Are you looking for a new camera bag?
If you’re a photographer or even videographer looking for the perfect bag to tote your gear around easily, you’ve got to read this
Wandrd Prvke 21 Review.
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Let me start out by saying that I am a videographer and photographer. I started out in videography first and just started doing photography towards the latter end of 2021.
I knew immediately that I wasn’t the bag-slung-across-the-shoulders type. I was a backpack girl. Just as much as I am a Jeep girl (yes, I have a Rubicon Wrangler, #jeepnation).
I bought an inexpensive camera bag immediately to tote some gear around and honestly, it did the trick.
BUT I knew, sooner or later, I was going to have to invest in a serious camera bag. One that could stand the test of time, weather and tough situations.
So I did copious amounts of research. I read reviews, blogs and the specs online of different camera bags. I watched reviews on YouTube of consumer experiences and comparisons.
I did. It. All.
I actually looked pretty closely at the Brevite Jumper, Peak Design, and the Nomatic backpacks.
But, after researching all the details on the Wandrd Prvke, I decided that was the bag.
And let me tell you… I LOVE my Wandrd Prvke backpacks.
Yes, I have more than one.
But calm down. I only have two. For right now anyway. Ha.
If you’re like me though, you need to know why it is a bag worth investing in.
So I’m going to explain my perspective on it and why I recommend investing in this bag or another bag within this same brand.
Quality Features of the Prvke Backpacks
First, let’s discuss the general features of the Wandrd Prvke backpack. This is similar across their different lines, but for the sake of this blog, we’ll focus on the Wandrd Prvke 21 Liter and discuss the Lite version a little later.
You can skip ahead to that section if you want by clicking through the Table of Contents.
Exterior Features of the Wandrd Prvke
Waterproof tarpulin
The material that this bag is made of is amazing.
*Please note that all photos of these Prvke backpacks are my own. I have intentionally left the scrapes and signs of wear and tear instead of being edited out so you can see how it looks after almost a year of use.
Like other Wandrd Prvke backpacks, the waterproof tarpaulin is great for handling those occasional ‘bouts of drippage, whether that be from rain, an unexpected drizzle or even spill from your water bottle.
Now do keep in mind that it’s made of waterproof tarpaulin as well as Robic 1680 Ballistic Nylon. This is actually incredibly tough material, meant to be durable and resistant to a beating. This at the top of the bag and bottom of the bag, with the focus being areas where high risk for abrasive wear and tear is likely going to be experienced.
In addition, they use YKK weather resistant zippers throughout the exterior of the bag.
Now, no one recommends dosing your new Prvke in water.
Like I mentioned before, I have a Rubicon Wrangler. I can take that thing mudding, with the roof off. The interior (not leather in my Jeep, thank you very much) is made to handle water. But that doesn’t mean I try to take it deep-diving. It’s not meant for that.
The same with the Wandrd Prvke backpack. The material is waterproof but the bag is water resistant.
Straps for days
There are multiple straps and loops available for additional opportunities to add straps on the Wandrd Prvke.
Even their basic option comes with at least one shoulder strap, but you can have multiple shoulder straps or other accessory straps like the sternum strap or chest strap, and waist straps to help make your bag more secure for traveling, hiking or just toting around a heavy load.
One way to use the bag with the accessory straps is to have two attached to the inside straps so you can wear the bag from the front (of your chest as opposed to your back), open the clamshell and the straps will hold the bag’s opening securely so you can pull out whatever gear you need without ever letting it touch the ground.
Now, I can’t show you a photo of this because I did not purchase more straps but I’ve seen this featured on the Wandrd website and find this to be a potentially great feature. I’m not sure about practicality for myself but it’s definitely an option to try if you travel a lot for your shoots.
Quick Access Points
Side Access
In our continuing discussion of the features outside of the bag, one of the things I absolutely love are the many points of easy access to the inside of this great bag.
This first one I will admit I actually don’t really use is the side access for a quick draw of your camera.
You have to keep in mind that the Wandrd Prvke creators built the original prvke with the mindset that you can easily access your camera while on the go, i.e. traveling. BUT they also wanted to prioritize protection and security of your gear as well.
This side access panel allows you to swing the side of your bag forward, unzip and access your camera body with lens already in place quickly from the main compartment and shoot.
It’s made so that you don’t have to pause in your momentum of walking or hiking to open your camera bag, put your lens on your camera body and then shoot. This quick access is one of the featured characteristics of the bag and is a part of all their prvke series.
Let’s just say that entry points is a Wandrd thing and they do it well.
Top of the bag
In addition, at the top of the Wandrd Prvke 21L bag are two compartments.
One is a small fleece-lined pocket right above the turtle shell opening.
This is where you can safely store small items like your phone, ID, even a little cash. When I’m on the go, I’ll typically put my phone, a bill of cash, lip gloss and my keys in this pocket.
Top Compartment
Then there is the expandable roll top in the top compartment of the bag.
For the 21L version (31 and 41 Liter versions) of the Wandrd Prvke, unrolling that roll top gives you more room to store camera gear or miscellaneous items. It gives about 4-6 liters of extra room.
Depending on the type of camera cube you have, you can get more or less of your camera equipment in this section.
For those with the essential camera cube, you have more storage space for a sweater, or travel equipment, etc.
For those like myself with the pro camera cube, I can put more camera equipment like batteries, lens, lens cleaning kit, etc. in this section and still fit a sweater, a few snacks and other personal tools here.
Pockets
There is no shortage of pockets in the Wandrd Prvke bag.
On the side of the bag where you can store a water bottle or lock in another piece of equipment, there is a small pocket. This small side pocket is actually for your keys, and is more commonly referred to as the key pocket. It has a hook or clip inside to latch them onto for security.
I’ll be honest, I’ll use the fleece-lined pocket right above the clamshell opening for my keys sometimes, just for ease of grabbing when I’m jumping in and out of my car for shoots, but this side pocket is way more secure.
It’s a little more difficult to get into and I do feel this is the best place to put your keys, ID and any cash that you might need.
Passport pocket
As I said before, there are plenty of pockets in the Wandrd Prvke 21L backpack.
Towards the bottom of the bag, on the part that rests against your lower back is a zippered pocket.
In can be a little difficult to locate because the zipper can be a little hidden, but it’s also a great place to store your passport or other important but small items (like your ID). Especially when it comes to traveling and airport security, these are items you must have secured and difficult for someone to steal.
Water bottle pocket
On the left side of this backpack is the water bottle pocket. This is actually an expandable pocket that can fit larger than usual water bottles but also other items, like your RS 3 Pro Gimbal.
No seriously.
At the top on the same side (actually on both sides) is a cinch strap that you can unbuckle and then re-buckle to lock a collapsible camera stand or again, motorized gimbal in place.
I have used this for my DJI RS 3 Pro and I love it.
The side-cinch strap at the top ensures it’s clipped in and secure and I don’t have to worry about anything falling or damage occurring to my gimbal.
Kudos to Wandrd for this versatile feature.
Front pocket
On the very front of the Wandrd Prvke is a large documents pocket which you can unzip on the right side when you’re facing the bag.
This is more appropriate for flatter items that need to be stowed. I have been known to put my flat wallet in this section and even phone. Sometimes I will put my ND filter in this pocket as well but I haven’t really used it much compared to the other pockets available.
Rainfly pocket
At the very bottom section of the bag, is what is called the rainfly pocket. This is an additional accessory purchase to the Wandrd Prvke 21L backpack itself but is worth considering if you’re going to be traveling in areas known for their rainy seasons, or risk of being in the elements or getting wet in any way, shape and form on a continual basis.
You can store the rain cover accessory here to pull out to cover your entire bag and thus would be easily accessible for storage when not in use.
You could also store other smaller items that are not as bulky. Remember, the goal is to place your bag on this bottom part when not in use. Bulky items stored here could make that impossible to do as well as do damage to your contents.
Battery Storage
Now let’s go back to the quick-access pocket where you can easily pull out your camera and lens, already attached mind you, to shoot on the fly. Inside this pocket are insertion slots perfectly sized for your camera batteries.
Is this another great feature of the Wandrd backpacks?
Um, it depends on your needs. While I find the concept absolutely ideal, it does make it more cumbersome in trying to open that side pocket quickly.
Personally, I think there are other pockets that serve as a better option for storing your batteries or other miscellaneous smaller items.
Travel-friendly Features
One of the neatest features in my opinion, of the all-new Wandrd Prvke 21 Liter is the pass-through strap on the back.
Covering the zipper for the passport pocket is a strap that is for your luggage. This is the luggage pass-through strap.
It’s perfect for when you’re traveling and want to rest your bag securely on your rolling luggage. You slide the handle of your luggage through this strap and boom, roll-away you go with your camera gear secure on top of the bag.
Of course, you need to make sure your luggage is heavy enough to stand on its own which may be a feat if it’s just a carry-on but otherwise this is a great innovative feature of the Wandrd backpack creators. They’re truly thinking of the traveling photographer and keeping their ease and feasibility in mind when using the Wandrd prvke as a travel backpack.
Extra accessory strap loops
Let’s not forget to discuss the multiple loops on this backpack that give you plenty of options to hook other straps, Carabiner clips, etc to your bag.
You can see these on the sides of the backpack, in at least 4 symmetrical spots. In addition, the straps of the backpack have plenty of loops to attach to other accessory straps as well as places for the sternum straps that would give a more secure hold to your body.
Interior Features of the Wandrd Prvke
Now let’s get into the interior of this fabulous versatile bag.
The Main Compartment
When you first open the Wandrd Prvke which can be described as a clamshell opening, you are immediately confronted with the contents of your bag. Or the potential to place your contents if you haven’t done so yet.
Depending on the type of removable camera cube you have, you can store more or less camera gear.
As we mentioned a little earlier, the pro camera cube has room that extends into the roll-top backpack part whereas the essential camera cube is limited to the main compartment only.
Regardless of whatever camera cube you have, it is removable. AND, it is… wait for it. Customizable.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, they’ve thought of everything. Not just because it’s customizable which, let’s face it. A lot of camera bags or backpacks seem to showcase that feature. But the difference here is the high quality.
The padding quality is top notch, with the Velcro flaps solidly adhering to wherever they’re placed. In addition, stretchy velcro straps come with the bag allowing you to essentially “lock” your gear in for extra security (and peace of mind) when you’re out and about traveling.
There is plenty of ample space to allow you to store your equipment.
Depending on the type of camera cube you have, you’ll be able to get 1-2 camera bodies and several lens packed in. Of note, according to the specs on the Wandrd website, they give an example of the Essential camera cube fitting mirrorless cameras. They specifically state the Essential + camera cube fits the DSLR camera bodies.
Depending on how your pack your gear, I’ve been able to fit 1 or 2 DSLR bodies even into my Prvke Lite which basically matches the dimensions of the Essential camera cube.
Again, depending on how you organize your gear within the space provided, chances are you’re going to be able to fit exactly what you need in there.
The 5 other compartments
Now, on the back of the clamshell opening is the inside of that flap. This thing has 5 pockets. FIVE. Five.
Yes, room galore.
Laptop/Tablet Pocket
The biggest compartment is for your laptop and tablet. Wandrd calls this the laptop and/or tablet sleeve.
This thing easily fits my 13” Macbook Pro safely in the laptop sleeve. Now I don’t carry it around every day and just upgraded to the 14.”
So I tried putting that 14” in there, and it fits just fine. BUT it definitely adds weight to what you’re carrying. Keep this in mind if you’re planning to use this as a travel bag and work while you’re out there running around the world.
The beauty is, you can carry both a laptop and tablet in these pockets. There are 2 pockets for that very reason.
I don’t use an iPad, so I can’t tell you my experience with carrying both. That’d probably be a bit much for my 5 foot even frame anyway.
BUT what I do is carry other important flat gear in here. I have plastic rain covers I bought off of Adorama that I carry everywhere, an ND filter with case, and Ziploc bag with all my lavalier Rycote microphone windshields that I store in the tablet area.
For me, it serves great as another pocket.
The other smaller pockets
On the same back panel as the laptop and tablet sleeve are 3 other pockets.
There are two small ones side-by-side where the Velcro strap for the laptop and tablet sleeves connects, and then one long one underneath these two.
Small items like your batteries, cables, thigh strap (for microphones) can be placed here.
The reason why they avoided putting another pocket below the long pocket was to avoid any unintended damage to your gear from contents pressing or mashing against your gear. Since this pocket would be directly above the main compartment of your camera cube, I thought that was pretty considerate.
Wandrd Prvke Lite
Now let’s briefly talk about the Wandrd Prvke Lite.
It’s a smaller bag with similar features to the 21 Liter Wandrd Prvke. But since it’s only 11 liters, it is definitely on the small side.
In addition to being smaller, the Lite version comes with a camera cube already installed.
As similar as it is to the 21L, it does have fewer features. While I can name these for you, it’s easier to view in a chart so check this out for yourself down below.
Wandrd Pvke Review: Last Words
Let me be clear in saying that my overall impression on the Wandrd Prvke 21 Liter backpack is that it’s fantastic.
I absolutely love this bag.
It has so many features for a professional videographer and/or photographer who is on the go regardless if they’re running around town or traveling the world. And talk about the build quality. It’s truly something to brag about.
As for the smaller version Wandrd Prvke Lite, I absolutely LOVE that bag just as much. That is the bag I carry around THE MOST because it’s smaller (and I’m small) and I can fit at least one camera body, lens, Mavic 2 Pro Drone and accessories all in there.
What you have to keep in mind is that the Wandrd Prvke 21 Liter is the small version of the 3 sizes it comes in, including the 31 and 41 liter backpacks. They’re all identical just different sizes and a variety of colors available as well.
But this particular Wandrd Prvke is the flagship backpack. The company was built off of this backpack and expanded from there. It’s their number ONE best seller backpack for a reason.
The first version is called the original Wandrd Prvke and this current version (I bought mine in 2022) is the All-New Prvke.
You can see and hear their discussion of the specific changes and upgrades to the All-New Prvke compared to the original here.
Now is it absolutely perfect in the sense of being without ANY flaws? Um. No.
One of the features a lot of people complain about is the magnetic tote handles at the top of the bag and how they flap down and get in the way. They actually upgraded this feature in the new prvke to be stronger but it just goes to show there are some things that for some, they could do without or improve.
Overall, I am a believer in the claim that this is the best option when it comes to a nearly perfect camera bag.
After months of use, dragging through dirt, rain, scraping on pavement, I have found it to be one of the best backpacks for an everyday carry lifestyle. Not just because it looks amazing and is beyond aesthetically pleasing but because it is durable, versatile in functionality and comfortable to tote.
Congratulations Wandrd. Your quality is unmatched.
From my humble opinion, you have a fan for life. I have no plans of purchasing another camera bag from a different company. Ever.
Travel backpacks are always challenging to choose from, but you made it easier for us by making the process simple. I plan on traveling during the summer. To transport my laptop, I want a backpack that can accommodate both. I think I can easily choose one of them for my traveling needs. Thank you for sharing this valuable information with us.
Hi David, thank you for your feedback. I agree 100%, glad I could be of help. I know you’ll be happy with whatever you choose! Best wishes in your travel adventures!