Digital Home Thoughts: Manfrotto Unica VII Messenger Bag ~ Near Perfect Camera Bag

Be sure to register in our forums and post your comments - we want to hear from you!


Zune Thoughts

Loading feed...

Apple Thoughts

Loading feed...

Laptop Thoughts

Loading feed...



Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Manfrotto Unica VII Messenger Bag ~ Near Perfect Camera Bag

Posted by Stacie Huckeba in "Digital Home Hardware & Accessories" @ 04:17 PM

The Manfrotto Comparison (Continued)

Of course, for me, one of the biggest sellers on this bag was the bottom compartment. It's fully padded so you could easily store flashes or lenses down here. On the website, they say it is for a tripod, but none of mine fit (not even my Manfrottos). Neither do my monopods. Once again, they've got you roped into buying one of their specific travel pods to fit it. Even with a pod, you could still carry more gear down here. I carry my rocket duster, clamps for my reflector, a cord keeping pouch, batteries, gaff tape and other miscellaneous items and it is nowhere near full. The compartment is about 3 inches tall, 7.5 inches deep and 12 inches wide. I don't know why or how it took someone so long to figure this out, but having this one big extra space on the bottom of the bag is a spectacular feature.

Figure 6: bottom compartment (bag is laid flat, the zipper opens the compartment to the front of the bag)

In keeping with the tradition of Manfrotto, the bag seems really sturdy in construction. It has a large metal clasp on the front with a tightening strap. The clasp has the raised Manfrotto logo on it, but it is very subtle. Speaking of the logo, this clasp, the tips of the zippers & one tiny tag on the bottom of the front flap are the only place on the outside of the bag that we see the Manfrotto logo, unless you count the decorative stitching on the outside of the bag that mimics the shape of the "M". Well played Manfrotto, well played. You just cancelled out all my pocket tripod marketing complaints with tasteful and discreet logo placement on the rest of the bag.

Other features include heavy duty Velcro that holds the front flap in place, metal zippers, reinforced stitching and the whole bag is water repellent.

Figure 7: Buckle and tightening strap

Figure 8: Heavy duty Velcro

Figure 8: Metal Zippers. The tag is the only place we actually see the word "Manfrotto" on the entire bag.

This bag really packs away the gear. It holds all of my necessary equipment and then some and does so in a tight, neat, easy to access package.

Figure 9: Everything emptied out of the bag. Canon 5D Mark II with battery grip and focus ring, Speedlight flash, 2 holga creative lenses with 2 filter packs, Macbook Pro 17 inch, Light reflector, rain cover, Lens hood, cable storage pouch, lens cleaning kit, TTL cord, extra battery, Off camera sound and light shoe for video shooting, camera grip handle for video shooting, extra cards, rocket duster, spare batteries, gaff tape, reflector clips, camera manual and lens pouch.

Figure 10: Bag fully loaded with everything you see above


Featured Product

The Canon PowerShot S100 - The incredibly fun and small camera that offers you 12.1 megapixels with a bright f/2.0 lens and full 1080p video recording . MORE INFO

News Tip or Feedback?

Contact us

Thoughts Media Sites

Windows Phone Thoughts

Digital Home Thoughts

Zune Thoughts

Apple Thoughts

Laptop Thoughts

Android Thoughts

Reviews & Articles

Loading feed...

News

Loading feed...

Reviews & Articles

Loading feed...

News

Loading feed...

Reviews & Articles

Loading feed...

News

Loading feed...

Reviews & Articles

Loading feed...

News

Loading feed...

Reviews & Articles

Loading feed...

News

Loading feed...