Design and Comfort

The Peak Design 7L Outdoor Sling Bag is designed to be lightweight and easy to wear, featuring weatherproof Ultralight Terra Shell 210D ripstop exterior fabric and super-durable #5 weatherproof UltraZips. The bag can be worn as a sling bag, shoulder bag, or around the waist, thanks to its adjustable strap. The thick strap provides padding over the shoulder, making it comfortable to wear for extended periods. However, the material is quite thin, which may not offer much protection for your camera or lenses if the bag gets knocked or dropped. The outer shell is not designed or marketed as a dedicated camera bag, so the thinner material is likely chosen for its outdoor nature. A design element that worries us for photographic use is the connection clasp on the strap. It’s very sensitive and easily triggered, which can result in the bag dropping to the floor with all your gear inside. We’d like to see some kind of safety feature here to prevent this from happening. The smaller zip pocket on the front of the bag contains the key tether and has room for small accessories like batteries, a card holder, or a small power bank. The main compartment is larger and features three mesh pockets, plus another zip pocket with four smaller mesh pockets. On the back of the bag, there’s a discreet magnetic cell phone drop pocket, which is incredibly handy for quick access.

Practicality

The Peak Design 7L Outdoor Sling Bag is better suited to those with smaller or less gear. The zips can be fiddly to use one-handed, but it can fit a surprising number of gear combinations. We tried to fit as many photography-related items into the bag as possible, and it seemed to have one of Hermione Granger’s undetectable extension charms, because we just kept adding things in without running out of room. We fit the following combinations of gear in the bag:

* A photography-based setup: Sony A7R V with the 35mm f/1.8 lens attached, plus the 85mm f/1.8 lens separately, lens filters, a card holder, a portable hand-warmer, a headlamp, two spare batteries, a card reader, and a cable. * A wildlife photography setup: Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II, which could comfortably fit in the main compartment. * An aerial photography setup: DJI Mini 3 Pro with the controller, battery pack, and additional accessories like drone lens filters and a power bank. However, we found that the bag became more fiddly to take things in and out of the pockets the more we filled it up, so perhaps a “back to front” approach works best.

Verdict

As an outdoor bag that can double as a photography bag, it works well, but we wouldn’t use it as a dedicated camera backpack to hold all our gear or take a full-size tripod. We used it a lot for spontaneous stargazing trips when we would be shooting astrophotography at the side of the road and didn’t have to move away from the car, but it’s not suitable for transporting lots of gear. It would be fantastic for taking on your travels or daily commute when you don’t want to carry a heavy backpack around all day, or for those trips where you want to take a camera along just in case. For hikers who want to take a compact camera to capture the view at the top of a mountain, it would be great. As a dedicated camera bag, we’d give it 3.5 out of 5 stars, and as a general outdoor bag, we’d award it 4.5 out of 5 stars, so we’ve settled on an average of 4 out of 5 stars. The reviewer, Kimberley Lane, said: “I was fully expecting to hate this bag, but instead, I will tell anyone who will listen how much I love it. I actually prefer it to my full-size Peak Design Outdoor Backpack because it’s so lightweight and easy to wear. I’ll start to complain after a while (read: five minutes) if my bag is too heavy, so having a smaller bag prevents me from overpacking and ensures I only take the things I need.”

Alternatives

If the Peak Design 7L Outdoor Sling Bag isn’t for you, here are a few alternative bags to consider instead:

*

• Patagonia Black Hole 32L Sling Bag
• Osprey Arcane 15L Sling Bag
• Rei Co-op Trail 25 Sling Bag

Testing Methodology

To test the Peak Design 7L Outdoor Sling Bag, we conducted a series of controlled tests in real-world scenarios focusing on capacity, comfort, durability, and accessibility. We loaded the bag with a standard set of items for multiple uses, including photography, drone use, and wildlife observation, measuring the weight distribution and ease of access in each compartment. We assessed the comfort by wearing the bag for extended periods in both cross-body and waist-style while tracking its pressure points and strap adjustments. We tested the zipper efficiency by noting how quickly we could access each compartment while the bag was being worn. We also exposed the bag to various environments, including light rain and sandy beaches, observing the material wear and water resistance.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Peak Design 7L Outdoor Sling Bag is a great option for those who want a lightweight and comfortable bag that can double as a photography bag. It’s perfect for taking on your travels or daily commute when you don’t want to carry a heavy backpack around all day, or for those trips where you want to take a camera along just in case. However, it may not be suitable for transporting lots of gear, and we’d recommend it as a general outdoor bag rather than a dedicated camera backpack.