WORK IN PROGRESS…
The first capable camera I owned at 17 (1988) was an amazing Pentax K1000. Although this was an excellent camera in its day, it was not very forgiving, as all settings were manual and I had a basic camera knowledge. I do wish I had a Digital Camera to capture our adventures all those years ago. However, there is something about those old photos that makes them even more special, even the poor quality ones.
Jumping forward to today we are blessed with amazing technology. The challenge now is how to pack and carry it. Our typical travel packing comprises of hand luggage and foregoing hold baggage. The main reasons are to reduce wait times at airports, reduce risk of lost luggage and the extra burden of lugging large bags on trips. See Yvonne’s tips of packing light for more information Packing light!
The old saying still very true “the best camera is the one you have with you”, and with today’s smart phones the majority of us have amazing cameras in our pockets all the time.
I have recently purchased the iPhone 11 having upgraded from the iPhone 6s. With this jump I now feel that I can for go my dedicated cameras 99% of the time.
The 1% exception are where I either need a decent zoom, very long exposure shots such as the northern lights. If you want to print good quality then prints up to 72 x 48cm size is ok, above this you will likely find the iPhone with it’s 12 megapixel sensor just is not going to cut it. If your good with using post processing software then you are likely to be able to extend the print size somewhat.
See the following site for info https://www.cameracompany.com/blog/how-large-can-you-print-iphone-photos/. Another factor will be the quality of the printing company, so check reviews.
I have two great dedicated cameras which serve me very well below and I discuss the pros & cons of whether to pack each item:
Canon 70d DSLR + lenses 12mm-24mm, 50mm, 18-250mm
Pros –
Excellent quality photos with great broken capabilities, good long zoom capability with 300mm lens. My best camera for low light photos given the 4/3 image sensor. (Add link). Although I am yet to test the Panasonic LX15 in low light, this is the camera I have been using for taking my Northern Lights and Milky Way photos.
Cons –
The size and weight are the biggest issues, to take the camera and lenses I need a small backpack alone. Also having to swap lenses is a hassle. I realistically can only take this camera when taking hold luggage or a UK trip where I can drive.
Panasonic LX15 – 24-72mm
Pros –
It’s compact and light weight with excellent quality photos with good broken capability. It has reasonable low light capability, but not as close to the Canon’s. Although I use my GoPro for video mainly, I do use the Panasonics great 4k video capability when I need some zoom and broken capability.
Cons –
The zoom capability is the only issue, if you are looking for a camera where you need to zoom in close, like wildlife photography, then this isn’t the camera.
GoPro Hero 6 and Hero session 5
Pros –
Ultra-compact photo and video with ultra wide camera angle, it has a decent 12mp image sensor as my iPhone 6s and 4k video. But being more durable and waterproof its ideal for action video. The hero 6 has a much improved video stabilisation than the session 5. This is my “must have” for capturing underwater video, but also great for mounting to the car.
Cons –
Very poor low light capability and no optical zoom.
You will find that on our blog we have mainly used my wife’s camera which is a compact Sony HX60V which is an amazing camera for it’s price (Sub £200). Although it has a small image sensor the big advantage is the 30x zoom lens which has produced some amazing photos.
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