Tote and Shoot Review

August 22nd, 2012

Today we are going on a short trip with some friends and since I am planning to take my camera (hooray!) I thought this would be a perfect opportunity to show how I plan to travel using the Tote & Shoot.

On a trip to Disneyland earlier this year I brought this bad boy and was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to carry around my camera plus all the theme park essentials. It’s a really big bag, so I was able to fit EVERYTHING plus more if I wanted to. The downside… it’s a REALLY BIG BAG.

The bag alone weighs about 4 lbs. So tack on a 1-2 lbs. camera, plus 1-3 lbs. of lenses, PLUS personal items and it can easily add up to be a supremely heavy bag to carry around at a theme park. BUT! What I did love was the option to carry around my camera without the fear of harming it. And the stroller did most of the carrying for me, so I didn’t bust my shoulders too much. :) Oh and the shoulder straps are super paddy and comfy, I love that.

One of my favorite features is the back pocket. It is the perfect spot for an iPad, magazine, etc. It also acts as a trolley pocket, it has a zipper on the bottom that will open up for hooking onto the handles of a rolling luggage for easy transport; perfect for airplane travel.

The Tote & Shoot is a fantastic travel bag for camera/equipment. For shooting, in my opinion, not so much. It’s big, it’s bulky and did I mention heavy? I’m not saying it’s impossible, and if you are a Shootsac owner it will fit inside the bag, but I’m thinking just use the Shootsac. For vacations? It’s perfect! For an outing with the kids? Perfect! For an out-of state session where traveling is involved? Perfect. Like I said it’s big enough to carry and expensive camera plus lenses plus personal items. My 15″ MacBook Pro will fit snuggly inside.

But this is pretty similar to how I used it at Disneyland (and how I’ll probably use it this trip too). Snacks and water bottles/sunglasses went in the outer pockets, other essentials inside, camera in its separate compartment and small camera in the inner pocket. :) (Which btw, is as deep as the iPad/luggage handles pocket.) There are two inner pockets, one is shallow the other is deep.

The specs of the bag can be found here.

The way I traveled before the Tote & Shoot was like this: One laptop bag for computer stuff/iPad/chargers, one camera bag with all my lenses and camera stuff, one diaper bag, and one purse. Then I would wrap my camera with a scarf and put in my purse. I’d only take one lens with me, the one attached to the camera, because I didn’t want it knocking around with all the other stuff in my purse. Ghetto fab, right? Now I just take a computer bag and my Tote & Shoot. This thing has cut down on my luggage significantly, for that alone I am absolute love with this bag. I can take my camera around on all of my excursions without the fear of it getting hurt, or it being knocked about in my purse.

This is the best part, a compartment just for my camera with extra padding on the bottom for extra protection. It’s separated from everything else, brilliant.

I give this bag a good 4/5. A cuter design wouldn’t hurt, but when it comes to protection of gear that sort of goes out the window. I would rather have a bag that keeps everything safe than one that just looks cute.

Hope this helps anyone who was wondering about the Tote & Shoot.

Cheers, friends! Happy Thursday!