Civita Day Pack and compact DSLR

I use my Civita bag for this purpose all the time. I have a Nikon P530, which I'd classify as a compact DSLR or a large point-and-shoot, with a fixed zoom lens. I used this camera for our trip to London, Paris and Normandy and was very pleased both with the performance of the camera and the Civita bag. It's a very light, totally unstructured bag, so don't expect any padding or compartments as you might find in a dedicated camera bag. But the Civita has multiple pockets and, like several RS bags, is capable of holding an astonishing amount of stuff if you're so inclined.

Thank you! That is exactly what I wanted to know. I'm heading to Denver in a couple of months and didn't want to buy another day pack sight unseen if it wouldn't work for this.

I just ordered and received my Civita day bag. It will certainly be big enough to use as you describe. It has one large main compartment with two additional outer zippered pockets, plus two side mesh pouches that you can use for a water bottle, bug spray, sunscreen, etc. I plan to carry a bridge camera (Canon sx60HS) and a pair of binoculars in mine, as well as a guide book, maps, snacks and a rain jacket. You will want to cushion your camera and lens with a sweater or jacket as you describe, since there is no internal padding. I am pleased with the quality and construction of this bag and am about to take it for a test drive to check fit and comfort. I'll let you know!

Thank you Kathi!

I have a Nikon D3400, currently with an 18-55 zoom, but planning on the 16-80 f/2.8 zoom for the tip to Europe. The specs on the camera body are really close to both your and stoutfella's cameras. Both zoom lenses are lightweight and compact.

I very much appreciate your description of what you will be carrying and look forward to hearing how your test drive goes.

As Kathi mentioned, the Civita bag doesn't have any padding so you'd need to be careful not to "bump" the pack against anything while the camera is inside. It's made of a very light microfibre material so the shape of the bag is determined by what's packed in it. I use a larger DSLR so it wouldn't be suitable for me (I normally carry my camera in the open, as it would be a darn nuisance to have to dig it out of a pack each time I wanted to use it.

You might also check some of the camera bag firms such as ThinkTank Photo, LowePro or others, as they have front or side carry products that would be easier to use than a backpack.

Where are you located (you mentioned Denver)? If you can make it to one of the RS Denver group meetings, someone there might have a Civita bag that you could have a look at. The next meeting is April 15th.

Thanks Ken. I am in Northern California and will travel to Denver in early June. My schedule is wonky due to splitting time between my home in Sonoma County and helping out my dad who lives farther north. I typically spend half the month in each place. Meetings on weekends are tough because I'm driving half the time. I'm pretty sure the only time the camera will be in the bag is going to the airport or on the plane

Starburst: FWIW, I have the D3000, which I assume is similar in size to the D3400. The 3000 isn't a high-end camera, so I had been debating whether to upgrade to one of the 5000 series. But I decided I didn't want to lug that much weight around with me in Europe, so instead I got the smaller, lighter P530. I know I sacrifice some image quality and options, particularly on f stops, but I have been happy with what I'm able to do with the smaller camera.

I think the Civita bag would still be fine if you're just taking the camera body and one lens. I simply choose not to carry that much weight on these trips.

Be sure to take something that is waterproof to put you camera in in case it rains. The Civita is not waterproof. I would throw in some gallon ziplock bags or perhaps a trash bag to protect anything you don't want to get wet.

Thanks stoutfella and Yosemite1.

Yes, thanks for the point about the Civita not being waterproof. I live in the Calif. rain zone - the redwoods are across the street. We were pelted this year. I have everything small and/or electronic in ziplocked bags and have a rain shell for the daypack when commuting. I'm hoping it will fit the Civita. Currently using it on a Northface daypack that is definitely not the bag for the Europe trip - it works for carrying documents into the office and reading them on a bus, but not really for sweaters, guidebooks, etc. For Europe, I would put the camera in a garbage bag and bring along Rick's poncho. If I have the backpack with me and am out and about, I'd have the poncho on. It will make it more difficult to get to everything, but it and I will be dry.

Basically, I'm looking for a bag that will let me carry my stuff, including the camera, wallet, etc., on the plane and be my smaller bag for the trip. The camera is light enough so that I can carry it everywhere.

stoutfella, the D3400 is slightly lighter than the D3000. Pretty close to that and your P530 in size. It's just a lot of fun. I wear glasses and really don't enjoy electronic viewfinders. It can work as a glorified point and shoot in auto mode so I don't have to mess around with settings if I don't want to. The images are very sharp and the lens is nice. I mainly shoot landscapes and so far it is very enjoyable.

So I have had my Civita bag for 10 years. We call it Rick . It has been on more trips including BOE14 & 4 other RS tours then I can even remember . Just got back yesterday from NOLA of course our handy Rick was with us. . Like you most of the time my camera is around my neck. I have a Nikon. I bring a small padded camera bag for the plane that fits in my Rick. I don't usually carry the camera bag with me. I have other lens but usually don't use them. I love taking pics.
The bag is great. Here is the kicker I actually work for a bag company & we don't make anything that holds up as well as this bag.

starburst,

I'd suggest having a look at various types of camera bags, in order to find the one that best fits your needs. Start with ThinkTank Photo as their bags are designed by photographers, for photographers. Other bags will be better padded and therefore better able to protect your expensive camera investment.

Thanks LA and Ken.

I will look at other backpacks. The other thought is to use LA's method and get a camera pouch so I can carry it in the bag with some added protection. I'd like to just have my 20" main roller bag and one other lightweight bag for daily use, carrying the extra sweater, poncho, snacks and camera.

I use my Civita all the time, and as my personal item on flights. But for fragile electronic stuff, it is no more protective than a pillowcase, so I'd definitely want something sturdier. Rick's euro flight bag might be an option.

Stan, thank you.

I'll check out a local camera store that looks like it has a good selection of bags and protective pouches. They have nice bags, or maybe something like this would work: Promaster eveready SLR Holster

@Starburst: I went for a one mile walk with my Civitas bag packed as above. The bag was knobbly and things poked me (because of no padding) but the bag itself fit well. In practice, I will be wearing the binoculars on my chest with a binocular harness and the camera will mostly be in my hands, so the bumps probably won't be an issue.

I have the Euro Flight Bag, as well, and use it as my personal item on the plane, holding my CPAP, camera and other stuff, including the Civita that I carry later for my day bag. I find the Euro bag extremely useful, but I definitely wouldn't want to haul it around with me on the street all day. It's too big and clunky for that. I also found the included shoulder strap to be not very comfortable. I'm looking to replace the strap (not the bag) with something else.

I generally had my camera in my hands when sightseeing, but was glad I had the smaller, lighter Nikon P530 when I was carrying it in the Civita. The bumping didn't bother me much, but I can see that a heavier, bulkier camera could be troublesome.

Kathi and stoutfella, thanks so much for your observations.

I'm now thinking that may the best approach would be to get a different day-pack, use a padded camera pouch and get the Civita for wandering around on the tour. It would be small enough to roll-up in the day-pack and fine for carrying stuff around while I'm out walking, because the camera will be in my hands. The camera body itself wasn't that expensive. But the lens will be and I want that to be protected going through airport security and on the plane.

The camera bags don't look enticing, because I won't be carrying extra gear and mainly want the bag to carry other stuff. But I'll check out the selection at the camera store and may be surprised.

For very similar purposes as stated by OP, I looked long and hard for a mini day pack that does not look like a camera bag. I considered the Civita bag. but got another one instead. Been very happy with it.

https://www.amazon.com/Everest-Deluxe-Small-Backpack-Black/dp/B001I4EJ8Q/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

During transit, it is a carry on. During tours, it is my day pack. The big compartments are great for a mirror-less body and a couple of lenses and a mid size tablet or laptop. Inside the compartments, there are multiple zippered organizers for passport, SD cards, batteries, charger, books, etc. Roomy enough to add a sandwich (during flights), or a light jacket (during tours).

I also use an extra small Timbuk2 messenger bag as an alternative. Much sturdier material, and more fashionable.

Thank you staynsavor. Those look like interesting bags and I will check them out. I'm hoping to find something with the Civita's general design - a couple of front pockets big enough for a travel book a small essential or two, and a bigger, roomy compartment where the extra sweater, poncho and camera pouch would go. I really like the drawstring mesh pockets on the Civita, having almost lost a water bottle too many times. The Ravena looks interesting, but I'm not thrilled about the extra laptop compartment for fear that it would unnecessarily use up space. I want to be far, far away from a laptop on this trip.

As noted, the Civita bag has no protective shell, but it sounds like you know how to pack your camera. I always used a clear filter over the lens, that tiny ring absorbed many an unintentional ding that would have bent the lens if it were not covered with a filter.

Thanks Zoe. I have the filter and a protective screen over the LCD monitor.

I have a a great backpack/camera bag from LowePro that I got at REI (Amazon has them too). I took my DSLR and two extra lenses on two trips; one to London and the other to Germany (very rainy) and it worked great. Like you, I tend to keep my camera out and ready to use.

It has good padding, a rain flap, and room for other stuff you might need. The coolest thing though is that the access to the storage for lenses and camera is a zippered compartment that you can only access if you take the backpack off -- the zipper rides against your back -- making it pretty tough for someone to open it while you're wearing it. It also has nooks and crannies that I used to hide my wallet, etc as needed.

It may be a little bigger than you're looking for, but I'd check it out if you haven't bought anything yet. http://store.lowepro.com/backpacks/photo-hatchback-bp-150-aw-ii

Lisa, thank you. That looks pretty cool. I'll check it out the next time I'm at REI.

In the meantime, I bought a Ravenna day pack as well as a neoprene sleeve for the camera. This might work. I really appreciate the Revenna's design. It is very light weight, but seems well constructed and it is more stylish than the pictures make it seem. The front pockets for guide books and other things, and having two mesh pockets with drawstrings are very practical and would help make the bag work well as the personal item for the plane, especially since the 311 bag could go in a mesh pouch, at least temporarily. The interior is more than roomy enough for the camera, plus my knitted hat, plus a poncho, plus a down vest. I went wandering around with all of this earlier and it was fine. It was also easy to carry under one arm, like a sling. It will go on a test run to Denver in June.

I just carried my Canon XS DSLR with a 24 mm pancake lens on our trip to Hawaii. This is the first time I used a DSLR in many years. I used an eBay neoprene cover and carried it in a sackpack.. The neoprene protected the camera from bumps. The sackpack is big enough to pack a beach towel, bottle of water, wallet, sunglasses etc. Both the neoprene cover and the sackpack can be compressed down and can be easily carried in a jacket pocket when not in use. I can put everything in my carryon or use it as my personal item if my carryon is too full.

Thanks funpig, that confirms the strategy is viable.
I'm going with the Ravenna day pack and the neoprene cover. The Ravenna is a terrific pack. I've been carrying it everywhere, for everything as my regular day bag and it is great. It is small, superlightweight and holds everything I need, including essentials for shooting pictures while hiking through the redwoods (e.g., extra layers, hats, water bottle, sunscreen). I love the way the pack is designed. We'll see how it goes on the Denver trip.

The Ravena will be more robust and comfortable than my sackpack. The sackpack has thinner material and has rope drawstring which are used as the shoulder straps. But i like that it is light and takes up less volume.