Travel photography is pretty easy – right? How many times have you returned home and gone through an edit of your images and been disappointed? It’s happened to me, believe me. One of the basic things that people forget is that you are trying to tell a story with your images. This means looking for images everywhere that record what you did on your trip. Sometimes I forget these things when I am faced with a new area with lots of really interesting image possibilities.
Recently when I was out with friends showing them the beauty of Rockport. I decided to shoot some details at a couple of the places we went. The Glass House on Bearskin Neck was such a place. Colored glass everywhere! So I decided to look for some interesting shots of the glassware. Not overall shots mind you but closeups.
Treating this like I would any other shoot I also looked for the details not just the overall scene. This helps to bring those memories back of where you have been. Of course you need to have those dramatic landscapes you came for but showing the details rounds out the story of your visit.
It’s important to remember the things you like best, like taffy from Tucks in Rockport!
People often ask, what gear do I bring when traveling? My response usually is, well it depends on what kind of photography you want to do and what kind of traveling you are doing. If you hiking a lot and planning on shooting landscapes then a small mirrorless camera is a good bet. I have a friend who is a working photojournalist who often hikes in the White Mountains. He swears by his Fuji X100f. This little camera looks a lot like a Leica M3. It has a 23mm f2 lens and 24 mp sensor which is a moderate wide angle at 35 mm since the sensor is an aps-c sensor. It’s light and easy to use and the lens is fast and sharp. No wonder he likes it.
Sony Nex-7 w/Sony 10-18mm lens
Most people who concentrate on landscapes like to shoot at low ISO’s. They shoot at slow shutter speeds and use high f stops for greater depth of field. This brings in the use of a tripod. The one I use and swear by is the Feisol CT-3401 with the Feisol CB-40D ballhead. This is a great carbon fiber lightweight small package that will hold up to all mirrorless gear and DSLR gear up to a 70-200. The ballhead has a quick release system on it that works quite well. It is very similar to the arca swiss type or Really Right Stuff plate systems but I don’t think they are compatible. This tripod folds down to under 2ft. and fits in my luggage which I carry on with me. Pretty amazing.
Leica M-P 240 w/50mm Leica Summilux
All that being said, if you are just walking around and don’t mind a little weight than a DSLR with a good zoom say 28-200 range will serve you very well. It may be all you need. More people are now feeling the pinch in their neck from the weight and are switching to the new mirrorless systems from Sony and Fuji which are outstanding. You will not be sacrificing anything by using one of these systems. For instance I have a little Canon G15 point and shoot that is fabulous. It has a 28-143 f1.8-2.8 fast lens and it does everything I need for just walking around. Does it have it few issues, sure but I have learned how to deal with them. The image below was taken with this camera.
Canon G15
When I travel I bring small and light gear. I am lucky enough to have a Leica M-P 240 and several lenses. I bring with me a 35mm f2, 50 f1.4, 90 f2.8 and a 135 f4. All this fits very easily in a small bag. Also in that bag is a Sony Nex-7 and the 10-15 zoom (15mm-28mm). I use the Leica 90 and 135 on this camera as well with an adapter which gives me a range of 15mm-200mm with the two cameras. I normally just carry the Sony with the zoom and the Leica with the 35 or 50 on it. Or just one or the other camera bodies depending on what I am doing. For me this small modular system works really great instead of the giant L glass for my Canon system. That being said I may just pick up another lens like the Sony 16-70 (24mm-105mm) and not carry the Leica gear at all except for the Leica 135 f4. I fit it all in the Tenba Cooper 13 bag with my iPad. Which brings me to the big question. Do you bring a computer with you? I used to, but not anymore. My new iPad negates having to bring my 13″ Macbook Pro with me. It does fit in the back of the bag I just mentioned but that’s more weight. The iPad fits in that pocket as well and it’s lighter. I can upload raw files to it and just process the ones I want in Lightroom mobile. I can then send the unprocessed raws from my library to DropBox for safe keeping. So as you can see I am for traveling light with as many options as you can without adding weight and bulk.
