Cycling and Photography

[marvpelkey]

I know, not the best sub forum for this topic....

A great many years ago I did a lot of bicycling, first road then off-road and trails. I gave it up for various reasons, for quite awhile, but am considering getting back into it. In the past, the rides were anywhere from 10 to 50 miles.

I do photography that often requires walking/hiking old logging roads and trails, some great distances. I carry a single camera (D810) a few lenses (70-200, 150 macro, 35 WA) and other equipment in a medium sized backpack, and an older model (aka heavier) full-sized tripod.

I have never combined the two past-times, and wonder if anyone has done/does any biking while carrying similar equipment.



Currently, I do not have a bike, so am looking to buy one. As a result, I cannot do a test ride. I could rent one for a day, I suppose, but I would like to do some off-road stuff and would not wish to put a rental through that stuff.

My two concerns would be, balancing and carrying the gear, but more concerning, the constant vibration of the equipment from road and trail surfaces.

Any comments/advice is appreciated.

Marv

[mcbroomf]

I ride single track trails in the woods pretty regularly, not long distances, about 90 mins or so each ride but at a good pace.  I often carry photography gear but decided to use a lighter APSC body and 2 or 3 small primes to reduce weight.  No tripod or other accessories other than 1 spare battery.  I use FF gear normally and just don't worry about what might happen to the gear I'm carrying if I crash.

If carrying the gear in a backpack I think the vibration is reduced a lot through the body and (presumably) full suspension.  None of the gear I carry seems to be the worse for wear and this is many years.  I've had a few crashes too.

[francois]

I don't see vibrations as a problem, my FF camera and lenses survived rides without any issue. Using a good backpack with some padding should be enough. Also, I don't leave long lenses attached to camera bodies. Crashes, of course, are bad for photo equipment but also for yourself so you'll need to be very careful...

I wouldn't recommend any brand of mtb (so many good ones) but if you're worried by vibrations, full-suspension bikes would be something to take in consideration.

[gchappel]

I have never had bumps/vibration issues with any of the cameras I carry on bikes. 
When I needed to carry big gear on trails, I actually used the little bike trailer we have for the kids, forget the name.  Worked great!
Backpack works fine for any smaller gear- except slower to access equipment during the ride.
If I needed a camera rapidly available while riding I used the cotton carrier harness.
But to get going, your backpack will be fine.  Use the money you saved to get a better bike.
Enjoy, I just came back from 30miles this morning
ride more
gary

[marvpelkey]

Thanks for the replies.

Your comments have eased my mind.

Marv

[langier]

I broke my F5 while riding my bike one time but it still functioned until I could get it repaired. Today, I would mainly take an iPhone and go lightly though with proper packaging an M43 or full-frame mirrorless for touring would probably fit the bill.

I think a minimal system would work well today and compared to the days of film, would be much more practical.

Just have good insurance just in case of calamity!

[Peter McLennan]

I wrote and photographed articles for motorcycle magazines for years.  Carrying camera gear on a motorcycle poses similar problems as on a bicycle, but to a lesser degree.
I agree with langier.  The smaller the better.  Modern phones are superb and relatively invulnerable to the harsh conditions presented by two-wheeled travel.

[francois]

Some interesting points in this article: AJ's Riding Camera Pack Solution.

[smthopr]

I know, not the best sub forum for this topic....

A great many years ago I did a lot of bicycling, first road then off-road and trails. I gave it up for various reasons, for quite awhile, but am considering getting back into it. In the past, the rides were anywhere from 10 to 50 miles.

I do photography that often requires walking/hiking old logging roads and trails, some great distances. I carry a single camera (D810) a few lenses (70-200, 150 macro, 35 WA) and other equipment in a medium sized backpack, and an older model (aka heavier) full-sized tripod.

I have never combined the two past-times, and wonder if anyone has done/does any biking while carrying similar equipment.



Currently, I do not have a bike, so am looking to buy one. As a result, I cannot do a test ride. I could rent one for a day, I suppose, but I would like to do some off-road stuff and would not wish to put a rental through that stuff.

My two concerns would be, balancing and carrying the gear, but more concerning, the constant vibration of the equipment from road and trail surfaces.

Any comments/advice is appreciated.

Marv

If you uses backpack, you should be safe from vibrations, unless you crash. I damaged my 50mm prime in a crash, but the camera was ok.

I hate cycling with a backpack though, and I now use a rear rack and Topeak bag that has fold out paniers. I usually place the camera inside the bag on top of a little foam cushion and, despite a lot of vibration, haven’t had an issue with the equipment yet. I sometimes even carry a travel tripod in the pannier side bag.

If your bringing only a small camera, a handlebar bag might be fine, but I don’t think that would work well for a mountain bike riding off road as it will effect the steering too much.

[smthopr]

If you uses backpack, you should be safe from vibrations, unless you crash. I damaged my 50mm prime in a crash, but the camera was ok.

I hate cycling with a backpack though, and I now use a rear rack and Topeak bag that has fold out paniers. I usually place the camera inside the bag on top of a little foam cushion and, despite a lot of vibration, haven’t had an issue with the equipment yet. I sometimes even carry a hi travel tripod in the pannier side bag.

If your bringing only a small camera, a handlebar bag might be fine, but I don’t think that would work well for a mountain bike riding off road as it will effect the steering too much.

Here’s a photo of my bike

[Benny Profane]

E bikes are a recent solution. I'm thinking of buying one for this purpose. It's just easier to get somewhere and carry stuff in panniers, and then park and lock the bike. I'll keep my human powered bikes for exercise.

[marvpelkey]

A cable tech was at our house the other day and we had a, socially distanced/face-masked, conversation about various things while he was working.

We happened to hit on bicycling and he, a long time mountain biker, could not say enough about E bikes. He has a high end, very pricey one on order but indicated they, and regular bikes, are rather scarce due to Covid. He ordered it quite a few months back and it has yet to arrive.

I was actually hoping to kill two birds with a single stone and get some exercise whilst in the pursuit of photography.

Marv