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Travel Photography Tips
(2)
B.
Choosing Equipment & Film
Although it's true to say that it's the photographer and
not their equipment that really matters, you still need
to have the right tools for the job. You can produce decent
photos with a compact point-and-shoot camera, but don't
expect them to make the front cover of a magazine. Work
out what you want to get from travel photography and budget
accordingly.
35mm SLR (single lens reflex) cameras
are the most versatile and appropriate for most forms of
travel photography. Medium format (120 roll film) cameras
are serious alternatives – better in terms of physical
image quality (more film area per frame) but indiscreet,
heavy, expensive and not suited to more demanding travelling
conditions. Unless holiday snaps represent the most you
want to get from your photography then steer clear of APS
(Advance Photo System) cameras – image size being only
60% of a 35mm frame.
Select
a photographic kit that suits your needs - ideally as lightweight
and mobile as priorities allow. Most serious travel photographers
take at least two 35mm camera bodies with them. A back-up
is always an important consideration, and many choose a
manual option that doesn't rely on batteries for anything
more than powering the internal lightmeter.
The choice of lenses is according to personal preference
although the requirements of landscape, portrait and wildlife
photography generally differ. For many years, I used simply
3 lenses - a 24mm, 85mm, and 135mm.
Wildlife photography is a little more
demanding on both your shoulders and pocket and a decent
300mm (perhaps coupled with a good 1.4x teleconveter) would
be considered a minimum requirement for the task of getting
in on the action (without getting eaten !)
Whilst on the subject of equipment,
Hasselblad and Fuji produce rangefinder type cameras which
take interchangeable lenses and shoot both standard and
panoramic images on 35mm film. Fuji also produce a range
of slightly bulkier medium format cameras. Like the legendary
Leica rangefinders, the lack of an internal mirror, as used
to provide through-the-lens viewfinders on 35mm SLR’s,
keeps the cameras bulk down whilst also making them quiet
in operation.
Consider
taking a tripod - even a compact, lightweight model can
be put to good use for low-light and landscape photography.
(They can prove useful in other ways - e.g. as a mosquito
net support, anti-dog device or simple clothes horse.) If
you would still rather not pack a tripod (I've got away
with it on a number of occasions), learn to improvise by
taking advantage of trees, walls, posts, or anything you
can steady the camera against. Even using your daypack as
a maleable platform can yield good results, especially when
used in conjunction with the self timer.
Use screw on skylight 1B or UV filters
on lenses to protect them from scratches. These filters
will also take some of the brunt of a fall away from the
lens itself if dropped (the filter breaking instead).
Film
When it comes to deciding on film there are a few basic
considerations that narrow the choice. Colour print film
is very forgiving and provides excellent results if photographic
prints are your ultimate aim. Most magazine and book editors
however continue to demand transparencies (slide film) so
if you want to get published there is little option but
to use slide film. Photojournalists supplying images to
major daily newspapers commonly use negative (print) film
but are increasingly adopting digital equipment as it eliminates
the need for processing and allows immediate electronic
transfer. Documentary photographers commonly shoot both
black and white, and slide film.
Use
the slowest (lowest rated) film speed (ASA) you can manage
for the highest quality in reproduction. Fuji’s 50ASA
Velvia (colour slide film) is highly regarded and offers
immensely rich colour saturation. To use such a fast film
you will need clear, bright conditions, and fast lenses
in anything less than this. Faster 100ASA films offer more
flexibility and suit most situations, and 400ASA film in
lower light levels still, such as overcast conditions.
Deciding how much film to take is
of course dependent on how many frames you intend to shoot.
Base this on expectations and double it. Skimping on film
when you’ve dragged you and your equipment half way
around the globe is a nonsense. And to put things into perspective,
most National Geographic photographers use hundreds of rolls
of film per week.
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