In the last 12 hours I've had 2 friends ask for advice on what kit to take on travels. Ironically both individuals were named Will. So I will (pun intended) do my best to advise them. I'd love if you'd offer up your thoughts in the comments!
Will #1 Is going to Nepal and potentially some neighboring countries soon. He is deciding between an iPhone 5s, upgrading to an iPhone 7 or the Sony a6000. My response: It's all about what you're most comfortable with. If you have the funds for sure upgrade to the iPhone 7, based on what I've seen it out puts some really quality images and the new portrait mode performs really well. To be 100% honest I owned an a6000 a while back and I never really enjoyed it. I didn't like the shooting experience, it always seem a little rigid to me. That's just me though, I know a lot of people that absolutely love the a6000, my girlfriend has an a5000 which is close to the same thing and she loves it. One option that you didn't mention that I can offer up is the DXO One camera, you can see a review I wrote on Backcountry.com here: https://www.backcountry.com/dxo-one-ultra-compact-camera?s=a. It's $499, but it's tiny and connects to your iPhone, the one issue with traveling with it is the battery life isn't that great. Based on all this information, I would upgrade to the iPhone 7 (splurge on more GB) and purchase a portable external battery charger. Use the time from now until your trip getting used to the iPhone 7 and all its features. I'd love to see some of your images. Let me know if yo have any other questions. Please offer up your insight to Will #1 in the comments. Will #2 is traveling to the Azores (link: http://bit.ly/2gawSEz) islands off the coast of Portugal. He's taking a Canon DSLR and 50mm, he wants to know what additional lens he should take with him. He has an full Canon kit. His second and third favorite lenses are the 85mm and 70-200mm. My response: I haven't been to the Azores but after looking at a lot of images the scenery is incredible. I personally would want to be able to capture the scale of beauty. I think the 24-70 is an ideal "walking" around travel lens. The range of things you can achieve with it is super broad. There are advantages and disadvantages to every lens, but I truly think this is the best compliment to the 50mm. I think the most important thing is taking the lenses you will be most excited about using. More and more I'm feeling like when I enjoy the shooting experience the most I like my own images more. I recently converted to using more prime lenses and I enjoy the shooting experience so much more. Transitioning to this type of shooting took some time. You know yourself better than I know you, for me I would take the 24-70, but I'm not Will #2 :), you know yourself better so take the lens you will be most excited about shooting. More than anything share some of the amazing images you get and have the best time! Please offer up your insight to Will #2 in the comments. If someone has a similar question of their own, don't hesitate to ask in the comments as well!
4 Comments
Ronnie Spitzer
4/21/2017 10:39:32 am
Will 1: Go within your comfort zone. Be sure to keep your phone secure, as street theft of expensive cell phones is a consideration.
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Will
4/21/2017 12:13:46 pm
Thanks, Silas and Ronnie. I like the suggestion of going with the 50mm and the 24-70mm. Both are Canon L-series lenses that I love. I have also have a 24-105 which is not quite as fast or as nice as the 24-700mm in low light. And, I agree that the 200 is a bit overkill in this situation. I love it for portraits at a distance but unless that's my expressed goal (which it isn't this time), it just adds a ton of unnecessary weight.
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Amy
4/21/2017 01:22:54 pm
Will #1! I personally think go with an Iphone 7 if you can! The portrait mode takes great pictures and it's the most convenient to travel with. Also, if it's new it will have amazing battery life which will definitely be useful on your trip!
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