What to Carry When Your Phone Isn’t Enough…

/ Richard R. Barron / 1 Comment

… but your cameras are too much.

Abby leans out the passenger-side window of her truck to take pictures of a brooding thunderstorm near Groom, Texas on our last vacation, with her Fujifilm HS30EXR.
Abby leans out the passenger-side window of her truck to take pictures of a brooding thunderstorm near Groom, Texas on our last vacation, with her Fujifilm HS30EXR.
In addition to making great video and very cool fisheye-angle stills, my Ion AirPro3 is waterproof to 50 meters.
In addition to making great video and very cool fisheye-angle stills, my Ion AirPro3 is waterproof to 50 meters.

Readers might recall from our travel blog that my wife Abby and I just returned from a New Mexico getaway. Fewer readers might be aware that despite being professional photographers with access to a fair amount of heavy pro gear, neither Abby nor I bring any of that.

For years now, Abby and I have embraced a doctrine of traveling light. Our goal is to have fun, and the less we can carry, the better. Whether for hiking and camping, or, like on our most recent trip, driving around exploring northern New Mexico, we have settled into having our matching Fujifilm HS30EXRs as our main cameras, with occasional help from my Ion AirPro3 action cam, my tiny but very apt Olympus FE-5020, and very occasionally, our iPhones.

Nothing about your gear is as important as your willingness to make pictures even in adverse conditions, like this New Mexico rainbow I shot in a blowing rain. You can ever see raindrops on the lens, but the message of the beauty of the moment is still conveyed.
Nothing about your gear is as important as your willingness to make pictures even in adverse conditions, like this New Mexico rainbow I shot in a blowing rain. You can ever see raindrops on the lens, but the message of the beauty of the moment is still conveyed.
The Olympus FE-5020 is smaller and lighter than a smartphone, and has a much better lens.
The Olympus FE-5020 is smaller and lighter than a smartphone, and has a much better lens.

Why would I go to a point-and-shoot like the Olympus instead of my iPhone? Quick answer: the lens. A dirty little secret of the camera phone scene is that the “zoom” doesn’t actually “zoom” at all, but simply crops the existing image. The Olympus has an excellent 4.3-21.5mm lens equivalent to 24-120mm (in 35mm film terms) that no phone can touch.

Also, aside from making action movies, why bring an action cam? Quick answer: the lens. My Ion’s lens sees 170º, and is the equivalent to a fisheye lens.

This image was made with my Ion AirPro3's still-frame function, shot with the camera clipped to the driver's-side visor. As you can see, the view is super-wide.
This image was made with my Ion AirPro3’s still-frame function, shot with the camera clipped to the driver’s-side visor. As you can see, the view is super-wide.

Our Fuji cameras are equipped with non-removable 4.2-126mm lenses equivalent to 24-720mm in film terms, allowing me to explore scenes like a sunset we shot near Santa Fe on our first travel day…

This is the wide view of a beautiful New Mexico sunset. Compare it to the next frame, made with the same camera just a second or two later...
This is the wide view of a beautiful New Mexico sunset. Compare it to the next frame, made with the same camera just a second or two later…
The sun touches the edge of the mountains in this super-telephoto view made with the Fujifilm HS30EXR.
The sun touches the edge of the mountains in this super-telephoto view made with the Fujifilm HS30EXR.
At the end of the day, I empty my pockets and dump everything on the motel night stand: it's all small and none of it gets in the way.
At the end of the day, I empty my pockets and dump everything on the motel night stand: it’s all small and none of it gets in the way.

Our Fuji cameras are no longer made, but Fuji’s current line of Finepix cameras is similar. Nikon makes a line they call their “premium compact” cameras. Canon makes Powershot cameras that are in this class.

Abby and I always travel with our dogs, and between checking in at motels, letting the dogs do their business at rest stops, bringing luggage here and there, and handling all our affairs, it makes a big difference having small, lightweight cameras. We also carry our smallest laptop computer (a Macbook Air), our smallest concealed carry sidearms (her Kel-Tec P32 and my Ruger LCP) and our smallest, most compact luggage. Fun is our goal, and with this philosophy, we always have it.

In addition to being fun, lightweight and easy to carry, gems like our matching HS30EXR cameras make great images.
In addition to being fun, lightweight and easy to carry, gems like our matching HS30EXR cameras make great images.

1 Comment

  1. I agree, though I’m still carrying plenty of heavy equipment and a bag full of lenses.

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