Photography Gear Guide

Wondering what drone or camera and lenses I use or what underwater housing my camera lives in to take underwater photos? In this list I cover the camera gear I use currently. From the camera itself to the software I use to edit.

Over the more than 10 years of I have been photographing, I have found a system that works for me and my photography subjects. The Photography Gear Guide covers all my favorite photography gear. Sit back, relax, and read on.

psst: This post contains affiliate links. If you use links from this post to make purchases, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. It’ll help keep the ‘lights on’, so-to-say, for Headed Anywhere.

Cameras, Lenses, and Tripods

Sony Alpha a6500

This is my main camera. I love it because it has a fast shutter speed for continuous shooting, which is super important to me when shooting moving subjects underwater. I also love its compact size. My hands are small so It fits really well in them. It is also super light. So much so that when I am hiking with it, I don’t even think about it hanging around my neck. Don’t forget the extra batteries, because battery life is mediocre at best.

Sony 10-18mm f/4 lens

I love wide-angle photography. I use this for most of my landscape and sunset photos. This lens is basically glued to my camera for Underwater images as well.

Sony 16-70mm f/4 lens

I use this as a walk around lens when I know I don’t need or want a wider angle. If you only buy one lens, this would be it. It gives you a wide enough angle, but also is flexible enough to be used for portraits or zooming in.

Sony 70-200mm f/4 G lens

I use this lens for wildlife. Sometimes for close-ups of the moon.

GoPro 7 Hero Black

I started out in underwater photography with a GoPro 3Hero Black and have upgraded due to in-body stabilization for video. Now I mostly use it for kayaking adventures or situations I do not want to risk breaking any of my other camera equipment. Sometimes for underwater.

DJI Mavic 3

I love my drone. It’s easy to use, lightweight and compact. Let’s not forget how fun it is to fly.

Joby Gorillapod

This is a small, lightweight tripod that I often travel with. It allows me to attach to taller objects if needed.

MeFOTO Classic Aluminum Backpacker Travel Tripod

My main tripod. It’s lightweight and perfect for my adventures. I don’t want a heavy or bulky tripod and spent a long time narrowing down to this one.

Underwater Housing System

Nauticam NA-A6500 For Sony A6500

This is my underwater housing for my Sony 6500. It’s ergonomic and can take a beating. I love it because I can control every single one of my controls on my camera. It’s also compact and lightweight which makes it perfect for traveling. I’ve traveled to multiple countries with carry-on only and was able to take this along with me. I opted for the vacuum seal to help reduce the risk of flooding. I also purchased to external battery pack since 6500 does have a pretty short battery life.

Nauticam 7-inch N85 Dome Port

This port works with both my 10-18mm lens as well as my 16-70mm lens. It’s great for taking over/under shots as well.

Bags and Accessories

Osprey Daylight Daypack

My main tripod. It’s lightweight and perfect for my adventures. I don’t want a heavy or bulky tripod and spent a long time narrowing down to this one.

Patagonia Stormfront Waterproof Pack 30L

This is a simple, yet effective bag if you want to keep your gear dry. I bought this for our Galapagos trip so that I could fit my underwater housing, 70-200mm lens and snorkel gear in for when we hiked and then went snorkeling. It worked wonders, and was especially handy when we hiked in the rain. This bag will keep your stuff dry and safe.

Burritote

Yep, you read that right. Burritote. This nifty invention was originally designed to keep your burrito warm and your salsa from spilling all over the place. Only in Southern California would someone think to create a thermal tote foley for your burrito. Well, that is until photographers caught wind of it. It’s the perfect, padded and insulated bag for my 70-200mm lens, as well as my other lenses. I own two, the burrito compartment is perfect for lenses and the salsa compartment is perfect for lens hoods, cleaning clothes, and batteries. It doesn’t hurt that they come in an attractive, Mexican blanket inspired design. Perfect for protecting my gear.

CleverMade Collapsible Cooler Bag

A cooler you say? Why yes. This is for when I have my camera in my underwater housing and I want to make sure my set-up doesn’t heat up or cool down too fast to avoid flooding risk as well as condensation build up. The padding also protects my housing system.

KUVRD Universal Lens Cap

As much as I love my Sony lenses, the lens caps tend to come off randomly. I invested in these so that it offered an extra layer of protection for my lenses but also to prevent the errant lens cap removal.

Peak Designs Camera Strap

I bought this so I could easily remove my strap to place in my underwater housing. I love this camera strap and glad I switch from the Sony one.

Camera Care

Lens Brush

I use this to brush away any dirt from my lens and camera.

Rocket Air

Perfect for blowing dust off my lenses as well as sensor. I use this after I use my lens brush.

Rocket Air

Once I use my lens brush and my rocket air, I spray my microfiber towel with some lens cleaner and clean my lens

Cleaning solution

Some dirt is harder to remove without the help of a cleaning solution. Spray your microfiber towel with this to get residues off your lenses.

Photo Editing

Photo Mechanic

I use this to help me quickly review my photos and cull photos before bringing them into Lightroom.

Lightroom

This is the first place I start to edit my photos. I have created some presets that I stick to, which I developed over the years to help edit more efficiently.

Photoshop

I bring photos in here to edit out any particulate or backscatter that is distracting in my underwater photos. If there are distracting lens flares in my landscape images I edit them out here as well.

Just starting out or have a limited budget?

First, start out with the camera available to you. Once you feel limited by that then it is time to upgrade.

For a starter camera, I recommend with the Sony Alpha a6000 as it is a great place to start as it has many of the features of the 6500 but at a much cheaper price. If you don’t want to splurge on a lens, stick with the kit lens. But if you want a great all-around lens that produces amazing images go with buying the 6000 body-only and then splurge for the 16-70mm f/4 Zeiss lens.

I switched from the T4I to the Sony A6500 a couple of years back and won’t be looking back to DSLRs, but if you don’t want to go the mirrorless route, then you can try the Canon Rebel series. Paired with an EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM and you are good to go. This lens was my go-to lens when I had my canon.

Disclosure: Please note that some of the links in this post are affiliate links, and at no additional cost to you, I earn a commission if you make a purchase using the link. If you are ready to buy travel gear or book your travel and would like to support this website in some way, using these links will help do exactly that. It's a win-win situation. If you have any questions about the products or companies, e-mail me and I'm happy to answer your questions.

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