It’s in the bag

For all urban photography and for most nature and outdoor photography I use the Lowepro Mini Trekker AW backpack.  For extended photo trips I generally bring the Lowepro Photo Trekker AW II, because it provides ample space for all my gear and complies fully with airline carry-on regulations.

When fully loaded, the Photo Trekker weighs quite a bit so I plan to work close to my car.  If I need to be away from the car for an extended period, then I generally bring the empty Mini Trekker.  I use it to carry only the gear I need on a particular day and stow the rest of my gear in the Photo Trekker.

My Lowepro Mini Trekker carries:

• Nikon D300 and the attached quick release L bracket from Really Right Stuff
• Nikkor AF 12-24mm f/4G ED-IF AF-S DX lens, with Kirk quick release plate.  I often rely upon this lens to give added depth and dimension to broad cityscapes and naturescapes.
• Nikkor AF-S 28-70mm f2.8 ED lens, with Kirk quick release plate.  This is my Old Faithful lens … handy for all my nature, outdoor and urban photography needs.
• Nikkor AF-S 70-200mm f2.8 ED-IF VR lens, with Kirk lens collar & quick release plate.  I use this versatile lens to capture detail and to better fill the viewfinder with my subject.
• Lens hoods for each lens to control flare & to keep the lens dry during inclement weather
• SanDisk Extreme III CF cards.  I carry up to six 2GB and three 4GB cards.
• Singh-Ray soft-edge neutral density filter set … 1-stop and 2-stop
• Singh-Ray hard-edge neutral density filter set … 1-stop and 2-stop
• Nikon circular polarizer
• spare EN-EL3e battery
• D300 owner’s manual
• Small Flexfill white & gold reflector and medium-sized Flexfill diffuser
• Plastic shower caps to protect the camera & tripod head in light rain
• Clif Crunchy Peanut Butter food bar or Odwalla Berries GoMega bar
• Water bottle
• Gitzo carbon fiber tripod, model G1348 MK2
• Kirk ballhead

My Lowepro Photo Trekker AW II backpack can carry all of the equipment listed above, plus these two additional items:

• Nikkor AF-S 300mm f4 ED-IF lens, with Kirk lens collar & quick release plate
• Nikkor TC-14E teleconverter

For macro photography I use the AF Micro Nikkor 200mm f/4.0D ED-IF lens and lens hood.

For bird and wildlife photography I use:

• Nikkor AF-S 300mm f4 ED-IF lens, with Kirk lens collar & quick release plate
• Nikkor TC-14E teleconverter
• Nikkor 200-400mm f4 G-AFS ED-IF VR lens, with Kirk quick release replacement foot