Steve Foss Images: Equipment Recommendations

Excursions are as variable as each individual client, and client equipment ranges from simple point-and-shoot cameras up to the most advanced DSLR cameras and top-line lenses available today.

That being said, there are some recommendations for gear that are common to all clients, regardless of their equipment.

Here’s a rundown of what we suggest to help you out in planning your excursion, and please feel free to e-mail us with any additional questions.

Film/memory: While the vast majority of our clients have gone digital, some remain with film. For a single-day excursion, we recommend at least 10 rolls of 36-exposure film ranging from iso50 to 400. For digital photographers using (on average) 8 Mp to 10 Mp cameras, we recommend 4 Gb of memory if shooting in jpeg mode and 8 Gb or more when shooting RAW. For 15 Mp to 21 Mp cameras, think double the memory. Some clients capture more photographs than others, but there’s little that makes a photographer more sick than running out of memory in the middle of a rare encounter with a wolf or moose. In case of card failure, it’s always best to bring multiple cards. Memory card prices have dropped like a rock, and compared with other photo gear and accessories, memory is very inexpensive. Multiple-day excursion clients can either bring laptops or other larger memory storage devices or we can bring your cards home with us and download your images, burn them on DVD and give you the DVD so you can clear your cards and keep photographing. For all basic photographic gear, including memory cards, cameras, lenses, tripods, etc., we do all our shopping online at www.canogacamera.com. Good prices, good people, good service.

Batteries: Digital cameras have gotten better at power consumption but still use a lot. We recommend you have at least two batteries for each DSLR, with the ability to recharge them for multiple-day clients. Some bodies offer AA battery inserts, and those are handy options. For affordable digital camera batteries, we do all our purchasing online at www.sterlingtek.com.

Supplementary photo gear: Tripods, remote shutter releases, etc., are not required, but for those interested in in-depth work on landscapes and flowers/macro, these are helpful.

What photo gear to leave home: Put simply, nothing. Unless you are outfitted as extensively as a camera store, bring all your photo gear along. Space isn’t usually an issue, and it’s a simple matter to evaluate what to take into the woods each time we leave the vehicle. You never know if the thing you’ve left back home might be the exact thing you need in the field.

Footwear: Shoes/boots should be sturdy and comfortable, and suited to the amount of hiking you want to do. Some excursions involve a lot of driving and not so much hiking, while other clients prefer to get out on the trails and hike, hike, hike. In spring, summer and early fall, uninsulated hiking boots that can handle a thin inner sock (like polypropylene, silk or fine wool) to wick away moisture and a thicker outer sock of medium-weight wool will be fine in most cases. A second set of socks is worth stowing with your gear for the field, because sometimes we go in places where feet get wet. Waterproof boots are best for that reason. In later fall, insulated boots are a must, and in winter, heavy pac boots or mukluks are necessary.

Clothing: Even in summer, plan for extremes in temperature and precipitation. A July excursion after a clear cold night, for example, may deliver sunrise temperatures in the 40s, with highs in the 90s and high humidity at mid-day and temps cooling off again by sunset. That means you’ll want to bring a pair of light gloves and a hat even in summer. You may not need them, but when you do, you REALLY need them. So bring along a couple layers of clothing so you’ll be comfortable when it’s cool and able to strip them off when it gets hot. In spring and fall, add a couple layers, and make sure your gloves/hats are heavier. Spring, summer and fall, definitely bring rain gear. Even on a sunny day, heavy dew in the woods makes us don our waterproofs now and then, and we never know when a shower or series of them might move through. We also recommend a second piece of raingear or small tarp to set gear on when the ground is wet. Then comes winter, when temps can hit –40º. This is the extreme season, and we often do photography in temperature of –30º, occasionally leading clients out in that type of weather if they are hardy enough. Several layers are required to stay warm, though we generally don’t venture too far from the vehicle when the weather is this extreme. A thin inner layer of underwear for legs and upper body should be, like the socks mentioned before, moisture wicking material such as polypropylene, very light wool or silk. Fleece, even micro-fleece, is not recommended against your skin because it does not pull sweat away from your body. For the same reason, cotton is a no-no. Fleece makes an excellent middle liner, as does wool. We typically wear a thin layer of polypropylene underwear, then a heavier layer of wool underwear. Then a layer of fleece or wool, on top of which we put either a heavily lined anorak or expedition-grade outer shell of some type. We can strip off our middle layers as needed, or adjust zippers and such, as we warm with movement or as temperatures moderate during the middle of the day. Warm hats and gloves/mittens are a must. We usually wear a pair of light synthetic fabric gloves under mittens when it’s really cold, so when shooting our control hand remains a bit protected by the light glove, with the control hand going back into our pocket warmed by dry chemical handwarmers as needed. There are many tricks of the trade we will share during the excursion to keep your gear functional in cold weather.

Food/drink: You are responsible for your own food and beverages. Particularly for cold weather excursions, it’s important you have a good hearty breakfast so your body has the fuel it needs stay warm at the start of the day. Water or other hydrating drinks are a good idea for all seasons. In the cold, your body needs the moisture to stay warm. And of course in hot weather during the long days of summer, you’ll need to replace moisture lost through perspiration. We typically break for lunch even during the short days of winter. During summer excursions, lunch breaks vary. If clients want to stay in the field from sunrise to sunset, we do, and we take lunch in the field. But for most clients, 16-hour shooting days are too demanding, and we generally return to Ely late in the morning for a four-hour break for lunch, shopping or other things, and meet up in the mid-afternoon to photograph until sunset. If you have medications that need to be taken during the day’s shooting, or other medical conditions that can impact the excursion, please let us know.

Transportation: We provide transportation (generally a 4x4 SUV with enough room for people and gear) for small-group excursions of up to three clients. For larger groups, additional transportation is provided by the clients.

Dining: From the basic to the fine, Ely offers great dining experiences. You can go to www.ely.org for a more complete list of options, or as we discuss your excursion in more detail, you can tell us what type of dining you prefer and we can make recommendations.

Lodging: A wide variety of motels and resorts await you in and around Ely. The Paddle Inn is a nice homey motel with low rates and good rooms/beds for the budget-conscious visitor. Northern Lights Lodge on Bear Island Lake a few miles south of Ely off Hwy. 21 is in particular “photographer friendly,” with high-speed Internet access in the lodge, plenty of electrical outlets in the cabins and lodging packages specifically tailored to photographers and photo clubs. You can find Northern Lights Lodge here.

Booking: Your date is booked as soon as we receive a deposit of half the total excursion rate, with the balance due on excursion day.

With questions or to make your deposit and book an excursion date, contact us here.