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Kim photographing in Bolivia
This post describes what I currently use on the road. As a professional travel photographer, I need gear that is dependable, easily transportable, lightweight and useful! Some of it may be overkill for amateurs, but if you scroll below, you’ll find accessories and compact cameras appropriate for all levels, beginners to advanced.
Kim’s camera: Sony 7 IV
Sony 7 IV full frame mirrorless camera features:
- 33MP full-frame Exmor R back-illuminated CMOS sensor.Operating temperature : 0 to 40 °C (32 to 104 °F)
- 10 fps
- 8x more powerful, next generation BIONZ XR image processing engine
- Up to 4K 60p 10-bit 4:2:2 w/ full pixel readout in all recording formats
- 7K oversampling full-frame 4K 30p 10-bit 4:2:2 w/ no pixel binning
- Beautiful color expression made simple with S-Cinetone color profile
- Real-time Eye-AF for humans, animals, and birds (my favorite feature…it’s super fast and accurate!)
- Bright Monitoring feature unique to some Sony models momentarily brightens a dark scene to check composition during astrophotography (saves so much time…love this!!)
- lightweight and easy to travel with 1.4 lbs
- 3″ screen fully tiltable to upside down
Backup Camera: Sony a9
I’ve been a loyal Sony girl ever since they came out with their first digital camera. Remember Sony Alpha 100? I’ve owned many different models through the years …but last winter I found my dream camera.
Sony a9 Full Frame Mirrorless Camera:
- Silent, vibration-free, anti-distortion shutter up to 1/32,000 sec.
- World’s first Full-frame stacked CMOS sensor with integrated memory
- World’s first blackout-free continuous shooting up to 20 fps
- 693 Phase Detection AF points over 93% frame coverage
- Continuous view blackout free OLED Tru-Finder w/ 100% frame coverage
WOW. Buying this camera was a game changer for me. Easier focusing allows me to nail shots consistently!
My favorite features:
1) eyeball tracking! camera locks on to your subject’s closest eyeball and tracks her moving through the scene when using Lock-on AF: Wide in continuous shooting mode.
2) continuous drive high speed shooting 20 fps captures anything moving without a blackout screen — I’ve never had a string of so many images in sharp focus.
3) silent mode can shoot inside churches, hushed places or on the street without people knowing — allowing you to capture authentic moments.
4) weighing just 1.3 lbs it’s so little and lightweight! E-mount lenses are smaller too. Goodbye frozen shoulder!
5) smaller size doesn’t attract unwanted attention — easier to blend in when shooting.
6) easier navigational menu is much improved over other mirrorless models — has controls on top, not buried deep inside the menu. Plus has 4 buttons to customize what and where you want to assign features like video/focus/eye lock button. Plus has back focus button.
7) improved battery life compared to all other Sony models– lets me shoot all day on 1 battery instead of 3.
8) 24 megapixel perfect size for me–produces top quality images even in low light but doesn’t eat up space on my hard drive.
It does come with a bit of a learning curve to use, as all high end products are prone to do. But Youtube videos help sort out the bells and whistles. Downside is the price. The a9 was created for pro sports photographers (although gaining popularity with wedding/travel photographers) and is Sony’s top of the line. Read reviews—many Nikon and Canon owners are switching over to the Sony a9. No wonder. I love this camera too.
E-Mount Lenses I use with my Sony a9:
(lenses are compatible with all Sony a7 mirrorless & APS-C mirrorless cameras)
My go-to lens on all trips. This 1.5 lb wide angle zoom lens allows you to capture everything from tight spaces to grand views. Perfect for landscapes when you want to see something in the foreground and in the distance, like closeups of wildflowers in the same frame as tall mountains. But I also like to use it for environmental portraits — just be careful not to place your subject to close to the lens or edges which cause distortion of arms, legs or face. Great for architecture, interiors and anywhere dimly lit. This G Master lens has outstanding resolution. For a far less expensive option, Sony makes 16-35mm f/4, if bokeh or low light capability isn’t important.
An inexpensive, lightweight (7.2 oz) lens that is perfect for walking around an unfamiliar city. Attached to the a9, it easily fits inside a purse or tiny daypack. Also great for taking portraits if you want to blur out the background— the f/1.8 produces a soft diffused bokeh.
Hands down my favorite portrait lens. Best bokeh —produces a really creamy blurred background behind your subject, and is the most flattering focal length to capture people. Your subject will look thinner compared to a wide angle lens, and there’s no distortion. Great indoors for faces or objects and outdoors for people/animals/landscapes. Often times I will limit my gear to just 2 lenses for the day— this 1 lb. 85mm lens and my 16-35mm — whether I’m hiking a mountain trail or sightseeing around town.
This is a lighter version (3.9 lbs) and about $1,400 less expensive than the 70-200mm f/2.8 telephoto zoom lens. For travel, I prefer this smaller size, and don’t need f/2.8 anyway as I typically use this long lens for landscapes (which I shoot at f/16), or for portraits (at f/4). Wildlife photographers do need a faster f/2.8 lens– but generally would be using a 400mm lens.
Best choice for nightscapes when stars need to be sharp. Using this aspherical lens means it won’t turn the stars into little UFOs floating through the sky. I use this lens for capturing starry skies, Milky Way, star trails (widest view of the sky) and northern lights.
Lensbaby Composer Pro II with Sweet 50
Have you ever used a Lensbaby? It’s a rather strange contraption that creates creative blurred effects. I use it for flowers, still lifes or portraits. If you’ve used the original version (still have mine) you will notice this is SO much easier to operate. But still takes time to figure out. And patience to find the perfect focus spot! I also have the Edge 80 lens. (I’ve provided hyperlinks to these lenses to show their features, but beware they are not links to Sony. As for any lens/filter make SURE you buy the appropriate one that fits your camera.)
Accessories:
Memory cards: 128 GB UHS-II. This blazing fast card is needed to maximize the 20 fps shooting speed/4K of the a9. Also comes in 64 GB. Worth the splurge. I also use less expensive cards when I don’t need the rapid fire shooting pace.
Wasabi Battery dual charger and extra batteries.
Camera strap OP TECH/USA. I love this neck strap. Not rubber like the Up strap which always got caught in my hair. This is soft and supple neoprene that has some stretch to it, and is extremely easy to attach/disconnect with quick releases. Perfect $20 gift. Nuff said!
Gelled filters to go over speedlight flash heads. I use the orange CTO filter when photographing people at sunset to match the evening colors, otherwise the subject will look unnaturally lit. Also use other colors (green, blue, yellow) to add a little punch to gritty interiors or add warm/cool light in otherwise dark featureless background nooks.
Wescott 5-in-1 Reflectors come in white, silver, gold, black and translucent. Adds or subtracts light without using a flash. Choose the color depending on how you want to modify the light in your scene. Do you want to add neutral light, contrasty light, or golden light? Then use white, silver, or gold. Aim the feather-light reflector toward the sun (or other light source) and gently feather it sideways/up/down until that reflected light is bounced back onto your subject. If instead you need to block out the light, put the black panel between the light and the subject; likewise use the translucent one to diffuse the light. Magic! And collapsible. Easily transportable. I actually have them in many different sizes, and have used little ones to illuminate distant objects in a dusty museum beautifully. (Check out these 2 blogs posts about using reflectors: Bhutanese monks and girl at Florida beach)
Tripod that I now use for travel is carbon fiber Sirui K-20X and ballhead. It supports up to 22 lbs of weight, yet is super lightweight under 2 lbs! Easy to use (legs twist to lock) and collapses small enough to fit in my suitcase. Also have an older Manfrotto tripod that is a heavy beast that stands up to gusty winds on long nights of capturing star trails or northern lights. It weighs 6 lbs.
Flashes
I have a wide assortment of speedlights from 2 expensive but older Sony flashes ( TTL and HSS), to $100 Nikon slave flashes and even inexpensive knockoff brands that only lasted a few shoots. Honestly, I’m still waiting to find the perfect flash! In the meantime, I still have my trusty Pocket Wizards which allow me to use ANY flash system in manual mode. I just attach one Pocket Wizard to my camera and use it to trigger the off-camera flash attached to another Pocket Wizard. There are newer radio poppers with a host of special features (ask my geeky husband Dave), but personally don’t need to trigger 4 different flashes at different powers at once.
I prefer to keep my lighting simple when I travel.
In bright daylight, I use speedlights when more power is needed to compete with the sun, or use the sun to bounce into a reflector. In dim light, since less power is necessary, I’ve bounced a speedlight at 1/32 power into a reflector to add drama to a scene (check out my post about lighting monks in Bhutan). But the easiest way to add light on a subject in a dim room is simply using a LED video light with variable power that you can diffuse/add warmth with orange-colored gels or modify with an umbrella. My current favorite is VidPro LED-300 for its ultra slim design, 200W power and rechargeable battery. You immediately see the light it produces and don’t have to guess at the output as you do with flashes. Fast and easy lighting!
To see other Accessories I take:
like my favorite rain sleeve, headlamp, lens pouches, memory cards, card holder and filters —
check out this page: TEN STOCKING STUFFERS for Travel Photographers.
Additional Cameras:
Lumix DMC-TS20, older model, pocket-sized camera for getting wet. Fun, bright orange. Waterproof down to 16 feet. Zooms 4.5mm-18mm. Only shoots in jpegs. I’ve taken swimming/snorkeling/snuba in the ocean, hiking on rainy days, and kayaking.
Go-Pro HERO 8. Waterproof little gem. Mainly use it for shooting in and near water. Shoots 4K underwater. And stills in RAW. Capture aerial views, hiking and other adventures.
Sony Cyber Shot DSC-RX 100 2o mxp tiny pocket-sized camera with built-in zoom. Great in low light. When you don’t want to lug around anything with interchangeable lenses or expensive….just in case!
Camera Bags:
What haven’t I tried in the last 15 years? There are some excellent choices including most anything made by Think Tank. Really depends on where I’m going and what I’m going to shoot. Lighting gear can take up a lot of room….from flashes to pocket wizards to light modifiers. Tripod goes in checked luggage, as does a lightstand and softbox/umbrellas if needed.
Lowepro Passport Sling bag is what I use almost every time I go out whether at home or travel. Holds camera with lens attached, 1-2 additional lenses or flash. Unzips for full storage capacity or zips up to carry just camera and one additional lens. I use it as my carry-on “personal item” when I fly and can fit my Sony a9 with 50mm lens attached, portable hard drive, iphone, wallet.
Canon Backpack is an old staple I’ve used for years. Love the small compact size. Since I’ve switched to Sony’s little mirrorless a9, my lenses are smaller, so all my photo gear fits inside! Plus my Surface Pro computer fits in the outer zipped section easily. This and the Lowepro Sling bag can usually squeeze under the seat in front of me when I fly. I like having all my photo gear in reach. 😉