Review: ONA Camera bag insert

The quest for the perfect camera bag started a long time ago, at which time, I had trouble finding any companies that made them. Fortunately that has changed, and I can direct you to numerous bags that make equally nice arm candy as they do a home for your SLR.

Among them there are ONA, THEIT, Epiphanie, Kelly Moore, Jo Totes, Coach, Ketti, Cheeky Lime, Pompidoo, Dre Hartmann, Jill-E ...and I'm not even sure if I got them all....
But here's the thing. All of these bags are pretty pricey, from $98 - $558, for the girl who likes to change her bag as often as her clothes, choosing only one to invest in is hard to do.

As much as I didn't want to commit to a camera bag purse, I hated putting my camera "naked" into my bag, and finally one day stumbled upon the ONA Roma insert (probably while I was busy drooling over their Brooklyn bag, you know, the one from me to you has been toting.

For $60, now any bag could be a camera bag. I was intrigued. I put it on my wishlist and Santa delivered.

The ONA Roma insert was created specifically for a purse, allows easy access to the camera, has one movable divider inside and four outside pockets for stashing small things like a lens cap, memory cards, ect. On its own the insert relatively thin, but combined with a leather bag, it should keep the camera safe for travel.

When using it, my first realization was that not any bag could be a camera bag - the insert is pretty substantial and only a large handbag can accommodate it. It will occupy the entirety of the bag, so unless I'm not carrying an extra lens there isn't much space left for the usual 20 million things I like to carry in my bag.

My second realization was that not every handbag can properly distribute the weight of a camera. By the way, the new Canon D60 weighs significantly more than my Rebel xsi. I had no idea what I was getting into with that... I mean, in the past I'd put my rebel into this small black quilted bag and gone shopping at the mall for hours and was okay. I put the ONA insert and the D60 into my Lucky Brand bag last week and after 10 minutes I thought my shoulder was going to fall off.

It wasn't until today however, that I realized there must be cheaper options for camera bag inserts, like this Click Elite bag for $36, or even better, cheaper and more obvious -- a DIY!

Bottom line: if you are looking for a pretty camera bag purse to invest in, there are actually more options than you knew, but a switchable insert is cheaper, lets you utilize bags you've already got and probably will work just as well.

The Rundown

Blazer Gap Thrifted - Top Loft Thrifted - Cords J.Crew - Bag Big Buddha - Necklace The Cavernous Jewelry Box - Ring c/o Poshlocket - Bracelet Macy's - Antler Ring House of Harlow - Booties Madden Girl Virtual