Question Of The Week

Truck Campers, Photography, and You Poll Results

This week we polled Truck Camper Magazine readers about their interest in photography.  Over 65% of the 135 people who responded stated that they are enthusiast-level or professional photographers.  That explains the 62% that report having both a SLR, and multiple lenses.  We were a bit surprised that 7.87% are shooting with film.

For this poll, we are trying out a different approach to displaying the results.  As you can see, they are graphically displayed.  If reader response is positive, we’ll pursue more graphic representation to poll results in the future.

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Question 4: What are your preferred camera brands?

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In addition to these answers, readers added the MotoX smartphone, Kodak EasyShare Z1485 IS, Minolta, Hasselblad 503, GigaPan, Phase One, Garmin Virb.

Question 5: What types of photography do you enjoy while truck camping?

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Question 8: If you have a blog or photography site where you post your pictures, feel free to share it with us.

Due to potential privacy concerns, we are not publishing the reader submitted photography blogs.

Question 9: Tell us about the special or unique subjects that you photograph while truck camping.

I like to document adventures in a manner that people can do themselves, or visit from the comfort of their desk.

Landscapes and travel photos wherever we are located.

Beautiful scenery!

Old churches and crosses.

We love to capture videos of waterfalls that we come across during our travels.  They look so much better in action than a still image.

A lot of my photos I take out the front window the truck.  If I stopped everywhere there is a good picture, I would never get anywhere.

Light houses, train topics, history.

Always on the lookout for the weird and wonderful, as well as the ghosts of homesteads past.

Two years ago we decided to change our pose for our “I was here” pictures. Instead of facing the camera, we now pose looking towards the interest point that would have been behind us – no more having to retake a photo because the eyes were closed.

Lighthouses, trains, sunsets, birds.

Always looking for that calendar contest shot!  Night time is the best!  I can usually tell before taking the photo if it’s going to be a contender. I take the pics and than write the blog around the them. I strongly believe in composition over expensive equipment.  I try to shoot everyday when we’re living in the truck camper. My Nikon has two SD cards.  I shoot one in raw and the other in lower quality JPEG for online blog uploads.  The other raw gets a closer look and possible Photoshop adjustments back home for enlargements.

All species of wildlife.

Just try to capture what I see.

North American landscapes, wildlife, and moving water.

My interest is very eclectic.  I try to compose my shots different than I have seen others do.  Although I have taken many pics of the camping experience, most of my pictures of camping are not in my online gallery.

Old mining town structures.

Baseball.

Nature and landscape in the Canadian north, often taken on remote, wilderness canoe trips.

Sailboats.  I am a boat builder so lots of boat pictures.  I also take a lot of pictures of my cat.

The rocks and canyons of Utah and AZ.

My Family!

Anything and everything from natural wonders to weird signs.

Reflective images on water and series on various tree deformities in new and old growth specimens.

ML and I specialize in camera transportation.  On most trips, the camera is one of the “must-pack” items.  We then usually travel the entire journey without ever getting the camera out once. But I’m sure the camera appreciates the chance to get out of the house for a while.  It says it’s looking forward to the next trip.  I think it finds them restful.

I use a dash cam to archive traveling on scenic highways and by-ways, National Park drives and special trips.

Memories.

I.D. animals for grandchildren, and pics of where we go.

When ever we travel, I have the camera ready to go on the seat or on the dash.  I’ve gotten some great shots of wildlife and other interesting subjects while going down the road.

The old abandoned mines and ranches and homesteads around the West, especially in Nevada, Utah, and Arizona.

I enjoy photographing flowers.

See question number five above; all the above.

The Grand Canyon always offers opportunity for unique photographs, especially if one hikes to the ranch at the bottom.  Also, Utah never disappoints.

We’ve gotten some fantastic wildlife shots over the years.  And food!

I will shoot anything of interest.

Bigfoot, water, mountains, trees.  I also use medium and large format film cameras.

Canadian landscapes.  We do a combination of truck camping and “fly to” destinations.  We have almost rented a camper at our destination a couple of times, but the time required for pick up and drop off made it too inconvenient.

Treasure hunting.

We like being out in the boondocks, which gives us more early and late light photo opportunities other than flat mid-day lighting conditions.  That is why we decided on a four-wheel drive diesel truck and a single rear wheel chassis so we are better equipped for off-road opportunities.  The Bigfoot has everything it takes to live off the grid for several days.

Rarely-seen close-ups of flora and fauna, e.g., American Pronghorn in Montana.

My wife an I love to take nature/landscape photographs of the different geography across the nation.  We love anything to do with water so the beaches, rivers, and waterfalls of Oregon have been our latest target.

I like to turn my photographs into quilt designs.

Nature, sunsets, sunrises. stars.  Old buildings and country churches.  Northern Saskatchewan forrest and rivers on canoe trips

Grizzly fishing close to us, in Alaska.  A buffalo waiting his turn in a Yellowstone traffic jam.  Standing in the Arctic Ocean.  Everywhere in the Four Corners area creates an awesome photo.  Landscapes are always special, especially when including a great sunset.

Sunrises and sunsets especially when we are already at a special location.

I tend to photograph anything and everything.  If I think it is interesting, unusual, common, or different I will photograph it.

Nothing special.  My photos are used mostly as a personal diary of the trip.  I pick out a few to share with others.

Light painting: night photography with added light from flashlights.  Astro Landscape: light painting without a moon, but with long exposure for stars.  Daylight aerial: Droid / quadcopter

Nature and interesting people.

Ancient Bristlecone Pine Trees, Oregon Coast Sea Stacks

I prefer to go to the lesser known areas to create photographs that few have seen.  Since landscape photography involves getting up early and staying late, if I can camp nearby it is a big plus.  In the end I achieve better photographs.

I’ve been interested in photography since my teen years. I’ve developed film, edited 8mm, Super-8, VHS, Hi-8 and these days, digital video.  But recently I’m back to stills with little or no post processing.

We take our ’64 Jeep to old Jeep runs and gatherings.  So many of our pictures are of old Jeeps and the trails we travel with them.

I just photograph what I think is pretty or interesting.  I usually take 300-400 pictures a month during six months of traveling in my truck camper.  Sometimes I get a good one.

Family, friends, landscapes.

I use my truck camper for commercial shoots and location assignments, not just for camping.  It’s solar, battery bank serves me and my clients using their computers.  Cell booster/repeater helps to send imagery to designers, PR and media instantly.  It’s most unique use was at the 2013 Pikes Peak Race to the Clouds. My camper served as a radio repeater for a race team, kitchen, bathroom and shelter from the rain and hail while I photographed the racers.

I just got the camper.  Now I can shoot a location through sunset and beyond and not have to drive an hour or two back to a hotel.

I photograph the Southwest, United States; Utah and New Mexico especially.  A lifetime could be spent in the area and still not see all that it has to offer. The landscape is amazing at all times of the year, the colours are fantastic, the wildlife elusive.  This makes it all the more rewarding when you capture it on film (SD Card).  Arches, Zion, Bryce, Canyonlands and dozens of state parks should be on everyones list of places to visit at least once.  I have hundreds of photo’s of the area, all of them reminders of time well spent.  My ultimate favourite would be a snake, swallowing a lizard, taken near the Colorado River in Moab, Utah.

I shoot mainly time lapse with the intention of selling it as stock footage. I got into truck camping specifically for the purpose of going out and getting footage.  My favorite subjects can all be found in the western half of the United States.  The landscapes are just amazing.

Peaks, waterfalls, canyons, wildlife, birds, historic sites.

I love taking aerial photography of unique landscapes and interesting events with my DJI Phantom quadcopter!

I am primarily a wildlife photographer.  I enjoy spending travel time searching out specific landscapes and natural areas.

My favorite, but not so unique, are photos of sunsets.  I like using my tripod and waiting for that perfect moment when the sun drops low and creates magnificent colors on the horizon.  I also like foreground shots to include trees, rocks, and lakes with the sun fading in the background.  I would consider doing sunrise shots but it’s just to difficult to get up early.  When I used to work and did early morning driving runs I would always have my camera with me for a good sunrise shot.

We both are passionate about photography.  I tend to do video, time-lapse, and shots with the truck in it.  My wife shoots landscapes, waterfalls, and macros.  We both do wildlife and battle over the one long lens we have.  We are just starting our blog.

While traveling, my wife constantly enlightens me with “50 mph roadside geology/botany” tidbits. There isn’t a rock formation or flowering plant that we have passed on the freeway of life that she hasn’t had me pull over so she could take a photograph, or ten.  Digital photography has saved our creaking shelves throughout the house from additional loads of thousands of stored travel photos.

I also practice night photography, and sports.

I enjoy photography with an oceanic theme; beaches, piers, meshes, etc.  And the wildlife around them.

I especially enjoy photographing landscapes when the weather is less than ideal.  Most people hide inside when its raining, snowing, or foggy, but these conditions add a special element that most people enjoy, but aren’t willing to go out and get.

It depends on the purpose for our trip, whether we take the DSLR.  Many of our trips are to music jams/festivals and fairs.  For the former, we take the good camera.  For the latter, we do not.

The one thing I photograph that is a bit different is rock climbing.

Birds.

Abstract forms and patterns in nature.

I am sorry to say that I don’t use the SLR as much as I used to because the camera phones have become so much better.  Don’t get me wrong, they still won’t compete with my Nikon SLR. I used to walk through the Sand Dune Trails at Sandy Neck Beach and shoot animals, birds, vegetation, etc.  Due to a back injury, walking has become almost impossible so I have been shooting ocean life that passes by our campsite on the beach.

Any wildlife and wildflowers.

I look for photograph opportunities that can become wall designs for home decor.  Photographs at night using alternative light sources.

Fall colors and wildlife!

I don’t have a predetermined theme or subject when I travel.  I find that discovery is the best part of photography.

We like to document our trip and send a daily email to more than 100 people who follow us.  Anything unique is the subject of our photos.

Living near Great Smokey Mountain National Park, there is always a photo opportunity.  I also hike and ride a motorcycle.  I always have a camera with me.

Gorgeous scenes or objects that would make a good print for wall art.

It’s always fun to capture pictures of old things we encounter along the way.  Abandoned buildings, vehicles, etc.  Wildlife, wild flowers, anything scenic.  Definitely an amateur here.  But one things for certain, it’s always a good time.

Our four babies that travel with us — the dogs.

I really enjoy filming birds and other wildlife in their natural habitat.

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