PART 1: Preparing for a trip
Have you ever had to pack for a trip, a hike, climb, vacation or another adventure where you’d be carrying everything on your back or slung over your shoulder? Gear laid out on the floor the night before leaving for the trip after having unpacked and repacked to see if you could fit everything in less space getting rid of everything you can to save weight. For those that saw their toothbrushes in half to shave off a few grams, or anyone that could stand to lose a little weight in the camera bag, this series of articles may be useful. Now, the question is, can we do this, and still carry quality photographic gear with us?
This will be the first part in a three part article focused on capturing images while backpacking and wanting to keep weight down while not compromising image quality. It is also potentially useful for any travel situation where gear weight may become cumbersome.
I’d like to thank Yukon Trading Company, Marmot, JetBoil, LEKI Trekking Poles, 43rumors.com, Expert Shield screen protectors, and B&H Photo for the continued support, and particularly for much of the stuff provided for me during this trip. Losing weight isn’t always fast and cheap, but they’ve helped make it sexy. Throughout these articles, I’ll be mentioning and linking to various products that I use(d) and highly suggest looking into. Fortunately for me, we got hooked up with companies that put quality at the top of their list. It doesn’t hurt that they also engineer some of the best, lightest and highest performing gear on the market, so, thanks guys!
Never has weight been more a factor for me than when trying to stuff all my gear into a pack with the realization that I’m going to have to carry all this stuff on my back for days on end, all while climbing, hiking and sliding around in the snow. I will start by disclosing that I am far closer to resembling a photographer than a back country, mountaineering aficionado. I’ve certainly been adventurous throughout my life, spending many nights in the elements, climbing and hiking my way to the next spot so that I may eat dried fruit, ramen and nuts for dinner, or do my best to create aches in areas I was previously unaware my body had by forgoing any type of sleeping pad or pillow. Most of the time, when I travel, or set out on any type of adventure, photography is a very large part of it, and I’ve tended to sacrifice other comforts to enable the room for my camera gear. Since adopting a mirrorless setup, I’ve not had to sacrifice at all…
Why, hello there. Well, yes, that is a fanny pack (perhaps bum bag for those in the UK) full of camera equipment that I’m wearing, backwards. Wait, why are you laughing at me?
For years, I have been slinging 10-15 pound bags of gear off of my shoulder as I venture through a new city on a business excursion, or on a camping trip, road trip or most anytime I’d leave the house for any period of time. I did this, largely because I didn’t want to compromise a once in a lifetime opportunity with my compact point and shoot camera, or my phone. I may never get back to Venice, or Tokyo, I might never see Denali again and I can almost guarantee I won’t make it back down to the Andes unless I can figure out a way to get paid to do so. I may never catch a sunset as beautiful as the next, so, you get the point, I’ve dragged gear just about everywhere I’ve been in my adult life. While it may border on an obsessive psychological failing on my part, this has set the tone for me when venturing forth on these adventures, and I’ll be damned if I don’t have a quality camera and lenses with me to capture these locales.
The old vs the new, smaller, lighter equivalents.
A couple of years ago, well into my camera gear geek period, and after many trips of toting around a bag of bricks everywhere I went, I found the micro 4/3 system. For the non-camera geeks, the micro 4/3 system is a joint venture between Olympus and Panasonic with many other companies providing accessory and optical support. At the time of its release in 2008, it was pretty revolutionary. By removing the mirror from a traditional SLR setup, it could minimize the distance necessary between the back of the lens and the sensor. Since the systems birth, it has grown to be a truly mature, fully functional system with wonderful (and many) lenses, camera bodies and various accessories. The fact that you can also use affordable lens mount adapters to use most any lens ever created on these cameras is a huge bonus as well. (you can read about using mount converters and other lenses on these cameras HERE if you’re interested)
Here’s a quick, techie description to put the system in relation to that of a standard DSLR system. Because the sensor is roughly a quarter the physical size of a traditional “full frame” sensor (for reference an APS-C sensor is a bit larger than a third the physical size of a FF sensor, FF=864 sq mm, APS-C=330-370 sq mm, m4/3=225 sq mm) coupled with this reduced flange distance, lenses (and camera bodies) are much smaller, and lighter. Because of the sensor size in relation to a Full Frame sensor, the micro 4/3 cameras produce a 2x crop factor so a lens’ focal length produces a doubling in terms of field of view while an APS-C sensor will produce a 1.5x or 1.6x crop factor (ie: a 50mm lens on the micro 4/3 system would produce the same field of view as a 100mm lens would on a 35mm film or Full Frame digital camera, while an APS-C cam would take that same 50mm and produce closer to a 75mm FF equivalent). So, with the size and weight reduction in mind, I was curious to see just how much weight and bulk I could lose… I brought 3 cameras and a total of 5 lenses on a recent backpacking trip on Mount Rainier, which was a little overzealous granted, but that I could, packed into a fanny pack, weighing less than half what a full frame or APS-C DSLR setup would have been was pretty amazing.
With a few, old velcro dividers from an older photo bag, I fashioned myself a little partition which would fit into the larger compartment of the fanny pack.
In they go. Each camera had a lens attached, and there are two lenses in the right compartment of the pack.
Zipped up without a problem at all. Three cameras, five lenses, about 4.5 lbs.
As fortune would have it, the love of my life came from an adventurous and photographically gifted family. My brother in law (we will refer to him from here forward as simply, bro-lo) gets paid apparently, to travel around, climb various forms of historical sedimentary accumulation while educating his customers about the gear he uses to do it. It may seem a rough life, but he handles it well. Anyway, months ago, he set forth on planning and detailing a multi day trek on Mount Rainier’s Wonderland Trail (click here for more info). Accompanied by my Bro-lo, Father in Law, a couple of his good friends and my friend and resident Italian summer visitor Tommy, we planned out our route. With a little elbow rubbing and wheel greasing, the trip was sponsored by some pretty awesome gear companies… Below, I’ll outline what I chose to take, how much it weighed, and compare how much a larger system equivalent would have added to the pack. Thank you to Yukon Trading Company, Marmot, JetBoil, LEKI Trekking Poles, 43rumors.com, Expert Shield screen protectors, and B&H Photo for the gear, support and future gear and support Please feel free to click any of the links throughout the article to check stuff out. Mention how you found them for a special surprise! (By “special surprise” I mean to say that they’ll probably think you’re a crazy person because they’ll have no idea who I am more than likely, but hey, this is how a lot of networking groundwork is laid…)
Trail map from the National Park Service website (click here)
For those of us that like to get out into the far reaches of nature, while contemplating the ability to visually capture and document said nature, I’d highly suggest looking into a mirrorless system camera. Every current mirrorless system has a lot going for it, and honestly, i don’t think you can really go wrong. each has its pros and cons. I chose the micro 4/3 system because I feel it was (and is still) the best balance of size reduction and image quality along with having the most mature system in the mirrorless landscape. I also recently acquired a Canon EOS-M compact, mirrorless camera with the 22mm f/2 lens which you’ll see mentioned below as well. It has an APS-C sensor, and it’s own proprietary mount so it isn’t compatible with the micro 4/3 system, but the prices plummeted and I decided to see how it compared. In total, I had three cameras, 5 lenses, extra batteries and a circular polarizer filter, all of which fit into my new Marmot fanny pack. Yes, I seriously searched out and wore all this gear in a modified fanny pack the entire time, thanks Bro-Lo!
Here is the gear with total weight listed for each piece, you can click on each red product link to see it at B&H photo:
Olympus OMD EM5 camera body: 15 oz (0.94 lbs) / 0.43 kg
Panasonic GX1 camera body: 11.22 oz (0.7 lbs) / 0.32 kg
Canon EOS-M camera body: 9.24 oz (0.58 lbs) / 0.26 kg
Rokinon 7.5mm f/3.5 fisheye (m4/3 mount, 15mm equivalent field of view): 6.95 oz (0.43 lbs) / 0.2 kg
Panasonic 14mm f/2.5 lens (28mm EFOV): 1.94 oz (0.12 lbs) / 0.06 kg
Panasonic/Leica 25mm f/1.4 Summilux (50mm EFOV): 7.05 oz (0.44 lbs) / 0.2 kg
Panasonic 100-300mm f/4-5.6 (200-600mm EFOV): 18.24 oz (1.14 lbs) / 0.52 kg
Canon EOS-M 22mm f/2 STM (35mm EFOV): 3.7 oz (0.23 lbs) / 0.11 kg
Another handy bonus was that I’ve been able to sell both Bro-Lo and the Pop-in-law on the micro 4/3 system. Simply, this means, I can get them to carry even more gear that I can then use.
Along for the trip, (which I didn’t carry, but are fine lenses) we also had:
Olympus M.Zuiko 12-50mm f/3.5-6.3 (24-100mm EFOV): 7.44 oz (0.47 lbs) / 0.21 kg
And the Panasonic 20mm f/1.7 (40mm EFOV): 3.07 oz (0.19 lbs) / 0.09 kg
Total weight (less the last two lenses which I didn’t carry): 4.58 lbs / 2.08 kg
Focal Range (EFOV, incremental): 15mm fisheye – 600mm
Now, just for reference, my standard Canon kit I’d normally have with me on my previous travels would be as follows:
Canon EOS 5DII: 28.6 oz (1.79 lbs) / 0.81 kg
Canon EOS 5D: 28.85 oz (1.8 lbs) / 0.82 kg
Rokinon 14mm f/2.8: 19.36 oz (1.21 lbs) / 0.55 kg
Canon EF 35mm f/1.4: 20.5 oz (1.28 lbs) / 0.58 kg
Zeiss ZE 85mm f/1.4: 24.64 oz (1.54 lbs) / 0.7 kg
Canon EF 135mm f/2: 26.4 oz (1.65 lbs) / 0.75 kg
Canon EF Extender 1.4x: 7.9 oz (0.5 lbs) / 0.22 kg
Total weight: 9.77 lbs / 4.44 kg
Focal Range (incremental): 14mm – 189mm (135mm +1.4x extender)
Those with a keen, gear geek eye may have noticed that the Canon EOS-M camera and 22mm f/2 lens (traded to my Father in law) and the Lumix 100-300mm lens (Bro-Lo stole it) do not appear in the gear photos above, replaced instead by the GF1 w/20mm lens, and Oly 75mm lens w/hood respectively. Please don’t flame me for visually misleading you, and trust that the comparison in size and weight is close enough for these illustrative purposes. Also, they fit the same in my snazzy fanny pack (you Brits stop giggling, seriously, we call those something different here).
With that disclaimer out of the way, let us move onward and upward. Of course, one could certainly slim down the choices, not carry three camera bodies and 5 lenses, but even so, the weight difference is pretty amazing especially when taking into account the focal range covered between the two kits. The lightest, single body + lens combo on the Canon Full Frame side would be 3 lbs, while I could fit one body and all the lenses for the Micro 4/3 system under that same weight designation for comparison’s sake. If you don’t shoot wide, or have the need to really exploit the telephoto end of the range, you could save even more weight. In fact, I think that one could carry one camera body with the 12-50mm and then steal the 100-300mm from your loving and remarkably supportive brother in law (as my Bro-Lo did) and be more or less covered really only challenged if wanting to achieve a shallow depth of field in wider shots, or when shooting handheld in low light situations. The only lens out of the whole bunch above that has optical image stabilization is the Panasonic 100-300mm. Of course, the Olympus OMD EM5 has in body image stabilization, as do all the Oly bodies (and the recently announced Panasonic GX7) but really so much of what I shot was on the tripod, or from the hip in mid day sun, that image stabilization wasn’t entirely necessary which brings me to my next crucial piece of gear… my travel tripod:
Those without budget restrictions will call out carbon fiber, and by all means, if you can justify it, go for it, but for me, I find that the cost is unnecessary and have chosen to employ the modestly priced SLIK Sprint Mini II for just around $75. It comes with a decent enough head on it, so it’s ready to go out of the box, but I chose to upgrade the head to a stronger, yet not too much heavier head in the Sirui C10 ball head which has an Arca Swiss style quick release plate and separate panning and ball dials to independently adjust the camera. The separate panning dial is extremely handy when shooting panoramas (which I will get to in the next part of this series).
SLIK Sprint Mini II Tripod (weight includes standard head) : 27.52 oz (1.72 lbs) / 0.78 kg
Sirui C10 Ball Head: 7.04 oz (0.44 lbs) / 0.2 kg
Now bringing this much camera gear, along with the necessary ice ax, micro spikes, clothing, food, tent, pad and sleeping bag, I looked to slim down in the clothing and gear category. Much of this stuff is available at various retailers like REI or other, more local outdoor outfitters. Thank you to Ryan at Yukon Trading in particular for the access to much of this gear, a wealth of knowledge and just for being a great, basketball loving, human being in general. here’s what I carried… (click on images or red links to see this stuff in their respective, native web based habitats)
Marmot Bodega (super cool) Fanny pack: What’s not to love about a waist pack that you can fit three cameras and 5 lenses in, yet weighs only 1 lb, 3 ozs (539g) and isn’t obstructive, even when wearing a back pack? Okay, people will make fun of you, but they will be asking for your pictures while you laugh all the way to the bank.
Marmot Drakon 45 backpack: A 45 Liter, 2750 cu in pack that weighs in at 3 lbs, 4.6 ozs (1492g) More than enough for a multi day trek in varied conditions. Plenty of space both inside and out to carry axes, spikes, tent, sleeping bag, pad, misc tidbits, clothes and food. For a smaller, lighter version, check out the Drakon 35.
Marmot Plasma 30 sleeping bag: Marmot is known for its down, and now I know why. This is a 900+ fill, goose down bag weighing in at 1 lb, 6.44 ozs (636g) is rated down to 30 degrees F (-1 C) and I was toasty and comfortable, even on the evenings that we were at altitude and the temp dropped. I have the long bag because my parents didn’t know about many of the hormones in the meat we ate when I was little, also I have Scandinavian lineage and them’s some tall folk. This bag packs down into a hilariously small stuff sack. Wanna be really blown away, look at the Plasma 40 1 lb, 3.77 oz (572 g) and you can practically pack this into a ziplock sandwich bag. Nuts.
Marmot Essence Jacket: Completely waterproof AND breathable. Seriously. They have some magic gnomes working overtime over there. Oh, and it weighs a whopping 6 ozs (170.1g) and can pack into a pocket. Absolutely amazing. We did end up getting a little moisture the second day, but had beautiful weather the rest of the time, so the added 6 ozs were literally unnoticeable in the pack, yet proved to be worth their weight in gold as I kept myself dry and comfortable.
LEKI “Trail” Trekking Poles: I’ve never backpacked with trekking poles before this trip. Afterward, I’m really wondering why. Regardless of any help they provide with weight distribution when navigating a tricky trail, the balance, posture and stability they promote are awesome, especially with a heavy pack considering they weigh next to nothing (1 lbs, 3.4 ozs for the pair). I will be bringing these on every hike I take from here on out. Now, we just need to convince LEKI to produce a trekking pole with a camera mount on top… wait, they HAVE THOSE! {personal note: inquire as to why we were not field testing these with Bro-Lo}
Marmot Aura 2P Tent: A 4 lb, 12 oz two person tent. Split that up with one person carrying the poles, and the other the tent and you’re golden. Killer tent with plenty of room for two large humans while adding very little pack weight.
JetBoil SUMO Titanium: For boiling water only, but for light weight travel (12 ozs, 345g not including the fuel canister) you’ll only need to rehydrate meals anyway, and this thing is amazing. Lightweight and it boils water quicker than a modified jet engine at sea level. Check their other products for more diverse camp cooking tasks at JetBoil.com
Very cool stuff. My last major backpacking trip was in Denali Nat’l Park, was also far less comfortable, and I ate horribly by comparison. I wasn’t aware of Mountain House freeze dried food pouches (surprisingly delicious and remarkably light weight, you can find them at most any outdoor, or mega store), and I didn’t have a way to boil water anyway, so it wouldn’t have mattered. I also had wet feet for much of it and my old pack sucked. We got tracked by a mamma Grizzly and her two cubs which found us going about a mile out of our way on a wide river wash, wading streams, I spent much of the time on the verge of pissing myself when I realized I was 13 miles away from a limited access dirt road that took about 4 hours to drive to anywhere on, being followed by a giant monster who would probably have gladly ingested the bear mace my cramped hand was gripping onto desperately. I was also brilliantly hungover because I’m a genius and I had a really hard time figuring out my water filter. I could go on if you’d like, but I guess my point is that this trip made me realize how big a difference modern, quality gear makes, and I for one will look to invest in some good gear moving forward. Getting back to brass tacks, my goal for this trip was to not compromise quality photographic gear just to save weight, and all things said and done, I’m happy that I was able to carry as much as I was with relative ease. This wouldn’t have been the case had I dragged along my full frame Canon gear, and I don’t feel that I missed anything. Sure, the night shots could have come out cleaner, but that is a trade off that I’m willing to make, plus, if you do need to quickly move away from a particular baby animal, the less weight, the better.
Next up will be capturing our trip through a few different techniques that build our photographic bounty a little further than the single frame snap. Stay tuned and if you’d like, you can enter your email for automatic notifications in the field at the very top right of this page to receive future posts via email, or follow me on Facebook here, and/or Twitter here. I like networking, so hit me up and let’s see what we can do.
Stay tuned for some techniques to capture some travel and landscape shots in the next post, regardless of gear, as well as more of the actual shots from the trip which will be coming soon! Thanks for the read and in the mean time, happy shooting.
Cheers,
Tyson