What’s In Our Camera Bag? All The Gear We Use As Part-Time Travel Creators

Interested in what’s in our camera bag and what gear we use as part time travel content creators? Whether you’re looking for beginning content creator gear, are interested in specific gear we used in one of our videos, or are just curious – you’ve come to the right place. Here is every piece of content creation photography and videography gear we have in our collection as part time content creators.

David’s Camera

David is a huge Nikon fan and he uses a Nikon Z6 for all of his photography. For his lens, David uses a Nikkor Z 24-70mm f/2.8 lens. We typically shoot in 24mm as it gives the influencer style look I love.

This camera was actually in David’s possession prior to us starting to create content, so note if you are a beginner, a camera of this caliber is probably going to come further down the road if you are serious about photography.

Stella’s Camera

While I began vlogging with just my iPhone, I eventually decided to invest in a professional vlogging camera. I went with the Nikon Z30 vlogging camera with creator kit, which features a screen that flips backwards so you can see yourself while filming.

Although I love this camera, I honestly don’t use this camera as often as I thought I would. It’s inconvenient for shooting on the go and best for talking head shots set up on a tripod.

Camera Accessories

We have several accessories for our professional cameras that we feel are essential. The first of course is a camera strap to ensure we don’t drop our cameras and can carry it around hands free. David and I use the same strap for our cameras.

Recently we purchased polarized lens filters for both of our cameras. These really help when shooting out in the bright light like we often do on vacation, and helps give colorizing effects to your photos and videos.

If you’re wondering how we get our couples photos or my flying dress photos, well it’s this wireless shutter release for David’s Nikon Z6. This is probably the best camera accessory we have!

A tripod is also a must for steady shots and for capturing our couples and flying dress photos. We prefer a Mansfrotto brand tripod because they are high quality and hold up well. This tripod can also be used with our other gear in addition to our cameras.

And last we do have a gimble for my vlogging camera. We’ve found that if my camera is not on its tripod on a solid surface, the footage is extremely shakey. This gimble allows us to get steady B-Roll shots with the vlogging camera. However, it is bulky and slow to set up, so we don’t use it often.

iPhones

You may be surprised to know we shoot a majority of our video content on iPhones! Although we are currently using a 14 Pro Max and a 16 Pro Max, we have shot vlogs and photos on several older models as well.

Honestly, it’s so much easier to just grab your phone and shoot than having to set up gear. Plus. I can’t even tell the difference in footage quality between our phones versus my vlogging camera.

We also have the DJI Osmo Pocket 6 phone gimbal for steady footage and are obsessed with it. It has an auto-tracking feature that will move the camera to follow it’s subject when shooting video. This is a game changer for solo couples creators.

Action Cameras

Although it is now considered and older model, we have the GoPro Hero 8 action camera. We take our Go Pro in the ocean, snorkeling, etc and we have even attached it to our vehicles to do drive arounds. We probably won’t be upgrading this anytime soon because it works just fine.

If you are wanting to take Instagram worthy half-in, half-out underwater shots, then you will need to get a GoPro Dome. If you’re just looking to shoot underwater footage, your Go Pro can go straight in the water up to a certain depth without the need for a dome or case. But we still attach the handle of the dome in these scenarios as it floats and has a wrist strap.

We also recently got an Insta360 camera, which films 360 degrees of footage. So far we haven’t done too much with our Insta360 footage as the camera and editing software is kind of confusing, but we will be playing around more with it soon.

Drone

We have the DJI Mini SE, which is one of the smaller and more lightweight drones. This is a fantastic drone for beginners that takes up very little space and meets many countries drone weight restrictions. We will probably be sticking with this drone a heavier drone can be problematic to use in other countries.

Audio Equipment

A wireless microphone set is essential if you are filming on iPhone. We use a Neewer lavalier microphone system and it has fared better in both quality and durability than several other off-brand microphones we’ve tried.

I also recently bought a microphone for recording voiceovers on edited content, although I haven’t used it very much yet. This microphone would be an awesome option for beginner streamers, podcasters, and more.

Lighting Equipment

We have some lighting equipment we use both at home and on the road. First up is a ring light, which is essential for filming vlogs and short form video. We have a both a ring light at home as well as a foldable travel ring light. The travel ring light is super convenient for quick selfies with our phones, and is a great purchase even for normal vacationers who are not making content.

Recently we purchased this RGB constant light for David’s camera. We’ve found it helpful for filming talking segments at night and we’ve also been playing around with different colors for night photos.

Our most recent lighting gear addition is a flash for David’s Nikon Z6 camera. This purchase included the flash itself, a flash trigger for his camera, and a soft box. We have been experimenting with flash photography at the beach during harsh noon sun and so far have loved the results. However, I would say this is a much more advanced set up.

Tech Accessories

In order to use all this gear on the go, we also have a ton of chargers, memory cards, and external hard drives. We’ve been through a ton of different brands of these, but right now we are loving the SanDisk 4TB Extreme Portable SSD external hard drive along with its matching case.

Backpacks

You may be wondering how we transport all this gear, especially considering we travel carry on only. Well, David and I each carry a camera backpack that we use as our personal item on flights. We also have matching crossbody slings bags that we can slip into our backpacks when traveling.

I am obsessed with my Brevite Jumper camera bag, which is designed with removable and adjustable dividers to accommodate photography gear. I actually have this in both the regular and large size to ensure I can meet the carry on size limits for different airlines. I also have matching Everyday Sling Bags, which I put inside the backpack on the plane and then use it in lieu of a purse when traveling.

David uses the Nomatic Peter McKinnon backpack that he gets a ton of compliments on this backpack. He also has two different size matching Nomatic sling bags for carrying gear on the go – a 1L sling as well as the larger 8L sling.

Beginner Creator Recommendations

Now that you’ve seen all of the travel content creator gear that we own, I’m sure you’re wondering what gear do you need if you are interested in creating content? You really don’t need a vast majority of the gear we have! We recommend just the basics below and upgrading over time.

Literally THAT’S IT! That’s all you need to get started. Don’t spend money upfront on too much gear like we did. We really didn’t need to buy three quarters of the gear we did. We recommend saving your money and upgrade overtime as you start earning money from your content (which for us, was years down the road after starting!)

We hope this guide has been helpful or just plain interesting. If you have any questions about our gear, recommendations, or what we use in a specific video, leave a comment below and we would be happy to help.

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