Gear Geek-out
Ok, a brief gear geek-out. When I am heading out and I think that I might need/want photo gear, or I am heading out on a street/night type of shoot, I will bring the following:
5DMK2 | 24-70L 2.8 | 85 1.8 | Pocket Wizards | SB-800 FLASH | MAUDIO MicroTrack Recorder (record audio separately!) | AT Stereo Mic | Hot Shoe Adapter | Gel Sampler Pack (perfect size for small flashes) | Sync Chords | Gaff Tape
Next, how to transport it. I know that doesn’t seem like a big deal, but it matters. You don’t want to be limited by either a lack or glut of equipment, nor do you want to be worried that if it gets stolen out of your car, you are going to be ruined. It is part of envisioning and executing a successful plan. So, for that, I want to briefly further digress into a bag geek-out:
I currently own three photography bags:
PELICAN 1510 (perfect for traveling in less than ideal conditions and for the abuse it can take)
THINKTANK Airport Addicted (perfect for airplane overhead compartments and ease of transport)
LOWEPRO PhotoRunner (totally non-descriptive and holds a ton relative to its size)
I am obsessed with transporting as much gear as I can get away with carrying… I love to pack and repack my gear to find those perfect combinations for gigs. I have rearranged the dividers in all of my bags so many times it just isn’t funny. Seriously, I have a problem. When I was in Cambodia with VII, Gary Knight kept saying that his ultimate goal in packing is to be able to carry, at all times, everything that he has brought with him. Clothes, cameras, everything. I keep that in the back of my mind on every shoot :)
I will always pack my PhotoRunner into one of the other bags to bring with me because, once you get on location, you often (amazingly) find that you don’t need as much gear as you actually brought. It is a great little “bare essentials” kind of bag and makes for a perfect incognito walking around solution. I still intend on popping the “lowepro” off of the bag just because that is the only indication that a camera is contained within and, especially on the street, I don’t really care to advertise that fact.
All that to say, every piece of that gear listed above fits into this LOWEPRO PhotoRunner. It is a wonderfully small, over the shoulder, on the fly, fanny-pack sized bag:
