Photo Live Magazine First Issue Photo live - cat's add in 2017 versioin | Page 113

Traveling, teaching and podcasting
are all part of a larger picture. The
photo tours are a great source of
stories, which I love telling on my
podcasts. The teaching is an ex-
tension of the podcasts and the
podcasts help people find my photo
tours, books and workshops. It all be-
longs together and it all works hand
in hand. And the different areas tran-
scend into each other, for example
my latest podcast “Curiously Polar”
where I talk with an Arctic scientist
about the polar regions has grown
out of my latest photo tour.
What do you recommend as a be-
ginners/ first timer travellers’ gear
list for going on a tour to say Bhutan?
For me the best camera is the one
that you know best. Photo gear is al-
most like a pair of shoes. They take a
while to adapt to you and you take a
while to adapt to them. Buying a new
camera a few days before taking off
on a photo tour is probably not such
a good idea. I’ve seen too many peo-
ple not heeding that advice and end-
ing up coming home with sub-par
photos because they had to spend
too much time fighting the new gear
during the tour. Different photo tours
have different points of focus, which
might influence lens selection. The
polar bears in the Arctic are usually
at a distance that requires a focal
length of at least 600mm, while you
might bring a 50mm for New York
City street photography or a 24mm
for Siberian ice-scapes. Also for
wildlife or sports you might want a
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