Photography, Tips, Travel
Packing light for photography
What to pack minimally for long term travel photography
For my 3 month travel around the world, I wanted to keep my photo gears to a minimum. Below are the only things I took with me on my long term travel for photography.
Camera
I brought with me my Fuji XT1 mirrorless camera. I like it because it’s a small camera, compared to a DSLR, and the pictures come out great. There’s a better newer version that just came out, Fuji XT3. Check out Fuji XT3 prices on Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto.
Camera Lens
I took with me my Fuji 35mm 1.4 lens, Fuji 27mm 2.8 pancake lens, and Fuji 14mm 2.8 lens. The lens I used the most was the 14mm 2.8 lens, since a lot of the locations we went were for the scenery. For everything else other than landscapes, I used the 35mm 1.4 lens. I actually did not use the 27mm pancake lens at all. I brought it with me since it’s super tiny and can be a good one to take if you want to be more invisible.
SD cards
I brought about 6 SD cards with me for my camera, I took this many with me since it can be used as a backup and it’s really small so it doesn’t take up much space at all. I brought with me a combination of 32GB, 64GB and 125 GB storage space SD cards for the trip. The SD card brand I use are Samsung Evo+ and Lexar Professional.
One 2 or 4TB Portable External HD
1 portable external hard drive for backing up my photos. Mine is the Western Digital brand. Most of my hard drives are that brand and I had no problems at all with them. Along with that I also bought a hard case to protect the hard drive.
Mini Tripod
Bring a mini tripod on the trip. I thought very long about whether to get a full size tripod, but eventually decided to not bring it. I really like my full size tripod, the Mefoto roadtrip tripod. One of the legs can be used separately as a monopod, and it is durable. If you take a lot of photos that a full size tripod would be required, then do bring one. I didn’t think I would use it often so decided against a full size tripod.
Kingston Digital USB 3.0 card reader
If you’re bringing a PC laptop then you’ll need a card reader to transfer your photos to your computer for post processing or backup.A small laptop I had wished I only needed to bring my iPad Pro and could do all my photographic and web design needs on there, but it’s really not possible. So I decided to buy a cheap small PC laptop so I can backup my photos from the camera to my external hard drive, and also work on web design work.
12.9” iPad Pro
I love my iPad Pro, love the pen capability and I can post-process my photos on the Lightroom app, as well as do my other graphic design work on there.
Pen light
A pen light is useful if you need to light the dark in the hostels or anywhere when you need it, so I took it with me on my trip.
USB Port Hub
I brought a usb port hub with me to transfer photos from the SD card to the external hard drive, since my laptop only had 1 usb port.
Cellphone stabilizer gimbal
While on my travel, I went and bought a stabilizer gimbal for my phone so I can take some smooth video footage. The one I bought is the Freevision Vilta 3-Axis Handheld Stabilizer Gimbal. I love this gimbal, the videos I capture with this is nice!
Fuji Instax Share smartphone printer
For fun I brought with me a smartphone polaroid printer so I can print out small prints on the spot while traveling. Check the prices for Fuji Instax Share: Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto.