PHOTO GEAR 
Choosing photo gear for travel is always about compromising, you want keep your bags small and not too heavy but have camera gear for every occasion. Here are some pros and cons with different camera types. DSLR - Digital Single Lens Reflex This is top of the line for consumer cameras, there are full frame sensor and the smaller APS-C sensor to choose from, DSLR cameras have an optical viewfinder. Full frame sensor is the better choice for low light photo, sensor and pixels are bigger and will collect more light than a smaller sensor, there are no low budget full frame cameras yet so they are usually expensive. When using a full frame sensor you will have to get very good lenses with sharp edges. The smaller sensor is more forgiving and you can get away with a cheaper lens with not so sharp edges because the smaller sensor will crop out the corners. There are a wide range of APS-C sensor cameras to choose from. Pros: Viewfinder Large sensors, good for low light Battery time Ability to customize settings Full control and manual settings Cons: Bulky Expensive Heavy lenses Sensor might get dirty Mirrorless interchangeable lens camera This is a DSLR but without the mirror and viewfinder, they are smaller and usually comes with an APS-C sensor or smaller. Pros: Smaller than DSLR Can change lenses Ability to customize settings Full control and manual settings Cons: No viewfinder (some have optional digital ones) Sensor might get dirty No full frame sensor Battery life Compact digital Camera Camera There are a wide range of these to choose from, simple point and shoot cameras to very advanced ones with bigger sensors. Pros: Easy to use Small Usually cheap Sensor is always protected Cons: Battery life Small sensors, not good for low light Only one lens, usually not good for wide angle photo Not as easy to get full manual control Action camera These are popping up everywhere and are usually good for video but are usually not so good for photo. Pros: Very small Rugged Comes with underwater housing Cheap Cons: Very small sensor, bad in low light Hard to control settings Some cameras have no LCD screen Poor battery life Only wide angle lens No macro mode No tripod mount Mobile phone camera Almost everyone have one of these and this is the most common camera seen out there. You can get some nice photos with this camera for instagram or facebook but it is inferior to the bigger cameras for obvious reasons. Optics is small, sensor is small. Pros: You always bring it No extra cost Good for social media Cons: Very small sensor, very small pixels, useless for low light Very small lens, low quality optics No optical zoom Hard to control settings No tripod mount Old style analogue 35mm film camera with single lens reflex, SLR. This is the same as DSLR but with film where the sensor is located, these kind of cameras are very rare these days but can still be useful. For instance, if you are going on a trek for several weeks and it is cold, this will kill your batteries. The SLR can have a very small battery that lasts for years but can usually function without it. You will need to scan your film to get it into digital formats. Pros: Cheap Viewfinder Cheap high quality optics Light when traveling Don't need batteries Cons: It’s analogue ISO, light sensitivity is not so good for film Hard to get film these days No white balance settings You have 36 exposures per film reel, expensive You will have to wait to see the result The accessories There are many types of accessories for cameras and you might want to bring some of them when traveling: -Tripod, experimenting with long time exposures will always give interesting results, for this you will need a tripod. -Camera bag, it is always good to have a bag that have easy access so that you can get your camera fast. -Flash, it is very hard to get good results with a flash so it is easier to leave it at home, a camera with low light abilities will take you a long way. -Underwater housing, see the -Remote control, can be good to have it you want to be in the picture or control the camera for time lapse or similar. -Power Bank, if you don't have access to electricity, get one with a 110/230V output if you want to charge all of your devices.  UW PHOTO page.
Ola & Maria are full time workers and part time adventurers, follow for photos around the world, over and under water. © sixweeks 2024
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