Preparation before leaving is the most important thing!
Since it is a trip, especially for those who like photography, the preparation before going out will be different from ordinary tourists. But for novices, it is often because of insufficient preparation that affects the shooting during travel.
The first thing a photographer should prepare is photography equipment. Users of card cameras, mirrorless cameras and SLR cameras are different when preparing equipment. But there is one thing in common. Fully charge the camera’s battery and bring enough memory cards.
There is no need to explain the full charge. It is important to bring enough memory cards. If your memory card can record 1000 photos, and you can take about 300 photos a day, then during your trip, your memory card can only be used for more than 3 days. What if your trip is 5 days? So you have to bring enough memory cards. The photo records during the journey are very important. They are all memories of the future. It is not a big deal to buy more memory cards.
After talking about the common points, let’s talk about the differences. The card camera user actually has nothing else to prepare. If there is, it is to carry a portable tripod, which can take pictures of night scenes.
For micro-single users, although more than 85% of people buy a single-lens kit, 15% of users can choose to bring multiple lenses. After all, the micro-single lens is very light. This can increase the chance of shooting more types of images.
Among SLR users, the situation is just the opposite. Most users have 2 or more lenses, which they can carry as appropriate during the journey. Why is it appropriate? Because the SLR lens is very heavy and it is not convenient to carry. If there is not much shooting demand, only a lens with a large zoom ratio can be carried, such as a focal length of 24-70mm. If you have a lot of shooting needs, take it with you as appropriate, remember to carry it on your own, don’t haul it, you may be broken.
Whether you are a mirrorless or SLR user, whether you carry accessories such as tripods, filters, and shutter releases depends on the photos you take during your travels.
If you take pictures almost during the day, you can choose your favorite filter as appropriate, or not. Both the tripod and the cable release can be discarded.
If you like to shoot night scenes, and mainly in the city, then you need to carry a reliable tripod. If you like to shoot the starry sky, especially the stacking or time-lapse shooting technique, then both the tripod and the shutter release should be carried. Users who support the interval shooting function do not need the shutter release.
For the preparatory work for taking pictures before going out, that’s probably it. In addition, I suggest that if you have the ability, you should bring a laptop and related card readers, and you must back up your photos every day. Photo data security is the most important!
If your camera has been used for a while and you are familiar with the current settings, there is no need to change the parameters before going out. If it is someone else’s camera, then it is necessary to change to the parameters that you are familiar with.
First of all, the most important part is the size of the photo. In order to let you get a more delicate picture, we recommend that you use the highest pixel of the camera. Generally, small-size photos are mainly used in the news industry. In order to quickly upload images, when you are traveling, the larger the photo, the better, so that the recorded details are rich enough.
There have been many years of staging settings for RAW and JPG format photos. If you take photos for your own memory, just shoot in JPG format, which reduces the pressure on storage. The photo data capacity of JPG format is smaller.
If you have to perform post-processing on the photos every time you come back, then choose the RAW format, because the RAW format is for post-production. But this increases the storage pressure.
The other settings are mainly metering, white balance, photo style, etc. Since everyone is not a professional photographer, there is no need to take such accurate photos and record travel. Therefore, it is recommended that you use evaluative metering or global metering, automatic white balance and standard photo style.
But as for the photo style, many people like bright colors, and many people like portraits. It varies from person to person. You can use whichever you like.
There is also the problem of focus and camera mode. For ordinary users, the camera mode can choose a single shot, because people rarely use countdown shooting or continuous shooting, high-speed continuous shooting mode. The focus part, of course, is definitely auto focus, but the number of focus points selected by each person will be different.
Many users like to use multi-point focus, which is relatively easy to focus, but if you want to focus on a specific position, it may not be accurate.
The commonly used parameters of aperture, shutter, ISO, and exposure compensation must not be set in the early stage of travel, because these parameters are automatically judged by the camera during the journey, or you can know what you want before you press the shutter. What are the parameters.
Let’s take a handheld camera as an example, let’s talk briefly about the impact of the four parameters of aperture, shutter, ISO and exposure compensation on the picture:
The larger the aperture, the smaller the aperture value, the greater the blur effect of the picture;
The smaller the aperture, the larger the aperture value, the smaller the image blur effect;
The faster the shutter, the smaller the shutter value, the darker the picture;
The slower the shutter, the larger the shutter value, the brighter the picture;
The higher the ISO, the higher the ISO value, which requires dim ambient light and more image noise;
The lower the ISO, the smaller the ISO value, which requires strong ambient light and less image noise;
The higher the exposure compensation, the larger the exposure compensation value and the brighter the picture;
The lower the exposure compensation, the smaller the exposure compensation value, and the darker the picture.
For users of card cameras and fixed-lens cameras, you can ignore this part. For users of entry-level mirrorless and single-lens reflex cameras, in fact, everyone usually buys a set, and only a few users will buy a second or more mirrorless lens, so you can ignore this part of the content.
For mirrorless and SLR camera users who have a second or more lens, you have more options for the focal length of the lens during your travel, so I will give you a simple analysis of which type of lens is suitable for going out. Of course, if you have good physical strength, you can carry all the lenses every time you go out. If it is not too heavy, it is definitely the best solution.
Generally speaking, the scenery is changeable and complicated during the journey, so using a zoom lens will definitely be more convenient than a fixed focus lens. However, while the focal length is convenient, it also sacrifices the size of the aperture. For example, carrying a 24-105mm F4 lens, the focal length and shooting must be easier and more convenient than a 50mm F1.2 lens, but the disadvantage of the aperture is obvious. So when choosing a fixed focus or a zoom lens, you will definitely sacrifice some performance, depending on whether you need a more comprehensive focal length or a larger aperture.
In terms of focal length, because everyone’s travel destination is different, the focal length chosen will be very different. If you are going to scenic spots such as vast prairies and large deserts, then carrying a medium to telephoto lens will be able to take more beautiful pictures, such as 24-70mm, 70-200mm, 100-400mm or other telephoto fixed focus Any focal length is fine.
If the scenery of the whole journey is changeable, from the city to the nature, in order to reduce the weight, it is better to carry an easy-to-use middle focal length lens or “one mirror to walk the world”, such as 24-120mm, 28-300mm, etc. Wait. If you visit more cities, especially in small Europe, you can consider carrying a wide-angle lens. It is easier to take pictures and can also take a complete picture of the building, such as 16-35mm, 14-24mm, 35mm, etc.
Which lens to carry, you must first understand what kind of scenery your travel destination is, and then choose a lens with a suitable focal length and a suitable aperture according to your favorite photo needs, so that you can take more beautiful photos during your trip , But also exercise and improve their photography skills.
During the trip, depending on the destination, the camera environment and weather you may encounter are very different, but the protection of the equipment is actually such a few points, waterproof, antifreeze, moisture, dust, and drop. How to prevent it depends on what type of destination you are.
If you come to tropical and rainforest-rich areas, you should pay attention to waterproof and moisture-proof. Such as Xinmatai, Mexico, such as Hainan Province and so on. The air humidity in these places is high and the probability of precipitation is high. The hotels where everyone lives are almost all air-conditioned rooms. When you move from indoors to the outdoors, the camera and lens will fog up. Do not turn on the camera at this time. Wait for the camera to adapt to the outside humidity and the fog to dissipate before using it.
Waterproofing is to prevent rain from entering on the one hand, and to prevent the camera from falling into the water on the other. If it’s drizzle or light rain, ordinary cameras and lenses can handle it. If it is moderate rain, heavy rain, heavy rain, typhoon, or hurricane, I suggest you stop taking pictures and find a place to shelter from the rain. If you must take pictures, you can wrap the camera and lens with a plastic bag or professional waterproof cover.
If you come to areas dominated by deserts and Gobi, the main thing is dust prevention. Deserts and Gobi places have dry soil and rocks, and dust is easily blown by the wind. Small dust particles will enter the gaps of the camera. Failure to clean for a long time will cause abrasion at the camera seams or lens seams, and then enter the camera to cause damage to internal components. If you must take pictures in these places, you can consider putting on protective equipment such as plastic bags or gauze.
Anti-freezing is the main thing everyone travels to cold places, such as northern my country, northern Russia, northern Northern Europe, northern Canada, etc., where ice and snow, equipment should be protected against freezing. Although the camera can still work at minus 20-30 degrees, it does a great deal of damage to the camera’s components. Traveling to this kind of place and encountering scenery worth taking pictures before using the camera, you can usually keep it warm in your bag. Especially note that in this cold environment, the battery power cannot be carried. You can put the battery in your clothes pocket and put it in the camera when you need to use it, so you can have better battery life.
In any environment, you must pay attention to anti-fall. I and my colleagues have fallen over the camera or lens in various environments. Almost every landing will cause mixed damage, and some equipment will directly cause scrap. So don’t scream when holding the camera, and be sure to prevent it from falling.
During the trip, in addition to camera protection, the other thing to do is to ensure the safety of the photo data and ensure that you have sufficient power to take pictures the next day. Therefore, after returning to the hotel every day, the first thing is the overall and backup photos. If you are on a device without a backup, then ignore this part.
In addition, even if the camera, mobile phone, mobile power supply and other devices must be charged at night, these devices are waste products without electricity.
In a word, be fully prepared, put in a good mood, and enjoy your journey.
