By night I am an astrophotographer and during the day I am a wildlife, nature photographer.
No matter how much I plan ahead I find it is impossible to predict what type of photography equipment I am going to need to make all my images. So, over the years I learned a valuable lesson: my car is really my "on the road photo bag" and if I do not pack it right I would regret it at some point during the photo session.
In the evening hours and through the night I shoot from two different observatory locations that are about 90 miles apart. One observatory is located in Peoria, Arizona and the other observatory is in a dark sky site located in Dewey, Arizona. I have duplicated most of the equipment at both locations to minimize transporting heavy telescopes and some scientific equipment but I still have to haul a great deal of the camera equipment and "extraordinary necessities" back and forth between the two locations. There are countless rings, fittings, bars, weights and a few custom designed parts to make all the different camera bodies work on the large telescopes. If I forget to bring something with me my entire evening session could be a disaster.
During the day, I use my vehicle as a blind for wildlife photography. Due to my two ideal locations for photography I have the ability to travel over the desert floor from one location or into the high forests from the other location with just a short drive.
Much of the same camera equipment and some of the smaller telescopes used in either of the observatories might be used during the daytime photo session for nature work. So, I find myself transporting "all sorts of stuff" from the observatories like; multiple tripods of all sizes, several different digital camera bodies, a laptop computer, assorted lens outfits and a few different film body cameras, to name only a few items. All this "stuff" has to neatly be tucked into my (vehicle) on the road camera bag. If I forget something I might not get the picture I wanted.
My first car for this advocation was a 1994 Ford Tempo. The interior was rather compact. I rationalized to myself that the small size made it easier for me to reach all my equipment from the driver's seat. Although this was true, the first thing I noticed was that the car did not even have one cup holder! So, I retrofitted a cup holder for the front seat that fit over the emergency brake. What kind of a blind would it be if I could not get my morning coffee while waiting for the wild critters to come out to pose? The Tempo worked OK for several years, but the more stuff I hauled the less room I had in it for me. It also lacked engine horsepower to get me to some of the mountain locations I wanted to photograph.
My second on the road camera bag was my wife's Honda mini van. Now, this car is equipped with many cup holders and was certainly a step up from the Tempo. The Honda has great cargo space in the rear deck with the seats removed and a rear hatch door that allows you to be in the car and shoot out the back in rain or snow while protecting the camera equipment and keeping dry. All very nice features.
Then I tried my daughter's 2004 Saturn Vue with On-Star. With the seats down in the back I had plenty of room for all my stuff and it had a rear hatch like the mini van. The best part of using this vehicle was the On-Star system. No matter how remote the photo location... the people at the On-Star center knew where I was. If there was any emergency the On-Star staff could certainly be a big help.
In July 2007 I drove my daughter's Vue to Monument Valley, Utah for a photo session. Some of the pictures I made are in the photo gallery to the right. I traveled alone on this session and I wanted to get some views from the more remote locations of this area. There was no cell phone coverage where I was most of the time. However, I called the On-Star center several times during the trip so I never felt like I was alone. By this time I was really sold on On-Star and Saturn!
A few months ago I decided to buy another vehicle. If a film crew had followed me around the entire event would have turned out to be a Saturn TV commercial. I went to a number of different dealerships. I found nothing I liked. Then I went to the Saturn of Arrowhead dealership location in Peoria, AZ where I met with Ron Dosch. He is an outstanding Saturn sales consultant and representative. I told him I wanted to look at the new Saturn Vue. After some discussion about how I used the car and my needs he suggested I try a new 2008 Saturn Outlook. Now, I have to tell you, this is the ultimate "on the road camera bag"... I mean vehicle. Here are some of the features like the best:
- With all the back seats down the Saturn Outlook has about the same size cargo floor space as the mini van.
- With the Outlook I can put the seats down and have a level cargo floor. With the mini van I have to take the seats out of the vehicle and store them to get a level floor space.
- My Outlook has a remote controlled rear hatch door that I can open and close from inside the car or outside the car. A nice feature in rain or snow.
- The steering wheel telescopes both up and down and in and out. This feature is nice because you can get the steering wheel out of the way giving a photographer in the front seat more room.
- My vehicle has On-Star so I never feel like I am alone in remote areas. If I need help I can push a button. This is a safety feature I will not be without again.
- Oh yes, Cup holders are everywhere. Front and back. After all, how can you do wildlife photography early in the morning without coffee?
Ed Registrato
