As a photojournalist and documentary photographer the camera gear and tools I use to make my workflow and career less stressful always requires me to evaluate and change whats in my camera bag. I want to be nimble and discreet to ensure what I’m using isn’t getting in the way of capturing the story.
Below are the camera equipment I currently use on assignments and personal work for photojournalism and filmmaking. I also list different tools and software I use to protect my work and run my business.
I also made a video showing everything in my camera bag after a documentary photography project in Cuba.
The Sony Alpha a9 II mirrorless camera is my go-to for photojournalism or documentary assignments and as my A cam for video production projects as well.
Sony Alpha A9 II Mirrorless Camera
The Sony Alpha a6400 mirrorless camera is my b cam for video production projects. It is also my main choice when I am exploring a new location, due to how compact and light it is, which makes it easy to carry.
Sony Alpha a6400 mirrorless camera
The Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM zoom lens is my lens of choice for photojournalism assignments and run and gun video shoots. The quality of the glass makes for sharp images and video and the range of the zoom allows me to capture really easily a variety of different frame choices for a shot.
Sony FE 24-70mm f2.8 gm zoom lens
The Sony FE 85mm f1.4 GM Lens is my lens of choice for portraits. It compresses the background beautifully and produces extremely sharp images.
Sony FE 85mm f1.4 GM lens
The Pelican Protector Carry On Case is how I travel with all my equipment on flights. It’s sturdy and it meets the carry on size for any airline.
Pelican 1510 Carry On Case
The Midland - LXT600VP3 Two Way Radio is a fantastic, very affordable walkie talkie system. The range is amazing and they are also very light and can fit into any pocket. They are perfect to keep communication with a producer or translator in case you don’t have signal in a certain location.
Midland lxt600vp3 two way radio
Incase Design Incase DSLR Pro Backpack checks all the boxes for me when I am looking for a camera backpack. It is light, it is minimal, it is affordable, and it can fit all my cameras and lenses and makes all the gear very accessible.
Incase Design DSLR Pro Backpack
SanDisk Extreme Portable External SSD I carry four 2TB of these on any given photojournalistic or documentary photography assignment. I make sure to backup all my work three times (four with a cloud storage) They are very light and portable, have fast transfer speeds, and haven’t failed me yet.
Sandisk Extreme Portable External ssd
Exposure.co has been one of my favorite discoveries recently. They have created a platform meant for photographers (documentary photographers or photojournalists) to tell stories. If you have always found blogs somehow not allow your photos to shine, Exposure fixes all the pain points of blogging on a tradition website host.
Exposure.co
Photo Mechanic quite simply its the easiest and fastest way to cull your photos and find that money shot. It is the industry standard in photojournalism.
The Pelican Compact Memory Card Case has been my go-to way of protecting my work while I am on assignment and haven’t had the chance to send photos off to an editor or backed them up on site right away. I carry two and use one for unused memory cards and one for memory cards that already have photos on them.
Showstoppers Double Sided Tape I don’t know why but it’s one of my favorite tools in my camera bag. It’s literally just double sided tape, which makes it easy to hide a lav mac on subject.
Double sided tape
Endurax Sling Camerbag Backpack There is nothing like a useful sling. This has been my go to sling for a while now and I still can’t figure out why it is so cheap., but it works.
Endurax sling camera bag
Moo Cards You probably already use Moo, but if you don't: I've used these for a few years, and they just keep getting better. Also, outstanding customer service. I've ordered both business cards and stickers, and anything I do through Moo is 10/10 for process, price, and quality. Use this link to save $15 on your first order.
I hope this article helped you in anyway in your photojournalism or documentary photography career. We all know a great photo isn’t made by the camera or the lens, but by the story we effectively are trying to tell or the message we are trying to convey. However, camera gear is important, as they are tools that enable us to focus more on storytelling by making our workflow easier.
You can find this entire photojournalism kit below.
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