Why Travel With A Fujifilm Kit

In this article, we’ll get out the atlas (are they still a thing?), throw some darts at a world map, and discover why you should travel with a Fujifilm camera.

Travel is back and bigger than ever! Things were a little quiet there during and after the pandemic.

Those dark days are behind us, and the world is once again your oyster.

Travel is an incredibly elevating life experience that grants insight into other parts of your state, country, region, or faraway places.

Photographers love to travel with their cameras as it presents a perfect opportunity to document a new visual experience.

But traveling with a camera offers a lot more than a new glossy coffee table photo book.

Traveling with the right camera can also elevate your skill development, ease of use, and overall joy of photography.

Let’s unpack our camera bag to discover why traveling with a Fujifilm kit is the best option.

Is Now The Time To Travel?

Let’s face it: the travel industry is once again booming.

The troubling days of the pandemic are behind us, and folks are making plans to see the world.

Or, at the very least, they’re planning weekend getaways, interstate travel, and being a tourist in their own town.

The sad reality of our once-in-a-lifetime pandemic is that many industries have suffered. Travel was one of the worst affected due to extended lockdown periods.

Most countries locked their borders to all but the most essential travelers, and airlines suffered and parked up their fleets for months.

Fortunately, all of that is behind us, and the world is regaining balance and a sense of normal—if you can call it normal!

Countries are promoting their holiday destinations, and many are experiencing record-breaking levels of foreign visitors.

So, is now the right time to travel, and if so, what camera should you take with you?

To answer the first question, yes, now is the right time to travel. Life is short, and the world is large, so I say get out there and make the most of life by seeing new and exciting things.

Book that trip to Iceland, which has always been on your bucket list. Plan your visits to USA National Parks to see some of the world’s most incredible natural wonders.

Google things to see and do in Sydney, Australia, regardless of your aversion to the world’s most venomous snakes and spiders.

The point is, it’s always a good time to travel. Of course, life will throw complications and barriers in the way.

Even if you’re working with a tight budget, get away for a weekend to breathe new air and see new sights.

As for what’s the best camera to take with you, I’m thrilled you asked.

• More: 77 Awesome Travel Tips for Photographers

Greg’s Experience Travelling With Fujifilm

Here I am, already speaking of myself in the third person! That’s a good point, Greg. Why, thank you, Greg!

I haven’t traveled as much as some people I know, but I’ve had my fair share of trips locally, interstate, and abroad.

In my early days of digital photography, I was shooting with Canon DSLRs and big heavy lenses.

While I didn’t get the chance to travel with that kit, I could imagine it would be a nightmare to lug around.

Trying to meet the carry-on luggage weight limits would also be a challenge. Not to mention the physical strain and fatigue of lugging a large camera bag or backpack on an adventure.

Fortunately, I woke up and moved to Fujifilm as my primary camera system.

In 2015, I planned and booked my first photography trip to Japan – it had been a dream of mine for as long as I could remember.

I spent eight days in Tokyo and explored as much of the city as possible. However, I only scratched the surface.

While I had moved on from the larger and heavier Canon kit, I still made some critical mistakes when I packed my Fuji kit.

On that trip, I packed all my Fujifilm lenses in case I needed a specific lens for a particular shot.

I was shooting with a Fujifilm X-T1 and a range of prime and zoom lenses that filled my camera backpack.

Granted, I was younger then, but the weight certainly took its toll. I thought to myself that on the next trip, I would pack less.

On my second trip to Japan, this time to Kyoto and Osaka, I packed a lighter Fujifilm kit.

The problem was that I walked into a Yodobashi Camera store in Kyoto one night after a few too many Asahi at an Izakaya (small Japanese bar).

I ‘accidentally’ bought a Fujifilm XF 50-140mm f/2.8 and walked out wondering if I had any money left to buy food for the rest of my trip.

The transaction went through, but the bank blocked my credit card because they thought it was dodgy.

My kit instantly doubled in weight, and I carried that lens everywhere.

It was relatively light compared to my past Canon kit, but I still had much to learn about packing Fuji gear for travel.

I did learn from my past mistakes and realized that my joy of photography and the travel photography experience shouldn’t come at the cost of excessive gear.

Less is more. Shoot with what you have—all of that and more. I packed a very minimal Fuji kit on my last trip to Tokyo in 2019.

It included the Fujifilm X-T3 and compact XF 23mm f/2. The compact camera and lens combo were weather-resistant and weighed 720g (1.59lb).

I also dropped in my beloved Fujifilm X70, which has a fixed 18mm f/2.8 lens and weighs just 340g (0.75lb).

Both cameras were fitted with wrist straps, and I packed two spare batteries for each. And that’s it!

As it turned out, I mostly shot with the Fuji X-T3 at night due to its better low-light performance and the X70 during the day.

I captured street scenes and inner city locations, so I didn’t need zooms or telephoto lenses.

Sadly, I haven’t been able to return to Japan since that 2019 trip.

I still plan to get back to Tokyo in the near future, and I know that I’ll take a minimal kit with me.

I can confidently say that I’d take my Fujifilm X-E4 with the same XF 23mm f/2 lens and, of course, the Fuji X70.

• More: Who Is the Best Travel Photographer?

Pros And Cons Of A Fuji Travel Kit

I’ve touched on one of the most significant benefits of traveling with a Fuji kit: the weight.

Having learned the hard way, I can’t emphasize enough how big a difference a lightweight kit makes.

However, there’s more to gain from traveling with a Fuji kit than packing less.

Let’s discover some pros and cons of traveling with Fujifilm.

Safety And Security

Safety and security are essential considerations when traveling with camera gear, both yours and that of your kit.

We all know that some travel destinations have risks, especially when walking around with expensive cameras and lenses.

The bigger the camera kit you take, the bigger the camera bag you’ll need to carry it all comfortably.

I would argue that traveling with a compact and lightweight Fuji kit improves your overall safety and security.

For one, the compact nature of Fuji cameras and lenses makes them less noticeable.

Carrying a big Nikon or Sony kit in an obvious camera bag makes you a target for potential trouble.

Even walking around with a full-frame Canon or Nikon in hand makes you stand out from the crowd.

However, a small Fuji kit can be safely stored in any padded travel bag.

On my last trip to Tokyo, I didn’t take a camera bag and opted to carry my gear in a padded pouch inside a regular backpack.

Camera bags with obvious ‘camera bag’ features and brand logos are a bad idea for travel to dodgy destinations (dodgy is an Australian term for something that is risky, broken, or dangerous).

It’s also worth pointing out that both cameras were fitted with wrist straps, and I almost always had a camera in my hand ready to take shots.

Sometimes, I walked out of my hotel to explore the streets of Tokyo with only the X70 in hand and a spare battery in my pocket.

I made sure to take my passport and phone in my other pocket. There’s something blissful about exploring a new place with only the absolute bare necessities on you.

• More: How to Pack a Photography Kit for Traveling

Color Your Holiday With Fuji

I’ve talked a lot about the size and weight of a Fuji kit, which makes all the difference to your travel experience.

It’s equally important to talk about the performance and usability of Fuji gear for travel purposes.

Fortunately, Fujifilm is more than a one-horse show! The compact size of Fuji cameras hides some truly impressive specs and performance.

Most importantly, Fuji cameras capture stunning image quality in all lighting conditions.

After all, pro photographers use Fujifilm cameras and lenses to deliver commercial-grade outcomes for their clients.

I shot with first-generation Fuji cameras and lenses on my earlier trips to Japan.

I was delighted by the performance and image quality, and I captured over 7,000 images in just over a week. I was very excited to be there, and yes, I created a new glossy coffee table photo book from that trip.

Current generation Fujifilm X Series cameras offer up to 40MP image sensors, fast processors, and image stabilization for low-light shooting.

• More: What Fujifilm Kit Is Best for Capturing Street Scenes?

The Fujifilm X-T5 is considered the flagship X Series photography camera thanks to its impressive specs and output.

The weather-sealed camera would make an excellent travel companion regardless of the style of photography holiday you were planning.

However, the smallest camera in the X range is one of the best choices for a Fuji holiday kit. The Fujifilm X100 series has proven to be an exceptional choice for holiday photographers.

The current Fuji X100 VI features a fixed 23mm f/2 lens, a whopping 40MP image sensor, X Processor 5, and IBIS.

It’s lightweight, incredibly compact, and delivers superb image quality and color reproduction.

Speaking of color, Fuji cameras all included baked-in film simulations that replicate the look of classic Fujifilm analog film stock.

With a Fuji camera, you can shoot in JPEG format, which can be instantly transferred to your smartphone via the Fuji Camera Remote App.

Alternatively, shoot in RAW format to take your time and edit them later in Lightroom.

Better Than A Smartphone

Smartphone photography is an ever-improving genre thanks to big brands’ investments in smartphone lenses, processors, and rendering technology.

However, in my opinion, relying on a smartphone for holiday photography isn’t the same as taking a Fuji camera with you.

Most current-gen smartphones take great shots that look amazing on a phone screen.

However, if you’ve gone to the trouble and expense of planning a photography holiday, at least take a digital camera with you.

Use your smartphone to navigate, post to social media, call home, and make reservations.

Use your camera to document your trip without the distraction of countless notifications dropping in.

Focus on your photography to see what’s happening and faithfully capture high-quality images of the best moments from your trip.

You’ll appreciate being able to print and enlarge high-resolution images from your Fuji camera to adorn your walls and coffee table.

Moreover, you’ll become far more immersed in the photographic experience and build your photography skills in the process.

As a result, your joy of photography will blend seamlessly with your joy of travel. It’s a state of harmony like no other.

Can You Travel With A Single Lens?

While it takes a giant leap of faith, it’s possible to travel with a single Fuji lens and still capture your best work.

Putting aside Fuji cameras with fixed lenses, including the X100 range and X70, there are some great lenses suited to travel.

A single lens lets you focus less on your gear and more on the experience.

It’s especially true if your single lens is a zoom like the Fuji XF 55-200mm f/3.5-4.8 R LM OIS.

It only weighs 580g (1.28lb) and measures a compact 75mm x 118mm (2.95 x 4.65”), extending to 177mm (6.97”) when zoomed to 200mm. It’s an incredibly versatile and affordable lens.

If you’re looking for a zoom that’s a little wider, the Fuji XF 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 R OIS WR is an excellent travel lens.

It’s about the same size and weight as the 55-200mm Fuji and is also weather-sealed.

The best Fuji short zoom lens for travel would have to be the XF 16-50mm f/2.8-4.8 R WR. Not only is it compact, but it’s also optically sharp and incredibly versatile.

As for prime lenses, I find that the 23mm is an ideal focal range for travel that includes city and scenery.

The Fuji XF 23mm f/2 or the XF 23mm f/1.4 are ideal, depending on your budget.

Alternatively, a 35mm focal distance gives a little more reach, but it is still suitable for wider shots. Again, Fuji has options, including the compact XF 35mm f/2 or the faster XF 33mm f/1.4.

Both are weather-sealed and deliver exceptional image quality in any lighting conditions.

• More: Fujifilm Single Lens Challenge: Are You Up For It?

Let’s Talk About The Elephant On The Safari

If traveling to an exotic location teeming with wildlife, you must pack telephoto and even super-telephoto lenses to capitalize on the opportunity.

There’s no getting around the fact that taking only a wide prime or even a standard 16-55mm Fuji zoom won’t produce the kind of shots you want.

You’ll need to take some larger, longer, and heavier Fuji XF lenses.

Depending on the kind of wildlife photography experience you’ve planned, Fuji has a range of telephoto primes and zooms that are suitable for the task.

The Fujifilm XF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR is an excellent choice for wildlife photography.

The weather-sealed lens boasts fast focus performance, optical image stabilization (OIS), and a full-frame equivalent focal length of 150-600mm.

It weighs 1.38kg (3lb), making it one of the heaviest Fujifilm X Series lenses available.

However, a Canon full-frame RF 200-800mm f/6.3-9 IS U USM lens weighs 2kg (4.5lb).

The Fuji X lenses and cameras, such as the flagship X-T5, are still lighter and more compact choices.

If you’re especially serious about making the most of that African Safari booking, the Fuji XF 150-600mm f/5.6-8 R LM OIS WR is the best choice.

With a 230-914mm full-frame equivalent, you’ll capture every glorious detail without fail. At 1.6gk (3.53lb), the pro-grade lens isn’t for the faint of heart.

In comparison, the Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS lens, with a shorter focal range, weighs 2.1kg (4.65lb).

Putting aside specific needs, the overall weight of a Fuji kit is considerably less than most other brands.

Since airlines have carry-on weight limits, keeping your camera equipment lightweight and portable is essential.

Don’t forget that the camera and lenses aren’t the only items you’ll want to take on the plane.

Especially on a long flight, you’ll need spare batteries, memory cards, and a bunch of personal items in your bag, too.

• More: How Do You Travel With a Tripod?

Bon Voyage

Don’t fret about upgrading your camera if you’re on a budget or blew all your spare cash on flights.

It would be great to book a two-week holiday in Hawaii and head to the camera store to buy a new Fuji camera and lens kit.

In reality, that’s an expensive combo. If you’re keen to travel with a Fuji kit, consider looking into a second-hand Fuji X-T3 or an earlier entry in the X100 series.

Don’t get too caught up on megapixels and high-end specs.

Ultimately, travel with whatever camera you have and turn an ordinary holiday into a photography holiday.

However, if you decide what Fuji kit to take with you, I have a few last pieces of advice.

Keep your Fujifilm travel kit simple. Don’t spend all your time hunting around in a camera bag for the right lens.

Keep your camera in your hand always and make what you have work for you.

Most importantly, focus on the moments as they unfold before you.

Find joy in the process so that your memories are not just of the image but of the moment, too.