MY CAMERA EQUIPMENT
It can be very daunting researching camera gear and I find looking for camera bodies, lenses, accessories all very intimidating. Over the course of my blogging life I have expanded my kit from just a camera and a single lens to a full camera bag which I lug around from country to country. My kit definitely isn't the most extensive or advanced, but I find it works well for what I need from it and my travels.
For me, when I'm looking for equipment what I really look at is size and quality. I opted for micro 4/3 cameras rather than full framed DSLR's because I felt like I didn't want or need a heavy camera body to create beautiful content. These pieces is what I will always have in my bag whether I am at home or on the go! If you are interested in my camera gear you can click here for a Youtube video explaining my gear and why I love it, plus how I edit my photos!
CAMERAS
The first camera I bought was a second hand Olympus OMD E-M10 with a 14 - 42mm lens for £260. This camera quickly became my go to when I first started blogging and I took it absolutely everywhere with me. Small, light and beautiful photos, the OMD E-M10 was, in my opinion, a perfect starter camera. Although I found the E-M10 was a great starter camera, it struggled with low light photography and really struggled with video, which always seemed to be unsaturated and flat when I tried to film clips.
After using it non stop for two years, In mid 2019 I upgraded my camera to the Olympus OMD E-M10 Mark iii, the updated version of the E-M10. I noticed that the Mark iii had a lot more power and created crisper, beautifully coloured images as well as better video quality. The Mark iii is now my main camera for shooting and I find it is the perfect camera to carry around and snap photos throughout the day without feeling like I'm carrying around a big DSLR.
Early this year I made the decision to invest in the Canon M50, which would become my camera solely for videos. As much as I love my Olympus for photos, I do find it hard to work with when filming, especially since the touch screen can't be flipped around. Canon is known for its beautiful imagery and colour grade which is why I love this camera for shooting video.
LENSES
My go to lens for my Olympus is typically the 14 - 42mm. I find this a great lens for 'point and shoot' pics throughout the day and this is also what I generally shoot with for more 'classically' framed photos I would take for my blog and Instagram. I would suggest this lens to a beginner as I find it doesn't distort the image and is very true to what you can actually see with the naked eye, which is why I love it!
If I'm not using the 14 - 42mm, I'm probably using the 40 - 150mm, which I love for getting beautiful details. This is a super zoomed lens, which is a lot of fun to play around with and I find it captures a lot of great detail, especially with architecture. The 14 - 150mm is also perfect for making the background seem more in proportion with the foreground, which I find the 14 - 42mm struggles with. The photo below shot with the 40 - 150mm is a great example of why I love it for enhancing the background!
My last Olympus lens is the fixed 45mm. It is definitely the least used out of my kit as I find it's hard to play around with when you don't have someone behind the camera. However, this is a beautiful lens for portraits and I look forward to using it more in the future! Being a fixed lens means you can create some really interesting shots and play around with the focus/give it a more bokeh feel.
The Canon M50 currently only has a 15 - 45mm lens which is a pretty standard option for filming. It's just cropped enough that is great for filming vlog style content and has a very similar feel to my Olympus 14 - 42mm!
OLYMPUS LENSES
CANON LENSES
SHOT WITH OLYMPUS 14 - 42MM LENS
SHOT WITH OLYMPUS 40 - 150 MM LENS
DRONE
For my 22nd birthday I received the DJI Mavic Air 2 drone, which I have completely fallen in love with. It is one of the newest releases from DJI and comes with a variety of new features to play around with. While I'm not the world's best drone pilot just yet, this has really brought a new dimension into my photography and videography.
The Mavic Air 2 has a 34 minute flight time compared to the first Mavic Air model which only had a flight time of 21 minutes. This means I have more time to play around with different shots without worrying about my drone dying midway through!
MAVIC AIR 2
TRIPOD
As most people know I travel solo for the majority of my trips, which means I need a tripod with me to take all my photos. Since I started blogging I have been using the Manfrotto Compact Action Tripod. Its light aluminium build and compact size makes it easy and light weight to travel with, starting off at a little taller than 30cm and fully extending to 1.5m. The only downside to it being so light is it doesn't cope well with high winds and I find myself getting nervous if I have to attempt to take photos in windy situations as I don't want my tripod tipping over.
Other than that the Compact Action does everything I need it to and I've never had any problems with it. It has a 3 way photographic head and a quick release system making it easy to use, which is something I look for in my camera gear (especially if I've just been on an early flight or long bus). Manfrotto also sells phone extensions which makes this tripod phone friendly for those who don't use cameras!
ACCESSORIES + EXTRAS
13" MACBOOK PRO
I will typically bring my laptop with me when I travel so I can work and edit photos. I have a year old 13" MacBook Pro which I use mainly for emails, Adobe Lightroom, Premiere Pro and Netflix (lots of Netflix).
USB C HUB
My USB C hub includes 3 USB ports and an SD card reader, which I use for importing photos and videos onto my laptop!
CHARGERS + BATTERIES
I have two chargers for each camera as well as a huge entanglement of chargers for my cameras and laptop.
ADAPTERS
There is a stash of adapters in my draw which I switch out depending on where in the world I am heading. I usually have between 2 - 3 adapters on a trip - one for my phone, one for my cameras and one for my laptop, that way I remember to charge all of them!
EXTERNAL HARD DRIVE
An essential for sure! I always back up my content just incase something happens to my laptop.
APPLE LIGHTNING TO SD CARD READER
This is an absolute must for me as I am always on the go. It allows you to connect and download photos straight from your camera onto your phone so you don't need a laptop! I don't travel anywhere without it.
When you decide to purchase any of the camera equipment I will receive an affiliate commission, at no extra cost to you! This will make a huge difference to She Travelled the World and help to fund all future trips and photography. I use Amazon for my camera purchases, for both convenience and great price!
For all my photo editing I use Adobe Lightroom, which is a must for every photographer. You can either opt for the free mobile version or upgrade to the paid version which means you can edit on desktop, too. I have created my own custom presets which you can shop here, these presets are how I created my own style and universal aesthetic across my photography.
PHOTOS INCLUDED IN THIS POST: A WEEK IN SANTORINI | BARCELONA AND VALENCIA