Ok, it’s very obvious I’m not a professional photographer and I don’t actually have a camera bag. But I do take photos when I travel and I keep trying to make videos so I haul around more camera stuff than I really should.
Panasonic Lumix DC-TZ90
This is my main camera. It’s the fifth generation of pocket superzoom Lumixes I’ve owned in the last ten years (of the four dead ones, two were sensor failures and two were entirely my own fault). I like that they’re small and portable and easy to shove in a pocket or a small bag but they have a huge optical zoom. This one is 30x but I feel like it’s not quite as zoomy as some of my previous ones. And it’s capable of 4K, although I don’t need that level of quality myself. What I really like about the 90 compared to earlier versions is the flip-up selfie screen. On the other hand, it’s lost the easy-peasy Starry Sky/Northern Lights mode that earlier models had and I’m going to miss that the next time I’m out hunting.
GoPro Hero 7 White + Handler
I bought my first GoPro in February ready for my trip to Iceland in March that never happened. Professionals really don’t recommend this model but I don’t understand the differences between the basic one and the high-end ones. I understand that this one is cheapest and makes videos and does what I want. I’ve used it once so far. I got the Handler which is a short floating selfie stick, perfect for taking it paddleboarding. I could shove the stick down the straps of my buoyancy aid for forward-facing videos or shove it under the board’s elastic for other angles. The one major downside is that the free video editing software that came with my laptop refuses to recognise GoPro footage.
Instax Mini 8
I love my Instax camera! Mine doesn’t work very well these days after a bath in Coke in Russia – the lens wheel-selector thing on the front doesn’t auto-turn anymore and you can’t really see through most of the viewfinder. I’ve not had good pictures out of it lately but I think that’s because I’m not using it in optimum lighting conditions. It still took some good pictures in Russia after its soaking but I fear it’s nearing the end of its life.
Olympus Trip MD3 35mm film camera
When I redid my room a few years ago, I found three rolls of unused 35mm film and so eventually I spent £3 on an old-fashioned film camera to use it in… and I’ve ended up buying new film for it. I use it more than I thought I would but wow, the photos are exactly as low-quality as our family holiday photos from my childhood. This particular model is an Olympus Trip MD3, it actually only dates back to 1998 and it has no features whatsoever. It’s fun for genuine retro photos and it’s also handy if you – for example – drop your digital camera on a stone church floor to have it as a spare camera. I do tend to take the same photo with both Instax and 35mm and then again with my digital camera just to make sure I got the picture properly. Getting the pictures developed is a slow process – all the local Bootses closed their labs so now they send the film off and I have to wait for it to be finished and then go and pick it up.
Gorillapod
I don’t use my mini tripod as much as I should – I tend to forget to bring it with me. But it’s very handy for selfies and steadying and occasionally for an unusual angle. I used to use Always On cases but the current Lumix is too chunky which is a shame because my last one had teeny-tiny legs that folded out which was all kinds of wonderful.
Aquapac cases
In Iceland, you can take your camera in the spas and the Blue Lagoon now sells waterproof phone cases at the swim-up bar. I was ahead here. I like the Aquapac cases – I have one for my phone, one for my tablet or Kindle and one for my camera, with a plastic tunnel for the zoom lens. To be honest, they see more use in the bath. Very useful for blogging or just scrolling Twitter. My tablet case has a tiny slit in it – it can survive falling in the water but I fish it out as quickly as humanly possible. My phone case does too but I’ve had a new one sitting in my cupboard waiting for an Iceland trip for years. The only problems with these are 1) if you immerse them in geothermal warm water, they’ll get condensation on the inside, which makes for misty photos and potential minor equipment damage (that’s where another poor Lumix went – too much diving in a campsite pool and the mechanisms clogged up) and 2) water droplets on the outside. Use their waterproofness as a last resort – keep them out of the water, take your photos quickly and get them back in your locker with the case opened for ventilation.
Is that it? I think so. It’s four cameras, how many more do you want? Four is already ludicrous. I’ve experimented with other stuff – my 2016 videos were filmed on an actual camcorder and a £40 action camera with a bad habit of freezing over but I don’t use them anymore. My cameras (and budget!) aren’t compatible with extra lenses. I don’t use a selfie stick and I’m yet to invest in a full-size tripod – they look a bit daft with a pocket camera perched on top. When I was in Russia I took two memory cards but mostly I just have the one and of course, I take the micro USB charging cable. So that’s all my camera equipment. If you have any questions, leave a comment below.