Today, we're talking about the Shimoda Action X backpack,
why I really like this bag,
and why I think it's kind of perfect
for any creator or filmmaker out there.
Especially for those of you who
do outdoors activities.
All right guys, let's get into it.
So, I just got back from Thailand
with my buddy Levi Allen.
We went for just under a week
and both of us had a Shimoda Action X backpack.
Now, this was the bag of choice for a few reasons.
Because when were in Thailand,
there's a few things we had to consider
when we were out filming.
And, one of those is weather,
pouring down rain a few of the days while we were there,
and also just like the amount of mud and dirt
and everything that was around.
We needed a bag that was going
to protect our gear.
Now, if you don't know what's been going on,
basically, I've been working
on a VR project with YouTube.
And this film took me all the way to Thailand
where I was covering an elephant sanctuary
and showing how social media is creating
a positive impact in the elephant tourism industry.
Now, to shoot this film,
we had to go to an elephant sanctuary
and this sanctuary was about three hours
outside the city,
deep in the jungle.
So, essentially this was the bag
that I brought with me.
- [Levi] Where we heading out today?
- So, first things first,
we're going down to where the elephants are
and we're cleaning up all the poop.
Now this is the 50 liter.
This is like the perfect size
for travel 'cause this fits in an overhead bin.
And I was able to fit all of my gear
in this bag.
Now, Levi brought on this trip the 70 liter,
which he actually was able to get
in the overhead bin as well.
But it is a little bit bigger bag.
And so, if you're going on smaller planes
you might want to opt to get the 50
or the 30 versus the 70.
They've made three versions of this bag
and all three of them are packed
with a ton of features.
Now, just a quick disclosure.
Shimoda did send this bag out to me for free.
However, this is bag that I was planning
on getting anyways.
I have their original bag
and I love it,
but there was a few things
that I really wanted to see changed
and they definitely have changed those
in this bag.
And I'm super stoked to
how this bag has come together.
And using it in an extreme environment
where my gear was getting trashed.
This bag kept everything safe
when the gear was in there.
- It's a race to come through the jungle
and get the VR camera setup in time
in these awesome perspectives.
I think you just got that.
- I just hit record as they came through.
Okay, so one of the first things
that stands out to me when I started
playing around with this bag
was the fact that on either side
you have these pouches
where you can fit like your tripod,
your stands, whatever it is that's long,
or you could fit a big sized water bottle.
And for me, that's something massive.
Because having the ability
to fit one of these big thermal flasks
inside of my bag makes it so much different
than most of the other camera bags out there.
I rarely find a camera backpack
that has a pocket this big for a water bottle.
I know it's like a small thing
and it's something that you
can probably just throw your water bottle in the bag.
But, for me, having that is huge.
And it's something that I'm always picking apart
when I pickup a camera bag
and there's no big pouch on the side.
Now, what's cool about this one
is that it's got a little strap on the bottom
so it can hold whatever's
in here nice and tight and snug.
It's got a little drawstring.
Perfect.
But then also it can tuck away
when you're not using it,
keeping the bag clean.
The design of this bag
is essentially you have your internal unit,
that you access from the back here
and your entire back flap opens
to reveal your entire internal unit.
Now, I have this setup
for when I was doing my VR
which is a few big cases in here of gear,
but you can obviously configure
this however you want.
Now you have your spot here
for your laptop.
And essentially when you stick you laptop in here,
close it up,
it's sealed between your back and your backpack
so that you have your laptop nice and secure.
And when your like traveling,
you can easily just open the top zipper here
so that you don't have to open up your entire bag
and be able to slip out your laptop.
That's a big thing for me
because I'm trying to keep things
nice and secure wherever I go
and when you're traveling,
you don't want to be opening your bag
everywhere you go.
Now, on the front
you have nice thick straps.
If you have a smaller water bottle
you can fit that right here,
or any other pieces of gear.
And this is a pocket that you
can zip up and tuck away.
And then on the other side
you have the pocket for your phone.
Now, I have the iPhone 11 XS Max
and it fits it with a case
in the pocket.
So, it's a big pocket
that can fit most phones.
This cell phone holder
also acts as a wireless pack holder.
Look at that!
No need to stick something
to me 'cause, well,
too sweaty anyways.
- [Levi] A nice little hidden mic (muffled)
- Look at that! A Nice little hidden mic.
Can you hear me? One, two, three, four.
Hi, how's it going?
How are you?
Oh, it's that mic.
Now all over the straps
you have different hooks
and places to attach gear.
so, depending on what things
you're bringing with you
there is options to strap it on
in the different places
along your shoulder straps.
You have a chest strap here.
And the you also have your big strap
on the bottom,
which allows you to
load this bag with a ton of weight,
take the weight off your shoulders.
It's on your hips so that you
can go long distance without
having to destroy your back and your shoulders.
So it's very comfortable.
I had this thing loaded
the entire time in Thailand
and so I would take a full pack
and be driving through the streets
Chiang Mai on a scooter
or be hiking through the temples
or the jungle with this thing fully loaded
and we were going of hours upon hours.
When we were actually with the elephants,
we trekked for probably six hours straight
of just walking through the hot jungle
and it was going between super hot and humid
to like super rain storm.
And when it comes to protection
your gear's protected in this bag.
Now, all the zippers are weather sealed
and its got a super thick bottom
so you can put it on anything
and nothing's gonna affect this bag.
Now, the front has a giant pocket.
You can fit whatever you want in here.
If you wanted to put your laptop
in the front, you could.
But it's not going to be as protected
as on your back.
However, I have done it in that way.
And you also have just two big straps
cross in the front.
You could use this bag for
any of your outdoor adventures
and that's one reason why I like it.
I personally like to have a bag
that I can use for different situations
and then configure the inside.
So, to do that,
you can pull out this internal unit
if you don't want it
and you can make this bag just empty.
One of the really cool things
about this is,
this whole internal unit.
So, as the bag,
it's pretty flat.
If you're not able to take
your whole bag with you,
say you get on a plane
and they don't let you take this size bag.
Well, you can take out this internal unit.
And it comes with this special case,
which fits nicely around your internal unit here.
Which allows you to take just this on the plane
or wherever you need to take it
when you don't want to have your full bag.
So having this is essential
because there's been so many situations
where I've actually had to pull all the gear
out of my backpack.
If you travel, you understand what I'm talking about.
Especially when you get into places
where you have to hop on small planes.
Having something this small is great.
All right, so let me show you
a couple other things that
make this bag stand out.
Now, on the sides you have side pockets.
On one side you have access
to all your camera gear.
Now, this is something that
I was super excited about
because on their old bag,
they just had a single zipper down the side
and you had to kinda like stretch it apart
to get to your gear.
On this Action X they've
actually made it a full flap open
so that you can get into the internal unit
and access all of your gear.
What's good is if you just wanna swing
you can now access your gear
full flap, everything's right there.
You can grab whatever you need
and setup your internal unit
so that you can have access
to certain lenses or whatever.
Now on the other side,
you have another one of these big pockets,
which has your water bottle, tripod holder.
But it also has big pocket here
that you can put a bunch of stuff
and it's just nice having extra pockets all around.
Now, this bag is a roll top.
So, you can fit a lot more
than the bag squishes down to.
So, if you have more clothes
or something that you want to add to the top,
you can actually make it bigger
by using this roll top
or you can cinch it down
and really make it a lot smaller.
So, for me, I haven't been
the biggest fan of roll tops in the past,
but after working with this in the field,
I actually do think this works great.
And it's easy to be able
to make this bigger or smaller
depending on what I'm throwing
in my bag for that time.
So, it's just some added flexibility.
Now, you have different straps around the sides,
for gear, but basically this
is like your adventure backpack.
And like I said, there's different versions.
The 70 is a little bit different than the 50
which is a little bit different than the 30.
And I'll put a link down below in the description
to the Kickstarter page where you
can get this bag at a discount right now.
And there's only a few more days
for this Kickstarter.
I highly suggest, if you're interested in it
and you want a adventure backpack
then head down to the description
check out the link
and you'll see all of the features broken down.
There's even more on this bag
that you guys need to check out.
Now, one other really cool thing
is they have a side handle
so you can hold it on the side
or the top.
So, it's little things, it's these details
that make the Shimoda bags so good.
And I was really excited that
they reached to have me test out this Action X line,
especially because I had this trip to Thailand coming up
and this kept my gear safe even though we were
in like complete downpours in the middle of the jungle.
And that alone has convinced me
that this is the bag that I want to keep using
'cause it works well for my different shooting situations
and it's just a great bag to have.
And it looks good.
So, can't complain with that.
All right guys, if you wanna see more about
the Shimoda Action X 50 liter,
I'll put a link down below in the description.
And I highly suggest, if you want something bigger,
check out the 70.
Levi used that on our entire trip
and it was a great bag for him.
And if you head over to his channel
he's done a review on this bag as well.
So, if you want to see another perspective,
then I highly suggest heading over
to Levi's channel and checking that out.
All right guys, that's it.
I'll see you on the next one.