Our Travel Filmmaking Camera Kit | What We Carry
As overlanders when we travel we get to have some amazing experiences. Once we have returned home we want to relive these experiences over and over. These memories become talking points when with family and friends and there is no better way to do this than by sharing the photos and videos captured.
We live in an age where technology has made it so much easier for us to capture and relive these memories, then eventually passing them down the generations.
Whether you are capturing these images for personal pleasure or to share on social media your best starting place is with what you have - your smart phone. You don’t have to spend all that money when all most all of us has a smart phone these days and the imaging technology that comes along with them is brilliant even in entry level devices.
Ajanie & I are photographers by profession, so always have access to high end gear. Yet when we travel we have kept our camera kit as simple/minimum as possible. Whilst we want to capture great images for ourselves as well as for our YouTube channel we also want to enjoy our holiday without having to lug around heavy gear.
So in this post I share with you the cameras we carry with us and the associated accessories which helps us to capture the images you get to see in our travel videos.
WHAT IS IN OUR KIT:
-DJI Osmo Action Camera
-DJI Osmo pocket camera
-Sony A7iii camera with a Tamron 28-70mm f2.8 lens.
-DJI Mavic Pro drone
-Rode Shotgun directional microphone
-Rode Go wireless microphone system
-Zoom H1N audio recorder
-Suction cup windscreen mount for the action camera
-Magnetic mount for the action camera
-Tripod
-Extra batteries, memory cards, charging cables, etc
All this fits into a mid-sized backpack.
DJI OSMO ACTION CAMERA
This little action camera does the bulk of our filming. It is small, convenient, packed with features and tough enough to take any abuse. It has a front and rear facing screens so you can see what you are filing all the time. The image stabilisation is simply brilliant and it can film in 1080p and 4k at high frame rates (for those slow motion shots). Being very small you can go crazy with your angles of image capture by positioning it in the most unusual of places. The wide angle lens captures the wider environment without any distorting.
As accessories I carry a suction cup mount so I can mount the camera to the windscreen of our vehicle to film inside the cabin or the outside through the window or windscreen.
I also carry a magnet mount for mounting the action camera on the outside of the vehicle for getting those B-roll shots of the environment as we travel.
For vlogging where I need the camera pointing towards me I carry a selfie stick on to which the Osmo action mounts.
*If you are looking to capture audio through an external mic then an additional accessory is required for the mic to plug in.
DJI OSMO POCKET CAMERA
This is a nifty little camera with image stabilisation via its own built in gimbal. It is small enough to fit into your pocket. The protective storage pouch which comes with the camera keeps the camera from damage when stored away. Despite its size it is packed with features. Shoots in 1080p and 4k at high frame rate of 50fps. The Osmo Pocket does not have the same image quality as its sibling the Osmo Action camera. However it is still decent enough and most viewers will hardly notice the difference.
This camera too has a LCD screen so you can see what you are recording. Has both front facing and selfie mode. On selfie mode I did find the auto focus was not all that accurate when my face was less than an arm’s length from the lens. Particularly if the contrast between the main subject and the background is not high enough.
DJI MAVIC PRO DRONE
Drones offer a unique perspective of landscapes and the Mavic Pro is about the best in the consumer market. What I have is the Mavic Pro. The second generation Mavic Pro II has significantly improved image quality.
DJI also offers a slightly smaller drone known as the Mavic Air. For travel purposes I feel this is the better option. It is a fair bit smaller than the Mavic Pro yet offers pretty much all the features of its bigger sibling with near matched image quality. These too shoots in 1080p, 4k and offers high frame rate filming.
If you are buying one of these, I will recommend you take the “fly more” kit which offers two extra batteries.
SONY A7iii CAMERA
This is a full frame mirrorless camera which I carry to get those high quality photos and videos. It is a professional camera packed with features capturing images at a very high level of resolution. Low light shooting is excellent with very little image noise. The auto focus is spot on.
I use this camera for much of my landscape image capture and also in those instances where I want to film or take photos on a tripod.
Coupled with this camera body I have a Tamron 28-70mm f2.8 lens. A cheaper alternative to the more pricy Sony lenses. Despite being less than half the price of a Sony equivalent the Tamron offers great image quality.
The camera and lens combo is very light to carry and small enough to fit into a small bag.
CANON M50 CAMERA
The Sony being a professional camera it certainly is not a budget camera. A very good alternative to this is the Canon M50 which I had for a long time. At less than half the price of the Sony, it is not a full frame camera, does not have half the features and its low light image quality is nothing to speak about. Yet considering the price point, this little camera offers great image quality and auto focus. Many of my past videos were captured using the M50.
AUDIO CAPTURE
If you are starting out with your film making the on-camera mics are good enough in most situations. However, if you want to take it to the next level then an external mic is certainly the way to go. No one wants to watch a video with poor audio quality. Many people will put up with poor image quality but not with poor audio.
There are many options in the market. In my case I have gone with an entry level Rode directional mic with a wind diffuser (aka dead cat). This type of mic is good enough as long as you are not too far from the mic. No more than 2 meters in my opinion. For those situations where I will be quite a distance from the camera yet I want the audio to be crisp and clear I carry a Rode Go wireless system which consists of a transmitter and receiver. In my experience the system works very well up to about 50 meters and each unit is small enough to fit into your front shirt pocket.
I have tried not to get too technical with the gear. Keeping it simple was my approach when writing this post. If you would like more details please do write to me.
Cheers!
Duncan Udawatta
WHERE TO BUY:
DISCLOSURE: *As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
DJI OSMO ACTION CAMERA: https://amzn.to/2NQlpyP
Mounting kit for Osmo Action: https://amzn.to/309UL6l
MIC INPUT ACCESORY FOR THE OSMO ACTION: https://amzn.to/2PxI7w0
SUCTION MOUNT FOR THE OSMO ACTION: https://amzn.to/3bTcEvK
MAGENT MOUNT FOR THE OSMO ACTION: https://amzn.to/3qggkwJ
DJI OSMO POCKET CAMERA: https://amzn.to/3e74hzu
DJI MAVIC PRO 2 DRONE: https://amzn.to/3c05F41
DJI MAVIC AIR 2 DRONE: https://amzn.to/3bWeLyV
SONY A7III CAMERA (with kit lens): https://amzn.to/3redOZj
SONY A7III CAMERA ONLY: https://amzn.to/3kFECPF
TAMRON 28-70MM F2.8 LENS: https://amzn.to/3rgwUxE
CANON M50 CAMERA WITH KIT LENS: https://amzn.to/3kKQDTV
RODE DIRECTIONAL MIC: https://amzn.to/3e3hxVP
*The wind noise reducer may be sold separately.
RODE GO WIRELESS MIC: https://amzn.to/3uRR8QD
Connection cord for wireless mic: https://amzn.to/2MHtG7o
Selfie Stick for Action camera: https://amzn.to/3e8oC7m
MY BACKPACK TO FIT ALL MY GEAR: https://amzn.to/3ejsh2z