Canon Zoom Pack 1000 for Elan and Rebel Series Cameras (Holster Style) Review

The Canon Zoom Pack 1000 is very useful and sturdy bag - and, although compact, it's big! Any Canon EOS Rebel/xxxD/xxD with a medium-sized zoom lens will fit perfectly. For example, a Rebel XT/350D with a Sigma 18-200mm (OS or non-OS) lens fits perfectly inside it (even with the camera's big strap folded behind the camera and with a polarizer filter + Sigma's big lens hood attached in front of the lens) - and there's still some space left inside for some small accessories...
Some cameras with their battery grips attached will eventually fully fit in this bag, but often tightly (stretching it out fully at the upper side). This is the case for the Rebel XTx/XSx/3xxD/4xxD cameras.
It comes with a velcro "divider" to be put besides or over the camera (or behind it, as a matter of fact, on the top portion of the bag, just below its top cover), so you can partition the inner space and create a second compartment to keep a small point-and-shoot camera and/or any small accessories, as a battery charger (plus two or three extra batteries and memory cards). If you put the divider behind the camera (over its back), you can put anything on the upper side of the bag without taking the risk to scratch the camera's LCD screen.
The top cover closes by velcro so it's very easy and fast to open or close it (just pull it up or down, without the need to push buttons, press hooks, untie laces or whatever).
Inside the bag, just below the top cover, there's a very convenient zipper-style, "net-type" compartment (very useful for storing documents, cables, cleaning pens, portable table tripods, memory cards, lens filters without their original cases etc.).
The front accessory compartment is small, but there's enough space for some memory cards, one or two lens caps, and extra battery, any thin cable and maybe more (all these items together), if you arrange everything well. It has a small fixed divider, specially useful for keeping CompactFlash memory cards.
It features a comfortable, ergonomic shoulder/neck strap and a belt that allows us to carry it on our waist. You'll look like as if you're carrying a big gun!
If you don't have too much photographic gear and stuff, this bag may be the only bag you will ever need. In my experience, here's a list of what it can hold altogether:
- Any Canon EOS Rebel/xxxD/xxD with a medium-sized zoom lens (e.g., the Sigma 18-200mm OS/non-OS lens, with a polarizer filter and a big hood attached)
- A Canon CB-2LT battery charger
- A Hoya polarizer filter case
- A flexible, mini table tripod
- The camera's USB cable
- The camera's video cable
- The front lens cap (when it is off the camera)
- The rear lens cap
- The camera's cover body cap
- An RC-1 wireless remote controller (attached to the camera's neck strap)
- A small, manual air blower with medium-sized rubber bulb (like the Giottos AA1900 Large Rocket Blaster or Canon EF Lense Blower or Visible Dust Hurricane Blower)
Of course it would be more comfortable if I'd put all this stuff in a bigger, horizontal-style gear backpack, but the Canon Zoom Pack 1000 gives me the convenience of wearing it around my neck and leave it hanging just in front of me (as I would do with the camera alone) or around my waist (holster style). You can even use both the belt and the neck strap in order to hang it in front of you in a stabilized way.
And, last but not least, it is beautiful, stylish and have a nice silver "Canon" logo in front of it. Recommended!
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