How to Carry My Camera While Hiking

How to Carry My Camera While Hiking

It’s not easy to figure out the best way to go hiking with a camera. Without the proper equipment, you can risk a sore neck and shoulders, rubbing marks, and tender shoulder blades. Not to mention running the risk of dropping your camera, cracking or jamming the lenses, exposing it to water, or losing it. These problems can all trace back to improper care when hiking and on adventure travels.


Whether you’re just getting started on your photography career or are a dedicated outdoor enthusiast with a camera, we’ve got tips to help you keep your camera safe while hiking.

How to Protect Your Camera While Hiking

When hiking with a camera, you’ll want to keep it secure but also accessible. You want to be able to capture the moment as they come without having to fumble with a backpack or zipper pocket. Here are a few things to help:

  • Have proper storage and organizational accessories so you don’t have to dig through your backpack when switching lenses.
  • Bring along extra batteries and an SD card.
  • When storing your camera in a backpack, consider a lightweight case or sleeve that provides extra padding but isn’t bulky.
  • If you’re hiking somewhere wet or where it might rain, consider bringing an ultralight dry sack just in case.

Camera Backpack

Using a Camera Harness for Hiking

Having a good camera harness or camera strap ensures your camera’s security and provides added comfort. There are a few different types of harnesses available to keep your camera above your waist without adding too much pressure.

When looking for a camera harness for hiking, there are a few essential features you should look out for and keep in mind:

  1. Has enough space for your equipment, whether that be one or multiple cameras.
  2. Allows you to be active while still providing excellent accessibility.
  3. Easy to put on and easy to take off.
  4. Comes with safety tethers to prevent accidental drops.
  5. Fits comfortably with backpacks.

Camera Harness

Cotton Carrier Camera Harnesses

Cotton Carrier strives to provide photographers of all calibers with the harnesses they need to access their cameras while ensuring its safety. Our camera harnesses come in a variety of sizes and styles from double shoulder straps that carry multiple items to sling style harnesses.

CCS G3 Harnesses

These double strap harnesses allow active photographers to work for longer periods of time without needing to go back to a camera bag for more gear. For the CCS G3 that carries multiple items, the ergonomic design distributes the weight of them to help lessen fatigue on long trips.

Skout G2

The Skout G2 are sling style harnesses that hold your camera close to your body, ergonomically designed to hug your core. It offers great stability and weight distribution, providing security for small to medium sized set ups.


To explore more accessories and camera harnesses for camping, check out our stock.