As many of you know, I use a wide range of bags and cases to carry various kit in various situations. There is never a ‘perfect’ solution (at least, I’ve not found it yet), but years of testing and experimentation have told me what works best for me. For example, there are occasions when Peli […]
A quick preamble As we draw to the end of the fair-weather camping season, it’s time to reflect on the tent which my family and I have used for each of this year’s week-long (and weekend) magazine feature trips – the Vango Capri 500XL AirBeam. This is a relatively spacious model in its most basic […]
It’s been a long time since I took a look at a rucksack smaller than around 35 litres capacity. For reference, the last was Vango’s Force Ten GR 35:40, which I wrote about last month here. With my outdoor geek hat on, you might forgive me for being a little excited at the thought of […]
A quick preamble It’s been a busy summer and as we enter one of my favourite times of the year – autumn – I’m finally able to take a moment to a look back at some of my shenanigans and the kit which has served me well along the way. I’ve had quite a few […]
When I’m working on location – even in an improvised studio setup – it’s not all just about camera technique and keeping clients and subjects happy. Oh no, my outdoors skills are often brought into play, too. One of the most used of these? Knot-tying! I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve turned […]
It’s that time of year when my family camping holiday articles are all but done – and with it comes the need to scan these features for my files as the magazines hit the news stands. From here on, my camping activities are mostly confined to solo / lightweight venture (now that I’m complaining, of […]
This week: I’m thinking about camera choice vs intended usage. Whilst I was filming and shooting at the Mind Over Mountains event in the Lake District a while back, I had a really nice chat with one of the attendees about camera choice. In many ways, it was a quite typical conversation, but what was interesting […]
This week: I’m talking through camera gear selection ahead of a camping trip. We all know that kit selection is a personal thing; what works for one person may not necessarily work for another. And, as I’ve said many times, my own choices are constantly evolving and even open to last-minute alterations at the packing stage. […]
You’ll remember that a while back, I headed up to the Lake District to film an event called Mind Over Mountains with my good friend, Alex Staniforth. To recap: Alex had asked me to film and photograph the event, which he was organising in conjunction with Adventure Uncovered. This involved a long, hot weekend of walking, two […]
This week: I’m talking about my trip to this year’s Outdoor Trade Show. Once again, I recently headed off to this yearly event which gives me a great opportunity to see many of the latest developments in the outdoors world and catch up with colleagues. As ever, I had a great, productive time – and in […]
This week: I’m returning from a weekend of filming in the Lake District. Going back a little while, my good friend Alex Staniforth asked me to film and photograph an event he was organising. It involved a long, hot weekend of walking, two very big mountains and a lot more besides! It was a great […]
This week: I’m sharing a few thoughts about kit after a magazine feature camping trip. Having just returned from a chilly, damp overnight camping trip on the South Downs, I quickly unpacked. At the same time, I took the opportunity to talk through my kit and share a few thoughts about my experience over the two […]