If you’re a keen photographer or filmmaker, then you’ll likely find yourself with a lot of equipment to lug about, like a mirrorless camera and an assortment of lenses.

A good camera bag is an essential purchase as it not only allows you to keep your gear organised, but it also keeps your equipment protected and secure when travelling.

There are plenty of great options to choose from, from shoulder bags to backpacks and everything in between. Some offer dedicated pockets for batteries and SD cards, while others take a more modular approach.

Below, we’ve detailed some of the very best camera bags on the market today.

• Pgytech Onemo Backpack

  1. Best overall

• Peak Design Everyday Backpack (V2)

  2. Premium pick

• Chrome Industries

  Chrome Niko Backpack

  3. Durable and practical

• LowePro

  Lowepro ProTactic BP 450 AW II

  4. Modular marvel

• Peak Design

  Peak Design Everyday Sling 6L

  5. Lightweight option

The Pgytech Onemo hits the sweet spot, offering style, comfort and practical storage, without entering ultra-premium pricing territory. We’ve used countless camera backpacks over the years, and the Onemo is without a doubt our favourite.

It’s a rear-entry design and you can see all of your equipment at once when the back panel is unzipped. There’s a large main compartment and it comes supplied with a plethora of slim-yet-durable dividers for organisation. For quick access, there are two doors on the side that’ll take you straight to the main compartment without the need to set your bag down.

On days when you need a little extra room, the front compartment is expandable to add an extra 5 litres of storage. Plus, it comes supplied with a variety of external straps that allow you to attach anything you see fit.

There are so many features on this backpack that it’s impossible to list them all here. Some of our favourites include the elastic lens cap storage, battery pockets with charge indicators, RFID-blocking card pocket and removable sling bag. We think it’s probably the best bag you can buy today.

The Peak Design Everyday Backpack V2 is another extremely thoughtfully designed bag, and it almost certainly served as a source of inspiration for the Onemo’s modular elements. This bag oozes quality from every angle, it’s one of the most durable and stylish bags that we’ve ever had the pleasure of using.

The Everyday backpack is designed to give you quick access to all of your equipment at any time, and it uses two large zippered side-entry panels to do so. Inside, you can create modular shelves with Peak’s clever origami folding dividers, to keep your kit organized and accessible.

The top flap allows access to the upper portion of the bag, or the whole thing if you remove the dividers, and it locks into place using an extremely satisfying and tactile metal magnetic latch. It’s not just for the cool factor, though, the latch is actually quite practical. It can be operated with one hand and can be easily adjusted to expand the internal storage volume.

The Everyday Backpack V2 could easily have been our top pick, but we just find the rear entry more practical than the side entry on this bag. For this reason, we tend to use it more frequently as a general-purpose travel pack. However, we can see why people love it for photography, and it could well be the one for you.

Chrome has a history of making the most durable bags for bike messengers, designed to withstand the elements and the daily wear and tear of big-city transit. This ethos carries over to its Niko backpack, which has Chrome’s distinct styling and ruggedness but is designed from the ground up to be a perfect photographer’s companion.

This is a big and boxy bag, and it’s extremely practical if you need to carry a lot of gear, but equally, it might be too large for some people’s needs. We think it’s a great option for travel, as you can easily fit a full-frame camera loadout as well as a couple of sets of clothes.

As with the rest of our top picks, the camera compartment features modular dividers for arranging your gear, as well as a quick access side flap for easy entry. Sternum and waist straps allow you to distribute the weight evenly, while an EVA foam back panel keeps things comfortable.

Cyclists will enjoy this backpack, too, as it features a large water bottle pocket on the side, as well as a quick access U-lock holster.

LowePro is one of the biggest names in the camera bag world, and when you look at a product like the ProTactic, it’s easy to see why. This bag takes modularity to new levels, it’s covered with military-style MOLLE webbing, and this means you can attach a wide variety of pouches to the exterior, further enhancing your carrying capacity.

Of course, this modularity extends to the interior, too, and the adjustable velcro dividers make protecting all of your lenses and accessories a breeze. There are four entry points to the camera compartment, so you can quickly access various pieces of equipment without having to fully open the bag.

The ProTactic also has one of the most ergonomically designed back panels. It has great ventilation, to keep your back cool, whilst also providing targeted support for your shoulder blades, lumbar and waist.

If you want to pack a little lighter, you might enjoy a bag like the Peak Design Everyday Sling. We like the 6-litre version, as it’s fairly compact and lightweight but still allows for storage of a camera body and two lenses, which is enough for the majority of our shooting.

Peak’s signature build quality and attention to detail are present on this model, and the styling matches the Everyday Backpack that we’re so fond of. It’s minimalistic and tasteful, allowing the materials and design to speak for themselves.

The Sling comes supplied with two FlexFold dividers, and they make it very easy to organise your kit. The modular external strap system makes an appearance on this model, too, so you can attach larger items externally if you need to.