secure and lets you put the pack down and get the outside of the bag dirty instead of your clothes. This would be a great addition for Clik Elite, but probably a lot more difficult with an upper/lower compartment design.
Honest reviews on Clik Elite Nature Camera Backpack
I just got back from a 30 day tour of the western states and this pack proved invaluable. First, it carried all my gear in a safe and organized manner. It toted two complete DSLRS, a 200mm telephoto, lens extension barrel, a 50mm lens, filter pack, extra data cards, lens cleaning equipment, and a tripod. This was a car camping trip and knowing where all my gear was made things much easier. Second, its non-camera storage space was great for carrying snacks, compass, knife, and other emergency gear, plus the pocket for my Platypus 70oz water bladder. This came in real handy hiking around the Grand Canyon and the Petrified Forest where temps were in the mid to high 90z. Quite frankly this pack can be loaded quite heavy. I carried all my gear as I never wanted to be far away from my car and need a lens or spare body. The pack carried it all and with water probably weighed thirty pounds!The pack is very comfortable and rides just right thanks to the great adjustment system. I've "humped a ruck" quite a bit in the Army and those packs don't compare to this one. I've read some reviews that say the shoulder straps are a bit on the narrow side. While I would agree that it would have felt nicer if the straps were 1/4 to 3/8 inches wider, I was still happy with how the felt.
Workmanship and materials are excellent. I was never able to test the waterproof qualities or the rain cover as it never did rain when I used the pack. I had shopped on line for three weeks before purchasing this pack. There were some that carried more camera gear, but only camera gear. There were a lot of packs for much less money, but they didn't have the features of this pack. I finally figured that if I was going to tote $2000 worth of photo gear around I ought to have something that would protect it and carry well.
It is well worth the money.
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I'm like most photographers always on the hunt for the perfect bag. It doesn't exist, of course, but this is a solid effort.This bag is a great size enough room for a couple of bodies and lenses with enough room for the other stuff you might need when travelling without feeling like you have a trunk on your back. It's very configurable and has just the right amount of padding enough for your gear to feel protected without feeling like you are carrying more cushion than camera.
The quality of the bag is VERY good and feels like it will stand up to real use for a long time. The details really bring this home sealed zippers, well thought-out organizers, rain cover, etc.. You can tell thought went into this bag. It's also nice that Clik has some additional items that can be paired with this bag to create your ultimate system.
The straps on this bag are adjustable to the size of the wearer via the "ladder" system. That flexibility is probably welcome if you are at the ends of the spectrum, but it seems like overkill and a lot of complexity and pieces for me especially considering I'm going to adjust it once and leave it there. I'd also like more instructions on adjusting it not the basic mechanics, that's pretty simple, but how it should fit/hang/etc.
I have not given this bag it's first real test on a trip, but in testing it out at home it is VERY comfortable and can make a remarkable amount of gear feel quite light.
The hydration pack is a great addition. It is curious tho that some of their smaller bags tout the value of the hydration pocket being totally separate from the camera compartment but in this one it goes inside. It is also odd that this holds a smaller bladder than some of the smaller packs, but it's b/c of the way the hydration pocket is laid out relative to everything else (it only goes part-way down the back.
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