Everybody knows the nightmare of packing for any trip. I was exactly the same when packing for my current 4.5 month trip to SE Asia. It’s the balance of taking everything and packing ultralight. After 2 months on the road there is a few things I would have taken out and a few things I would have brought with me. Hopefully they have been reflected in the packing list I have created.
The packing list was inspired by a post on twitter yesterday by Esther Havens. Esther is an incredible humanitarian photographer and really at the pinnacle of NGO photography. I would definitely recommend checking her work out if you have some free time! Esther’s photo of her list gave me some ideas to create a downloadable list for everyone to use, print, adapt whatever you feel like. I also nicked her colour coding idea. Sorry Esther!
The list is designed to break everything down so it is manageable and easy to use. I have also split up the photography and video/audio sections so you can adapt this easily if you are just a photographer. The idea of my packing list is to keep the weight down and mobility high so you can easily travel and absorb the sights, sounds and atmosphere of a place rather than struggling with a 30kg rucksack. This list is tailored towards travel in Asia and if you do more work in Africa, Middle East or South America you may need to adjust the list accordingly.
Hopefully it will be useful for people and let me know if I have missed anything obvious off! If you enjoy it, print it, laminate it, scribble on it, share it, link it or whatever else you would like to do with it! Beware! I will not be responsible for death by hypothermia, hyperthermia, malnutrition or any other means because you followed my list 100%, use your common sense!
