Best Camera Bag Purses for Women
The choices for fashionable camera bags for women have grown exponentially in recent years! Gone are the days of ugly nylon camera bags; nowadays, there are tons of cute choices for women. Camera purses not only protect your expensive gear in style– they also don’t advertise that you’re carrying a camera, a must if you’re concerned about theft.
Our Fave Stylish Women’s Camera Bags
Ona Savannah Crossbody Camera Bag
Ona’s Savannah camera bag is a gorgeous minimalist saddle bag purse that just so happens to have ample storage and padding for your camera.
The bag is constructed of Italian leather (it also comes in black and pink!), with one large multi-functional padded compartment. It also includes a padded wrap to protect your camera when carrying multiple items.
Capacity: 1 mirrorless camera and extra lens or personal items.
Ona Capri Camera Bag
Ona’s Capri camera bag is a classic, roomy tote bag with room for a camera, tablet and personal items. It’s constructed of soft, rich leather that will acquire a patina over time.
There’s all the details you’d expect in a designer camera bag: fully padded interior, easy access wide zippered opening, detachable cross-body strap, and plenty of extra pockets for organization.
Capacity: 1 DSLR or mirrorless camera, up to three lenses, 13″ laptop or tablet, and small personal items.
Studio Lei Momi Alice Camera Bag – Vegan Friendly
We’re loving the pretty cheerful hues of vegan leather and vintage school bag styling of Studio Lei Momi’s Alice camera bag!
The Alice has plenty of thoughtful pockets and space for a wallet and all your accessories. It also features built-in padding with adjustable dividers, top carry handle, and a removable cross-body strap.
This bag is great for vegans, and anyone who has to have a dose of color!
Capacity: 1 DSLR camera and 1 additional lens, as well as an iPad
Jo Totes Missy Camera Bag- Vegan Friendly
Jo Totes makes designer camera bags, and one of our faves is the Missy camera bag, which has a classic stachel design. It’s available in mint or chocolate vegan leather.
It also holds a ton! The padded interior features adjustable dividers for maximum flexibility. You can use the shoulder straps, or clip on the included removable cross-body strap when you need to go hands free.
The Missy is a great multi-use vegan bag for students, or anyone looking for a chic camera bag.
Capacity: 1 DSLR camera, 1-2 extra lenses, a 15″ laptop, wallet and normal accessories.
Vagarant Traveler Camera Bag
A versatile crossbody bag in a classic style, Vagarant Traveler’s camera bag offers similar styling and quality to Ona, but with a lower price tag.
This well padded bag boasts a removable divider for flexibility. While we would like to see a little extra organization for small items, the front and back pouches should hold most of the necessities you’d transfer from a purse.
Capacity: 1 mirrorless camera and lens. The back pouch holds a full size iPad or other tablet.
Veracity & Verve Camera Bag – Vegan Friendly
Crafted of soft pink vegan faux leather, Veracity & Verve’s Moore’s spacious messenger style camera bag is a feminine take on a utilitarian classic.
The bag features a padded adjustable shoulder strap, and removable padded dividers. It’s also one of the bags that’s most thoughtful about purse functions, with plenty of pockets, and a secure zipper top under the flap.
This bag is a great choice for photographers who need to carry more gear, but don’t want to sacrifice style.
Capacity: 1 DSLR camera with 1-2 additional lenses, accessories and personal items.
Ona Bond St Camera Bag
The Bond St bag from Ona is compact and easy to carry all day, but still fits a mirrorless camera and lens. We love the unisex design and wide range of available colors.
The bag features a padded interior with removable divider, and adjustable strap that can be worn on the shoulder or crossbody. Or remove the straps to use the Bond St as a padded camera insert in a larger bag.
Capacity: 1 SLR camera and 1-2 small lenses or accessories, plus phone in back pocket.
Jo Totes Gracie Camera Bag – Vegan Friendly
Jo Totes is another go-to brand for versatile medium size camera bags for women, so no surprise that they scored two bags on this list.
Their Gracie camera bag purse features vegan leather in a nice variety of colors; in addition to the Marsala red shown here, it comes in Mint, Butterscotch and Black. The padded interior has adjustable dividers, exterior storage pockets, and removable shoulder and cross body straps that you can easily switch out.
The Gracie is another awesome choice for vegans and color addicts!
Capacity: 1 DSLR camera, 1-2 additional lenses, and an iPad, as well as your wallet and accessories.
Shutter Totes Convertible Backpack Camera Bag
Shutter Totes’ hippie chic camera bag can be worn as a backpack, crossbody, or shoulder bag. It’s a super cute bag, and we love the versatility!
The interior features padded dividers. There’s also 4 handy pockets to store smaller accessories, and a secure zipper closure under the flap.
We highly recommend checking out Shutter Tote’s entire shop–they have a ton of wonderful camera bags!
Capacity: 1 DSLR camera and up to 3 lenses.
Jolie Laide Weekender Camera Bag – Great for the Vintage Lover
Jolie Laide’s Weekender camera bag is modeled on vintage styles, and they’ve added a fun modern update with printed lining! This is another great option for mirrorless cameras, and traveling light.
The bag comes in black or brown leather, and features adjustable and removable padding, brass hardware, and an adjustable shoulder strap.
Capacity: 1 mirrorless camera with a small lens in the bag, and small accessories.
Koolertron Women’s Camera Backpack
Koolertron’s camera backpack for women is one of the most thoughtfully designed camera bags on this list–and it doesn’t hurt that the bag is available in some fun colors and patterns.
The backpack features a unique design with a horizontal zipper that opens up the bottom half of the bag to reveal a removable padded camera insert. This solves the problem of so many backpacks, where you’re elbow deep rummaging in the bottom trying to find your gear. The bag boasts quite a bit of additional storage, and even a rain cover for inclement weather.
This is a great bag for day trips or longer–or use the removable insert when you want to pack lighter.
Capacity: 1 DSLR camera with a lens, 1 additional lens and some accessories–and that’s just in the bottom camera compartment. There’s plenty of room for a tablet and other items in the top of the bag.
Ona Bowery Camera Bag
Ona’s crossbody Bowery camera bags are a classic, and they come in so many colors now! This is the limited edition Ona x Passion Passport Bowery, which is available in a rainbow of bright hues.
The bag features water resistant Cordura with Italian leather trim, an adjustable shoulder strap that can be worn cross body on on the shoulder, padded interior and removable padded divider. Remove the strap, and the Bowery can be used as a protective camera insert in a larger bag.
Capacity: 1 DSLR or mirrorless camera body with lens attached, 1-2 additional lenses, and small personal items.
How to Make Any Bag a Camera Bag
You’ve probably noticed that many of these bags have removable padded inserts for flexibility. So what’s to keep you from turning the purse you already own into a camera bag? Nothing!
On a recent trip to Tokyo, I just slipped a camera bag insert into my large Kate Spade bag, and it worked perfectly.
There’s a huge variety of camera bag inserts on Amazon. Just be sure that the insert will comfortably fit in your purse–oftentimes the width and depth are fine, but many inserts can be too tall for standard purses. I also recommend getting a camera bag insert with padding on top for the most protection. Inserts like the one pictured here with a removable padded flap will give you the most flexibility.
You’ll also want to consider how you plan to use the camera bag insert. Some inserts have a handle or straps so that they can be carried independently, which may come in handy.
Features to Consider in a Camera Bag
Here’s a quick overview of features to think about for your new camera bag.
- Bag Size: How much do you plan to carry? Just a camera and extra lens, or do you want to have room to toss in a large wallet, some cosmetics, and maybe even a laptop? How large is your camera? I find that my mirrorless Fuji X-T2 fits comfortably in most bags, but a larger DSLR may be a tight fit in some bags.
- Strap type: Do you want a bag with a shoulder strap, cross body, or backpack? My preference is for cross body straps, as they’re the most secure for traveling, and allow hands-free access to my camera.
- Material: Leather, vegan leather, or canvas? All are great choices, though good quality real leather may be the most durable and stain resistant in the long term.
- Secure closure: Make sure your bag has a secure zipper or other tight closure to prevent theft, and to keep your gear in place if the bag is dropped or knocked over. Magnetic closures are neat, but they won’t cut it here.
