Originally Posted by
StephenH
I think the last couple of posters there kind of missed my point. If you're interested in studying the infinite variations of lighting, humanity, etc., that puts you in the "there to Photograph" category, and that means you should take a tripod, and that answers the original question. And in that case, you should perhaps take multiple tripods, and various bodies and lenses, and it also means you should spend a lot of extra time doing it. Just don't expect to cover very many miles on a bicycle while you're doing all that. However, very few people that are riding bicycles and carrying cameras are looking at it like that, and probably most of them (myself included) would fall into the "there to Ride" category. Come to think of it, I don't actually know anyone personally that is in the "there to photograph" category.
I'm sorry, I have to call you out here. When I carry my camera, and I point it at something, I'm trying to get the best possible shot. I am, in a sense, an artist.
I can't afford a million lenses and three tripods and four cameras. That doesn't matter. I get amazing shots sometimes, and mostly I get utter ****, but I strive for amazing shots.
Award-winning National Geographic photographer Tomas van Houtryve carries two cameras, and one of them doesn't even shoot in color. Each has a single fixed lens on it, usually 35mm, and neither are a DSLR (although one's a very nice rangefinder). Why doesn't he carry 10 lenses and two tripods and two pro-bodies?
Because it's not about the camera. It's about the photographer. (Source:
http://proof.nationalgeographic.com/...mpaign=Content)
The point of this thread was to try and find the least amount of stuff I need to be on tour "to do photography," as you put it. That's what I'm doing when I raise my camera. When the photography gear impedes on the experience, lessens it overall, I have too much gear.
The experience SHOULD impact my shots, even at the cost of taking mediocre pictures that have a big impact on me personally. That's the point of art, isn't it? I'm trying to capture moments that transgress the temporal and physical boundary and convey what I was feeling when I raised the camera. Every once in a blue moon, I do.
What am I there to do? I'm there to have a bike tour. Getting advice from others helps me figure out how to balance my gear, my experience, what I carry, and what I don't. Thanks to everyone- this thread did that! But the drift into whether or not I can be a photographer without X, Y, and Z gear is unsettling.