The Best Camera for Traveling

When traveling, I often see breathtaking photo opportunities. A sloth high up in a tree hidden in the rainforest of Costa Rica or Peru, elephants in the Okavango Delta in Botswana, stunning panoramas in the Alps, great architecture on city trips, or the dream beach in Sri Lanka. One major problem in the past was always capturing everything as my eyes see it.

Animals move very quickly or are often at a great distance. Helicopters or bush planes are very shaky, making sharp shots very difficult. Sunrises or sunsets are often beautifully kitschy and trekking in cloud forests not only involves moisture and slippery conditions, but photography often occurs under difficult lighting conditions.

Finding the right camera with the right lenses for travel is equally complicated. I have already noted my travel requirements here: Which camera for travel? My tips and purchasing advice.

Since I often get asked about my cameras and photo accessories (lenses, tripods, filters, camera bags, ...), I have finally taken the time to list everything in detail. Of course, everything should be as light and compact as possible. Sturdy and splash-proof, complying with airline regulations, and also legal in some travel destinations. Because in some places, for example, drones cannot be imported.

That's quite a lot that has accumulated over the last few years. I don't always have all my lenses and cameras with me. It always depends on what type of trip is coming up: hiking with a light backpack, city trips, and many architectural shots, or safaris to observe wildlife?

Click here to navigate through the table of contents to the corresponding section that interests you.

Since all authors on the blog "Mit-Schreibende" now use Sony cameras, we have compiled our best and favorite lenses for Sony cameras.

In short, here's my current photo equipment. Of course, not every camera comes along. It depends on the type of trip.

By the way: Here you will find tips on how to find the right camera for your vacation. What types of cameras are there? Maybe your smartphone is sufficient or do you want a professional camera?

Since its release, I have replaced my Sony Alpha 7 III with the Sony Alpha 7 IV. The camera is among the best available on the market. What was important to me was the improved autofocus for detecting animals (I love wildlife photography in East and South Africa as well as recently tigers in India).

Initially, I owned the Sony Alpha 6000 - currently the best-selling camera in the world. It was sufficient for my skills and me. However, I missed some functions that I could only access cumbersome through the menu.

For a backup camera, I had long owned the Sony Alpha 6400 (view at Foto Koch). For anyone who doesn't photograph as professionally as we do, this camera is completely adequate. The kit from Foto Koch includes the SEL 18-135 mm OSS and SEL 70-350 mm G OSS lens. Perfect combination for beginners! Since I no longer used the camera, I sold it to a friend.

Since the Sony Alpha 7 IV is a full-frame camera and the lenses are of very high quality, they are unfortunately also quite expensive.

That said, all are very robust. I know what I'm talking about, because as a blogger, the camera is often exposed to challenging conditions or falls occasionally. Every photographer would shake their head if they saw how we (sometimes) treat our camera.

Good lenses are more important than the camera.

I am constantly on the lookout for faster lenses and often consider buying more prime lenses. However, I use these less frequently while traveling since changing lenses on mirrorless cameras can quickly lead to dust, sand, and dirt getting on the sensor. Editing images afterward is no fun. With videos, I can no longer remove dust particles at all. In Botswana, this is a nightmare and one of the reasons why I haven't processed and published some images yet.

During my recent travels, I often found myself using my wide-angle lens as a "go-to" lens:

The 16 - 35 mm wide-angle was my favorite lens until the 12 - 24 mm came on the market. I had to have it because after the first tests, it was clear: hardly any distortion and simply ideal for landscapes and also for architecture in cities.

You can find more technical information and reviews here at Calumet.

The 24-70 mm; F2.8 G Master is my favorite lens. The colors are simply brilliant.

Very fast autofocus that delivers sharp images. This is a lens I was hesitant to buy for a long time. Now I can't imagine being without it.

This zoom lens is not lightweight and comes at a hefty price. Its frequent out-of-stock status alone speaks to its quality. Here you can view and buy the lens.

If you would only occasionally take pictures with it, the considerably cheaper 70 - 200 mm; F4 from Sony would suffice.

Here is a sample image from India when the lighting conditions were challenging because the sun was already setting:

This lens is ideal for photographing animals at a distance. Whether in the Arctic with polar bears or in Africa with lions, leopards, or gorillas, or in Canada with grizzlies. My favorite lens whenever I head back to Africa's national parks.

View the lens on Amazon

As my only prime lens, I currently own the 35 mm with F2.8. It is very small and compact but very strong in light. The "better" version would even have F1.4 but performs no better in tests and weighs as much as the other lenses. I'm happy with it, even though it is rarely used on travels (but it is space-saving and thus always in my camera backpack).

View the lens on Amazon

Anyone who gets serious about photography quickly realizes that they can't get by in some situations without filters. Some photographers, for example, don't use filters at all; I rarely do to be honest. However, I strive to rely on filters more often to capture more details in the photos.

My old UV filter has saved a lens for me more than once when the camera has fallen. Currently, I am not using a UV filter.

Gray filters are used to reduce incoming light. This allows you to increase exposure time to make water flow smoothly or to make people disappear. Ideal are filter sets like this one from Hama with ND8, ND64, ND1000, and a filter bag (view at Foto Koch).

The polarizing filter removes unwanted reflections on water and glass or enhances the contrast of grass in landscape photography. Read more about polarizing filters on Wikipedia. I own this polarizing filter from Hoya.

An ingenious accessory for transporting filters is a filter container stack (that's the exact term). You can screw all filters with the same diameter on top of each other. You attach the lids of the container on top and bottom, and the filters are packed. However, you must ensure that the container matches the diameter of the lens or filter.

You can view the mentioned filter container here at Foto Koch.

I was totally impressed by the GoPro Hero as an action camera in all versions and its stabilization. Until the DJI Osmo Action was released. The Rock Steady stabilization, the screen on the front, and the operation are world-class.

Additionally, we were bothered by the fact that the GoPro models would frequently freeze. It happened underwater in Aruba, while snowboarding, and also in the most inconvenient situations. The display would react with water and the settings would suddenly be changed.

Our tip for an action camera: DJI Osmo Action.

After being totally unsatisfied with the first 360-degree camera from GoPro, I gave the Insta360 a chance. Of course, it's not a must-have, but thanks to great effects, you can create amazing videos and photos very easily.

Here you can view the Insta360 camera. By the way, I don't own the latest model. The X3 is sufficient for me for now.

I almost forgot about one camera: the smartphone.

Currently, I own an iPhone 16 Pro. For Instagram stories or casual snapshots, I really enjoy using the phone with an excellent camera! Smartphones are getting better and better, but they will never replace a real camera under challenging lighting conditions. All smartphones adjust images with AI. The results sometimes look horrible and can appear painted.

Under general photo equipment, I list items like memory cards that I use for several of my cameras.

When traveling, I prefer to have more than too few memory cards with me. Memory cards rarely break, but it's annoying to have to delete others. Depending on the country you are traveling to, it's not always easy to get a new and inexpensive memory card quickly. Since I always shoot in RAW format and film more and more, I need more storage than others who only shoot in JPEG format.

I now only use these ultra-robust cards from Sony:

For longer trips, especially in extreme climates (moist, cold, ...), I use a waterproof memory card case that is very robust (view details here).

In my opinion, Anker makes the best external batteries for charging smartphones, GoPro batteries, or Sony camera batteries. Particularly on road trips in Africa or Tajikistan, where I have to go several days without power, a power bank is essential. Combined with a car charger with two USB ports (view charger).

Buy external battery here

Don't make the mistake (like I did at first) of cleaning your lenses with normal discount store glass cleaning cloths. Only use microfiber cleaning cloths to avoid damaging the surface of your lenses.

For starters, I recommend buying this cleaning kit with 5 microfiber cloths, a cleaning pen, a lens brush, an air blower, and an additional 50 lens cleaning wipes. Currently costs only 13.99 on Amazon.

These small bags come in different sizes. The silica gel absorbs moisture from the air and keeps your camera, lenses, and batteries dry.

Especially in countries with high humidity like Costa Rica during the rainy season, Cuba, or Southeast Asia, as well as trips to cold regions for skiing, it's important to include these small bags in your gear to keep everything dry. View on Amazon.

I hardly use a camera strap anymore. When I do, I prefer this one from Peak Design. I love the camera clip from Peak Design. With this, I can attach the camera directly to my backpack and keep both hands free. Nothing annoys or "swings" back and forth.

View Peak Design Capture Camera Clip

There are many differing opinions about tripods. Some love them, while others never pack a tripod for travel. I own various ones, and thanks to my camper van, I always have 2-3 different ones with me.

I have written in detail about the best travel tripods (from cheap to expensive) here.

I own several camera backpacks because I have different requirements on each trip and take different equipment with me. Having tested many backpacks from Wandrd, Peak Design, and others, I am currently happy with the Compagnon Rucksack Element backpack in black.

My second solution: Camera bag for the camera. I pack this in my backpack (when hiking) or in my handbag for carry-on. Here you can view such a bag. They are not expensive and protect the camera well while traveling.

I save all images in RAW format. The file format is essential because after the trip, you can get the most out of the photos if they are saved in RAW format. This format saves all data from the camera sensor in its unprocessed form and without quality loss - unlike JPG.

The images are accordingly larger. So is the need for storage space. For post-processing, I use Adobe Lightroom, Photoshop, and I am testing Capture One for Sony Alpha. In Lightroom and Photoshop, you can apply batch processing quite simply to the images. Moreover, you can easily correct lens errors with just one click.

A tip for images that are often not perfectly horizontally aligned: In Lightroom, you can quickly and easily correct the image. The photo looks much nicer without much "manipulation". The latest system cameras and compact cameras have a built-in level.

Make sure to check here how to back up your images while traveling.

What camera do you use when traveling? What are the advantages and what tips do you have for photo accessories?

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