Chrome Niko camera bag

On our visit to San Francisco back in November COG spent a couple hours with the fine folks over at Chrome. We took in a tour of their store and then went upstairs to see some of their behind the scenes development projects. One of these projects was the Niko bag. For myself, being a car free photographer, I'm on a continual search for the ultimate bag which allows easy access to my gear, while in the saddle. So, upstairs at Chrome HQ, Sharkey places an early prototype of the Niko in my hands...it seemed perfect. It was one of those, "holy shit, you did it!" moments...

After months of following up on the progress of the camera bag, the first production sample finally arrived at COG HQ a couple days ago. We were eager to go out riding and shooting with it, here are some initial hands-on impressions...

First off, the Niko isn't a lightweight, it's put together with highly durable weatherproof fabric on the outside and the inside is quite soft which makes my gear happy. Included are the standard padded dividers to arrange as you wish. There's easily enough room to accommodate required gear for most any shoot on the go.

The Niko sports the signature Chrome buckle, and yes, as Prolly pointed out, could be a sore spot for an old, but timeless prank. The action on the strap/buckle combo is smooth. The single shoulder design takes advantage of the messenger style quick access to the Niko's main compartment without dealing with a big flap in your face.

The main compartment uses two heavy duty, storm shielded zippers with extra clasps for long haul security. The carry handle is solid, there are velcro straps for a tripod or light stand and an extra outside access area which could hold a couple flashes or your Super 8 camera with plenty of film for the day... Nice work Chrome!