{"id":13143,"date":"2013-09-27T11:49:12","date_gmt":"2013-09-27T20:49:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/danbaileyphoto.com\/blog\/?p=13143"},"modified":"2016-09-14T09:57:32","modified_gmt":"2016-09-14T18:57:32","slug":"the-new-nova-sport-aw-camera-bag-from-lowepro","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/danbaileyphoto.com\/blog\/the-new-nova-sport-aw-camera-bag-from-lowepro\/","title":{"rendered":"The New Nova Sport AW Camera Bag from Lowepro"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"NovaSport_17L_Front_RGB.j\"<\/a>Do you remember your first camera bag?<\/p>\n

I do. It was a small canvas shoulder bag that I carried everywhere. When I first started shooting, I was living in Boston, so a camera backpack wasn’t really the ideal way for me to carry my gear. My shoulder bag let me get in and out quickly and it held a body, two lenses, flash and some accessories like filters, AA batteries and a small notebook. That bag is lone gone, but I remember it with much fondness.<\/p>\n

That’s why when Lowepro sent me their latest camera bag to test and review, I felt like I was taking a trip down memory lane. The new Nova Sport AW<\/a>\u00a0is basically a hot-rodded version of my first bag, but with more and way better features. They call it an “Adventure Photo Shoulder Bag.” I’ll buy that.<\/p>\n

Face it. Camera packs are awesome, but there are times when a should bag is just more practical, like when you’re shooting events, doing street photography, going out for an outing around town on the cruiser bike or day tripping in the car or train. Or when you just want to look a little less conspicuous. Nothing screams serious outdoor photographer<\/em> like a photo pack. Throw on a little shoulder bag and you’ll blend in much more with the crowd.<\/p>\n

Of course, it’s got to be the right shoulder bag. It’s got to be well designed, rugged and useful in a variety of conditions. The new\u00a0Nova Sport AW<\/a>\u00a0has many of the same basic design features that all their other recent packs have, like the Flipside Sport AW Series<\/a>\u00a0and the Photo Hatchback AW<\/a>. In fact, I’d pretty much call this the shoulder bag version of the Photo Hatchback.<\/p>\n

The main camera compartment lifts right out, which allows you to us the bag as a regular shoulder bag. It also has the AW rain cover that tucks away under the flap. Living in Alaska where it’s often wet much of the summer, I’ve made good use of the AW rain covers and believe me, they work.\"novasport_17l_stuffed\"Like the Photo Hatchback, it has two streamlined stretch pockets on the side of the bag, which fit a slim water bottle, thermos, rolled up windbreaker or rain jacket. I’ve even stuck a flash in there for quick access.\u00a0Inside, there’s enough room for an iPad or a medium sized flash diffuser like the Lumiquest Softbox III<\/a>, and the two front pockets are roomy enough for filters, phone, sync cords, batteries, notebooks, hard drive, memory card cases or all of the above. There’s even a zipper pocket on the main flap.<\/p>\n

On the back of the bag, Lowepro has put a zipper sleeve that lets you attach the bag to the top of a trolley-style rolling suitcase. I don’t own a rolling suitcase, but I can imagine that being a pretty handy feature for traveling.\u00a0it’s the little things that make an item that much more useful.<\/p>\n

The bag closes with two buckles, but it also folds and stays enough if you’re shooting and don’t need to clip the whole bag closed. In addition to the padded shoulders strap, there’s also a strap handle that tucks out of the way behind the bag. This is a nice touch for loading and unloading the bag from the car, trunk, overhead compartment, etc… Again, the little things.<\/p>\n

In action, the\u00a0Nova Sport AW<\/a>\u00a0works as well as I would hope. Really, what can I say, it does the very simple job that it was designed to do: it holds my gear, organizes it and protects it, even when I’m running around shooting stuff like cyclocross. Last weekend, I took it on a mountain hike and it worked just fine! I got the 17L version, and it holds the following inside the main compartment:<\/p>\n