From time to time, participants on my photo trips ask me which larger telephoto lenses I recommend for Iceland, for example, and what the handling is like when transporting them by plane. I would like to answer these two questions in a short article today.
The handling described above does not apply to every country. Today I'm taking the example of a 2-week tour of Iceland in the summer, where the focus is on scenic spots, but there are always nice encounters with animals. This trip is coming up again in 8 weeks anyway.
A. What should I bear in mind when transporting ‘heavy’ photographic equipment by plane and the logistics on location?
I'm deliberately starting with this question. Because once this has been clarified, the second question will be answered quickly.
Firstly, a basic thought, even if regular blog readers already know this: I'm not the kind of photographer who likes to go into the field with a super-telephoto lens, wide-angle lens, standard zoom and filter bag. Quite simply, it's far too heavy for me and it's no fun at all. Nevertheless, I usually have these lenses with me when travelling - so how do I handle them?
A few facts in advance
What is really time-consuming here is not the transport and handling during the two weeks on site, which I will come to in a moment. It's just the few hours on the outward and return flights at the ‘bottleneck airport’.
Of course, the regulations are always different depending on the airline. With some airlines, I can even take a 2nd piece of hand luggage with me or book it in addition. But today I go through the standard case that I can only take one piece of hand luggage with me.
Even many special bags, rucksacks and suitcases that are declared by the manufacturer as suitable for air travel often exceed the permitted dimensions on one side or another. These usually fluctuate around 55 x 40 x 20 cm. The 20 cm height in particular is difficult to maintain. The maximum weight is often 8 or 10 kg, again depending on the airline.
Theory vs practice
I now usually transport all my photo equipment in a rucksack. For example, the F-Stop Tilopa. In theory, however, it's a bit too big. However, my equipment is stored in a thin separate bag (‘ICU’) and this fits the required dimensions. I have flown more than 30 times in the last few years with a very large tele, with different airlines and have only had a small problem once in this respect....
On the way back from this photo session with the great reindeer of the Arctic in 2023, one of the planes was too small and not the promised Airbus A320. The Tilopa didn't fit in the hand luggage compartment above the seat and we were asked to add larger items of hand luggage to our free baggage allowance.
I then clearly pointed out - and I would recommend this to anyone - that this was not possible as my baggage consisted ‘essentially of glass and lots of lithium-ion batteries’. They then realised that it had to go into the cabin. There I took the ICU out of my rucksack and it fitted easily into the hand luggage compartment. I simply put the flabby rucksack cover next to it.
So much for the dimensions. I'm usually slightly over the weight limit when travelling by plane. If this is ever an issue, I will put smaller lenses in my jacket and, according to the baggage regulations of almost all airlines, you can also carry a camera that does not count towards the maximum weight of hand luggage. Just in case, I always have a Peakdesign camera strap with me. However, this scenario has never come into play.
In the end, there is always a (I think rather theoretical) residual risk if you are slightly above it. The final decision lies with the crew of the aircraft. BUT in the last 16 years I only know of one case where someone had real difficulties (due to maximum weight), and even in this case it ended in the photo equipment being taken into the cabin after much discussion.
How exactly I pack the stuff
Ok, so the equipment comes with me. I'm taking 3 things with me:
1. The rucksack or ICU for the equipment: but it's not really big either. That's why I'd like to briefly describe how I pack. This is what the equipment looked like on the plane on my last trip to Iceland, for example:
You can already recognise the following from this:
- I pack everything that doesn't consist of expensive electronics, glass or lithium-ion batteries in the free baggage allowance
- This also includes the typical accessories: the filter bag, battery chargers, the tripod with head... everything goes in the suitcase. I even remove the replacement foot from the 600 for the flight
- By the way, the picture shows the Nikon Z14-24, Z24-120, Plena 135, 2x Nikon Z8 and the Nikon Z600 TC-S
2. A robust cloth bag (for many airlines, the following section also applies to smaller bags)
I also always have a simple bag with me. Every airline I've flown with in recent years (Icelandair, Eurowings, SAS, Norwegian Airlines, etc) has allowed this in addition to the normal carry-on bag - it looks something like this:
In other words, a simple, inconspicuous and inexpensive cloth bag. In it I have
- My notebook with mouse and charger
- My noise-cancelling headphones
- Small hard drive bag
- Food/drink as required
- Small items....
I have never heard of anyone asking about the contents or weight of the bag.
3. An empty ICU in the large case:
I don't have a picture of it to hand at the moment, but I think everyone can imagine what it looks like and that I then pack this ICU full of clothes etc. as normal. I'll explain why in the next section.
Handling on location
The first thing I do when I arrive at my destination, or more precisely at the hotel, is repack!
- Out with the heavy telephoto!
- I put one of the two bodies to the 600 and put the combo in the empty ICU I brought with me
- I now fill the actual technical ICU (in the rucksack) with a filter bag etc. so that it fits for landscape photography
On our trips, I only have a normal rucksack with landscape lenses and I keep the large lens in a separate ICU in the car. Just in case, I have photo insurance from Aktivas. In practice, you are well equipped for 95% of all cases and I never have to ‘lug around’ the large lens unnecessarily.
- we go to a spot where the need for a large telephoto lens is really totally unrealistic 99% of the time (e.g. Gulfoss, Bruarfoss, Vestrahorn etc.)
- we see a great option on the journey / at the side of the road (for example reindeer) - I pull the 600 out of the ICU and take photos practically next to the car. It happens regularly. The camera is of course preset for wildlife photography.
- we go on trips to places where we specifically visit animal colonies (puffins, terns, Odin's grouse etc): then I only take the large lens with me and maybe a small lens and leave everything else in the hotel room or in the car.
B. Which larger telephoto lenses I recommend for Iceland, for example
So let's come back to the second part of the original question: because of the procedure described above, you don't need to worry at all whether a 150-600 is too big for transport, for example, if I can even manage that with a 600/4 😉
I therefore clearly recommend a large telephoto lens for Iceland - especially in summer: 300 is good, 400 is better, 600 mm focal length is ideal. This is not only an advantage for puffins, but also for terns, ruffed ducks, whooper swans, black-throated divers, Odin's coots, reindeer, golden plovers, etc.
I hope I have now been able to dispel some concerns or questions 😉
Best regards,
Thomas
