In the attached video, I visit my city’s downtown area to try out this camera backpack from Endurax called the ED-V6. I take a detailed look at the backpack and internal messenger bag while also doing photography.
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| The backpack with messenger bag. |
The backpack is a nice gray color that I think works well in more professional situations, which is why I brought it downtown instead of going out to my usual nature areas. Keep in mind that Endurax sent me this at no charge for test and to make a video on.
Check out the Endurax ED-V6 Vintage Camera Backpack through my links on Amazon.com and eBay.com. Or visit the Endurax store on Amazon to see their other bags. As an Amazon and eBay Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases!
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| I’m 6 ft tall so you can get an idea of the backpack’s size. |
Features of note:
- Two bags in one. You get a full backpack and a messenger bag. I don’t like commenting on price but it currently priced very reasonably considering the two bags.
- The interior divider inside the backpack can be opened. Three sides are hook & loop (Velcro).
- There are lugs for a camera strap on the backpack’s straps. (it works with my old Kata strap).
- A back strap for rolling luggage.
- The top belt-styled straps have two holes allowing the flap to have more or less space between it and the bag. Good to hold down a jacket or a similar item without putting it in the backpack.
- Exterior side pockets for something like a water bottle or tripod.
- There is a removable tripod hold strap on one side of the backpack. One side has a removable strap to hold a tripod, specifically.
- The interior material is a light color and somewhat reflective, making it easy to see small items in there.
- The backpack can sit vertically without falling over.
- The two cover flaps are held down with magnetic fasteners.
- The backpack easily sits upright.
- The front chest strap appears to have a safety whistle integrated into it. I haven’t attempted to use it yet. This something I didn’t mention in the video.
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| The bag doesn’t come with a rain cover, but it has a level of resistance to water. I wiped some of the water off but some of it did soak in. It wasn’t a lot of water, but important areas did not have water intrusion. You’d want to be careful of the zippers at least. |
How much can it hold?
I think this combo backpack is best with smaller mirrorless cameras unless you want to also use the top area for gear, but in that case you will need extra padding or small bags. I fit a Canon EOS M50, Sigma 56mm f1.4, 15-45mm kit lens, a Boya BY-MM1, DJI Osmo Action, Olympus voice recorder, two small padded battery/memory holders, and a lapel microphone into the messenger bag that goes into the bottom of the backpack.
I see this as a good option for taking on a short trip. You can fit a small camera kit plus a change of clothes in the top area. Leave the backpack in the hotel while you use the messenger bag throughout the day.
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| The internal messenger bag pulled out of the backpack. |
What other features are there?
The top flap opens up to a zippered top. Inside there, there is a zippered compartment on the interior of the flap. It’s the only zippered compartment. In addition to a 15.6″ rated laptop sleeve and two side mesh pockets. I successfully tried the laptop area with a thin 14″ laptop. The main backpack divider can open up if you want to use the entire backpack as one large container.
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| The top section of the bag. There is one zippered area, a laptop sleeve, and two side pockets. |
How is the backpack in use?
When the internal bag is fully closed and positioned facing out, it will take extra steps to get to your camera gear. However, you can adjust the position of that internal bag to have the opening face toward the backpack’s opening. Leave the messenger bag’s zipper unzipped for pretty quick access in that case. The messenger bag has two pieces of hook & loop to hold the opening and flap closed when not using the zipper.
I used one side pocket for a 12 oz. water bottle and the other for a small Manfrotto “compact light” tripod. Both of those were a really nice match for the size of the backpack.
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| I took the messenger bag by itself for a later photowalk. |
What I would change or add? (even if the price increased…)
- More zippered compartments. In the backpack and messenger bag.
- Have a rugged material on the bottom of the bag.
- Put the tripod strap on both sides.
- Make the handle on the backpack a bit more robust.
- Make the messenger bag’s strap a removable instead of affixed to the bag.
- Somehow make the messenger bag’s zipper smoother in operation. You need two hands because the bag is small and the zippers have some tension plus having to go around 90 degree corners.
- Offer an add-on padded camera cube that fits into the lower area of the backpack for people that want a standard camera backpack. I’d imagine you could fit more gear in the backpack this way.
- Include a rain cover.
What I like most about the backpack:
- Purpose built 2-in-1 backpack and messenger bag combination.
- This one backpack covers many use cases. You are not limited to using a backpack, which is great. I’ve jury-rigged a similar setup with a backpack and small bag before, but this is a much cleaner solution.
- You get a backpack and a messenger bag for much, much… much less than what the big camera bag makers charger.
- The messenger bag is a good size. Not too large and not too small. It works well for my small mirrorless camera setup.
- The two external flaps have a nice amount of weight to them and are easy to handle with the magnetic buttons.
- The access opening zippers have two sliders each. The slides are metal and have holes so you can use something to lock them together. If you travel big cities, you can use something like a key ring or an actual lock to prevent quick access. Besides that, the flaps would also make it difficult for thieves to get at your gear.
- The backpack can sit upright easily.
- The overall look doesn’t scream camera backpack, which is always nice. It’s better not to advertise you are carrying around gear…
- I’m a big fan of this gray color and the texture of the material. I have a few other bags of a very similar color. It looks classy. I could see using this backpack on professional photoshoots.
Again, keep in mind that I was sent this backpack at no cost to me so I could try it out and talk about it. That being said, I do like it. I like the look and I like the functionality overall. Having two bags in one adds a lot of versatility at the cost of absolute storage, but I use compact mirrorless cameras so it’s not a big deal to me. If, or hopefully when, the world opens back up and I’m able to travel to conventions again I could see using this for the times I do an over-night stay.