Ready to load up your kit with some essential gear for nature photography? Assuming that you already have the camera, lenses and tripod to suit whatever style of photography you’re into – landscape, birds and wildlife or macro – it pays to plan ahead when you’re heading into the great outdoors to capture nature’s beauty. Here are some additional options to consider that will come in handy.
Carry solutions
No matter which season you plan to shoot in, you never know for sure what Mother Nature has in store. In summer, you can count on heat and humidity, not to mention occasional cloudbursts and downpours. You’re going to need something to comfortably carry all your gear and keep it well protected in unpredictable circumstances.
Tenba manufactures a complete line of sturdy, lightweight backpacks, from the 10-litre capacity Fulton to the 32-litre Axis, that are perfect for nature photographers. A moisture- and weather-resistant exterior is a given, but if you’re travelling light, the Tenba Messenger DNA 10 gives you an extra measure of protection with its body-armor base panel that protects your bag and its contents against soggy surfaces that you might be setting it onto. It also comes with a removable rain cover that’s reversible, with silver on one side to reflect the sun’s heat.
Many backpack models are designed to give you quick access to camera gear when you need it in an instant, but Peak Design has gone one step further with a handy accessory called the Capture camera clip, allowing you to lock your camera securely onto any backpack strap and just press the quick-release button to remove it.
If the clouds open up and your backpack doesn’t come with a detachable rain cover, consider Manfrotto’s Pro Light E-702 PL protective camera cover, which is designed to keep a DSLR and an attached lens up to 200mm protected not only against rain but also dusty conditions when shooting outdoors.
Tip: A quick-release camera strap comes in incredibly handy when shooting nature photography outdoors. The neck strap keeps your camera within easy reach when you’re wandering around scouting your next shot and easily detaches when it’s time to mount it on a tripod, where it otherwise becomes a needless and tedious dangling distraction. With a 90kg capacity, Peak Design’s simplified Leash is easily configurable as a neck or sling strap as well as a tether, with dual aluminum and Hypalon quick adjusters that can be operated with just one finger.
Lens filters
You can use these affordable multipurpose accessories in a variety of ways to achieve certain desired effects and protect your lens’s front element at the same time. In fact, a clear protective filter serves no other purpose than the latter, shielding your lens from moisture and potential scratches. Ultraviolet and neutral density filters are ideally suited to shooting outdoors in a range of conditions.
But if you could choose only one filter for your style of nature photography, a polarizing filter is the single best option. They lend saturation to colours to give your images a more vibrant look, and a variable polarizing filter lets you do this to adjustable degrees simply by rotating it just like a dimmer switch.
Binoculars
A pair of binoculars might seem like a gratuitous addition to your kit when you’ve already got a telephoto lens attached to your camera, but they really do come in handy when you’re hiking between shots and want to scout out your next location. Nikon’s Monarch line of binoculars are compact and lightweight, so they’re easier to whip out than a camera and lens, and they won’t take up much space in your backpack. They’re not only water- and fog-proof, but they also use premium optics and specialized coatings to deliver brighter images and more natural colours, making it easier to find what you’re looking for – or perhaps didn’t know you were looking for – when you’re out in the field in search of a subject.
Action cams
For those primarily focused on shooting stills with a DSLR or mirrorless camera, an action cam may not be top of mind when it comes to nature photography, but the latest models make them well worth some serious consideration.
By definition and design, they’re lightweight and portable – and an ideal alternative in situations where a bulkier setup becomes a cumbersome obstacle, including the wilds of nature and unpredictable environments. Most are capable of recording stabilized 4K video (at minimum) and can generate super-high-res stills as well.
Most are also waterproof to a depth of 10m straight out of the box, but with IP68 waterproofing down to 15m, you can take the Insta360 X5 360-degree 8K action cam deeper than any Insta360 camera, no dive case needed. But when enclosed in the optional dive case, the X5 is good to a mind-numbing depth of 50m.
A travel-ready and highly pocketable action cam might be just the thing to take your nature photography to a whole new level – not to mention undiscovered depths.
Cover Image Credit: Willian Justen de Vasconcellos