Another Trip and Another Camera Bag Decision
It’s often difficult to know what gear to take on a trip. The "Just In Case" fear kicks in and you take too much. At least that’s what happens to me. As I think about our upcoming trip, those thoughts fill my head. And, in addition, on this trip more than any previous trip, I know I want to capture a bunch of video as well as stills! I did a whole Photography & Technology Tools episode on packing camera gear for a trip seven months ago (https://youtu.be/VixsD6EA8Zk). I now always think in terms of two bags: one for transport and one for everyday. For transport, that is, from home to our destination, I really need a flexible bag that will hold everything. Though I love my relatively new Tenba Cooper Slim 13 bag (https://youtu.be/wnHdeMZpusw), I'm afraid I need to go with my Vanquest SKITCH-12 bag again, because it's very configurable. My everyday carry bag will be my trusty Lowepro Streamline 250.
I did rewatch my follow-up video from the one above (https://youtu.be/EhFiATbCFg0) in which I talked about those things I took that I actually used and that will guide me for this trip. For most of the videos on this trip I will use my iPhone 7 Plus but I also want a nice collection of stills so I can make a book about the trip. My usual problem is taking more lenses than I need. So, this trip I’m just taking one of my mirrorless cameras, my Olympus OM-D E-M5 II, my favorite Olympus 12-40mm, f/2.8 lens and my Panasonic 35-100mm, f/4-5.6 lens. I have an ōlloclip Super Wide (120°) lens for my iPhone and I’ll take my Olympus 9mm body cap lens for the E-M5 II. Though I tend never to use it, I am still taking my little Nisson i40 flash as well as the small removable E-M5 II flash, which will trigger the i40. And, naturally, I’ll take the requisite batteries for camera and flash. Instead of my TG Tracker, I’m taking my little Yi camera. I have a number of SD cards and purchased two new 32GB cards in case I end up using the E-M5 II to shoot video. I have a polarizer and Variable ND filter for each lens, too.
The rest is mostly in support of video recording. I decided to try taking my new Zhiyun Smooth-Q Gimbal for my iPhone. The Smooth-Q will help in getting nice, smooth video capture and it can just barely fit in my Vanquest bag, but I think I’ll put it in another small carry-on my wife and I are taking for the first time. I have my HandlePod (video URL), a smartphone holder with my DIY PVC pipe handle as well as my MVS (“mobile video storytelling”) kit packed in my tactical gear medical pouch. This fits right in the main compartment of the Vanquest bag. It contains my small Olympus audio recorder, Rôde VideoMicro and SmartLav+, and various other items to use with the iPhone for video recording. I did a video on what I put in this repurposed medical pouch (video URL).
Finally, I’m taking a piece of equipment I just purchased: a selfie stick that can work as a tripod as well. It’s the Yunteng YT-1288 monopod selfie stick with tripod legs.
We’ll see if I guessed correctly this time when we return from our trip!
