The Traveller's Dilemma

The Traveller's Dilemma

  • I take my best gear. I want to make the best possible photographs, regardless of the hazzards.

    Votes: 172 62.8%

  • I leave my best gear at home. I want to know that it will be waiting for me when I get back.

    Votes: 24 8.8%

  • I only have the best. For me, there is no choice to be made.

    Votes: 44 16.1%

  • Nothing I own could ever be put in the same sentence with the word "best."

    Votes: 34 12.4%
  • Total voters
    274
Today, I am using the M3 with a 16/8 Hologon, M8 with Pentax-M 50/1.4, and M9 with 35/2 Summicron. I am traveling by car this time, so weight or size is not an issue. I don’t collect; I use.
 
In my experience it’s best not to take more than one camera system. I take two bodies within the same system, one lens on each and maybe a third lens if I really want a third focal length. Often this means two Leica bodies, one lens each and that’s it. Sometimes an extra lens in the bag. Last week I was on a trip with two xpan bodies, one lens each and that’s it.

In terms of carrying them, either one stays in the bag or one is on my right hand and the unused one is over my right shoulder kind of out of view, blocked by my right upper arm.

In the occasional situation where I really don’t want anything visible until time of use, then one body stays in the bag, one camera in my right hand but my right and and camera are tucked into my jacket, like those old portraits of Napoleon, as I saunter around.

Also, for the kind of photography I do I generally choose to take any camera requiring 120 film when I travel, unless I have something specific in mind. And for lens choices, I take the fastest lens i have in the focal length I want. I find it just that much more versatile for night photography. I don’t factor the weight of the lens in.
 
We did a variation; we'd both ake the same camera body and split the lenses between us. Batteries and so on were also shared meaning half the stuff was taken compared with two different cameras.

OTOH, there's a lot to be said for two different cameras; one serious and the other for shots in cafe and so on where people take exception to big cameras, or just take your big camera when you are not looking...

Regards, David
 
pgk said:
I wonder how many people have an expensive car to keep in the garage and a cheap jalopy to actually drive around in? In my book the same applies to cameras. Life is risky - so be it (and always insure your gear!).
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I keep a nice car in my garage and drive around in a jalopy because l’m rebuilding the transmission in the nice car and the old Taurus just runs reliably year after year. Then again, the nice car is British....

Scott
 
same dilema here for a 6 weeks Burma&Laos trip.

I Have had experiences in the past and ended up always carrying MP BP with 35 Cron, but last year during our trip I bought a X100F which I used much more than the Leica, why? because going cheaper is peace of mind. Results are another story...

Maybe this time I leave MP at home and buy another X100F, or RX1RII... or a cheap M2/M6 with 40mm...

The story of course is going cheap/expensive - digital/film.
 
Many interesting contribution to this thread, of course each one has different view and this is good. Myself included !

Just remind you that the OP ask not about gear and a generic trip but "trips to countries where for meteorological reasons or for reasons of public safety you face the very real possibility that your gear will be damaged, stolen, etc.?"

Years ago when going for a holiday when I planned to spend a large part of my time and relaxing on a sandy and windy beach, leaving my gear unattended when taking a bath I brought my cheapest (but still good) camera : The Bessa R and left my Leica home.

robert
 
Bruno Gracia said:
same dilema here for a 6 weeks Burma&Laos trip.

I Have had experiences in the past and ended up always carrying MP BP with 35 Cron, but last year during our trip I bought a X100F which I used much more than the Leica, why? because going cheaper is peace of mind.
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Were you robbed or assaulted in Myanmar or Laos? Asia is very safe. I live here and have been to nearly all the countries more than a few times including Myanmar and Laos. I travel all the time for business and pleasure and always bring my best gear. Don’t equate poverty with crime at least not in Asia. I have been to the worst slums in Pakistan, India, the Philippines, Indonesia and never felt unsafe. And I don’t stay in big cities tourist areas because they are not as photo interesting.
 
At a first glance, I did not realize that this thread goes back to 2007. Going through it, nothing much has changed: some baby their best equipment and others take it out on the road. I am in the latter category. This aside, I agree with Rayt... "Don’t equate poverty with crime at least not in Asia".
 
I take my most suitable kit, which is normally not my best equipement.

It's usually the most compact kit but not always. I have been traveling to some remote islands with a big Fuji 690 and three lenses (50mm, 100mm and 180mm) because I wanted to get those big negatives.

Nowadays, my favorite travel kit is a pair of Panasonic GM5 bodies with assorted lenses: compact, light, easy to use and delivering more than adequate image quality.

Cheers!

Abbazz
 
Rayt said:
Were you robbed or assaulted in Myanmar or Laos? Asia is very safe. I live here and have been to nearly all the countries more than a few times including Myanmar and Laos. I travel all the time for business and pleasure and always bring my best gear. Don’t equate poverty with crime at least not in Asia. I have been to the worst slums in Pakistan, India, the Philippines, Indonesia and never felt unsafe. And I don’t stay in big cities tourist areas because they are not as photo interesting.
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Don’t misunderstand me, it's not about crime (been there a couple of times), it's because I think money is better spent traveling or whatever, at the end photos are photos and will be almost the same with any equipment. People there are most wonderful I’ve ever met.

Minimalist approach... less is more, the cheaper the better... all this **** in my head LooK.
 
Bruno Gracia said:
Don’t misunderstand me, it's not about crime (been there a couple of times), it's because I think money is better spent traveling or whatever, at the end photos are photos and will be almost the same with any equipment. People there are most wonderful I’ve ever met.

Minimalist approach... less is more, the cheaper the better... all this **** in my head LooK.
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Yes money is better spent on experiences rather than on objects. Possession is a burden to the spirited traveller. Last year alone I travelled to a different country every month all funded mostly by selling off various gear purchased 10 years ago. All I need are two cameras, a brick of film and clean underwear.
 
Rayt said:
Yes money is better spent on experiences rather than on objects. Possession is a burden to the spirited traveller. Last year alone I travelled to a different country every month all funded mostly by selling off various gear purchased 10 years ago. All I need are two cameras, a brick of film and clean underwear.
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Well done, Ray!!! Buy experiences not mpx or film 😛

I think I'd be cover with a M2 and 40 Cron rather than MP and 35 Cron ASPH, and 50 rolls of TriX (actually I never shot more than 20 photos in one day going film way), with digital? 100-150 all crap till picture 1.000... when things got much better after feel camera as a part of me.

Or Maybe X100f, RX1R Mk.2...
 
I wouldn't worry much about crimes during a trip. Being reasonably cautious and careful is sufficient in most places. I take with me two cameras, each with one lens that stays put on that camera throughout the trip. My phone is my back-up camera for AF and close-ups.
 
By definition, any gear I have is the best gear I have. Of course, not all my gear is the same so each camera and lens constitutes a different range of potential photographs. I take along whatever gear I think is going to work best for what I intend to photograph on a given trip. 🙂

On the last trip, I took a Polaroid SX-70 (actually SLR670x), five packs of 600 film, and my iPhone. I made 1000 photos and videos with the iPhone and made 11 exposures with the Polaroid. There's lots of good stuff for me to process from both.

I stuck the Polaroid loaded with film and my four additional packs of film in my shoulder bag. It seemed to survive the scanners without any problem. I have no idea what kind of scanners were used at the two airports where my bag was scanned.

G
 
Godfrey: I am thinking of taking along my Land 250 Polaroid Camera. Is it "too heavy" or is it fragile for occasional bumps during flights? What are your experiences with using Polaroid cameras on trips?
 
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