Lowepro SlingShot 300 All-Weather Camera Bag (Black)

by Lowepro

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 13 x 9.1 x 17.3 inches ; 3.1 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000KX8TCI
• Item model number: 35017
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (92 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: January 8, 2007

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Manufacturer Description: The Slingshot 300 AW is a sling style camera bag designed to comfortably carry a professional digital SLR body with a 70-200 f/2.8 lens attached, plus 5-6 extra lenses or flash units. Loaded with features, the SlingShot 300 AW boasts an All Weather Cover, a built-in memory card pouch, a micro fiber LCD protector, Hypalon SlipLock attachment loops and plenty of other amenities to provide the greatest ease of use and comfort.       Hardware Capacity: Canon - EOS 1Ds Mark IIn; Contax - N Digital; Fujifilm - FinePix S3 Pro; Kodak - DCS SLR/c, DCS SLR/n, DCS 14n; Nikon - D2Hs, D2X, D1, D1x; Olympus - E-1; Sigma: SD9, SD10. 5-6 Zoom Lenses or Flash Units, memory cards and personal accessories. Slingshot 300 AW Highlights: 1. Ergonomic Sling Strap Evenly distributes equipment weight while carrying heavy equipment 2. Full Access Lid Allows you to easily work from the bag while wearing it, and provides 180° access while packing 3. All Weather Cover Offers maximum protection against rain, dust and sand 4. Zip-Stop Buckles Prevent zippers from completely opening while accessing equipment 5. Padded Waist Belt Fully adjustable belt distributes weight on hips for heavy loads 6. Quick Pull Handle Provides an easy and secure location to grab and pull the bag into the "access position" 7. Built-In Memory Card Pouch Quickly find memory cards in the same place every time 8. Built-in Micro Fiber LCD Cloth Protects LCD screen from camera strap nicks and scratches 9. Silent Zipper Pulls Provide quiet access around film crews or wildlife 10. SlipLock Attachment Loops Add pouches or other SlipLock compatible products to customize 11. Accessory Pockets Provide quick access to cables, adaptors, small accessories or personal items 12. Mesh Back Pad Provides comfort during long treks

 

Product Description: The unique design of the SlingShot 300 AW provides quick and easy access to camera equipment while it's still being worn. Perfect for photojournalists, sports photographers or anyone in need of quick access to their equipment, the SlingShot 300 AW allows you to focus on your shooting and not finding your equipment.

 

Product Description

The unique design of the SlingShot 300 AW provides quick and easy access to professional level camera equipment while it's still being worn. Perfect for photojournalists, sports photographers or anyone in need of quick access to their equipment, the SlingShot 300 AW allos you to focus on your shooting and not finding your equipment. Goes from "carry moe" to "ready mode" in just seconds, and will accommodate a D-SLR with long zoom (80-200mm) and 3-4 extra lenses, cables and accessories. This feature-rich bag also includes a built-in memory card organizer, micro fiber LCD cloth and tow generous organizer pockets.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

65 of 65 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent for dSLR's with larger zooms, January 27, 2007

By 

BCinDC (Sterling VA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Lowepro SlingShot 300 All-Weather Camera Bag (Black) (Electronics)

UPDATE: After Six Months - July 07 - This is a review of AW300 - Amazon lumped all Slingshot reviews together after my original review, which was the first AW300 review.

I've been using this bag for about 6 months and I am very happy with it. It is very well designed, well constructed & well padded. It is about the size of the backpacks that middle/high school-aged kids use, but it is fully padded and retains its shape. As advertised, it easily holds a large SLR with an 80-200mm f/2.8 lens attached, along with a lot of other stuff (e.g. a 18-70 lens, 50mm lens, SB-600 flash, a 1.4x teleconverter, cables, camera & flash manuals, batteries, filters, & memory cards, with room to spare).

If you are not familiar with the Slingshot bags, this is a sling-type bag which is like a combination messenger bag/one-strapped back pack. It is worn on the back with the wide, well-padded shoulder strap across the front of your body from the left hip to the right shoulder. Then, to access your camera, you slide the bag around front, (this is easy to do) without removing it, like accessing a messenger bag or shoulder bag. The flap opens away from your body so it does not interfere with access, as a messenger bag or shoulder bag typically would, however. In this position, you can easily remove your camera while wearing the bag, though most of the rest of the storage compartments cannot be accessed without removing the bag. With a D80-size camera, it is easy to lift the ends of the padded interior dividers to access a lens (or two) or a flash in the main compartment.

As some have noted in reviews of other sling-type bags, a sling bag is less comfortable than a backpack for heavy loads and/or extended use, but it allows convenient access to your camera without removing it. That is true of this bag as well, but this bag has a nicely padded wide shoulder strap, and most importantly, a waist belt that is padded at the hips which really takes a lot of the weight of the bag off your shoulder. After shooting more than a dozen of lacrosse games, wearing it the entire time (albeit, without the camera in it most of that time), I found the bag to be extremely comfortable. As compared to my previous sling bag, a Kata T-214, this is much more comfortable (the shoulder strap on that bag slipped around inside its padding, which was also too short, so I had to frequently readjust it to keep the nylon strap from digging into my shoulder). The Kata bag was also too small to hold my camera with an 80-200 lens mounted (which is what I mostly wanted it for).

The only con I can think of is that it lacks a good place to strap a monopod (or tripod, though I don't think I would want the weight of a tripod with a sling bag). There are some loops on the middle of the bag (they are the darker stripes on the grey field in the picture of the bag), but they aren't well located nor do they seem well designed to hold a monopod (definitely not a tripod). I would like to see a couple of adjustable straps on the non-opening side to attach a monopod. Also, if you don't need/want to carry your camera with a large zoom attached, the smaller Slingshots would probably be good choices (though I don't think they have the nice padded waist belt, which is really important if your equipment is at all heavy).

UPDATE COMMENT: Although I would like attachments on the side of the bag for a monopod (as the smaller Slingshots have), the center loops work well enough with a velcro strap attached around the monopod.

Overall, very highly recommended.

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars What can't you carry with this?, June 1, 2007

By 

S. Lewis (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Lowepro SlingShot 300 All-Weather Camera Bag (Black) (Electronics)

So, I looked into the SlingShot 300 after reading about it in the UK's Digital Photographer magazine (http://dphotographer.co.uk/) & compared it with other similar items, both in-person & online. Once I decided the Lowepro was the way to go I was then vacillating about whether to get the 200 or the 300 as there were lots of reviews, especially here, that went both ways. Since I would rather have too much room then not enough, I opted for the 300.

Now, I originally needed this for an event I had to shoot & I wanted to be able to take a couple of cameras (Canon 20D & 5D), several lenses (24-70mm 2.8f , 50mm 1.8f, 70-200mm 28.f) to cover all needs, a couple of flashes with diffusers, batteries for all & a charger just in case, plus all the little miscellaeous stuff one could need when on location & not sure what the situation is. Needless to say, it was a load, but the 300 handled it no problem.

I have had messenger bags for many years now from biking, so the feel was similar, but more backpack-like. Also, I am used to having the strap go over my left shoulder & the SlingShots only have a strap that goes over the right one, so it makes for some discomfort/lack of familiarity. It's not bad, it's just something that is a personal issue. Wouldn't mind a switchable version for lefties & righties, but that would have to be 2 different bags.

Well, as I said, the bag swallowed a ton of stuff & did it with no issue. Of course, it weighed a ton too, but so would anything with that much equipment in it! But, I was still able to ride on my bike with this full load with no great strain. The interior allowed me to put a camera with the 70-200mm mounted in the main middle compartment & the sides let me configure it for a lens & 2 flashes on one side, & the additional camera with a lens mounted on the other side.

On this point of the 2nd camera's location...It's not accessible with the same ease as the main camera because it is buried a little further in & is in a fully surrounded location (the inserts wrapped around the side & front while the bag's base & side covered the camera's other sides). There isn't too much you can do about this except expect it & make it work. Just deal with it if you're lugging that much stuff with you anyway. Either that, or your 2nd camera should be out around your neck anyway, ready to shoot. ;)

This bag is a well thought out, well layed out piece that will definitely be a benefit to amature & pros alike. It's relatively inexpensive, will swallow your gear & protect it. It is pretty low profile - get it, LowePro (sorry, painful I know) - in that it isn't flashy & won't draw a bunch of attention to the fact that it is carrying camera gear.

Would I recommend?: Totally.

Which size?: That is subjective to your needs, but if you have a lot of equipment, or are looking to add to your arsenal, pay the little bit extra & go bigger. If nothing else, you'll gain greater flexibility of space with minimal weight gain. If you just have one camera & some additional lenses/accessories, the 200 should be just fine.

Where to buy?: Well, I have no hesitation to tell people to support their local smaller camera shops for things, but I have to say that the ease of use & price here at Amazon make it hard to think of going elsewhere.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great bag, questionable craftsmanship, July 21, 2009

By 

T. Poitevin (Redmond, WA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Lowepro SlingShot 300 All-Weather Camera Bag (Black) (Electronics)

I was a Lowepro fanatic. I loved my Slingshot 200 so much I bought the 300 virtually the day it came out. It's perfect as a photo backpack for those that carry enough gear to fill it, however it's not tough enough for its size.

After filling this bag (my gear list is below), and carrying it around only 30 or so times, the zipper seam came undone and the top of the backpack strap is visibly frayed. I admit, I'm not "nice" with my bags, but I expected a Lowepro bag to live up to its photo pro roots, and this one certainly did not.

The kicker on the three-star review? The "lifetime" warranty doesn't cover the zippers, because "even a Lowepro bag can wear out", according to their website. Sorry Lowepro, but Briggs & Reilly Luggage will replace ANYTHING with their lifetime warranty, including zippers, which is why I only buy their stuff.

I've just ordered a Tenba rolling backpack, maybe it will last more than 30 uses.

Gear: Nikon D300, Nikon D80, 70-200 f/2.8 VR, 18-200mm VR, SB-800 flash, Sigma 10-20mm, 50mm f/1.8, four B&W screw-in filter cases, three Corkin filter cases, GorillaPod SLR (LOVE THIS!), Justin clamp, extra little bits and bobs (batteries, diffuser cap, rocket blaster, etc.).