Do you travel with all your gear?

Alex wrote: I had the opportunity to speak with a new PT member today "John C." who is heading up to his cabin with family and fishing in Colorado this week.  Sounds like fun right?!  

This had me thinking about our upcoming trip to Hawaii.  And for some reason I started to chuckle about how much gear I use to carry with me while traveling.  And these weren't for gigs, I'm talking just vacations.  Man, I would bring just about everything I could.  My Think Tank Airport Security would be FULL, and when I say full... I mean you couldn't fit another micro fiber cloth in it!  LOL.   Oh, and the kicker?  I can remember MANY (who am I kidding, MOST) trips, where nothing but one camera, and one lens got used.  

While other trips, I felt obligated to use a flash, or one of a half dozen other lenses, or what ever that was in there.  Just so I mentally could say,... heck... "I used stuff".  As if to sell my self that I really needed to break my back lugging all this stuff with me.  

Fast forward to today.  Stream line and lean and mean.  Our upcoming Hawaii trip, I'm bringing one camera: Sony A6300 and two lenses.  That is it!  LOL.. don't ask me on which lenses I'm bringing.  

I've shared my story, do you have a similar history with what you bring with you today vs 5 or 10 years ago? 

Post up, let's hear your story!  

I usually know what i'm trying to accomplish and only bring the right tools for the job.

Wife & I will be headed to Hawaii also come September. Our nephew & his wife just got back from Kauai last week. He shoots Canon & while he took 6 lenses for his Canon EOS 5D Mark III, he only used 3. That is what I was thinking of taking, covering from 17 to 200mm. I was going to take my Olympus OM D-M10, but I've only got base lenses for it & few accessories (like CPL & ND filters). They are back in Southern California now where he has a photo business (In the Barrel Photography)

Scotty wrote:

Alex wrote: I had the opportunity to speak with a new PT member today "John C." who is heading up to his cabin with family and fishing in Colorado this week.  Sounds like fun right?!  

This had me thinking about our upcoming trip to Hawaii.  And for some reason I started to chuckle about how much gear I use to carry with me while traveling.  And these weren't for gigs, I'm talking just vacations.  Man, I would bring just about everything I could.  My Think Tank Airport Security would be FULL, and when I say full... I mean you couldn't fit another micro fiber cloth in it!  LOL.   Oh, and the kicker?  I can remember MANY (who am I kidding, MOST) trips, where nothing but one camera, and one lens got used.  

While other trips, I felt obligated to use a flash, or one of a half dozen other lenses, or what ever that was in there.  Just so I mentally could say,... heck... "I used stuff".  As if to sell my self that I really needed to break my back lugging all this stuff with me.  

Fast forward to today.  Stream line and lean and mean.  Our upcoming Hawaii trip, I'm bringing one camera: Sony A6300 and two lenses.  That is it!  LOL.. don't ask me on which lenses I'm bringing.  

I've shared my story, do you have a similar history with what you bring with you today vs 5 or 10 years ago? 

Post up, let's hear your story!  

I usually know what i'm trying to accomplish and only bring the right tools for the job.

Scotty, Scotty... come on bud.  You just gave the perfect answer of what you SHOULD do.  Have you ever brought more gear than that you needed on a vacation?  

Screamin Scott wrote: Wife & I will be headed to Hawaii also come September. Our nephew & his wife just got back from Kauai last week. He shoots Canon & while he took 6 lenses for his Canon EOS 5D Mark III, he only used 3. That is what I was thinking of taking, covering from 17 to 200mm. I was going to take my Olympus OM D-M10, but I've only got base lenses for it & few accessories (like CPL & ND filters). They are back in Southern California now where he has a photo business (In the Barrel Photography)

Hey Scott... you going to be in So Cal any time soon?

My wife & I will likely stop over on our way to Hawaii in September. My Sister in Law & her husband will be moving to Carlsbad in July/August. They just closed on a condo out there this month. Gonna be different visiting them out there as opposed to South Florida.

Camera body and usually 2-3 lenses and one flash 

When I first got started I would bring all my stuff with me.  I have to say, I'm pretty much the same these days.  I bring the bare minimum.  

1 body + 1 lens, that is all I bring with me.  

As the years run down, I travel less.  Thus pack more gear than ever.  As each visit is very likely my last visit to that location.

ohwell

As at this point in time I only have the 1 camera body and 4 lens, so I guess I would still take all with me. 

However I do need to invest in a new tripod as my last one just broke.

I learned the hard way, usually packing a half ton of gear I never used. Now, a body and a couple zooms if planning to fly then hike, much more gear if driving....

Not even close! One body and a couple of lenses is all for me.

Alex wrote:

Scotty wrote:

Alex wrote: I had the opportunity to speak with a new PT member today "John C." who is heading up to his cabin with family and fishing in Colorado this week.  Sounds like fun right?!  

This had me thinking about our upcoming trip to Hawaii.  And for some reason I started to chuckle about how much gear I use to carry with me while traveling.  And these weren't for gigs, I'm talking just vacations.  Man, I would bring just about everything I could.  My Think Tank Airport Security would be FULL, and when I say full... I mean you couldn't fit another micro fiber cloth in it!  LOL.   Oh, and the kicker?  I can remember MANY (who am I kidding, MOST) trips, where nothing but one camera, and one lens got used.  

While other trips, I felt obligated to use a flash, or one of a half dozen other lenses, or what ever that was in there.  Just so I mentally could say,... heck... "I used stuff".  As if to sell my self that I really needed to break my back lugging all this stuff with me.  

Fast forward to today.  Stream line and lean and mean.  Our upcoming Hawaii trip, I'm bringing one camera: Sony A6300 and two lenses.  That is it!  LOL.. don't ask me on which lenses I'm bringing.  

I've shared my story, do you have a similar history with what you bring with you today vs 5 or 10 years ago? 

Post up, let's hear your story!  

I usually know what i'm trying to accomplish and only bring the right tools for the job.

Scotty, Scotty... come on bud.  You just gave the perfect answer of what you SHOULD do.  Have you ever brought more gear than that you needed on a vacation?  

Not that I can remember.    

As you have undoubtedly noticed, the airlines are using luggage weight to get more money out of us, especially on international flights. Returning from Paris, they (Air France) gouged me by springing a requirement to weigh my carry-ons- both of them, and demanding payment if I didn't want one of them to go steerage. That's a deterrent to heavy packing from now on...No more taking my pet lenses along, just in case...

Depends on where I'm going and how long