Packing for a Big Photo Trip

I've started the process of going through my collection of camera gear and trying to deciding what to take on our trip to Alaska and what to leave behind.  It's not always possible to take everything when traveling by airline.  

First step is to get everything out.  This is important because in the past I've packed at the last minute and  forgotten things that I wished I had.   I've laid out almost all my gear.   Add one more lens, a compact waterproof camera, a tablet computer and a laptop computer to this.

In the past I have carried everything except the tripod, including the computer, in the big bag on the right.  It is designed to fit under an airline seat and has always worked great.   Once at our destination I move essentials to the middle bag, which is what I take when hiking.


Realistically I know I will not be able to bring everything on this trip.  With the addition of one more lens and the waterproof camera I'll be out of compartments in the bag.  I'm going to have to decide what to leave at home.   How do I decide what takes the trip and what is left behind?

Packing camera gear is a simple prioritization process.  I'll figure out what I need and what I can live without.

17-40 mm

The photos on this trip are going to be pretty much all outdoors.   I'll be shooting my favorite subjects - mountains, lakes, waterfalls, wildlife, flowers, and other subjects God has created for us to enjoy. Scratch the flash.

300 mm

300 mm + 1.4X Tele-Converter

I hope to see some of Alaska's wildlife on this trip.  The National Park rules say we must stay 300 yards from bears and 100 yards from most other wildlife.  That's a long way to shoot!  I will have my longest lens (300mm), plus a 1.4x Teleconverter, plus my cropped sensor Canon 7D body.   That combination is going to give me an effective focal length of 672mm.  I just hope that's enough.

If the weather cooperates we'll have great views of some of Alaska's majestic mountains.   That means a 17-40 mm wide angle zoon lens and my Canon 5D body.  I don't go anywhere without my favorite 24-105 mm zoom lens so it's on the list.   I'll need something between 105 and 300 mm so I'll bring my 70-200 mm zoom.   I love taking macro photos so I must bring my 100 mm macro lens.

70 - 200 mm

This year I'm renting a Rokinon 24mm f/1.4 lens for taking photos of the night sky.   I'm hoping the Milky Way will be clear and spectacular while we are there.

That's five lens and two cameras.  My back is starting to hurt just thinking about it.

This trip has also thrown a special challenge my way.   We will be flying into Denali National Park on a small plane.  The plane is small enough that I'm limited to 25 pounds of luggage, including camera gear.   I guess June is going to have some of my clothes in her bag for those 4 days.  

Just going through this planning exercise has gotten me thinking about the trip and I'm getting excited!   I made some of our reservations in January.  Being 9 months away, it didn't seem that real at the time.  Now sure it does!


Now that I have figured out the important stuff, it's time to figure out what clothes I'll need on this trip.

24 - 105 mm

Test Driving a Lens

June and I joined several other photographers this last weekend for a trek across Tennessee to Realfoot Lake State Park to take pictures of eagles, hawks, snow geese and other birds that winter around the lake each year.   This is perhaps the best opportunity to photograph eagles that doesn't involve traveling to Alaska or Northern Canada.  At one time there were about 200 nesting pairs around the lake.  Those of us on the trip agreed that the numbers appear to be less than that.

It takes about 8 hours to drive from Kingsport to Reelfoot Lake, which is a long road trip.   We might not get this opportunity again so I decided I needed some "better glass" (i.e. - more expensive lens) than what I had.  I have an older Sigma 80-400mm zoom that does pretty well in good "bright" light and on a tripod.   I decided I wanted a prime lens that would produce sharper images, was faster than the Sigma, and have enough "reach" to take shots of birds that might be a little ways away.   My lens of choice was a Canon 300mm f/4L.   To get a little more "reach" I wanted to use a 1.4x teleconverter, making the 300mm 420mm.   I have a cheap(er - it's all relative) teleconverter but putting a cheap teleconverter on an expensive lens gives you a longer lens that takes pictures like a cheap lens.  I needed the Canon version.   These two items sell for $1,376 and $499.  Ouch!

I had talked to people who had rented higher end lenses in the past with good results.  This was my opportunity to try out this lens and teleconverter without having to shell out a lot of cash.  After all, I wasn't sure the Canon would be that much better than the Sigma I already had.   I decided to rent from LensRentals.com.

The rental process was about as smooth as it can be.  The hardest step was deciding what to rent.  Once I made my decision I placed my order online specifying the day I wanted the lens delivered to my house and the day I would ship it back.   Simple.   FedEx delivered the lens right on time.

The lens and teleconverter were packed very well with material that made repacking for return shipping easy.   The gear looked like new and worked perfectly.  This morning I packed it back up in the original box, stuck the preprinted label on the box and dropped it at the FedEx authorized shipper in town.  The entire process was smooth and flawless. 

The one risk I was worried about did come to pass.  I now see how much better the Canon L prime lens is than my old Sigma zoom and I want to have my own copy.   This may end up costing me much more in the end. 

All these photos were made with the 300mm and 1.4TC combination on a Canon 7D.   Except for the owl, they were taken under overcast conditions.   The eagle on the nest was on a tripod.  All the others were handheld.

Knowing what I know now about shooting birds of prey at Reelfoot lake I think I would go with a longer lens.  The birds tended to be too far away for the 300/1.4x combination.  Maybe the Canon 400mm f/2.8L or the Canon 500mm f/4L.  They are big heavy lenses but it would have given me more reach, more light, and faster focusing.  

Pitfalls of traveling with camera gear

June and I take at least one big trip a year that involves checking luggage with the airlines.   I will put my tripod in one of the suitcases that get checked, along with hiking poles.   This almost always results in the bags getting searched.   This has never been a problem for me since my luggage eventually gets to our destination.   I never check my camera gear.  I don't trust the bag slingers to not break something, or worse in the case of this traveling photographer

Photographer Has $2,000 in Camera Gear Go Missing After a JetBlue Flight

Earlier this year I purchased a second DSLR camera body and now travel with:

• Canon 5D Mark ii
• Canon 7D
• 17-40mm zoom
• 28-105mm zoom
• 100mm macro lens
• 80-400mm (big and heavy) zoom
• flash, extra camera and flash batteries, filters, memory card pouches, cables, tele-converter,  and a bunch of other odds and ends.

This is too much for my old faithful backpack so this past summer I added a Think Tank Airport Commuter Backpack to my collection.   I can put all that gear in the Think Tank bag.  Best of all, it fits in the overhead bins or under the seat on the airlines!   Even on those little commuter planes that fly out of Tri-Cities Airport.

I highly recommend Think Tank bags.   Many of their bags are designed to fit in airline carry on bins or under seats.   Plus, the build quality is excellent.

As you can see from the list above, my collection of gear has grown over the past few years.   This means I've got a good bit of money tied up in camera gear.   If the something should get broken, lost or stolen on our travels I'd hate to have to replace any one of these pieces of equipment.  In most cases, home owner insurance is not going cover lost or damaged camera gear.  I have now insured my gear through a special policy with my insurance company.    This has given me peace of mind knowing that if I slip and drop a camera or someone breaks in to the car I'm going to be able to get my gear replaced.

So, if you have a reasonable sized investment in your gear and/or travel with your gear, I recommend investing in good quality camera bag and some added insurance.   Don't let the loss of some material things ruin your travels.

Image at right is Rainbow Falls in Jones Gap State Park, South Carolina.   June and I hiked there after a overnight trip to Greenville SC this year.   There are a number of state parks, waterfalls, and great hikes in South Carolina between Greenville and the NC state line.  We plan to go back several more times to explore as much as possible.   And I won't have to worry about losing or breaking camera gear while we are out hiking.