I take my DSLR camera nearly everywhere with me. I like to be able to take photos when we’re out and about (I’ve even shot photos in the grocery store before). It helps me capture those memories of adventures with our kids and it also helps me continue to learn by shooting in all sorts of situations. I’ve been asked quite a bit how I take my camera on-the-go, or just gotten comments from others who aren’t sure how to tote theirs around or feel silly pulling their “big” camera out in public.
As for feeling silly about pulling out a huge camera in public, I don’t have a ton of advice. I was really self-conscious about it for awhile too. All I can say is that the more you do it, the easier it gets! I find that most people aren’t paying attention to what I’m doing anyway. But when it comes to packing it up for trips out of the house, I have my own system that seems to work quite well!
For most daily kinds of trips, I literally just pack my camera in my diaper bag and go! I have the Vilah Bloom Monroe-On-The-Go convertible backpack diaper bag and it’s perfect for this! It has a padded “technology pocket” on the inside that is meant for phones, etc, but I find it holds my lenses and protects my camera body quite nicely! It’s also roomy and deep enough to hold diapers and baby essentials and my camera on top! The backpack straps make it easy to carry too, or you can carry it messenger style as well. It’s the ultimate “momtographer” bag!
When I travel further or have to pack up my gear for a shoot, I use a larger LowePro camera backpack that holds all of my lenses and both of my camera bodies, an older version, but similar to the LowePro Flipside Trek Outdoor Backpack. I’ve taken it many places and it’s great for airline travel. Fits in an overhead bin, but keeps everything safely packed inside.
I sometimes carry a smaller LowePro bag as well that I can wear messenger style when I shoot weddings and events that holds my camera body and two lenses. It’s similar to the LowePro Adventura 140. It’s a great small bag for me too if I’m just out shooting alone and don’t need the larger bag or a diaper bag.
I take my 10-year-old Nikon D90 everywhere. I should probably upgrade, but she’s a work horse and takes wonderful photos. A similar camera body that’s newer and at a decent price point for a DSLR is the Nikon D7200. I have an older Nikon that I use as backup as well. When I upgrade, I plan to buy the Nikon D750.
My two favorite lenses that I take with me are my Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G Lens and my Nikon AF-S FX NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8G Lens. They’re both amazing lenses at amazing prices. My third favorite lens, not pictured here, is the Nikon AF S NIKKOR 85mm f/1.8G, but it’s a difficult lens for on the go because it requires a lot of space to use and compose photos. The 35mm is a much wider angle and great for any situation. The 50mm is a general, all-around great lens everyone should own! I also take my Canon G7 X point and shoot with me, which I use mostly for video, but it takes awesome photos and allows the user to shoot in manual mode and goes down all the way to f1.8. They fit into my Vilah Bloom bag, one lens on my camera, one packed away, or they fit into my other bags as well. The Canon is easy to stash away in bags as well and also fits into pockets.
My goal is to travel more and take more photos as I do. A dream job would be to work as a travel photographer…weddings, events, for companies or products…you name it, I’d love it! I’d love to travel more with my family as well. Take my kids to see the world and capture it all in photos. I’ll continue working towards this goal, but in the meantime, I’ll brush up on it with some great resources like travel photography tips from National Geographic and Conde Nast…or from those who’ve been before me like Summit Shah and his post about 9 Tours That Will Turn You Into a Traveling Photographer that will have me dreaming of destinations overseas, and Traveling Mom, who has tons of travel tips for families.
Where do you want to go? What pictures do you want to take?
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