Getting your stuff packed for a trip can be infuriating.
You want to bring everything but space can be very limiting. The same goes with your photography gear. You have to be careful on what you bring. Oftentimes bringing a lot of gear can be a waste of space and effort. Here are a couple of tips to keep in mind when packing your DSLR for travel.
Don’t Bring Everything
That 70-200mm 2.8 lens of yours might not see any action at all. You might be thinking that you’ll need the zoom and opening for that awesome shot but other lenses can do well too in this regard. Choosing can be hard but please choose wisely. As much as possible bring only one or two lenses, a couple of cleaning accessories, an external flash and the camera body. This is just a basic guideline and will vary immensely depending on what you like to shoot. Check your photo management software, Aperture or Lightroom, and check the zoom range you mostly use. This can be a good indication of what zoom range you prefer.
All Around Lens
Most photographers buy an all-around lens for its versatility. This is quite beneficial during photoshoots as you don’t have to replace the lens to capture various distances. For travelling this is excellent since fiddling around your lens on unfamiliar territory can be quite risky. However, if you have a specific agenda in mind, you can prepare ahead and bring the lens that you would like use. For example, if you plan on shooting mostly landscapes, it won’t hurt to bring a dedicated ultra-wide angle lens for your travel.
Camera Bag
Don’t just buy a decent camera bag, buy a great one. You’ll be storing expensive gears in it and you don’t want your bag to be the weakest link. Ideally, you should have at least two camera bags. Your main camera bag should hold all your gear and the other one for holding a couple of lenses and accessories. If you’re not bringing all you gear, it is advisable to bring the smaller bag. There are a variety of camera bags that offer easy access for your camera and lenses. Lowepro offers the Flipside which provides you easier retrieval of your camera. On the other hand Think Tank Photo has a camera belt which fastens on your belt so you can hang your lenses on to your waist.
Point and Shoot
Sometimes, you just need to bring a simple point-and-shoot camera to take amazing pictures. A boat ride in the open seas might not suit well for your DSLR and it’ll be better if you bring an easier to hold camera. Don’t ignore it since you have a DSLR. Remember that it’s the photographer and not the camera that takes the picture.
These are simple tips that can change drastically depending on the type of photographer. Some might opt to bring most of his photography gear to capture everything without compromise while others will delightedly bring a simple DSLR setup or point-and-shoot camera to capture the moments. The best advice would be to have fun and enjoy your trip. Remember to capture the moments and shoot away!
Photo by mynameisharsha
