My herping camera setup

My camera is a Panasonic Lumix G9, which uses the relatively lighter and cheaper lens system, micro four thirds (MFT, or M43), to make it easier to acquire new lenses and lug them out into the field. The "four thirds" system is a reference to the 4:3 aspect ratio. "Micro" refers to the fact that the sensor is a about a quarter of the size of a full-frame (35mm) sensor. This means that it has an effective "crop factor" of about 2x, which means that if you are using a 60mm lens (this is what I have), then that effectively shoots with the same angle of view that a 120mm lens sees. MFT has some staying power and is supported by both Panasonic and Olympus, which both continue to release new cameras and lenses for this format.

I was convinced to go with this system, even though it's not one of the two big players (Canon/Nikon) because of a series of articles written by Nicolas Hess on his camera setup, and a couple of SoMuchPingle podcast episodes that mention it. Nicolas Hess is a professional photographer and filmmaker concentrating on herps. I figured if it's good enough for him, it's good enough for me.

I think the weight of the camera is probably the single biggest downside of having a nice camera along. You have to carry it. I'm not exactly counting ounces, but all else equal, a smaller camera is certainly easier to carry. But all else is not equal - quality and price matter even more. And for me, the camera I have gives a pretty great quality to price ratio. So finding a relatively inexpensive camera with nice image quality, good software, and a small and light form-factor is a huge win. It's not the most incredible sensor, and I don't have the fastest lenses, but it gives me enough to work with, and has been a really great entry-level camera for me.

Right now, I have only one prime lense - a Zuiko 60mm (120mm equivalent) F2.8 macro lens. And if you look at my photos, you can tell I rely very heavily on this one lens - there's a certain sameness to them. But it's a wonderful lens that shoots nice crisp photos and it's taken me pretty far. I'll probably get a wide-angle lens next, so I can capture the animal and the habitat at the same time. It can even do 1:1 magnification - which means it can create very detailed photos at close range.

For lighting, I mainly use a camera-mounted godox V680III speedlight with a cygnustech diffuser. It's OK for short range but I prefer a larger diffuser for bigger subjects, like large snakes. For that I use 24" collapsing softbox, which is best as an off-camera flash. The softbox setup sometimes requires three hands (one to hold the camera, one to hold the flash plus diffuser, one to wrangle the subject) and a bit more setup, so its best for calm subjects. I reach for it when a little more flexibility on lighting angle is required.

I also carry a very small translucent white umbrella for diffusing harsh sunlight. That comes in handy pretty often, and the one I have cost less than $15. I typically just open it up and set it on the ground so that my subject is in shadow and it magically makes a little overcast day for me while preserving most of the light.

Lastly, I thought it might be worth sharing every single piece of camera and camera-related equipment I've bought. It took a while to figure out this list. Maybe it will help you consider if this is a good fit for you!

Full Herping Camera Setup

Total cost: $1,737.41 (USD)