Best Gear For Travel Photography
Travel photography – can we travel light with gear that withstands the elements and still get great pictures?
I did travel all over Europe and North America with my gear weighing in at 20+ pounds. It’s not fun, and after 5 or 6 hours, my back is crying ‘enough.’ So I tried some super-zooms to cut down the fat. Well, the weight came down, but the quality suffered as well.
A couple years later, I did try one of the Micro Four Thirds, which actually worked very well (light enough, even with three lenses and a tripod) until a sudden sandstorm hit in the Canary Islands, Spain. The housing gave up immediately; the lenses continue to make this grinding noise when they try to focus, hours and hours of cleaning notwithstanding.
After dozens of tours and expeditions, hundreds (may be even thousands) of hours in the great outdoors (anything from the Arctic cold to the tropical forest) I’m still searching. I don’t like the price tag of a Leica, and I cannot bear the weight of a Hasselblad (well, I never tired the medium format while on an expedition). However, I went through several Nikon and Canon housings, both sealed and not sealed. It’s always just a matter of matter of time until the heat, cold, humidity, water or sand gets to them, regardless of how careful you are!
What is your experience? Did you find the right gear that can survive the wild - rain or shine?
