Grizzly Camera Bean Bag (MEDIUM - BLACK), Photography, Video,Camera Support, Camera Sandbag, Birders, Tripod, Spotting Scope Support, Safari & Photo Tours. Bag sold empty.

I purchased the bag just before we left on our African Safari and filled it with small styrofoam beads. Filling it was no easy chore, but using styrofoam beads ensured that I wasn’t carrying any extra weight in my duffle bag since we were limited to <35 lbs. I used the bag during each of our 10 games drive in Kenya and Tanzania, and it provided the perfect platform for my Canon DSLR with a large 100-400mm Lens. The driver guide would stop the Toyota Land Cruiser when wild life was spotted and turn off the engine to eliminate any vibration. Then I jumped up and placed the bean bag on the top ledge of the vehicle and balanced my lens on the bag. The bag was flexible enough to allow me to easily reposition the lens and keep up with moving animals. Over and over I was able to achieve tack sharp focus on the animals. The beans did get a bit crushed from the weight of the lens, and the bag was no longer adequately stuffed. I hadn’t brought any extra beans with me, so I stuffed it with a pair of socks !

Bought this in preparation for a trip where we would be shooting (photographs) from a vehicle. Filled the bag with seeds purchased locally and it worked great. Was most useful for longer lens (best for the 120-400mm lens) adding much need stability. You still needed to cut the engine because of vibration and keep people from inside the vehicle from moving around (sway). The size was just right for the above lens. Felt very well made, had a carrying handle on each side with Velcro to strap bring them together for carrying or for strapping on to a bag. Think it weighed a little under 5# when full. For what it is - I thought that it was just a little on the expensive side - and hence the 4 stars because of value. Still - would I buy it again for a big trip? - Yup - wouldn't think twice.

I bought the medium sized beanbag for a recent safari to Africa. To save weight in my luggage, I was able to get rice in the country I was traveling to. I recommend putting the rice, or whatever else you choose to use, in separate bags rather than just pouring it into the beanbag. I filled two bags with rice then stuffed them into the beanbag and they worked great. I was able to lay the beanbag on the rail of the Jeep and it gave me a sturdy, stable resting area for my camera. I would buy again!

I just spent about five weeks driving around Africa shooting animals with my cameras. I took this to Africa empty and filled it with 2.5 kg (5.5 lbs) of popping corn, which was inexpensive and worked quite well. In many of the game parks you are not allowed out of your car and must shoot from inside. I was mainly shooting with a Canon 7D and a 70-200mm lens with either a 1.4X or 2X extender. Placing the Grizzly on my window provided a stable platform for my camera, and I was pleased with the results. At the end of the trip, I simply dumped the popping corn turning the Grizzly back into a small, light nylon bag which is easy to transport.

Not perfect but it fulfilled the need. Filled it with rice for a safari vacation and it provided the extra stability I needed for when a low shutter speed was required. I wish it was a little bigger for how much it cost or came with the fill in material in a separate but sealed container.

Very nice product, well made with heavy stitching. Held all my lenses steady. It is a lot easier to carry than my tripod. I used the poly fill. Even worked with my 500mm lens using my truck as a blind. As mentioned by Grizzly, I used it on the ground for close-ups. Delivered as promised.

The product is well designed but the stitching is too flimsy. On the third day I used it the seam split open, spilling rice all over the safari vehicle. I had a travel sewing kit with me and did some surgery, which made it last the rest of the trip. But since the seams are guaranteed to undergo a lot of stress when it's filled with beans or rice and a heavy camera and lens are laid on top of it, the manufacturer should have anticipated this and sewn it with stronger thread. If you get this, take along a small sewing kit just in case.

I purchased this item on my own with no compensation for this review. Please click on Helpful at the bottom of this review if what I wrote is useful to you. When I think of bean bags, I think of those things you used to jump into to sit in or hang out in in the den or playroom. I thought they would be perfect for holding my camera because my camera could sit in them, the bag would temporarily mold itself around the camera, and everything would remain steady. The actual product is made of very tough canvas, like an army tent. After you buy the bag itself, you have to buy the styrofoam pellet inserts to go in it via a separate additional purchase. After following the instructions to fill it to the brim, the bag hardly moves even when you put an anvil on it. I'm going to try to remove the pellets to see if that helps even though their instructions said to pack in as many as you can, and then pack more in, but I'm concerned the heavy fabric still preclude any allowance for the camera to sit in and create a temporary form within it. As seen in the photos, if you place the bag so that it looks like a V, there's nothing to keep it from rolling from side to side. If you place it so it looks like an inverted V, there's nothing to keep your camera from falling off. Instead, I would recommend you get a bean bag used for a juggling act or one used for a bean-bag-toss game and just use that. It will cost less and hug your camera with support when you put your camera on it.