The Ultralight Philosophy

I love the great outdoors and being with nature, be it swimming with the fishes, scuba diving or just being in the forest backpacking on my favorite trails. The freedom of being one with nature, just being absorbed by your environment, your mind goes inward and the heart beats slowly to the rhythm of the blowing wind.

I have been an avid backpacker, and my hiking habits changed when a guy name Ray Jardine introduced a backpacking philosophy called ultralight backpacking, where you only bring the essentials that you need for your trip and not be bogged down by unnecessary gear. A tarp instead of a tent, a shorter and lighter sleeping pad, summer weight sleeping bags, a small knife instead of a multitool, cotton balls as firestarters etc. He advocated that the reward of hiking is the journey as much as the destination.

I kept that philosophy with me and applied it even to my daily life and my photography. I used to be one of those guys that would salivate every time a new camera model or the latest gear comes in, because I would tell myself it could make my pictures better when I knew all along that it’s the photographer that makes the picture, not the camera. The great Ansel Adams took his legendary pictures with a square wood box camera, right? In martial arts, my teacher would tell me, "It's the warrior not the weapon".




















Photo Tip: To lighten your camera load in backpacking, you do not need to bring a 2 lb slr (unless it is a photoshoot hike). Instead bring a compact point and shoot that has a wide angle to moderate telephoto lens, sharp and has great colors and saturation. An optical image stabilizer is a big plus, since you can leave the tripod behind. Do not focus so much on the technique but instead focus on your composition and vision.