Oct 17, 2011  •  In Gadgets, Geek, Giveaways, Personal, Photography, Reviews

ONA’s Roma Camera Insert Bag Review and Giveaway!

Sorry, this giveaway is now closed. The winner will be announced here shortly!


Late last year, the web was abuzz with the introduction of a laptop + DSLR bag that was not only functional and well-made, but beautiful as well: the ONA Union Street Bag.

I knew it would be perfect for my fashion-conscious husband, who commutes to work with a laptop and likes to bring along his DSLR wherever he can.

I immediately placed myself on the waiting list — the bag had became sold out as soon as the blogosphere began to buzz about it — and gifted it to J as his birthday present earlier this year.

We both love the Union Street bag. J gets compliments on it all the time, and I could definitely distinguish ONA’s high craftsmanship and quality of materials compared to other camera bags.

So when ONA recently contacted me to see if I would be interested in reviewing their new Roma Camera Insert and Bag Organizer, I couldn’t be more ecstatic!

As with most amateur photographers with a DSLR on their hands, I tend to stick with one or two lenses and do not carry around much accessories. And because I prefer my DSLR to my phone camera or my 4-year-old point-and-shoot (which now only gets used once every few months), I like to bring it out when I go out…

…the problem being, of course, that I don’t like to carry around a separate camera bag.

In order to get around this problem I usually wrap my camera in a scarf and just place it in my purse, which any idiot can tell you is not the smartest thing to do.

Enter the Roma Camera Insert and Bag Organizer.

The Roma is constructed of the same durable waxed canvas exterior (dubbed Waxwear) with leather details, just like the Union Street.

The interior is well-padded, and comes with an adjustable divider:

As you can seen, I had no problem whatsoever fitting my DSLR into the Roma (pictured here is a Canon Rebel T1i with the 17-55mm f/2.8 lens, which measures about 5″ long):

Here I have added my going-out essentials to the Roma: a wallet, cell phone, some makeup, and sunglasses. As you can see, the five exterior pockets — in addition to the extra room leftover on the inside — allow for plenty of space!

Lastly, a picture of the Roma inside my medium-sized purse — it fits perfectly, and I still have some room to spare!

I can’t say enough how much I love the Roma, and it seriously could not have arrived at a more perfect time, because I had been seriously thinking about purchasing an insert to protect my DSLR. 🙂

Now, for the part you’ve all been waiting for…

ONA has very graciously offered to give to one of my readers a
Roma Camera Insert and Bag Organizer!

This giveaway will allow for four methods of entry rather than my usual three, so please pay attention to the rules…

Each reader is eligible for up to four entries via the following methods (each method will grant a separate entry):

  1. Leave a comment to this post answering the following question: how do you usually travel with your camera?
  2. If you haven’t done so already, go to the Geek in Heels Facebook Page and “Like” the page. Then click on the ONA’s Roma Camera Insert Giveaway link (located right under the profile picture, or just use this link) to enter the sweepstakes.
  3. “Like” the ONA Facebook Page, and leave a separate comment to this post saying you’ve done so.
  4. Follow both @geekinheels and @onabags on Twitter and tweet exactly the following: I just entered for a chance to win the @onabags Roma camera insert via @geekinheels and you can too! http://bit.ly/pT6KCw

You can increase your chances of winning by using all four methods of entry. There is only one entry allowed per person, per method  — for a total possible number of four entries — and any additional entries will be promptly deleted. (Yes, I have ways of checking this. And yes, this will only cause me to get annoyed at you.)

For the complete list of rules, go to this link.

The giveaway begins as soon as this entry is published — October 17, 2011 @ 12:00pm EDT — and will run until October 21, 2011 @ 11:59pm EDT. The winner will be announced here on October 22 and will also be notified by email (so please use a valid email when entering so that I can contact you if you win!) or via a Twititer DM.

Good luck, and thanks for reading!

(Now, it’s time to save up for ONA’s Brooklyn! :-)) 

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224 Responses to “ONA’s Roma Camera Insert Bag Review and Giveaway!”

  1. Yes please!! We are days away from making our big camera purchase and this would be PERFECT for it.

  2. Kira says:

    Oooh, another one of my blogfriends got this insert, she loves it! I usually travel with my camera strapped cross-body, or in a small bag that unfortunately doesn’t have any padding or anything. I would love this!

  3. Jen says:

    I should hang my head in shame… I usually put my camera in my purse because my bag is UGLY… Sometimes this causes me to use the wrong lens because I won’t carry extra lenses in my purse. This bag is what I should’ve bought a long time ago. :/

  4. Kira says:

    I “like” ONA on Facebook.

  5. Staci says:

    I usually just lug around the ugly camera bag! I only use my 50mm lens to shoot, so the bag it came with fits all I need.

  6. Staci says:

    I liked Geek in Heels on facebook

  7. Staci says:

    I liked Ona on Facebook

  8. Catherine says:

    In a camera backpack but this Ona one looks way cuter!

  9. I bought a cheapish bag from REI back when I got my dslr. It works (and is what I still use), but it’s hard to fit much more besides my wallet in there when I go out. Would love an insert like this though!

  10. Ally says:

    I take the big, clunky camera bag along with my not so big big, clunky purse and look silly trying to juggle them both.
    (Suffice to say that this would be fantastic for me!)

  11. sooji says:

    i have an old crumpler that barely fits anything once i put my camera in it 🙁 it always become such a hassle to travel w/ my camera bc i always try to think about what lens i’m going to need and then have to worry about carrying a purse separate from it. thanks for this opportunity!

  12. sooji says:

    btw i’ve also liked ONA on fb! but i cant seem to be able to enter the sweepstakes from the geek in heels fb site 🙁

  13. Jan says:

    I have a cheapo camera bag that I purchased from Amazon and I use that to travel with my camera

  14. Raj says:

    The Roma insert is perfect for the way we travel. ONA is brilliant.

  15. Mary says:

    We put our DSLR in a cheap camera bag then we throw it inside our camelbak which acts as our diaper bag.

    This bag would be so useful for us if we win!

  16. oneiroi says:

    Actually, right now I’m in the market for something that will fit a new macbook air I got, with my camera. Usually, I just have a small bag for my camera, because I like packing light.

  17. oneiroi says:

    I have also liked the ONA Page. They have great stuff.

  18. joyjoy says:

    I’ve recently been searching for an insert to carry my DSLR in my purse, too! I used to carry my camera everywhere with me in an Epiphanie bags…until my chiropractor made me stop because it was screwing up my back. Those bags, even empty, are heavy, I guess. Now I “travel” with my camera inside a Crumpler carried by the hubs. 😛 To be fair, I’m usually holding/wearing the camera (with a more ergonomic strap so as not to incite the rage of my chiropractor).

  19. Masha says:

    My old crumpler usually does the trick!

  20. Matt Ferrell says:

    I usually travel with strap over my shoulder. Unless I’m traveling far, then it’s in a small camera bag.

  21. Matt Ferrell says:

    “Liked” the ONA Facebook Page: Matt Ferrell

  22. Sarah S. says:

    I usually just shove my camera in a bit purse. I am not smart about storing my electronics.

  23. elicia says:

    I have a soft nylon case I use, or just carry my camera bag. I LOVE this!

  24. elicia says:

    And I liked ONA on Facebook.

  25. I usually just wrap it in a scarf or sweater and throw it in my purse–eek!

  26. And I follow ONA on Facebook!

  27. Sarah says:

    It’s pretty bad, but I carry a big purse and usually just toss the camera right in. 🙁 I could really use this!

  28. Cindy says:

    I liked the ONA Facebook page ^^

  29. Sandy says:

    My husband has a ginormous lowepro backpack style camera bag that makes me feel like a teenage mutant ninja turtle! So I make him carry it. But I would love this insert to put in my purse!!! Love ur blog and all my best to u w baby deux!!

  30. Jen says:

    I would love this! Right now my new DSLR has a bulky bag I can’t stand (and never use) and gets put into a sleeve type thing I got off Amazon for $15.