Packing for a trekking trip to India & Nepal
I’m heading off to India and Nepal, for two months of photography in early January but I have the same dilemma I always have when I travel. What camera system should I take?
As much as I don’t like to focus on the gear aspect of photography, because I feel there is already plenty of that on the internet, deciding on what sort of kit or quantity of kit to take on a major trip is an important decision.
The first question I’ve had to ask myself is this : what is it I intend to photograph, and for that, I already know the answer – people, shrines, temples and landscapes.
I learned a lesson a while back when I discovered that taking too many systems, caused too much conflict for me. One system tends to get overlooked for the other, and inevitably becomes a bit of a dead weight that I wished I’d hadn’t taken with me. One of the greatest constraints is portability. It’s really a burden to have discovered that the camera bag is a lot heavier than I thought, once I’ve been carrying it for a few hours. But it’s also frustrating to see images that I know I cannot capture because I don’t have the right lens with me and I come up against the same wall each time : compromise.
I think I’ve got it sussed this time. I will be taking my Mamiya 7 kit with a wide angle, standard and portrait lens in one little bag and that’s it. I’ve bought the same stock of film to use throughout the trip so I don’t get frustrated at having the wrong type of film in the camera at the wrong time. So I’ve settled on Portra 160NC, because:
- It’s a lovely people film. Skin tones are lovely
- It has fine grain and is a decent speed
- It’s also quite nice for landscapes
- It’s a negative film, so it’s latitude is a lot wider than slide film. It’s easier to scan and it’s also a lot kinder to higher contrast situations which are common in Nepal. The light is often extreme there.
But I think the most important thing for me was that If I were shooting digitally, I would miss the beautiful rich tones I get from Portra+medium format. It’s as simple as that.
So here is the complete list of what is in my bag for this trip:
- Mamiya 7II
- Mamiya 50mm wide angle (my favourite wide angle, equiv to 24mm in 35mm land)
- Mamiya 80mm (eqiuv to 40mm lens in 35mm land)
- Mamiya 150mm (equiv to 75mm lens in 35mm land)
- Sekonic L608 light meter (I don’t trust the Mamiya meter when using the wide angle as it’s essentially a spot meter)
- Lee full ND kit (2 & 3 stop hard / soft grads + full NDs + Circular 105mm polairser filter
- 100 rolls of Kodak Portra 160NC film
- Manfrotto monopod (for indoor or shaded shots)
- Gitzo 1220 tripod (for landscape shots)
- Lowe Pro Stealth Reporter DW400 shoulder bag
I wonder what you found the most surprising in this list? It sounds like there is a lot, but it’s quite compact and well below the carry on requirements. Having one system means I remain focused on using that system. Having the same film means I don’t have to worry about changing ISO on the camera too (I know this sounds ridiculous, but I like to cut down as much chance of error as I can).Most folk tend to go for backpacks for their camera gear. I’ve lost count of how many bags I own at home and not one of them is ideal. I have backpacks but in general I really loathe them and here are my list of reasons:
- Every time I want to take a photo, I have to take the bag off my back and open it on the floor. It does not give me immediate access.
- Backpacks encourage me to carry more than I should
- Using a shoulder bag means I have access (through a zip in the roof of the bag) to it’s contents. I can do this while on the move or in confined spaces where there is a lot of bustle going on
- A shoulder bag encourages me to cut down the amount of gear I take. There is no space for a ‘just in case’ lens or something that may not get used. Because the shoulder bag has to be light, it is inevitably as comfortable as a backback is.
- I’ve had things spill out of a backpack that hasn’t been zipped up fully. I don’t have to worry about that with a shoulder bag.
All these ideals and thoughts are purely my take on things and I’m sure everyone has come up with their own way of packing for a trip. I want to be comfortable while I’m away and free to do what I want to do, which is immerse myself in the pursuit of photography.
ps. I’m still on the look out for a 65mm lens (great for street scenes), so my wee bag may get a bit bigger yet.
What I found interesting and yet wasn’t surprising was the Sekonic L608. I guess I didn’t visulize you using a hand held meter, especially for people photography. Yet it does make sense as I keep an older Sekonic for those situations when the lighting might fool my meter. Otherwise I like your choice of lens.
As for my DSLR I keep just one lens, on one of my two that I have, that basically covers the same range that your three does and it has become my basic all purpose lens; at my age I need to go light with the equipment for walking around. Otherwise, looks like you made good choices of your equipment.
May God bless your trip and I do look forward to seeing what you come back with.
Comment by gc — 19 November, 2008 @ 10:42 pm
Sorry, I should point out that for people photography I use the Mamiya’s built in meter – I normally have the 80mm lens on the camera and the meter behaves in an evaluative mode. I seldom photography people with the wide angle. So the hand held meter is for checking dynamic range of a landscape and placement of zone V within it.
Comment by Bruce Percy — 19 November, 2008 @ 11:19 pm
This system really “fits” to your style, but what was really surprising for me is that you are not even thinking to take second body with you? I still can’t trust so much in one camera to go out for 2 months without one more body “just in case”.
I really like to have less than 35 kilos on my back on a trek, but still – I can ever fit one more camera-body with me on a long travel.
Good Luck out there!
Comment by Vladimir Donkov — 20 November, 2008 @ 12:22 am
On most of my trips, I’ve not had a backup body, as much as I’ve considered it in the past. On the rare occasion when i’ve taken a second system as a sort of backup – it’s never been used.
There is very little that can go wrong with the Mamiya 7 body, but I have had a 150mm lens jam up on me, and it was due to a screw being loose (due to travelling on rough ground). But yes, I am considering a spare body, but that would be packed away in my main rucsack. 2nd hand prices for Mamiya 7 Kit seem to have reached an all time high. I’ve never seen it that expensive before.
Comment by Bruce Percy — 20 November, 2008 @ 12:29 am
I will also take a backup body for ‘just in case’. Otherwise all the best and have great fun and safe trip.
We are also in India from January 5th to 30th, but I will be stuck at home.
Comment by paintingwithlight — 25 November, 2008 @ 9:08 am
Does this mean you’re not taking any Velvia 50 with you Bruce?
Comment by mike — 26 November, 2008 @ 3:16 pm
Hi Mike,
Probably so. It comes down to compromise and what you think you’ll be shooting most of the time. I think India and Nepal will be mostly people shots, urban scenes and extreme light – none of which suit Velvia. Of course, I could take some velvia with me for those landscape moments, but it’s frustrating having to change mid roll. Compromise is always the issue, and not giving yourself too many options to hang yourself with ;-)
Comment by Bruce Percy — 26 November, 2008 @ 3:22 pm
It is remarkable how many photographers (or my case, wannabe photographers) have stacks and stacks of bags. Surely this must indicate that so far, none of the manufacturers have really cracked it. Ironically, my favourite is actually one I got free from Olympus, although the “EXPENSIVE OLYMPUS GEAR INSIDE” logo is a bit of a drawback.
My problem is that I tend to for ultra wide or long shots, not often the middle ground. Back in the days where I pretty much just used my XPan, I could fit the body and the 3 lenses (even if I rarely used the 45mm) in a waist bag. A small one. Now, having “upgraded” to digital, I end up with a backpack that makes me look like a clown.
Have a good trip Bruce. And avoid Mumbai.
Comment by David Mantripp — 28 November, 2008 @ 7:32 pm
Saludos
Es fantástico comprobar su forma de trabajo, me pareció todo un descubrimiento las fotos y los trabajos con sus comentarios, me anima mucho para seguir trabajando igual en analógico con medio formato, gracias por todo y felicidades. Como decimos en mi tierra gallega. Saludiños.
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pardon for my bad English first.
Greetings
It is fantastic way to verify his work, I found an entire discovery photos and works with his comments, I am very encouraged to continue working in the same half with analog format, thanks for everything and congratulations. As we say in my land Galicia. Saludiños.
Comment by ANGELSOTELO — 26 December, 2008 @ 3:40 pm