Outdoor Photography Gear
Outdoor photography has long been a big part of life. Fishing photos, landscapes, seascapes, and beyond. Why do I love it? Well first off I love being outdoors. And cameras allow me to capture memories and bring them back home.
Nowadays many fine outdoor photographs are taken with cellphones. They are incredibly good, especially the flagship models. Extremely convenient. And they shoot good video too. Amazing stuff, and I imagine they’re perfect for 95 percent of you. But honestly they are not for me. Yes, I’m a dinosaur, sticking with my DSLR. Why? With a wide range of lenses and a large image sensor load with big juicy pixels, in my opinion DSLRs offer superior versatility, picture quality, and creative control.
For important location shots, such as travel destinations, I lean on three lenses to do the work. They are a 14-24mm wide angle, a 24-70mm mid distance lens, and a 70-300mm telephoto for long shots. They were selected to give me seamless coverage from 14-300 mm. I transport them, along with my trusty old, full-frame Nikon D700, in a Pelican 1500 case with adjustable dividers. This midsize case fits overhead on both domestic and international flights. (At least it did when I bought it.) It is water and air tight, and floats. Lockable, rust free, and indestructible. Besides the camera and three lenses, it transports a 60mm macro lens and a small backup camera such as a D3500. And if I leave the D3500 home I squeeze in a SB 800 flash. The underside of the lid has a pocket mesh that holds accessories such as flash cards, filters, folding gray card, straps, chargers, notepad, and such. Perfect.
All of my equipment is long-in-the-tooth, but the Pelican case has kept it safe and in good working condition despite the many miles. Obviously I don’t truck that 1500 case up and down the beach or out in a kayak. For that work I use a small Pelican case that holds a camera & lens and a few essentials. And some times I ditch that case for a wonderful water-resistant lumber pack specifically designed for photographers. Thing is an absolute gem. Comfortably carries a decent amount of gear, while leaving both hands free. Slide it behind your back and it becomes a second carryon. Perhaps we can cover it next time.