Whether you're a casual hiker or an expert survival instructor, it can be a lot of fun to bring a camera on your outdoor treks. A good camera enables you to track your progress, document survival techniques, and capture the serene beauty of nature around you. If it really comes down to it, you can even use your camera's lens to start a fire.

Unfortunately, camera gear is also somewhat fragile, and it's unwise to leave it exposed to the elements or let it bounce around loosely inside your survival gear bag. One bump, drop, or spill could ruin thousands of dollars of gear. So, an outdoor-rated camera bag is a must for wilderness photographers.

Mountainsmith has partnered with legendary photographer Chris Burkard to create a new line of outdoor-oriented camera bags. These bags are nicknamed T.A.N. for “tough as nails”, and they're designed to be weather-resistant and highly durable.

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The Mountainsmith Tanuck 40, seen above, forms the core of this system. The 40-liter backpack has water-resistant 610-denier CORDURA fabric, PALS webbing, D-ring attachment points, and a high-visibility yellow interior. It also accommodates the other Mountainsmith Kit Cubes, which provide modular organization of camera components and smaller items. MSRP for the Tanuck 40 is $230.

The Mountainsmith Kit Cube Large fits seamlessly into the lower portion of the Tanuck pack, or into any other backpack or suitcase. It's also water-resistant, with color-coded zippered pockets and a yellow interior. Internal dividers can be re-organized to support a variety of camera bodies, lenses, batteries, flashes, and other equipment. MSRP for the Kit Cube Large is $70.

The Kit Cube Small (above, $50 MSRP) and Kit Cube Medium ($60 MSRP) offer many of the same features in a smaller format. These cubes can sit atop the large kit cube inside the main compartment of the Tanuck backpack, or can be used on their own. A Tanack 10 Lumbar Pack ($100 MSRP) is also available as part of the Mountainsmith Chris Burkard line.

For more information on these Mountainsmith adventure photography packs, go to Mountainsmith.com.

Written by Patrick McCarthy