CAMERA GEAR ON TRAIL | REMOTE LEIGH

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Preparing for my “Find Tuktoyaktuk” adventure can be summed up in one word, logistics! The planning, implementing and coordinating of transportation, food drops, and gear, can be as exciting as it is stressful. Befriending the environment and utilizing available resources is key when organizing your own adventure. Thinking outside of the box and a demonstrating a willingness to bend is a prerequisite when creating a personal guidebook.

“Finding Tuktoyaktuk” is a multidisciplinary adventure that includes backpacking, pack-rafting, and push-cart walking. Geographically speaking, some sections of the adventure are extremely remote, resupply towns are few and far between, and cell service remains a sporadic luxury.

From a creative perspective, I wondered how I could film “Finding Tuktoyaktuk” with minimal camera gear. Would it be possible to document my Arctic journey with ultra-light gear and not jeopardize the quality of the video and sound? Could a streamline film kit be carried on the Chilkoot Trail, float down the Yukon River, and survive the Dempster Highway?

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As a generation X’er, I continue to romanticize old-school technologies and the rituals associated with their use. As convenient as iTunes is, I still prefer the sound of vinyl. Purchasing an album was considered to be an investment in an artist and listening to their recorded magic in its purest form felt sacred. Record stores in the 80’s were public libraries for music fans. Countless hours were spent in my teen years scouring through boxes of records in search of new music.

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Photography wise, I still reminisce about my 35mm SLR camera. Digital camera technology has robbed me of the anticipation and anxiety associated with film processing.

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Granted, I appreciate the immediate satisfaction of digital photography determining the fate of a photo. With that said, I do miss waiting an entire day to see if a captured memory among friends was accurately transferred onto paper. Leaving a camera store horrified and disappointed was a common occurrence after having a film processed in the 1980’s.

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As a generation X’er, rotary phones continue to make me smile. In the late 70’s, it was a conscious decision to leave the comfort of the living room couch to answer the communal phone in the kitchen. I have often wondered if societal laziness was a direct result of our fingers no longer circling numbers on a wall mounted phone.

Ultimately, documenting this journey has forced me to embrace technology and invest in lightweight camera gear. I was the person who vowed to never buy an I-Phone. I was the person who could not justify spending a thousand dollars on an I-Phone. I have since realized it’s more than a phone. It’s an adventurer’s dream piece of film equipment. After extensive research and feedback from friends, I can honestly say it was the I-Phone that inspired my ten piece film kit.

FINDING TUKTOYAKTUK FILM KIT

1.TWO I-PHONES 8 PLUS – 256GB