Packing My Photo Gear Bag

I have some heavy gear -- more than my back likes me to carry, but what to take? Having taken everything but the kitchen sink for years and felt a bit sheepish when a lot of the gear didn’t get used, I’ve taken to thinking through the “absolutely must-have” gear before going on a location shoot. Here’s why.

I move around a lot. And my bag moves around a lot. And that means I carry my bag around a lot. Which gets old, and in a hurry. So, I’ve taken to examining likely shooting scenarios and taking the camera bod(ies), lens(es), and light(s) that are most likely to be useful. In making these selections, I know there will be times when I will think, “if only I had my …”, but I also know I will make more images if I have a lighter load.

So, here’s a thought exercise I often run through:

• What’s the best camera for the job. Most of my gear is pretty interchangeable, but one stands out for action photography and that’s the 1D Mark II. It’s super fast and never misses a shot. Another consideration is how long do I expect to be carrying it. The weight difference between a 1Ds Mark III Canon body is about 49oz. Compare that to the 5D Mark II at 30oz. The 5D is only 60% the weight of the 1Ds. Over the course of a day walking around, especially if it’s hot, and you have something you’ll remember. The other consideration is do I need gazillions of pixels. One great reason to bring a high-resolution camera is that the images can be used in many more applications than images made on a camera with a smaller sensor. If I think I’m really onto something and not on a scouting shoot, I’ll typically bring as much camera as I think I can lift.


• What range of focal-lengths do I expect? If this is a subject I know well, I might only bring one or two lenses. If not, I will normally bring a set of zoom lenses that cover the expected range. Some great lenses from Canon are:
  
  
  
  • 16-35mm wide-angle zoom
  • 24-105L zoom
  • 70-200L zoom
  
  
• How much battery power do I need. I know about how many shots I get on a charge, and have prepared fresh batteries, but no need to carry more than necessary. They are just dead weight. If I don’t know, then I carry one more than the maximum I think I might possibly need. Two are often enough. Especially now that Canon has gotten their power systems to the point where you get quite a number of RAW images on a single charge. I take into account the amount of burst shooting I might do (more battery intensive), how much AI Servo focusing I expect, and any other things that might negatively affect battery life.


• How many lights will I need? If I am doing available light photography such as scenics or night, then I might leave all the flashes behind. If I’m doing people, do I need one or more lights, and how about remote triggers/stands? One thing with the lights: A small diffuser will go a long way toward making subjects look more natural, and they weigh practically nothing. I like the ones from Lumiquest, but any diffuser will help.


• Does this shoot require a tripod or am I better off hand-holding. A tripod is a mixed blessing. It will get in the way when I’m in tight quarters, and it’s more weight to pack. But, there are some shots that simply don’t happen without one. If I know I need a tripod, I also need a remote release.

One thing I think about less often with digital are filters. They are simply not the issue that they were with transparency film, where the point of capture was pretty much the photographer’s last chance to influence color. The two that are normally in my bag are polarizers (not too often used), and a UV or Skylight on every lens. If I’m looking for some particular effect I’d prefer to do at the point of capture, such as a star or soft filter, I might bring these. But not so much anymore.

Comments are, as always, welcome. What’s in your bag?