I still consider myself a very amateur photographer. I just do it for the fun of it. But photography is a very expensive hobby. For my blog I began doing it to share my photographs. I wanted it to be an online web album to share my photos and places I’ve been to inspire others to travel as well. I’ve always felt that with the biggest and best equipment I will get the attention I deserved for my photos. What I’ve learned is it’s not the camera but the photographer’s vision. Enough about philosophy, here are my cameras.
Canon Rebel T1i —
The Canon Rebel is a Beginner DSLR that offers all the tools you need to develop as a photographer. Everything you want: Interchangeable lens system, APS-C sensor, countless accessories; Everything to make look like a true ProTog (professional photographer). I loved this camera for many years, and still use it today sometimes. And it does video! This camera is great when you are on assignment for a specific project where your end goal is to capture that photo. Quality and features you can’t go wrong BUT, it’s bulky! I carried this camera on a 3-Day trip to Venice, Italy and I had fun capturing the city but by the end of the first day my arm was tired. Carrying a backpack and heavy camera with different lenses and batteries around all day just kinda sucks the life out of you.
Canon EOS-M —
After that trip I made it a point to search for a solution to my problem. I still wanted to maintain the capabilities of a DSLR, and I didn’t want to stoop so low and get a simple point-and-shoot; me with my expensive taste. I ended up trying the Canon EOS-M. Feels like I should be sponsored my Canon, I jut like Canon products. The Canon EOS-M was the answer to all my problems. It’s tiny enough to fit in your pocket, or at least mine because I wear baggy clothes but be careful when trying to pull it out of your tight pocket; that’s how I dropped it once. Likely it has a magnesium body so it didn’t even leave a mark. I tried this camera out on the streets of Prague, Czech Republic and did I fall in love with it. It’s so easy to use and has so many built in features, so taking photos was a snap in any condition. And this was the first time I’ve used a camera with a touch screen. Really cool touch to focus feature like you would on a smartphone. With its APS-C sensor low light photos were not an issue. There was even a built in feature that take 4 low light photos and makes one really sharp photo in sequence really cool. Unfortunately i was on a budget and could not keep the camera. So my search continued.
Olympus E-PL1
Today I use the Olympus E-PL1. I know that now they have the E-PL5 but until money is no longer an issue, I have to stack up my pennies to upgrade my kit. Still the E-PL1 is a great camera, an it has only gotten better with every upgrade. It has the interchangeable lens system, built in fun filters, shoots in raw and manual mode so you can have all sorts of ProTog fun. It is tiny! With its Micro Four-Thirds sensor, quality photos are not even a question. It’s retro look makes it look a little less desirable to those shady pickpocketers, yes pickpocketing is still a thing, that stand praying on those flashy tourist and their big DSLRs. I even still here comments like “Oh you shoot in film?” but to there surprise “Nope, its digital!”
Closing on Cameras: Ultimately what camera you choose is up to preference or budget like me, But any camera is better than no camera. For me any of the Micro Four-Thirds series cameras are an excellent choice for totting around all day and still capturing that great shot. And with the market ever expanding with Samsung expanding their Zen series, and Sony with the NEX your options are endless. Me my dream camera now is the Leica M9! So if you want to give me one that would be great but until then I’ll keep shooting with what I have.
Must-Have Accessories!
There are 3 things I feel are Must-Haves for any of my adventures!
First, Batteries! For my Canon camera I have 5 batteries with me at any point in time. Now I’m not going to lie to you and tell you I only use genuine Canon accessories, especially batteries because after so many cycles all batteries are going to die out. So i just buy in bulk on amazon and on the battery, with a sharpie, write the date of first charge and that way you can keep track on how old the battery is and after certain amount of time toss it and replace it. I did notice that the battery sensor on my camera did not register the charge accurately but thats when color coordinated battery cases came in handy, Red for Dead, Green is Good.
Second, a Tripod! Now I must sound crazy, all this time trying to get the smallest camera just to lug around a clunky tripod!? No. I have invested in a Joby GorillaPod. Really any type of flexipod would work. I’ve wrapped my tripod on street signs, benches, traffic lights, even a railroad post to get that one of a kind shot. This tiny tripod has allowed my to get those 30 to 60 second exposure shots with out any motion blur from the camera to those timer self portraits on top of mountains where no ones around. Light weight and highly versatile, I always keep it in my backpack.
Third, a comfortable camera strap. I hope this doesn’t sound like a no brainer but for me after so many trips with my camera I really found it worth it to change out the camera strap. If you’ve read any of my other post you’ve seen me reference that I lean a little on the bigger side, and the stock camera strap is not the most comfortable thing ever made. And I don’t know about you but having something rubbing my neck all day doesn’t seem like a pleasant experience. I personally prefer a variation of the R-Strap or cross body strap. Just like I wouldn’t hang my laptop bag off my neck all day, I’m not going to do this with my camera. It just makes for a more comfortable trip.
What are your experiences with traveling with a camera? I’d like to hear from you. Leave a comment bellow and I will answer any question you may have.