talmage

<p>I support the suggestions to get a lighter travel camera. I'm using a Fuji X100S. I've used it in the USA, where I live, for about six months and I'm very happy with it. I found that I enjoy "zooming with my feet" :-). I bought it because of my experience in Paris last year with my Pentax K20D and a 40mm pancake lens. That's a good combination but it's heavy and conspicuous. The camera spent more time in my shoulder bag than I liked.</p>

<p>You've hit on the right combination: minimal DSLR, secondary camera, some supplemental gear. I came to the same conclusion over 30 years of traveling with cameras, lenses, and a tripod. </p> <p>Among the combinations I've tried:</p> <ul> <li>digital p&s, Fuji 120 rangefinder</li> <li>two mobile phones (1 for calls, one as camera)</li> <li>digital p&s, mobile phone</li> <li>Pentax K20D w/40mm pancake lens, mobile phone</li> <li>Pentax *ist-D w/kit zoom</li> <li>Fuji X100s, mobile phone</li> </ul> <p>For convenience and the ability to blend in with the natives (stipulating that that's possible), my best choice is bring just my mobile phone. It's liberating. I don't have to worry about theft as much as the guy with the DSLR because I have the same camera that everyone else does, including the thieves. I did that on a trip to Germany and got decent photos that I could print up to about 4x6.</p> <p>On a trip to London, I tried using just a digital p&s plus a mobile phone. That worked out well, too.</p> <p>In the last year, I've taken two trips with the K20D and the Pentax 40mm pancake lens. My supplementary camera was my mobile phone. This combination worked well in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dominica">Dominica</a> but not so well in Paris. In Dominica, I hiked and I drove. When hiking I didn't need spontaneous access to the camera, so it could stay in my backpack. When I was driving, it could stay in a bag on the floor. I took equal numbers of pictures with the K20D and with my mobile phone. In Paris, I felt like I had to hide the camera in my messenger bag. I wanted to blend in more, to look less like a tourist. It wasn't so easy to get the camera out if I wanted it spontaneously. Also, I noticed the weight of the camera more in Paris. I don't know why. I took more pictures with my mobile phone.</p> <p>While I love the K20D, when I travel I often wish for a camera a light as the Pentax *ist-D I once had. Together with the kit zoom it was good enough.</p> <p>My experience in Paris led me to the idea of a lightweight travel camera. I bought a Fuji X100s as my travel camera. My mobile phone remains the supplementary camera. I sometimes bring a Manfrotto Super Clamp to use as an impromptu tripod. I've used this combination daily since purchase. The camera lives in my messenger bag or backpack or whatever I'm carrying things in. I'm seriously considering giving up my DSLR and all of its lenses. The Fuji is that good.</p> <p>For backing up my pictures on travel, I've found that a tablet computer like the Google Nexus 7 along with thumb drives, an SD card reader, and the right cables is a decent, lightweight solution.</p>