This is definitely my last post until I get back. I have a plane to catch, after all!
I realized as I was getting everything together that packing photographic equipment for a trip is hard. How do you decide what goes and what stays? How do you optimize for weight and space? How do I make sure nothing gets broken? Have I forgotten anything?
Of course I’ve forgotten something. But I won’t know what it is until I’m already on the plane. Then I’ll smack myself on the forehead and say “Dag nabbit, I forgot my discomboobulator! ” If you learn one thing from reading this blog, it should be “Never forget your discomboobulator.”
Here’s a snapshot of what I’m bringing with me.
Let’s see…
- Hasselblad 500c/m.
- YashicaMat 124G (for color film, mostly, but also as a backup in a pinch).
- Manfrotto 190XDB tripod with 486 RC2 ballhead (the 055XProB is just too big).
- Minolta Spotmeter F (with extra battery) plus an old General Electric selenium meter for emergencies.
- Various filters, hoods, cable release.
- Trusty notebook.
- 31 rolls of Ilford HP5 120 (should be good for 14 days, right? Two rolls a day is a lot for me) plus three rolls of Fuji Pro 160S color negative film just for fun.
- Spare 120 take-up reel. I’ve never actually needed one of these, but, why not?
- Screwdriver in case the Hasselblad locks up.
- Lens cleaning tissue.
- Kitchen timer for night photography.
- Italian phrasebook.
- Bubble level.
- Baseball hat (Brooklyn Cyclones, yeah!), lip balm, chewing gum, sunglasses, canteen, granola bars, sunblock.
- A nice Tamrac Adventure 7 backpack to put it all in. (Well, some of it will be checked, but you get the idea.)
So what am I forgetting???
4 Comments
It looks like you have everything covered
My wife would kill me if she saw me taking that much camera equipment on a vacation together, you’re a lucky man 
I’m off to NYC next and will have to pack about the same amount of stuff.
You didn’t mention the QR plate for the tripod head. Sounds obvious, but I’ve nearly set out with a tripod + head but no QR plate, because it was attached to the _wrong_ camera body!!
KR
Alan
you might want to consider unbricking all that film and putting it in a ziplock, makes it easier to get a hand inspection if you care about that (<6xrays and I don’t) but it will also allow you to bring a little more film.
film is the cheapest part of this enterprise, going somewhere new might make you shoot a lot more than you planned. however, depending on where you are you could buy it there, although it will be in euros, and more expensive. just a thought. good luck.