After using the bag just a few times in undemanding conditions and under partial loads, it has become clear that the squeeze clip anchor patches on the front flap of the bag are weak and unreliable. This is because the anchor patches have a two-part design. The bottom half of each patch is sewn to the bag flap. But the top half is then glued to the bottom half to create the loop that holds the female part of the squeeze clip. One of the anchor patches on my bag has already become unglued! What a strange and disappointing design decision on a camera bag that is otherwise well constructed.
Thule should have sewn the entire anchor patch to the flap, through both halves of the patch, rather than relying on glue to hold the halves together.
Bottom line: if not for the poorly made anchor patches, the Perspektiv camera messenger bag could easily rate four or even five stars. The protective insert is nicely padded and fully featured, all the zippers and Velcro closures are intelligently placed, and the strap and shoulder pad are comfortable. I'm deducting only two stars because the anchor patch flaw probably won't result in a catastrophic event, such as damage to a camera body or lens; however, it is not the kind of problem I expect to encounter on a Thule product or want to worry about when I'm using the bag. So, 3 stars.
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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program I admit I've finally given up having THE perfect bag and instead have 3-4 that I commonly use for a variety of situations. I have camera bags that I use for transporting my gear, hiking, city walks and family events. Each holds the type of equipment that I'd likely want to have handy for that type of event. I was looking at this bag as one I would take when out on the Town or doing some photos at my daughter's school.I liked the style of the bag and it was comfortable to have across my body worn against my back. The bag is quite large, but is really only meant to hold 1 camera body with lens and two additional lenses/flashes. I managed to put in a 5D Mark II with 100-400mm lens (and attached 1.4x extender), 16-35mm and 85mm. I also had 2 extra batteries and a few memory cards in the front pocket. Everything fit comfortably (I was able to squeeze a 50mm lens in as well, thought it wasn't put in quite securely) and was comfortable to carry. The strap is sewn to the bag and comfortable, however carrying it on one shoulder is not comfortable it makes it feel like everything will tip out, though the use of Velcro and clips made it more me a little more confident. There was additionally enough room to also carry a 15" laptop.
The interior is a yellow that makes it pretty easy to look to see what you have in the bag, the protective padding for the camera is actually an insert for the bag and can be removed to use the bag for something else (overnight trip). This bag seemed similar to several of the Crumpler bags that I had tried previously. With the Crumpler bags I liked the shoulder strap better, however I felt the bags were much too heavy empty which made them a no go for my use. Overall, I like this bag better than the Crumpler bags, however not being able to comfortably carry the bag on one shoulder worry free was a definite negative.
I will definitely have occasions where this bag gets used, however it won't be the top of my list for museum use (a bit too large), though family events and my daughter's school would be a good use for this bag (especially when I need my laptop or iPad as well). As with all camera bags you've got to try it to determine if it really works for you.
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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program We have the Nikon D3200 24.2 MP CMOS Digital SLR with 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 AF-S DX VR NIKKOR Zoom Lens (Black) and a second lens and it all fits in the bag with plenty of room to spare. I feel confidant that the camera is protected in this bag and I love how the teal interior makes everything so easy to see. The bag is two separate pieces; the outside messenger bag with built in laptop pocket, and the inner camera holding bag. The inner bag has it's own top and zipper so you could remove this part and put it into a different bag (if you could think of some reason why you might want to). We use a laptop for storing and viewing our digital pictures and when we travel we bring the laptop and the camera and this bag is GREAT for that. We can use the extra space in the camera bag to carry the laptop charger, some CD's for sharing photos with our families, etc.Although this bag has a comfortable cross-body strap and a small stabilizing waist strap, this is not something we would ever bring on a day trip. Probably this would be excellent for a professional photographer to bring to a job, that's just not us.
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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program I got this bag for my husband, who works as a computer programmer by day and a photographer nights and weekends. It seemed like a brilliant idea at the time to give him one bag he could use for both occupations, but not so great when the product showed up.By day, he carries an iPad and occasionally other accoutrement. It's a fail as a messenger bag. Most messenger bags are light and quick to maneuver. This bag's too big and heavy for the iPad and does not tout having anti-static interior fabric for it or a laptop. It's big and bulky and not particularly suitable for storage in most office cubes, either.
When he attempted to load his DSLR, he discovered the poor stitching beneath the handles. I could see where the stitches were loose and could quite easily give way with the weight of an expensive DSLR. While there is room for the DSLR and a couple of lenses, there's little room for the other items he carries in his camera bag.
Potentially, the bag could be used as an overnight bag for a quick trip or maybe carry-on for a flight. As both a messenger bag and a camera bag it fails to meet my husband's needs.
Rebecca Kyle, April 2013
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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program Firstly, the good stuff:The shoulder strap is extremely comfortable.
The inside main section is quite roomy.
The insert is bright blue (as opposed to the typical black) making it easy to find small photographic items that are typically black.
There is a zipper that allows access to the main compartment without lifting the flap. It even has a very nice ring pull that makes it easy to hold on to and open. That is handy when you want to remove something without revealing the contents of your bag to everyone around you by lifting the flap. (more on that later)
Now, the not-so-good stuff:
There is no way to hook additional items to the outside of this bag. For example, my "go-to" daily messenger bag is a Tenba 638-235 Large Engraveable Messenger Bag. It has fittings on the outside where I can hang holders for additional lenses, a water bottle, or a travel mug.
Remember that comfortable strap and convenient top zipper? When the bag with this permanently attached strap is designed to be carried "messenger bag style" which is across your back. That makes it possible for a bad person to use the easily accessed zipper to open your bag and remove things.
The inside, while roomy, can really only accommodate your camera with attached lens plus two additional items (two lenses or one lens and one flash).
There is little accommodation for accessories and what there is could have been better though out. If you like having small compartments to hold different things look elsewhere. I also found it interesting that the flap with pockets to hold memory cards (primarily SD cards) folds down. While it's unlikely that the cards would slip out it still seems a bit silly to do things this way.
Speaking of flaps, the main flap of the bag is held quite securely in place with lots of Velcro (in addition to a pair of locking clasps. That's great until I want to open it and then I get lots of that ripping sound when Velcro is pulled apart. Other bags I have, such as my Think Tank Retrospective 7 Tall Shoulder Bag have the ability to block some or all of the Velcro if I choose.
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