My Travel Photography Gear List
This is the gear I use for documenting my travels around the world. With my Sony A6500 camera, DJI Mavic 2 Pro drone, and GoPro, I can capture high quality photos and videos which I post to my YouTube Channel. Everything on my travel photography gear list I have used for many years and truly love and recommend.
I travel around the world with a total of 3 bags. This guide covers one of them: my travel photography gear list. If you want to know what I pack for a lifestyle of full-time travel, check out My Long-Term Travel Packing List. Additionally, My Backpacking Gear List covers all my camping equipment.
Many of the links below are affiliate links, which means that I will earn a (deplorable, but noteworthy) commission if you click through the link and make a purchase. This is at no additional cost to you and helps keep me traveling š
Camera Bag
Wandrd PRVK Camera Backpack: I love this backpack!! Literally zero complaints- only praise. Perfectly sized, really high quality material, protects my equipment while traveling, hiking, and adventuring. What’s not to love? There’s even a hidden passport pocket and a luggage pass through strap which makes traveling with this so easy. This is hands down the best travel camera backpack.
Electronics Bag: This is where I keep all my cords, chargers, spare batteries, memory card reader, etc. It’s actually a cosmetics bag that I thrifted on Poshmark.
Cameras + Lenses
Sony A6500 Camera Body: I love this camera. It has tons of features, including time lapse and slow motion, and shoots video in 4k. I consider myself to be a beginner/hobbyist photographer, and I have found this camera to be easy to use. It is excellent for landscapes, portraits, and everything in between. It looks like Sony discontinued the 6500, so I have linked to the 6600 instead (which is essentially the same, maybe with a couple slight improvements).
Main Lens (18-105mm F4): My everyday lens is this wide angle 18-105mm F4 and I really, really like it. All of my photos are shot with this lens except my night photos of the stars, which I use my low light lens to capture.
Low Light Lens (7artisans 10mm f2.8): This is what I use to photograph the stars. It is an inexpensive lens that is great for beginners. It looks like they now only have it in a 10mm, so I linked that instead of the 12mm I have.
GoPro Camera: I have the Hero 5, which is several years old at this point, but it works perfectly. I mainly use this underwater (scuba diving and snorkeling), so I have a floating handle (essential) and waterproof case (necessary for scuba depths). I also have a head strap, which is how I filmed that drone recovery mission haha.
Equipment
JOBY GorillaPod Tripod: The size of this tripod makes it ideal for travel. I clip it to the side of my Wandrd camera backpack and use it for everything from photographing the stars to wrapping around tree branches in the forest.
DJI Ronin Gimbal: If you plan on making videos and want really smooth footage, a gimbal is the way to achieve that. However, it’s not necessary and certainly adds quite a bit of weight and bulk to my bag. I store it in a camera bag from Wandrd (the same company as my camera backpack), which keeps it safe and protected while I’m on the road.
Drone
DJI Mavic 2 Pro Drone: I got this drone because it had a bunch of safety features that I thought would prevent me, a complete beginner, from crashing it. I did end up crashing it on a rocky outcrop off a Thai island, and went on a recovery mission to find it. Good news: it still works and flies perfectly. While the footage is amazing, I wish I would have gone with something smaller and lighter, and less expensive.
Lens filters for DJI Mavic 2 Pro: These helped when flying it over white sand beaches under the bright, hot tropical sun.
Fire Retardant Lipo Bags for Drone Batteries: I read that these special bags were required on several South American Airlines, so I bought one for each battery. Not a single time has anyone ever checked for these.
Accessories + Other
External hard drive: I have 4 hard drives now, and each time I have to buy one I am shocked at how expensive they are. This is much more affordable than my other Sandisk Pro External Hard drive, but works just as well. It is amazingly compact- about the size of a credit card, and has a quick read and write speed. I really like my Crucial hard drive and will be purchasing it again when needed.
Extra Camera Batteries: Having extra camera batteries is essential. I have 4 batteries in total, plus two additional chargers. This has been especially useful for backpacking trips in which I am unable to recharge batteries. These ones seem to hold a charge better than the Sony brand ones.
Camera Remote: This is how I take my self portraits š
Sandisk SD Cards: I have two memory cards, which have come in useful and saved my ass more than once. Don’t forget to bring a memory card reader.
Sandisk Micro SD Cards: I have two, and I use them in my drone and GoPro.
Universal Plug Adapter: Be sure to get one that works for all the different regions (UK, EU, AUS, etc.). The smaller the better to save space in your bag.
Power strip: I plug my power strip into my adapter and can charge all of my electronics at the same time. It also has a long cord and a surge protection, which protects my electronics from getting ruined. (Imagine having a power surge ruin my laptop…. I’d be so distraught).
Sony Headphones: I absolutely love these headphones. They are a GAME CHANGER. Both the sound and noise cancelling are great. They make traveling SO much more enjoyable- I never have to listen to another screaming kid on a flight ever again!
Other electronics: Along with my phone, I have a laptop and AirPods.
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