Photography Gear Luggage

As a professional photographer one of the things you will need to consider at some point and time is luggage for your photography gear. When it comes to packing and carrying your gear there are several ways you can do it depending on your needs at any given time.

1. Waist bags - these are small bags that you wear around your waist like a regular belt, but they can carry your camera and a couple of lenses and batteries. Think of them as kind of a fanny pack for your camera. There are several companies that make them from LowePro to Targus and they can range in quality and price from $20-$100.

2. Backpacks - These are just like they sound, you strap them on your back and carry your gear that way, great for hiking or walking around an event. They usually hold 1-2 bodies and 5-6 lenses and also have compartments for batteries, filters, iPad, laptop, and hoops that hold your tripod. They range in size from small to fairly large, are made by many companies from LowePro, to Targus, to Canon and Nikon and prices can run from $40-$300.

3. Rollerbags - These are similar to the suitcases people use to travel by air, they hold your gear and have a telescoping handle with wheels on the bottom and you pull them behind you. They can hold 2-4 bodies, 4-8 lenses, memory cards, Speedlights, filters, laptop, iPad, tripod and other items. They usually have multiple pockets and compartments and vary in size. Again they are made by the usual camera luggage makers, LowePro, Targus, Canon, etc, and can run in price from $100-$500 depending on the size and materials they are made from. You can also buy special roller cases that will carry your studio lighting for you as well.

4. Briefcase - These cases are usually made of quality aluminum and have foam inserts to protect your gear. The inserts can be ordered custom cut for your gear, but that usually makes them more expensive, or pick and pull, which means the foam is perforated and you can pick and pull pieces out to make your own custom size pockets for your gear. The most common maker of these is Zero Halliburton and they run $200-$800.

5. Durable Plastic Trunk - These are usually make of high strength plastic and again have the pick and pull foam to custom cut your own compartments with your fingers. These are most commonly made by Pelican Cases and range in price from $129-$600 depending on the size. Recently, Pelican started making a version of their trunks that have the telescoping handle and rollers wheels so you can pull it behind you instead of carrying it like a foot locker. They also come with padlock ports on each end to keep your gear secure.

Of course any time you have to fly for a shoot I would recommend the Zero Halliburton aluminum cases or the Pelican ones as they are the toughest and can be stowed in the belly of the plane. Some pros prefer to carry they heavy gear in these cases and stow them but carry their actual body and lenses in a smaller carry-on bag like a backpack to keep them with them at all times and not risk the airline losing their gear en route to a shoot.





Comments/Questions

Sunday Spotlight On: What type of photographer are you?

Upon entering school some of us are already settled on what genre of photography that we want to go into. During the first week of class I see a lot of my peers take pride in how much they enjoy being a wedding photographer or a family photographer. Indeed their images are stunning to say the least but as class goes on, when we have to go outside of our comfort shooting genre, a lot of us may struggle. If not you, I will gladly raise my hand and admit to it.

Let’s think of photography this way. If all photographers had to work in a huge building (sort of like a hospital) then every photographer would probably have their own wing of the hospital. One side may be the Travel Photographer, the other side Family Photographer, Street Photographer and so forth. Then people could just go to the different areas and have their needs met. What people who are not photographers fail to understand is that not all photographers specialize in each others chosen field. Would a Pediatrician treat a patient who is in need of a root canal? An Obstetrician treat a patient who is in need of a heart transplant? Just because we dabbled in all styles of photography when we were in school does not mean that it is our specialty.

What you choose to specialize in is the area where you are the subject matter expert. While in school take time to apply what you have learned and give the material your best and then figure out what you are great at and then you can be the subject matter expert in more areas. 

If you hate people, Pet Photography may be the job for you.

If you like to look down on other photographers, then Satellite or Aerial Photography may be the job for you.

If you want to have fun in the sun and still get paid to do it then, Travel Photography may be the job for you.

If you do not like to talk much, then Underwater Photography may be the job for you.

If you like to eat, Food Photography may be the job for you.

If you like to run and stay in shape, Paparazzi may be the job for you.

No matter what your job is, be great at. Love it. Embrace it.

I am for Sunday Funday Ambassador. Happy shooting!

My Tanzania Photo Safari Experience

Giraffe, Southern Serengeti 2014

You may have noticed that I was not around to share the last two Friday posts via G+. This week I'd like to share a little of what I have been up to - an incredible two-week photo safari in East Africa! The following images were shot with my 70-200mm f/2.8 lens attached to my Nikon D700 and a 1.7x teleconverter in Tanzania. This gave me a total of 340mm to get closer to the animals. While some photographers bring longer lenses (I saw a few 600mm setups clamped to Land Cruisers), I found that this gear combination worked very well without breaking the bank or putting me over the 33-pound weight limit set by the small airlines that flew us from lodge to lodge. There were plenty of people shooting with just their camera phones, believe it or not! If you have any questions about the safari experience, I'd love to share what I learned. If you'd like to see more images, please be on the lookout for a larger gallery of images that I will be posting to my photography blog in the next few days. For now, please enjoy this selection of some of my favorites!

-Friday Ambassador

Baboon, Lake Manyara 2014

Cheetah, Southern Serengeti 2014

Elephant, Tarangire 2014

Lion Cubs, Southern Serengeti 2014

Zebra, Ngorongoro Crater 2014

Lioness, Southern Serengeti 2014

Escape with Travel Photography!

During this extremely cold bout of winter weather, I can't help but think back on times when the sun beat down on my face and I got to walk outside without snow boots up to my knees!  Photographs have that unique ability to transport us back to where we were the moment we snapped the shutter, evoking the sounds, scents, and emotions we experienced.  What better way to escape the chill outside than by talking about travel photography?  There are countless ways to approach the topic, so I would simply like to share some images that demonstrate what I look for when I shoot in a new place.

Isolate color.
Especially in tropical climates, vibrant colors can make for memorable images.  Sometimes a combination of many bright colors can make for an exciting scene, but finding more monochromatic compositions can be quite striking.  In the below image I wanted to give the viewer an impression of the vast amount of green in one of Curacao's national parks but needed a focal point.  The single blue-green cactus peeking out of the foliage broke up the composition just enough to give it interest.  Vivid yellows and greens make up the remainder of the scene, made more vibrant by the midday sun.

The lack of a vibrant color can bring a different mood to the scene, so don't be afraid to shoot in a seemingly bland environment or at dusk against the sun - you just might come away with a nice silhouette shot or a moody composition!  The curving dark horns of this wildebeest are a sharp contrast to the soft grasses surrounding it.  With the sun setting, the grasses took on the warm neutral tones that would otherwise have been pale beige.

Capture well-known landmarks in an unexpected way.
On a family trip to Venice, I captured plenty of typical shots in the Piazza S. Marco, but was hoping to find a way to make the scene my own.  Pigeons are an iconic part of the Piazza, so when I saw them bathing in and drinking from the puddles I focused my gaze downward.  The combination of the stone, pigeons, and dome let the viewer know where the image was taken in a more subtle way.



Find the locals.
The most interesting way to experience a new place, whether it is a Caribbean island or a town 30 miles away, is to find places where the locals go to enjoy their community.  Something as seemingly mundane as a farmer's market can feel exotic in another country, and including people in your shot adds instant interest!

Let your surroundings inspire and guide you!
You may be in a beautiful place, but the subject you wish to shoot is against a backdrop that will cause it to blend in.  The male lion below was almost the same color as his surroundings, so my best images were cropped in close.  This was not the best time for a wide shot because the lion would not have stood out.  I shot this at 200mm to crop out as much of his environment as possible (from a safe distance, of course) and then cropped just a bit more in post production.

When the environment is working in your favor for a wide shot, give the viewer perspective!  After days of searching for the elusive black rhinos, our guide spotted them in the distance as tiny, moving black spots.  This shot shows the severely endangered species in its natural environment, enjoying its expansive territory while protected by the park's security.  Eco-tourism and photo safaris help keep the animals protected, and sharing your images can show others why they are worth saving!  Keep in mind how you can use the environment, or remove it, to send a message or make a bigger impact.

What do you look for when you visit a new place with your camera?  Leave a comment and let us know!

-Friday Ambassador

Google+ for Photographers Part 1: Getting Started and Learning from the Pros

Social media is a convenient, free way to share your images with friends, family, other professionals, and potential clients.  One relatively new social media platform is Google+ (G+).  It has become a rather big hit with photographers because of the high image quality when sharing photographs.  With the changes to Flickr in the last year, many professionals flocked to G+ as an alternative for photo sharing and connecting with other photographers.  In today's post, I will go through the basics of setting up your G+ account, share helpful resources about navigating it, and tell you about a few photographers who really have a knack for making the most of the platform.  Next week I will share Part 2, which will focus on using G+ in a professional manner.

How to set up an account:

If you already have a Gmail account, this part is really easy!  Just click the grid on the top right side of your browser window when you are logged in, then click the red "g+" icon (see screen shot of grid and icons).  Google will guide you through this, encouraging you to add information to your profile and connect with others.  To create a brand new account complete with a new Gmail address, simply go to Google's account signup page and follow the steps.  There is also an option to sign up with an existing email account if you want to use an established, non-Gmail email address.

Why choose G+?

Colby Brown, author of Google+ for Photographers, succinctly describes what makes G+ unique: "Facebook is a closed network.  By that I mean that all of the information, content and interactions are kept inside Facebook.  This means that your absolute maximum reach on Facebook is limited to the network itself.  Google on the other hand is all about publicly indexing that content so that it is searchable on the Internet" (Colby Brown Photography).  G+ integrates Google's many features, from Gmail and Google Maps to the blog service used to create this post!  With the power of Google behind you, you can reach a wider audience through searches for the type of content you choose to post.  Remember this when you set up your profile with keywords appropriate to your target audience.  The profile page starts off with tiles that allow you to introduce yourself, which is what people will normally see when they click on your avatar:

Your home page will show content based on the people you follow and circles you create.  While you will see familiar features like the use of hashtags and the ability to give props to a post (here, you will click the "+1" button instead of a "like" button), the interface does take a little getting used to.  Following are resources that will help with just that!

Resources

Constant Contact provides a brief overview of terms, some of which will be familiar and others that Google created for G+.  This is a great place to start.

The Colby Brown blog post mentioned above is extremely helpful in providing an orientation to G+.  Learn about creating content and sharing with Circles, the benefits of Google's trusted content, and how you can use G+ hangouts here.

This post on Digital Photography School (DPS) details why G+ is so much better for posting images and networking with fellow photographers than other social media platforms out there.  It also suggests people to follow from the DPS site.

Photographers to follow

The best way to get started on G+ is to see how others have taken advantage of it.  Check out these photographers for education and inspiration, and take a look at the people they follow to see what inspires them.

Scott Kelby is an experienced photographer who you can spot on the sidelines at Super Bowls and learn from at workshops worldwide.  He posts regularly and shares tutorials, recent projects, and fun anecdotes that can help aspiring photographers stay motivated.

Darren Rowse is the man behind Digital Photography School, so you can bet his G+ content is instructive!

David LaSpina's travel photographs encompass so many genres: architecture, landscapes, street photography, and more!  His G+ posts are a great example of how you can seamlessly integrate mobile, film, and DSLR images while maintaining a recognizable style and brand.

Finally, of course, check out the PSPN G+ community and see the work of your current and former teachers, connect with other students, and view informative content shared by the faculty.

Do you have a favorite photographer or group to follow on G+?  If you have used the platform and enjoy it, what are some tips you have to help newbies dive in?  I would love to hear from you in the comments!  If you are new to G+, I hope this gives you a place to start.  Getting used to the interface and to posting content now will greatly help you when you want to start using it professionally.  Check back next week to see how G+ can help you market your business and connect with other professionals!

-Friday Ambassador

Works Cited:

Brandon, James. "Why Photographers Should Love Google." Digital Photography School RSS. Digital Photography School, 2013. Web. 12 Dec. 2013.

Brown, Colby. "Social Media for Photographers: Google."  Colby Brown Photography. Colby Brown Photography, 1 Nov. 2012. Web. 11 Dec. 2013.

Curtiss, Kristen. "Why Use Google Plus? A Quick Guide and Glossary to Google." Constant Contact Blogs. Constant Contact, 26 Nov. 2013. Web. 11 Dec. 2013.

Travel is Good for the Soul (and the portfolio)...

 

 

Saturday Ambassador

Travel is a remarkable teacher that enriches our lives by introducing new experiences and precipitating interaction with people, cultures and conditions that differ from what we encounter every day.

 

In 2008, I embarked upon a month-long excursion throughout China and Japan. The experience influenced my life in a number of ways: First, Asian cultures are very different from life in the United States. Rather than being a "rude American", I endeavored to learn some of the customs and even some of the language of the places to which I would travel, and respected that which is considered proper in those regions; I tried new foods and visited places where tourists rarely go in order to immerse myself in the culture; I photographed relentlessly and, subsequently, decided to pursue photography professionally.

 

Xi'an Dance-2, Deva Mayorga-Malone, 2008

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yangshuo, Deva Mayorga-Malone, 2008 (left); Guilin (Li Jiang),

Deva Mayorga-Malone  2008 (right)

 

While travel abroad is exciting and exotic, it is also expensive. Domestic travel can be every bit as interesting and educational, and it is far more convenient.

 

As a photographer, regardless of your chosen genre, it is imperative that step outside your comfortable living space so that you might better understand the people with whom you will be conducting business. Experience does not come from a book or a website, and certainly not from television. Rather, it comes from acting, doing, being and interacting within an unfamiliar environment.

 

As I have previously mentioned, I am an OTR truck driver; travel is my job. This country is home to some truly remarkable and unusual places, and I explore them at every opportunity.
 

South Rim Grand Canyon, Deva Mayorga-Malone, 2011

Lower LaBarge Box Trail (Arizona), Deva Mayorga-Malone, 2009

Take the time to travel to make your assignment submissions unique, to broaden your horizons and to achieve enlightenment. It will make you a more knowledgeable, creditable person, as well as a better photographer.

 

~Saturday Ambassador