Category Archives: Think Tank

Packing light

As I prepare to leave for New Zealand, I’m mentally working my way through some new packing ideas. It’s a difficult balance to make sure you’re prepared for whatever might come your way on an international shoot and yet not overpack to the point that you are crippled by your own gear. In the past I’ve loved traveling with a backpack but then I began to realize that, while I had everything I needed in my pack, I didn’t often go to the trouble to take it off to get into my gear. When you have two cameras around your neck getting tangled in backpack straps, it’s not that convenient. A while ago I wrote about switching to a ThinkTank sling bag. It’s a little smaller than my backpack so it forces me to edit my gear a little right off the bat, but the real convenience comes from being able to swing it around and access it without taking it off. So far it has been working well.

On this trip, I’m adding another new element: a Scottevest. This thing is loaded with pockets of all sizes and most of them are secured with zippers. I’m hoping that it will work well for getting a lot of my little gadgets (ipod, headphones, paperback, phone, magazines, etc.) through the airports. It gets them out of my camera bag but doesn’t add another carryon. Then, once on location, I hope to often be able to leave the bag behind for a day and just load those same pockets up with small lenses, flash, filters, etc.

I’d better get back to some actual packing now but I’ll report back on how everything is working when I get some miles behind me. I hope to post from the road but, if that’s not possible, I’ll have plenty to share when I’m back.

Back from Fiji

The Society of American Travel Writers Freelance Council (which I currently chair) held its Spring meeting in Fiji last week. In between business meetings, professional development sessions, and some spectacular events put on by our hosts, there were a few hours left to squeeze full of all manner of touring and photo opportunities. Caving, cruising, fire dancing — you name it. Quite a week indeed.

This was my first outing with the Nikon D7000 and my new Think Tank Photo sling bag. Both performed admirably. The sling was a bit less comfortable than my old backpack on long airport treks between gates (anyone dashed the several blocks between LAX’s terminal one and the international terminal lately?) but it more than made up for it when it came to accessing gear. It’s really nice to be able to swing it around and open it up from the top, regardless of which shoulder you’re wearing it on. Nice work Think Tank! The smaller size made it super easy to get into overhead compartments, too.

The D7000 and I had a few issues at first but we’re working them out. The focus seems a bit quirky to me but I probably just need to explore the various settings a bit more. The really odd thing to me is that I always have to refocus when shooting video. I tend to take a still first to test exposure, but when I then switch on live view it’s out of focus and requires another half-press of the shutter release — which is kind of counter-intuitive given that you have a separate button on the back for video. I don’t know what’s up with that. I also had some trouble early on getting my exposure to match my manual settings for stills but then realized there is a menu setting where you can turn on “manual movie settings”. It’s off by default, evidently. I guess I should have devoted a bit more time to reading the manual before I left. Oh, well.

Anyway… more on all of this soon. The mad rush to get these images catalogued before the next trip is on. As usual, I’ll share a few shots as I make my way through the shoot.