When buying a new camera, laptop or other electronic equipment, I always find myself asking the same question: Will my bag safely transport my gear?

There are some things that you as the the consumer have to be aware of when buying a bag. Materials, padding, comfort, how is the bag worn, and will it hold everything that I will need? These are questions that you need to ask to make a well informed decision.

First things first, you want to make sure that the bag you buy is made of durable materials. This bag is going to hold electronics that it near and dear to you, so you don't want it to be made of substandard materials. Also think about how long you will be using the bag. The old adage "you get what you pay for" will ring true in this area: pay for a cheap bag and you'll get a cheap bag that will not last long. Naneu bags feature genuine YKK zippers, water-resistant ballistic nylon, water-resistant zippers on our Adventure line, and the rain covers that come with some of our bags are seam-sealed to keep water out.

After looking at the materials on the outside of the bag, look inside and see what kind of padding is used to protect your equipment. When looking at padding, you want firm and a little thick. For a camera bag, you want to any adjustable inserts to be fastened to the interior in a secure yet easily adjustable manner. Naneu bags accomplish this by using well padded inserts that are secured by velcro.

Once you have inspected the materials and the padding used for the bag, you need to make sure that it is the bag for you. Will it hold the gear that you want to use? When thinking about this question I look back on previous experience and determine what I have brought with me while out photographing people and places. I typically have my camera with a 50mm f/1.8 lens attached. I'll also bring a 70-200mm f/4L, a 20-40mm f/2-3.8, and a 10-20mm lens. Along with that I'll have two flashes and an off camera flash cable, and cable shutter release. Now you might think to yourself "That's a lot of gear," but I like to be prepared. So when I look for a bag, I want to make sure that it will be able to hold everything above along with accessories like extra memory cards and batteries.

If you're looking for a laptop bag, make sure that you're laptop will fit inside of it. When I bring my laptop anywhere, I also bring the charger, a sketchbook, pens and pencils, and maybe a book or magazine to read. That being said, I need to be sure that any bag I buy will be able to hold all of that and keep my laptop well protected.

The next item on the checklist is comfort. If you have the opportunity, wear the bag and determine if it fits you. If you need to get a feeling on the loaded weight, bring your gear with you and ask the store if it's ok for you to load the bag and try it out. Make sure that it rests at the right places whether it is a backpack style, over the shoulder, or messenger style bag. You don't want to get a bag with straps that'll dig into your skin when fully loaded, nor would you want a bag that will feel lopsided, so be sure that the inside will allow you to balance the weight appropriately.