MindShift PhotoCross 13 Backpack
Review by Tim Anderson

This was going to be my second outing with my PhotoCross 13 Backpack by MindGear. My first outing was in a location that was mostly flat, with little to test the efficiency of the PhotoCross. This time fellow photographer, David Duplessie and I went to a location that had some challenges: very hilly, rough terrain, and a lot of ups and downs.

Once at the trailhead, we grabbed our bags and headed out (picture, left, top). A little less than a third of the way to our destination (a high cliff), it began to sprinkle. Of course, I didn’t bring the handy rain cover that comes with the PhotoCross. I was hoping it was simply a passing drizzle. But then the drizzle became heavy drops!

Because of the unique configuration of my bag I was able to take out the camera (picture, left, bottom) and grab a couple of shots when the rain was at its peak without having to set the bag down. I put the camera back in the bag and David and I proceeded, in haste, to the protection of his truck.

Once the rain had completely subsided, we resumed our hike and had a great day. When we were back in the truck, I opened the bag and went through it thoroughly and discovered not a sign of dampness.

 

 

Because it was easy to access my camera through the side of the bag once I had slipped out of one the wide, padded straps, it rapidly became a sling-bag. The handy T-pulls made gripping the zippers easy, with or without gloves. Even though the bag was loaded with a Sony a6000 and three lenses, plus a couple of other accessories, the PhotoCross 13 was well-balanced and didn’t feel like a very heavy rock on my back!

There was also plenty of room for my 11-inch Chromebook, and other very necessary accessories.