I pack light - sometimes too light…!

This is my camera bag. It’s a Roadie II Hybrid, and it’s the only bag I take with me when I travel abroad. My camera gear is too valuable to put in the hold, so I take it on board with me as hand luggage.

If I need extra room for clothes, I simply stuff them into an old Callaway golf jacket that conveniently has an inside pocket that goes all the way from one side to the other. I call it my ‘Super Jacket’, and I do look a bit like the Michelin man when I’m wearing it, but I couldn’t do without it!

The only time I took a rucksack with me was when I worked in Tanzania and Kenya for four months in 2019. In the end, though, I only used two out of all the lenses I took with me, and the daily laundry service meant that I only needed one change of clothes! That’ll teach me…

I’ve always packed light, but it does sometimes cause a few problems.

I went on a photographic trip to the Galápagos Islands a few years ago, and we went to a tortoise sanctuary on the bus. I thought we’d be going back on the bus, too, but we ended up taking a boat. In the confusion, I managed to leave my jacket behind, and I had to do without it for the whole week!

I’d already unpacked my clothes, but I was still a bit stressed about it. Fortunately, the tour leader called me in on the final morning and said that I could get my jacket back as long as we left immediately in a taxi. It turned out that someone had handed it in, so I managed to rescue it at the very last moment. Phew!

The one big problem with the Roadie is that it’s not really big enough for all my camera gear, let alone anything else I want to take with me.

I usually take two camera bodies and my 80-400mm and 800mm lenses, plus various other accessories including battery chargers and a SpiderPro belt. I can just about fit all of it in, but only if I take the lens hood off my long lens and squeeze it in diagonally, packing everything else around it.

That sometimes means making some difficult decisions, and on my recent trip to Kicheche Bush Camp in January, I ended up leaving behind my wide-angle zoom. Paul Goldstein was horrified when I told him, but, fortunately, I didn’t really need it in the end.

Anyway, the point of this post is just to give you an idea of what I take with me on my photographic trips. Bear in mind that I’m usually going on safari to Africa, so this list doesn’t include much foul weather gear - it’s going to be a good deal different when I next go to Antarctica!

Last Minute

Mobile phone & charger
Passports (and visas)
Vaccination certificates
Travel Insurance documents
Local currency or hard currency ($100 for Kicheche)
Cashcard
Glasses

Toiletries

Plastic bag
Toothbrush & toothpaste
Shampoo/shower gel?
Razor & shaving oil
Malarone
Lip balm
Sun spray/insect repellant
Head torch

Camera Equipment

Rollaboard
2 x Cameras (Nikon D810 and D850)
GoPro
Nikon 800mm lens
Nikon 80-400mm lens
Nikon 18-35mm lens
Other lenses?
Polarising filter
SpiderPro belt and camera attachments
Tripod, camera attachment and remote release
Monopod?
Memory cards
Spare batteries & charger
Binoculars
Sensor cleaning kit
Lens cloth
USB stick
Three-way adaptor
Travel adaptor
Rain covers

Clothing

Sun hat
Black snood
Gloves
Hiking boots/trainers
Deck shoes
Fleece
Rain jacket
2 x zip-off trousers
Shorts
T-shirts
Safari shirt
Base layers
Fleece
6 x Underwear
Swimwear
Thermal leggings
Socks and walking socks

Miscellaneous

Dollars (for tips etc)
Padlocks
Ear plugs
Head cushion
Sunglasses
Universal travel plug adapter

If you’d like to order a framed print of one of my wildlife photographs, please visit the Prints page.

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