My Gear

I have been asked many times what is in my bag. The honest answer is: less than it used to be.

Over twenty years of photography, and more system changes than my father ever forgave me for, I have learned that the best gear is the gear that gets out of your way and lets you work. Every time I told him I was switching systems, I would get the same look. "Again?!" He was not wrong.

Here is where I ended up, and why.

The Journey (The Short Version)

It started in 2005 with a Nikon D70 and an 18-70mm kit lens. Then a D200, then professional Nikon glass, then a jump to Canon with the original 5D, which was a revelation for full-frame image quality. The 5D MkII was one of the best cameras of its era, particularly for video. The MkIII followed for the autofocus improvements, though it never excited me as much.

Then came Fujifilm, the XT2, then the XT3. Beautiful cameras with a unique rendering, but something always felt missing compared to what I had before.

The strangest chapter was my first tour collaboration. The payment was not what was originally agreed, but at the time a Sony A7R IV and a 24-105mm f/4 was roughly the right value, and I decided to accept it. The A7R IV is genuinely one of the best cameras ever made in terms of image quality. The resolution, the dynamic range, the detail it captures is extraordinary. The ZV-E1 I added for video was equally impressive for its size. Full-frame video in a body that fits in a jacket pocket is remarkable engineering. Sony makes exceptional cameras. But there were things about the system that never clicked for me personally, the ergonomics, the menu logic, the way it felt in my hands. The image quality was the best I had ever had, and yet I never felt at home with it. Everything felt clinical. Sterile. The images were technically perfect and somehow empty.

In 2024, I went back to Nikon. And that was it.

Looking back, the constant system changes taught me something I did not expect: I can pick up almost any camera and use it properly. Nikon, Canon, Fujifilm, Sony, I have shot seriously with all of them. When a client arrives on a tour with an unfamiliar system, I can help them. That kind of hands-on knowledge across platforms is genuinely rare, and it makes me a better guide.

Cameras

Nikon Z8. My primary camera for everything. Fast, reliable, exceptional image quality, and video that genuinely surprised me. This is the camera I had been looking for without knowing it.

Nikon ZR. Primarily for video, an absolute monster of a camera. It also serves as my backup body on tours, which means clients are never one camera failure away from a problem.

One honest note: Sony's autofocus system is still a step ahead of Nikon's. I will not pretend otherwise. But everything else about the Z system fits the way I work so well that it is not a factor in my day-to-day shooting.

Lenses

All Nikon Z mount, except one.

Nikon Z 14-24mm f/2.8 S. My most-used lens. Wide, sharp, and handles the Azorean landscape the way it deserves. It requires a dedicated 112mm front element for filters, more on that below.

Nikon Z 24-120mm f/4. The lens that lives on the camera when I am not sure what the day will bring. Versatile, sharp, and light enough to carry all day.

Nikon Z 70-200mm f/2.8 S. For compression, coastal shots, and the occasional wildlife encounter. I tested the Nikon 100-400mm extensively and genuinely liked it, but I could not justify it for the way I work. I do not shoot wildlife seriously, and most landscape photographers who tell you the 100-400 is essential are probably right for their workflow. For mine, the 70-200 with the TC-1.4x gives me enough reach when I need it, and the f/2.8 aperture is far more useful in the low light conditions I shoot in most often. The 100-400 is a great lens. It is just not my lens.

Nikon Z 50mm f/1.8 S. For when I want something simple and close to how the eye sees.

Nikon Z 20mm f/1.8 S. Acquired primarily for video. It is one of the best 20mm lenses on the market, and the wide aperture makes it incredibly versatile. Astrophotography is a bonus, but that was not the main reason I bought it.

Nikon TC-1.4x. Teleconverter for when 200mm is not enough.

Tamron 90mm f/2.8 Macro. Rarely leaves the bag, but when macro is called for, it is there. Part of the arsenal.

Drones

DJI Mavic 4 Pro Creative Combo. With the large RC Pro controller. The latest generation and it shows. The image quality and flight stability are exceptional, especially in the Atlantic wind conditions I deal with regularly.

DJI Mavic 3 Pro. Four batteries, still one of the best drones ever made, and my backup in the field. Having two drones on a tour is not a luxury. In the Azores wind, it is a contingency plan.

DJI ND Filters. Dedicated to each drone. Essential for smooth video footage in bright Atlantic light.

Filters

NiSi 112mm CPL. Used exclusively for the 14-24mm. This lens has a bulbous front element that does not accept standard filters, so the 112mm screws into the lens hood. It is large, it is specific, and there is no substitute.

Maven Magnetic Filters (77mm). This is where my thinking changed. I used to avoid filters as much as possible, the less gear the better. Then I tried the Maven magnetic system and immediately understood why people love it. Two CPLs, plus ND3, ND6, and ND10. The magnetic attachment is fast enough that you will actually use them in the field instead of leaving them in the bag.

Audio

Sennheiser MKE 600. My main directional microphone for serious video work. Professional quality, handles wind reasonably well with the included windshield.

Sennheiser MKE 400. Compact directional mic for run-and-gun situations. Smaller, lighter, still excellent.

DJI Wireless Mic. For interviews, pieces to camera, or any situation where a cable is not practical. Reliable and genuinely good sound quality for the size.

Stabilisation

DJI RS 4 Mini. My current gimbal. Light enough to actually carry, stable enough to actually use.

DJI Ronin SC. The original compact Ronin. Still works, rarely leaves the shelf. The RS 4 Mini replaced it completely for my use.

Bags & Support

Peak Design Outdoor 45L. My main bag for multi-day shoots and tours. The organisation and build quality are excellent, and it carries everything I need comfortably.

Two honest criticisms, because this is a gear page not an advertisement: the C-shaped zipper on the main compartment requires two hands to close properly when the bag is fully open, which is genuinely frustrating in the field. And the main compartment could be deeper. With a Nikon Z8 and an L-bracket attached, it is a tighter fit than it should be. Peak Design makes great gear. This bag is close to perfect, not quite there.

Sirui AM-324. My current primary tripod. Carbon fibre, tall, light, and a fraction of the price of the Gitzo it replaced. I have several older Gitzo tripods that still work perfectly, but the Sirui travels with me now.

What I Actually Travel With

Island hopping across the Azores means making real choices about what goes in the bag. You simply cannot bring everything on a multi-island tour, between small aircraft, strict baggage limits, and days that demand agility over completeness.

In practice, most tours I guide come down to the Nikon Z8, the 14-24mm, the 24-120mm, and one drone. That combination covers almost every situation I encounter in the field. The Nikon ZR is a recent addition and will start travelling with me more regularly, and I will likely bring the 20mm along as well. But the core kit is leaner than this page might suggest. Everything else exists for specific situations, not every day.

Memory Cards. The Nikon Z8 and ZR both use CFexpress Type B cards. I shoot 512GB cards exclusively, three in total: one SanDisk and two Angelbird. The Z8 also has an SD slot which I use as backup, but day to day, and especially when shooting RAW video, the CFexpress cards are the only option that keeps up. If you are joining one of my tours with a camera that uses CFexpress Type B, make sure you have at least one card and a compatible reader before you travel. These are not easy to find on a small island.

Computing

At home I work on a custom PC build with an AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D processor, 64GB of RAM, and an MSI RTX 5080 GPU on an Asus ROG Strix X870E motherboard. Storage is built around five Samsung 990 Pro M.2 drives at 4TB each for active projects and the current year's work, backed up to 24TB of hard drive storage in a redundant pool via Windows Storage Spaces, configured for data protection against drive failure. I also use two monitors, and my main display is an Asus OLED PG27UDCM. It is exceptional for colour grading.

When travelling, I switch to a MacBook Air M4 paired with a Samsung 990 Pro 4TB portable SSD for backing up images and video in the field. It is a different world from the desktop, but it handles everything I need on the road.

Everyday & Social

iPhone 17 Pro. For behind-the-scenes content, social media, and the moments when pulling out a full camera kit would break the atmosphere. The computational photography has reached a point where I genuinely use it for some video work as well. The best camera is the one you have with you, and this one is always with me.

Software

Adobe Lightroom Classic. Primary photo editing and cataloguing.

Adobe Photoshop. For compositing and anything Lightroom cannot handle.

Luminar NEO. For specific AI-assisted edits. A useful addition to the workflow, not a replacement.

DaVinci Resolve Studio. All video editing. The colour grading tools are exceptional for the kind of landscape footage I produce.

The best camera is the one that makes you want to go out and shoot. After twenty years and more systems than I care to count, and more conversations with my father than either of us would like to remember, I am finally where I should have been all along.