Many people may be familiar with the Tenba Messenger Large or Small Bag that can also hold a laptop. However, I was looking for a lens/shooting bag and came across the Tenba Messenger Camera Bag. This is a shoulder bag that holds everything but a laptop (although you may be able to squeeze a small one in there).
So far I managed to fit these lenses comfortably: a Canon 85 f/1.8, 18-55mm kit lense, a Tamron 28-75, and a 50mm f/1.8, all with hoods attached. I still have room for a Canon 70-200 f/4 which will be ordered next week. In addition to all the lenses this bag will also hold 1 - 580EXII, 4-430EXII's, & 2 - PW TT5's. I'll also be ordering two more TT5's within the next month and I still have room for them. Hold on to your socks, we're still not done yet! I've also got the camera battery charger, memory cards, a calibration target, a bottle of Aleve, a lens pen, lens wipes, and 3 filters. Finally I got a pocket for the cell phone and a few left over to throw some business cards.
So why did I decide to go with this bag? I previously used a Lowepro Fastpack 350, which could also hold everything listed above. The problem I had with this bag is that I couldn't get to the lenses very fast. I would have to take the backpack off my back unzip the side, fish out my lens and then put it back on my back. I'm now shooting with one camera body and quick changing lens vs carrying two bodies. I will still have a backup body on shoots but I won't be using it unless my primary dies.
With the messenger I can simply slide top zipper open to easily access all my lenses without even having to open the flap. It takes less than three seconds to change a lens so this bag works perfect for me! Eventually I will be getting rid of my Tamron zoom and just going with primes. I'll still keep the 70-200 f/4 and possibly add a 10-20 or 10-22.
The shoulder strap goes over the head and is ergonomically designed. It's pretty well padded and is very comfortable. The bag rests on the hip and is definitely taking stress off my back compared to my old backpack. I'm sure after wearing the bag for a while it will start wearing on the shoulders. One of my complaints is that the bag doesn't have a belt support. To remedy this I took a belt/shoulder strap from another bag and hooked on to the shoulder support buckles. This allowed more of a balance between the waist and shoulder strap.
Another dislike I have is the velcro wall support is not stiff enough. It does collapse a bit when the bag is worn, making it a little harder to get lenses in and out. I worked with the it for quite a while try to configure the velcro supports so it doesn't crush down as easy. I think I got it worked out where it's a lot more stable now but it took quite a while to get it just right.
I'm still overall very satisfied with this bag. I know I won't be carrying the bag with all the gear in at once. At least 2-3 of the flashes will be in use while I'm shooting so this will lighten the load. My main concern of quickly accessing lenses has certainly been addressed with this bag and is going to making shooting so much faster and fun!
