Langly Multi Camera Pack Review :: Road Tests

We'd like to extend a warm welcome to our new contributor and roaming photographer, Will Hartl. To see his great shots find him on Instagram at @will_hartl and @heartandsalt. Fittingly, his first review involves a whirlwind work tour across multiple destinations with the Langly Multi Camera Pack in tow...

Langly was born out of the simple desire to have an attractive and functional camera bag for nomadic photographers. In years gone by, form followed function. Langly breathes fresh life into the world of camera bags by marrying form and function to create a range of bags suited to the photographer who wants a great-looking bag able to carry gear and rough it in any situation or environment.

Earlier this year I’d booked in roughly four months of back to back regional and international work trips to photograph weddings, fashion and build personal landscape work for an exhibition later in the year. The itinerary was a little crazy, but exciting! – Sydney, Melbourne, Italy, Sydney, Fiji, Italy, Sydney, France, Vanuatu, Sydney.

As a photographer who spends a healthy amount of time abroad and in transit, having the right bag is crucial. I’d tried and tested a number of other bags over the years and never found the ‘perfect bag’. I needed a bag I could carry on an airplane, hike with, hold my gear, keep me organized, yet be functional and comfortable. When the opportunity to test out the Multi Pack came up I jumped at it.

Kit

As far as photographers go I try to keep my travel kit basic, but solid. Shooting a lot of weddings requires a kit which can shoot in any situation. The beauty of this is that it complements exactly what I’d like/need for my personal work or commercial work.

1 x Canon 50mm f1.2

1 x Canon 24 – 70mm f2.8

1 x Canon 70 – 200mm f2.8

1 x Sigma 35mm f1.4 Art

1 x Canon 15mm f2.8 Fisheye

2 x Canon 5D MKIII bodies + battery packs

2 x Canon 600 EX RT Flashes

1 x Inca 77mm Variable ND Filter

1 x Manfrotto BeFree carbon fibre tripod

1 x HoldFast Money Maker camera strap

3 x 16gb SanDisk CompactFlash cards

3 x 16gb SanDisk SD cards

6 x Canon batteries   

Design

Looks

In my standard wedding kit, I regularly have in excess of 12kgs, so it’s great to have a bag that looks deceptively small for what it can hold. This is amazing for negotiating airports and discreetly carrying a large amount of expensive gear.

The Multi Camera Pack takes on a classic, yet inconspicuous army pack aesthetic. Personally I’m someone that loves ‘all black everything’, so was very happy that the bag was available in Black, Forest (army green), Natural (off white) and Coyote (tan).

"This is amazing for negotiating airports and discreetly carrying a large amount of expensive gear."

In the world of corporate camera bags, it’s really nice to be able to find a bag made out of great materials and that oozes a stylish minimalism. 

Construction and Materials

The bag is constructed with heavy-duty materials which makes it feel strong and safe and confidently protects the valuable and sensitive gear within. Made primarily out of waxed military-grade canvas it can excel in the elements, rain, hail or shine. 

"In the world of corporate camera bags, it’s really nice to be able to find a bag made out of great materials and that oozes a stylish minimalism."

A really nice touch to the bag is the subtle inclusion of leather on the handle strap, buckles and embossed logo patch. The addition of foam inserts helps maintain the shape without feeling too rigid.

The back straps are constructed with a combination of foam padding, heavy-duty canvas and ripstop nylon. It also includes an adjustable chest buckle to help comfortably support the weight of a full bag.

Hardware

The large zips feel strong and feature stylish leather tags making access to the main compartment easy.

Features

The back of the bag features a breathable mesh lining to reduce sweat whilst carrying. Behind this is a (felt?) lined 15" laptop sleeve. It’s a great addition, but can be a little difficult to access and is too small to allow the laptop to be in a case when put into the bag.

One of my favourite features of the bag is the top access zip. It allows for quick and easy access to a camera.

"One of my favourite features of the bag is the top access zip."

The main compartment is constructed with adjustable EVA foam inserts for customization. The bag is made to fit multiple bodies and up to eight lenses. Depending on how you pack the bag, this may slightly vary. I’ve added in extra inserts to allow for padding along the bottom of the bag and also to make sure each item is snug and secure.

"The main compartment is constructed with adjustable EVA foam inserts for customization."

Performance

Pockets and Organizing

The front of the bag features two large front pockets. The first is accessed by a folded buckle flap, whilst the second is accessible by zip. I have used these for storage of documents, magazines, a laptop charger, and spare clothes whilst in transit.

The bag also features two folded buckle flap side pockets for easy storage of smaller accessories, such as chargers, cards etc.

The interior of the bag features three zip pockets. What I love about these is that they’ve been designed to fix travel carry problems. For example: How often do you need to stash or grab your passport whilst in transit?

"The interior of the bag features three zip pockets. What I love about these is that they’ve been designed to fix travel carry problems."

The top is accessible without needing to open the whole bag. It is the perfect size for storage of important items such as a wallet, passports, money and small but important miscellaneous items such as car keys, pens and earphones. The middle pocket is made out of a transparent mesh and perfect for safe storage of memory cards, batteries and tripod base plates. The bottom pocket is the largest, but the bag has to be fully open to access it. I use this for filters and camera cleaning accessories.

"The bottom pocket is the largest, but the bag has to be fully open to access it."

Comfort

After treking through airports, hiking through mountains, navigating Italian streets and French forests with up to 15kgs-plus on my back I can’t really fault the bag. Having said this, I ended up spending a lot of time with a heavy bag on my back and have considered a few minor areas for improvement.

Whilst in Italy for five weeks during summer, I enjoyed one or two long heatwaves. Whilst walking around on these hot days I was regularly left with large sweat patches on my back and the shoulder areas covered by the straps. I’m not a heavy sweater, but it left me changing tshirts regularly.

"Whilst walking around on these hot days I was regularly left with large sweat patches on my back and the shoulder areas covered by the straps."

The padding, size of the back straps, and chest strap does a great job in reducing the impact of heavy camera gear. Although now and again after long periods of standing or walking with a full bag, shoulder fatigue would kick in. I could blame this on sheer weight, but this could be improved with a waist strap. However, adding a waist strap would add undesirable bulk.

"The padding, size of the back straps, and chest strap does a great job in reducing the impact of heavy camera gear. Although now and again after long periods of standing or walking with a full bag, shoulder fatigue would kick in."

Given the lack of a waist strap, I would have liked a little more support across the chest to compensate for the weight. A couple of times I’d reached the limit of the strap and had nowhere else to go. Wider strap, double strap? Something to remove the stress on the shoulder and chest area by absorbing further into the chest.

"Given the lack of a waist strap, I would have liked a little more support across the chest to compensate for the weight."

Weatherability

I got stuck in the rain whilst exploring in Northern Italy and the bag handled it great and dried off no problem.

Verdict

I have five camera bags at home from other brands ranging in price from $100 – $400. Shoulder straps, wheelie, wheelie backpack, Pelican case and a smaller backpack. I don’t use them because they are either too big for carry-on, 4kgs-plus even when empty or don’t fit enough gear. I need one bag to take my gear everywhere in the car, on a plane, to a shoot, camping, hiking, wherever. To be able to buy the perfect ‘go everywhere’ bag for USD $249 is amazing! Why would you need any other bag? Plus it’s one of the nicest looking camera bags out there! 

"I need one bag to take my gear everywhere in the car, on a plane, to a shoot, camping, hiking, wherever. To be able to buy the perfect ‘go everywhere’ bag for USD $249 is amazing!"

The Multi Camera Pack does exactly what it says. It allows the urban or adventure photographer/videographer to have a stylish bag which holds your most important gear for the studio, location shoots or rugged adventures. Langly has created a robust multi camera pack with a well considered and easily accessible internal compartment plus external features like a tripod holder, side pockets and a 15″ Mac sleeve. The Langly Multi Camera Pack is the perfect travel companion for the roaming photographer.