A Practical Nature Photography Hiking Setup

[DrJohn]

Some people have difficulty hiking miles though the wilderness with heavy photographic equipment. They also don’t want to change lenses in the field for wildlife and for landscape photography, especially when it is windy. Therefore, two cameras would be ideal. One with the 70-300 mm lens and one with a 24 mm prime lens. Lenses larger than 300 mm will be much heavier and difficult to carry on long hikes. There are limits of how much weight can be carried comfortably on the shoulder and on the waist. Many many hours of trial and error produced the recommendations below. There are hundreds of cameras, lenses, cases, and configurations. Below is one configuration. Many substitutions can be made depending upon the user’s preference. Furthermore, many photographers want to keep their equipment protected from tree branches in the wilderness and therefore want to carry them in a case.

1. Sling Pack. The easiest way to carry a heavy camera and lens is with a backpack with wide and padded shoulder straps. However, backpacks don’t provide quick access to the camera. Sling packs with a wide and padded shoulder straps are second best. The Lowepro Slingshot SL 250 AW III Camera Bag (1.5 pounds) is comfortable and provides fairly quick access to the camera. Note, this sling pack is made to sling over the right shoulder with access to the camera on the left side. Most manufactures make sling packs that sling over the left shoulder with access to the camera on the right side. This is a personal choice. A Sony A1 with 70-300 mm lens (3.5 pounds) plus accessories (1.5 pounds) are put into the sling pack. The total weight is 6.5 pounds.

2. Waist pack. There are many different waist packs available for camera equipment. The Think Tank Photo Pro Speed Belt V3.0 (modified) (0.6 oz) and Think Tank Photo SKIN CHANGER POP DOWN V3.0 (9.6 oz) will provide enough space for a small camera (Sony A7C with 24 mm prime lens) (18 oz) and a 9 ounce hot/cold bottle with hot or cold liquid (17.0 oz). The total weight is 45.2 oz (2.8 pounds).

Think Tank Photo Pro Speed Belt V3.0 modifications. The speed belt normally uses quick connect buckles with metal keepers in the adjusting mechanism. It takes a considerable amount of time to make the adjustment, which may be often as different clothing and jackets may be used. However, the belt does provide a significant amount of cushioning. This author cut off the buckle and short nylon strip that attaches to the buckle. Then, used a 1.5 inch wide nylon web belt. The web belt was attached to the Think Tank belt with 0.75” wide velcro strips connected to the molle loops on the Think Tank belt. The belt can now be adjusted quickly and easily while providing good cushioning.

John

 

[MrFotoFool]

Interesting recommendations. I love Think Tank, and not just because it was co-founded by one of my high school classmates (we were co-captains of our track team). I have their sling bag which is convenient for short term use, though for long term I find it the one shoulder gets tired and a backpack is more comfortable. I have never tried a waist pack or belt system, as it intuitevly seems uncomfortable and/or unable to carry enough equipment. But I have not personally tried it, so I cannot say for sure. Maybe you are onto something? For me a backpack is the way to go (or a sling bag for a light short distance setup), but I would be interested to see what others find useful.

Since we are discussing bags, my smaller backpack is ThinkTank Streetwalker Pro and my larger backpack is MindShift FirstLight 30L (MindShift is distributed by ThinkTank).

 

[DrJohn]

I would be interested to know how many people prefer the camera access on the left side and how many on the right side.

John

 

[Landshark99]

I have used Think Tank sling bags more for city use than in the wild, for camera setup in the wild I like one camera with either the 70-200 or 100-400 and the other usually with a 24-70 with a Think Tank shoulder bag

 

[Brownie]

This is very odd, @Timothy Mayo. This thread shows up in the forum list under 'Wildlife', but it does not show up in the recent posts, or if you click the wildlife forum link.

As to the subject at hand, I had a Thinktank Turnstyle sling for a while but eventually changed to a Tenba Solstice. The bag is far more accessible when opened than the Thinktank. I prefer a sling for walks and traveling as light as possible and would rarely carry a second body. A single body with two lenses, if E-Mount that day the 24-105 and Sigma 100-400 would be the choices. If A-Mount is the order of business, then the Minolta Maxxum 28-135 or 35-105 along with the Minolta Maxxum 100-400.

Sometimes I'll go for a short nature walk at lunchtime and then I just carry a camera and single lens, whatever I feel like for the day. I use a Peak Design Cuff with no strap or bag.

If I were ever to venture into the woods to sit and wait for animals to appear, the 200-600 would be first choice. And since I'd be sitting rather than walking, I may consider a second body with the 24-105.

 

[Tim Mayo]

This is very odd, @Timothy Mayo. This thread shows up in the forum list under 'Wildlife', but it does not show up in the recent posts, or if you click the wildlife forum link.

It was first posted on Oct 20th so it's a little old to show up under recent posts. I can see it under the wildlife forum link.

 

[Brownie]

It was first posted on Oct 20th so it's a little old to show up under recent posts. I can see it under the wildlife forum link.

That's the only place I can see it. If you click the wildlife forum heading, it doesn't show up. The new posts from yesterday should have moved it to the top of that list, as well as the recent posts list, no? There's another one behaving the same way.

 

[Tim Mayo]

That's the only place I can see it. If you click the wildlife forum heading, it doesn't show up. The new posts from yesterday should have moved it to the top of that list, as well as the recent posts list, no? There's another one behaving the same way.

Which link are you clicking exactly? If I click wildlife in the breadcrumbs trail the post shows up, or if I click from the homepage. It won't show up in recent threads because of the older creation date, but it will show in the recent posts (in the sidebar) because the thread has new posts/replies. I can see it there.

 

[Brownie]

Which link are you clicking exactly? If I click wildlife in the breadcrumbs trail the post shows up, or if I click from the homepage. It won't show up in recent threads because of the older creation date, but it will show in the recent posts (in the sidebar) because the thread has new posts/replies. I can see it there.

That's what I'm talking about.

It DOES show up on the main forums page as the most recent post in Wildlife.

It does not show up in the Wildlife forum when I click on Wildlife.

It does not show up in the 'latest posts' list.

 

[Tim Mayo]

That's what I'm talking about.

It DOES show up on the main forums page as the most recent post in Wildlife.

It does not show up in the Wildlife forum when I click on Wildlife.

It does not show up in the 'latest posts' list.

Strange. It shows up for me in the wildlife forum when I click on wildlife. Could you send me a screenshot? If you click on What's New then is also shows up there. It doesn't show under new posts though, I think this should probably be titled "new threads" instead, as that's what it's showing.

 

[Tim Mayo]

That's what I'm talking about.

It DOES show up on the main forums page as the most recent post in Wildlife.

It does not show up in the Wildlife forum when I click on Wildlife.

It does not show up in the 'latest posts' list.

I hadn't noticed before but it looks like there's a default filter applied that only displays posts you haven't read. Do you have this enabled?

 

[Brownie]

I hadn't noticed before but it looks like there's a default filter applied that only displays posts you haven't read. Do you have this enabled?

View attachment 27972

No filters are enabled. I sent a PM with 3 snips showing what we've discussed.