Frustration outing, broken strap and too much gear! Argh!! recognise this?

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Keith
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Today I took a spin out on my bike, bit of off-roading, thought I'd maybe get some landscape/scenic shots and maybe some wildlife.

It was a disaster. I just got a new bag, and some other gear recently, and pretty much wanted to take it all with me. Big mistake. As that included my heavy Giottos tripod along with my bag stuffed full of lenses.

The path I took was muddy, really muddy - full of puddles over a few inches deep each. Lucky I have my Doctor Martin boots! And the mountain bike is designed for this terrain.

What frustrated me though, was I had no place really to set down and set up/change lenses etc ... I was basically trying to do it all on the move. The bag was already full, so when I set up the tripod, and then went to move along a bit, the tripod bag had nowhere to go, and changing from tele lens to wide angle turned out to be more complicated than usual - having to stand, and do it from a stuffed bag. I had wanted to try out my new 70-200, but also with the TC I bought on here, and also the 24-70 I haven't given enough of a work out to yet - but also ... my micro lens with the TC ... and I'd brought an SB900 along to go with that.

I just brought too much, and didn't get anything worthwhile in the end. To make it worse the Giottos tripod bag I just bought ripped [Shoulder strap, at the seams where strap attaches to the bag!] , sending the tripod in bag across a busy road. They got a nice email this evening!

My question is, for those of you with a good bit of gear, who like to go off the beaten track a little - What do you bring? And what do you leave behind? - Do you have in mind exactly what you want to shoot that day? DO you leave that macro behind knowing you won't be doing any of that, or similar with a tele lens - No bird shots today, just some wide and macro?? Are you that organized? I hate to leave anything behind. I always think/[know, with my luck] I'll miss a precise image that would required something I didn't have on me at the time. Or, I can be just too indecisive about exactly what I'm setting out to shoot on the day.

There will be other days, any sensible advice for my next trek?
 
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There will be other days, any sensible advice for my next trek?
I don't think mountain biking and carrying lots of kit really go together well. My best advice, buy a Land Rover!:lol:
 
I can't even drive! :D That is on the list though, for the new year. For now, it's bike only. Or depend on others for lifts.

I think I'll just have to learn to decide what comes and what stays next time. Better to have limited gear and get some decent shots, than have too much and not get any because of frustration. Maybe ...
 
I don't think mountain biking and carrying lots of kit really go together well.

I was more alarmed when reading mountain biking and Dr Martin boots. Get some proper pedals and shoes (that fix to the pedals) and you will have a much better time of it.

It may also be easier to use waterproof panniers that you could put you bags into as they would be more stable to get things in and out of.
 
Firstly biking with lots of heavy kit doesn't really work.

There are a number of approaches you can take but really you need to recognise that you can't do everything at once. Well, you can, but as you found out it is heavy and you often wind up getting nothing of use.

Photography is all about compromises and so before you set out you need to know what compromises you are willing to make for that trip. At one extreme it may mean taking a point and shoot, at the other it may mean buying some lighter weight kit for when you need it.

Personally I use a D700, 16-35, 50mm and 70-300 and that's all I need. If I want to travel light I just use the 70-300 (mainly for landscapes) and if I want to travel really light I just use the 50mm (and maybe take a 35mm prime too). If I want to travel really really light I take a D60 and if I don't want any extra weight I take a Canon S90.

You see, although the 16-35 is my favourite lens it is somewhat specialist and only useful in a handful of situations, it is also fairly heavy so I know that's the one to leave if I have to make a choice.
 
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until recently I had a suit case for all my gear.

now I have sold a lot of it. I am going to try and just work with a 24mm f1.4 and a 85mm f1.4, well i might take a camera with me as well!
 
I was more alarmed when reading mountain biking and Dr Martin boots. Get some proper pedals and shoes (that fix to the pedals) and you will have a much better time of it.

It may also be easier to use waterproof panniers that you could put you bags into as they would be more stable to get things in and out of.

Thought someone might be :p - Not ideal, but I knew it was going to be mucky, and the 2 pairs of runners I have are less than ideal for that. Docs = solid, and no problems cycling. Surprisingly. They have more grip than runners/trainers. I'm not hardcore enough of a cyclist to get anything proper :D

I like the panniers idea - will look into that one, cheers.
 
I like the panniers idea - will look into that one
Just remember that whenever you have to put the bike down quickly (or more likely fall) whatever is in the panniers on the wrong side is going to get broken!
 
I just take an X100 for this sort of stuff now (on foot rather than a bike). Rubbish for birding though!
 
I actually forgot to take the X10 with me and was raging. I would have gotten something, probably would have just given up on the rest under the conditions and shot with that. But, I do prefer to use the big lenses when possible. Just need to think on which I really need with me at any time. The lighter the better. I think it's going to be either - 70-200 + TC for trying to capture birds/wildlife and some landscape, plus the macro - or the macro + 24-70 and do more wide scenics.

Seems to come down to a choice of 24-70 or 70-200 each time. Those are responsible for the bulk of weight/space usage. The 24-70 hood alone is a right space hog. But I do prefer to have it with if I take that lens.
 
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