The joys of digital and travel

[r.e.]

I am going to spend almost three months this summer in a somewhat remote part of the world. Last night I made a list of the photo stuff that I have to bring, and paused when it came to the part where one has to get the image from the film. Mostly, I need a way to edit ruthlessly so that I am not buried under a mountain of negatives at the end of the summer. It occured to me that I could just contact print. Not the best solution, because it will still leave me with a backlog at the end of the summer, and because I'll be shooting 35mm as well as 6x7 and 4x5, and I don't claim to be particularly good at evaluting 35mm contact sheets, but perhaps it's good enough. Instead, having embraced digital processing, I am leaning toward bringing, and then bringing back:

Computer and related paraphernalia
Two external hard drives
Eizo computer screen
Epson scanner
Epson printer

Do other people travel with all this stuff?

[Anupam]

You have to shoot a LOT of negatives to outweigh the gear you are planning to take. If you can develop and sleeve the negs, can't you just carry them back with you to scan/wet print? I brought back several sleeves of negatives from a short holiday and spent a week making digital contacts on a flatbed and then scanning the ones I wanted.

[r.e.]

I brought back several sleeves of negatives from a short holiday and spent a week making digital contacts on a flatbed and then scanning the ones I wanted.

That's what scares me. This is a long holiday

[Anupam]

If you can make digital contacts by laying the whole sleeve in the scanner, editing becomes a much easier job. Depending on your hit rate per roll, you can easily scan 5 to 10 or even more rolls of keepers per day. To me the risks of carrying that gear and the hassle of setting it up and spending holiday time scanning stuff doesn't make sense. Plus, there might be voltage issues etc in this "remote part of the world." Working on scanning at home with a cup of coffee and a CD on is just so much more efficient .

[Pat Kearns]

With weight restrictions getting tighter on airlines how are you planning to carry all the cameras, lenses, film, holders, plus all the computer equipment? I would ship the film ahead to the destination, pack film holders in checked bags, cameras in carry on bags and leave the computer equipment at home. I would spend more time behind the camera instead of in front of a computer. Go enjoy the trip, burn lots of film and worry about the digital conversion when you get back home.

[r.e.]

With weight restrictions getting tighter on airlines how are you planning to carry all the cameras, lenses, film, holders, plus all the computer equipment?

Tell me about it.

I think that I'm beginning to understand why the combination of a laptop computer and a 35mm digital camera is so popular.

This is becoming a real production. Arca 4x5, Mamiya 7II, Leica M3. Lenses. Tripod and head. Film and paper. Developer, fixer. Computer, computer screen, scanner, printer. I feel like I'm moving house.

The location is rural Newfoundland. I've bought a place there, and one of the things that I want to do is a photo essay about the local community. I don't think that I can do that effectively if I shoot blind for three months. For one thing, my subjects are going to want to see proof that I'm not making them look like gargoyles.

Now that I've got my head around this, it's beginning to seem more manageable. It's just boxes, lots of bubble wrap and styrofoam peanuts, and postal charges, right? Luckily, on Monday I'm going out there for a few days, so I can split the stuff that I want to take on the plane into two trips. Not sure how that's going to work on the way back, though

Then there's the fly fishing rods and the shotgun. Oh, and the binoculars.

[Blueberrydesk]

If you are going to be in one place while you're there, and it sounds like you are, then go ahead and take the kitchen sink. It sounds like you're going to set up a wet darkroom there as well, so go for it! Take everything. It's better to have it and not want it, than to...well, you know the rest.

Paul

[r.e.]

Take everything. It's better to have it and not want it, than to...well, you know the rest.

Thanks, I've been resisting the temptation to bring a couple of light stands and lights, but now you've got me wavering...

[walter23]

It sounds like you're unnecessarily complicating things. It's only three months.

[cyrus]

Do other people travel with all this stuff?

I don't do digital except for a pocket camera that I use as a backup and for color snapshot but in any case one of the best parts of travel is to spend the time sorting through the negatives aftewards, putting the trip into some sort of perspective.