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I have always had a great dislike for camera bags; their stiff, dull blackness, and their inability to be useful in day-to-day life. I often avoided them, to the point of wrapping my camera in a hat and shoving it in whichever bag I was using that day. Not good. This changed when I inherited my granddad’s camera bag, a well-worn, well-travelled faux leather piece that held everything I needed it to, looked nice, and didn’t scream “camera bag”. Problem solved.

A couple of months ago my camera was stolen (part of the reason for the recent lack of posts here, the wound has been too raw), my whole kit was gone, including my beloved bag. While working out how to replace my equipment I realised I had no idea where to find another bag I’d be happy with.

My first few searches left me feeling doomed. I was even considering using a baby bag as a substitute.. lots of space and doesn’t look like a camera bag, right? But then I began to find things I liked, particularly on the wonderful Etsy.

Here is my shortlist:

First is the basic, non-camera-bag-looking Domke bag. It’s cheaper than most of the others I’m drooling over, and would do the trick I think. But it doesn’t have me jumping up and down in glee.

Olive F-8 Small Shoulder Bag - Domke

Let’s leave the dull behind and move on to the Etsy selection. These are all in US dollars, and I’d have to take shipping into account, but look how pretty they are!

This one’s by Janine King Designs. I like its simplicity, but I have my doubts about it being big enough for what I need.