David Schloss - The Blue Pixel Guide to Travel Photography: Perfect Photos Every Time

Right place, right time, right geara sunset along Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)

For every photographic trip there is the perfect balance of camera equipment. But most people find it impossible to know what gear to bring until they realize the item they desperately need is at home.

There are, however, a certain number of must-have accessories for the on-the-go photographer. Start with the basicsthe digital photography tools you can't do without. In this chapter I'll discuss cameras, lenses, and computers, and what to look for in each category.

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While digital technology revolutionized photography, if you're a film shooter you'll still be able to use most of these items. You can skip any item for reading digital media (compact flash card readers, for example) and you don't need to bring your laptop (unless you want to watch a movie on the plane), but just about everything else still applies.

All decisions about what to shove into a travel bag relate to your choice of camera. For most photographers, the camera is their most expensive and most important purchase. These days there are only two practical choices for the travel photographera point-and-shoot or a single lens reflex (SLR) ().

The term point-and-shoot is a misleadingit's used to refer to any compact camera without interchangeable lenses. An SLR camera is distinguishable from the point-and-shoot because it has interchangeable lenses. (Although some companies now make SLR cameras with a fixed lens and screw-on attachment lenses.) SLR cameras and specifically the cameras I'll talk about in this book are increasingly based on a digital sensor instead of film, making them dSLR cameras.

Many first-time travel photographers, in fact many first-time digital photographers, opt for point-and-shoot (aka "compact"). Compact digitals are lighter and smaller than their dSLR counterparts, they don't have the hassle of interchangeable lenses, and they're often seen as less intrusive ().

Cameras come in a variety of styles for three categories of users. A large, solidly built camera designed for the professional photographer is, not surprisingly, called a professional camera. On the other end of the spectrum are cameras that are less expensive, less durable, and often with fewer bells and whistles. These are called "consumer" cameras.

In the middle lies a group of photographers who want some of the features of a professional camera (faster shooting speed, improved durability, a few bells, some whistles) but don't want to shell out for features they don't need. These shooters are often referred to as "prosumers," a horrible mashing of words that just means "a nonprofessional who wants some pro features."

) with a long lens, and chances are heads are going to turn But take out a compact camera, even in remote parts of the world, and you're going to attract a lot less attention.

The biggest issue with point-and-shoots is their lack of flexibility. There's less room to grow as a photographer with them since you can't work your way up to better lenses and fewer accessories are available. A digital SLR often has interchangeable viewfinders, specialty lenses (such as macros and ultra-wide angles), lens-hoods, accessory strobes, and more. With a point-and-shoot, if you decide you want a wider-angle lens, or maybe a telephoto, you're stuck with what you've got, and you'll need to buy a new camera if you want greater flexibility.

Most digital point-and-shoots are equipped with a 3x zoom, providing a focal length equivalent to about 35-105mm. (See "" later in this chapter.) That's not too shabby, but it leaves you without a wide-angle lens or a long telephoto lens, meaning you can't capture wide landscapes or zoom in on a distant scene. Some models offer screw-on adapter lenses, but they are likely to produce photographs that are less sharp than ones taken with a single specialty lens.