After a hiatus of more than a decade, I'm going on a three or four day high country trip, up to 12k feet in the eastern sierra.
I'm looking for a lightweight kit for mostly landscape work, but also some candids of fellow hikers, and maybe, with luck a few wild caught trout, or flower macros. I've almost convinced myself an iPhone Mini would do the job, or my S22. The phone is a given, for mapping and emergencies. I also carry an inReach mini.
Using a phone would be simple, but I crave some control. I have a Fuji 100s (needs batteries) or an XT-3 I could pair with either a 23mm 2.8 (not the pancake) or a 14mm MF, or 35mm MF 1.2. It will be dark nights, and I might bring a micro tripod, so wide and fast is helpful. These are my two strongest candidates.
None of my Sony gear is light enough. I bought and returned an Olympus TOUGH camera when I realized how finicky the controls were and lack of OV, left me needing my reading glasses every time, so....unusable.
AmbientMike wrote:
I had a lens stuck on the camera one time hiking in mountains, an uwa, didn't like it at all, so I'd try to take a tele of some sort.
I hear you, loud and clear on that one. UWA can be fun, but when that impressive mountain in front of you is reduced to a pimple on the screen it's disappointing.
With what you have, I would go X-T3, 14mm and 35mm. If you are adding things, a mid-range zoom would be really useful. I always take a telephoto backpacking but really only use it when you get up on top of a mountain or other grand view. The rest of the time you are carrying it with something wider mounted.
Going back to the post title, I've had my fair share of backpacks. And sold most of em. Nowadays, I just stick with my hiking backpacks, and either use an insert or pad my gear inside with clothing or whatever else makes sense.
Not sure what else you're bringing but I'm partial to the Osprey Stratos line for hiking. The 30-ish L size fits in most overhead cabins. The only exception might be the budget regional carriers. If you're not sure, maybe bring a package canvas or garbage bag in case you need to check the backpack.
My suggestions are the TT Artisans 14mm f3.5 pancake and either the fuji 23mm f2 or 35mm f2. If you want a small lightweight zoom, the XC 16-50mm f3.5-5.6 OIS is optically reasonably good and would add OIS to the X-T3. It has a plastic lens mount though.
Good catch, Ming-Tsu! My title wasn't clear that I was seeking suggestions on camera kits for backpacking.
My hiking pack for this trip is a 75L beast, as I'll be carrying a 3.5lb tent, JetBoil stove, 3lb down sleeping bag, Urs sack for food, etc.
What I'm debating is which camera and lens. Several posters have suggested a mid zoom, plus a WA.
I think I'll make the final decision when a build up the heavy pack and see how much I can tolerate adding to my gear.
Our first day we'll be doing five and a half miles, plus 2200' vertical gain.
I would splurge on a 16-55 zoom, it will give you a lot of focal flexibility in a reasonable package. If you want to use your existing cameras, the XT3 will serve, but the XT4 and 5 have improved evf, the bigger battery and IBIS, which is huge for hand held shooting in lower light. There are some good deals on both in the B&S right now. My .02.
PS Disclosure, I am in NorCal and have an XT4 in the B&S, and would be happy to meet up and let you demo it if it’s something that interests you. My 16-55 is the older style (not FS) and heavier than the new one, but it would give you an idea of what that package could do.
I have photographed in the Sierra Nevada front country and back country for decades. (You can find three threads of mine in the Landscape Photography forum right now, including some photographs from a recent backpack trip just east of Yosemite and the Sierra crest.)
I’ve usually carted relatively heavy gear into the backcountry, including on trips of up to two weeks. But I’ve also gone light a few times. A few years ago I started occasionally carrying only an XT body and the 16-55mm f/2.8 on some pack trips. That’s not a small lens, though it is smaller than comparable lenses on full frame gear. It covers a pretty decent range from quite wide to slightly long. (I’m sort of a living example of what Jack recommends above. These days I would carry the XT5. That being said, a couple of weeks ago I carted a big full frame Canon body and a couple of L zooms and a tripod into the backcountry just east of the Sierra Crest and the Yosemite boundary.)
To cut down weight and bulk a bit more you could also consider one of the Fujiflm kit lenses. On a weeklong photo expedition into the southern Sierra some yeas back, on which we had pack train support and I was able to bring th big gear, I also brought a small Fujifilm body with the old 18-55mm kit lenses as my “happy snap” camera for in-camp shots. I was surprised and impressed by the quality that it can produce.
Although I started doing this long enough ago that I originally carried primes (yeah, decades ago), today I would generally not go that route in the backcountry. Some would probably disagree, but I like the flexibility and cropping in camera that zooms offer.
lighthawk wrote:
I hear you, loud and clear on that one. UWA can be fun, but when that impressive mountain in front of you is reduced to a pimple on the screen it's disappointing.
I like to use the Canon 55-250, it fills the frame on about the same size as a 1:2 macro on ff. Looks like the 70-300 is a bit heavier but gets as close, for macro shots. Of course diopter could be good, too
A tele is nice if a chipmunk or something poses. I haven't backpacked much, day hiked fairly difficult trails though and I tend to throw too much in my day pack gets heavy
lighthawk wrote:
What I'm debating is which camera and lens. Several posters have suggested a mid zoom, plus a WA.
I think I'll make the final decision when a build up the heavy pack and see how much I can tolerate adding to my gear.
Our first day we'll be doing five and a half miles, plus 2200' vertical gain.
I just returned from a 6 day backpack in the Idaho Sawtooth's. If you have been out of this for a decade, you might consider some gear upgrades to offset your camera weight. Or maybe offset being 10 yrs older
I use an X-T5 with 16-55mkII and that does most of what I need. I also take my 10-24/f4, 18/1.4, and 70-300. But they are all for certain circumstances and I could do without them and still get 95% of shots with the 16-55. When hiking with a full pack, I don't swap lenses, the extras stay in my pack for use when not lugging everything on my back.
lighthawk wrote:
Our first day we'll be doing five and a half miles, plus 2200' vertical gain.
Approximate average of a 7% grade with a full pack, my guess is you'll drink more water than an XT4/5 with 16-55 mk ii mounted weighs
But yeah, back when I did a lot of backpacking my mantra was watch the ounces and the pounds will take care of themselves... Today I'd probably bag the real camera and rely on my iPhone, and then be happy with "memory" snaps.
Jack Flesher wrote:
Approximate average of a 7% grade with a full pack, my guess is you'll drink more water than an XT4/5 with 16-55 mk ii mounted weighs
But yeah, back when I did a lot of backpacking my mantra was watch the ounces and the pounds will take care of themselves... Today I'd probably bag the real camera and rely on my iPhone, and then be happy with "memory" snaps.
Its not like the water is optional. I did that very thing for a few years, carried a phone and tried to make do. Then one trip in Oregon where there had been a late season snow in June. There was fresh snow everywhere with warm temps in the 60's. Water, snow, sunlight, wildflowers. One of the most beautiful trips I have been on. Those phone shots are totally ordinary and stored away in a directory instead of a large print on my wall. That and my memory is not improving with age.
I bring my X-E3 and 18-55/2.8-4 on backpacking trips. Very light weight and the images are great. I leave my phone in my truck because I never get a signal anyway. It took me a few years to understand the value of packing light. I am not an ultralight guy but my pack generally weighs less than 30 pounds for a week in the backcountry. Eric.
Not too familiar with the Eastern Sierra but in Colorado you run in to wildlife often enough you really need teles.
My day pack is too heavy but I'd almost certainly take a lens like 70-300. X-T1 is light, if you really cut handles off your toothbrushes etc and I doubt 16mp hurts much
gel685 wrote:
I bring my X-E3 and 18-55/2.8-4 on backpacking trips. Very light weight and the images are great. I leave my phone in my truck because I never get a signal anyway. It took me a few years to understand the value of packing light. I am not an ultralight guy but my pack generally weighs less than 30 pounds for a week in the backcountry. Eric.
For lots of backpackers, something like the XE with a single lens will be a great option.
For years I did an annual backcountry Sierra photo expedition with a group of photographers who photographed the range for almost two decades. Originally supported by the Yosemite Conservancy, the group initially photographed that park but eventually covered other pars of the range. With pack train support, we would go into he backcountry for one or two weeks at a time, set up a base camp, and photograph the heck out of an area.
Because we had pack train support we could bring a lot of serious gear into the wilderness with us — everything from DSLRs to MF film, digital MF, and film LF gear.
But shortly after the XE1 came out and I got one in order to test the Fujifilm system, I added that XE1 and the 18-55mm “kit lens” to my gear. The idea was that it would be my “happy snap” camera for in-camp photos and similar, but I soon realized that it was capable of much more than that.
The combo of an XE body and the kit lens can work beautifully.
I wish I could keep my pack to that 30 lbs or less, but it never seems to work out! I use a very light weight pack, sleeping bag, and tent, and I’ve minimized my cooking gear. I leave extra clothing behind and try to cut down the food to the minimum. But then — as on my recent pack trip — I end up carrying my full frame camera, a couple of L zoom lenses, a good size tripod, a system for charging my batteries…
As far as gear suggestions, it depends on how you "see" of course. Personally, if I was cutting weight while backpacking, I would bring my XT2 and two lenses. My Samyang 12mm for wide angle and stars, if applicable). And the 55-200 tele.
Of course, camera and lenses isn't the only photography gear I bring unfortunately lol (tripod, head, batteries, cards, lens wipes, etc.). All the little things add up.
