Wotancraft Pilot 2L Leather travel camera bag review – 4 reasons why it is a perfect balance of Luxury and Practicality.

tl:dr

The Wotancraft craftsman team, reowned for their practical, vintage-inspired camera bags has outdone themselves this time round with the revamped 2L and 3.5L Pilot Leather Travel camera bag, smaller variants of their popular 7L and 10L Wotancraft Pilot.

There is the more wallet-friendly Cordura® version of the 2L and 3.5L available, but for those who seek the best the very best of a luxurious hand-crafted leather build and practicality in a well-designed camera bag, there are extremely few other camera bags that come close to this unique offering from Wotancraft in the 2L to 3.5L capacity category.

The Wotancraft Pilot Leather 2L you see in this review is exclusive to Leica Singapore boutiques, while Wotancraft’s site will carry the version available to users worldwide.

The presence of the red dot on the front flap and the design of the cloth loop sets this exclusive version apart.

Officially announced in November 2023, the Wotancraft Pilot Leather travel camera bag is where Wotancraft’s craftsmen uses Italian calf leather instead of Wotancraft’s propriety Cordura® fabric in the Pilot 2L and 3.5L camera bag released in 2022.

While there are two capacities, the 2L and 3.5L available, my review today will focus on the 2L version.

Technicalities

Specifications side,  the Leather version is equipped with the same features as the 2022 Cordura® version Pilot, including the fast release Fidlock magnetic buckle and quick-adjusting shoulder strap.

Details for the 2L version:

Exterior (W x H x D): 14 x 15 x 8.5 cm (5.5 x 5.9 x 3.3 inch)

Main Compartment (W x H x D): 13.5 x 14.5 x 8 cm (5.3 x 5.7 x 3.1 inch)

Front Pocket (W x H) 13.5 x 13.5 cm (5.3 x 5.3 inch)

Back Zipper Pocket (W x H) 13 x 13 cm (5.1 x 5.1 inch)

Adjustable Shoulder Strap: 74 ~ 141 cm (29 ~ 55 inch)

Weight (including shoulder strap): ± 490 g (1.08 1bs)

Constructed from Italian cowhide leather and 7 strand core paracord

Medical grade durable microfiber lining

Duraflex Swivel Snap Hook with High-density EVA foam padding (bag and dividers)

YKK water resistant zippers

4 key reasons why the Wotancraft 2L is ‘the’ everyday light camera bag with the perfect balance of luxury practicality.

1. Materials and quality of build

Wotancraft has spared no expense in designing the leather variant of the Pilot Travel 2L and 3.5L, and it is evident in the use of Italian leather, backed by medical grade micro-fiber lining in the Pilot Travel 2L and 3.5L (this creates much lesser fuzz with prolonged usage).

This attention to quality of materals extends to the use of YKK water-resistant zippers, and even ultra-strength Nylon bonded 6,6 threads.

Across the whole bag, despite its petite size, the use of custom-made buttons and attachments is also a clear display of the pride Wotancraft has in their camera bag.

2. A practicality-focused design

On paper, a 2L volume may sound insignificant, but due to how Wotancraft has designed the allocation of space, the Wotancraft Pilot 2L will easily fit a compact mirrorless camera with most reasonably sized lenses plus a good set of daily necessities such as one’s wallet, keys, airpods et cetera.

Depending on the size of your gear, and how you want to orient it, both 2L and 3.5L sizes come equipped with a divider in the main compartment for your own personalisation.

One gets a pair of very handy and deep front and back pockets, with the back protected by a water-resistant YKK zipper for your other items such as SD cards, lens caps, keys, notebook and on.

3. Ease of access

Part of any well-designed camera bag is the ease of access while providing adequate secure and safe storage of camera equipment and the magnetic Fidlock buckle and fast-adjust shoulder strap lends further ease of operation when one is out with the Wotancraft Pilot camera bag.

The shoulder strap is now also extremely comfortable with a red-leather pull tab, both shoulder strap and the camera bag comes with a thick layer of cushion composed of high density EVA foam padding which is also used to ensure adequate cushioning of the camera equipment.

4. Expansion and customisation options

By now you will probably noticed the little pouch dangling by the side, which is an optional attachment Wotancraft calls the ‘mini side pouch’ and which also attaches to most other Wotancraft bags. The mini side pouch will easily swallow say, your airpods, spare camera batteries and on.

Beyond this, Wotancraft also provides optional pocket modules which attaches by velcro to the insides of the Pilot 2L and 3.5L, though one should only get the Small sized ones, which at 11cm x 11cm will fit nicely on the 2L’s 13.5 x 14.5 main compartment’s interior.

I like to segregate my items in the bag, as I have this irrational fear of them scratching each other and thus these modules work for me in this way.

Conclusions

While some of us photographers are enamoured by ever-larger capacities of camera bags, there is also the photographer who prefers a compact high quality camera bag for the lighter days, where one will not find the size of a bulky camera backpack or messenger obstructing one’s travel and the Wotancraft Pilot 2L and 3.5L bags fit into this need snugly.

While Wotancraft provided some upgrades to the design of the Pilot 2L and 3.5L in 2022, in 2023, we now have a leather variant, providing even more options for the more discerning photographer.

Together with the 7L and 10L Pilot camera bags, and the 2L and 3.5L, to say that we are spoilt for choice is an understatement and a happy problem I will love to have.

Thank you for reading.

Bonus: Thank you if you have reached this point of the review. There is actually one more Wotancraft camera equipment exclusive to Leica Singapore.

Presenting the exclusive to Leica Singapore Parashooter neck strap inspired by photojournalist Sean Flynn’s improvised camera strap on the battlefield.

Disclaimers:

1. All product photos and samples here were photographed by me. I believe any reviewer with pride should produce their own product photos. 

2. All images were shot with Ricoh GR IIIx (Urban Edition)

3. This review is not sponsored. There is nothing to return this round as everything here is bought and paid for by me.

4. I do not do affiliate purchase links to keep myself neutral. I write as a passion and a hobby, and I appreciate that photography brands are kind enough to respect and work with me.

5. The best way to support me is to share the review, or you can always help support me by contributing to my fees to WordPress for the domain using the Paypal button at the bottom of the page.