Summer is the season of travel. As a professional photographer, you may feel tempted to take your camera with you to capture some truly breathtaking sights. Traveling with your gear can be tricky though, and if you don’t have a way to protect your camera equipment, it can easily get damaged or stolen, costing you upwards of thousands of dollars.
With Full Frame’s Photography Insurance plan, photographers can protect their gear and mitigate the financial loss you could experience should something happen to it. Of course, it’s always best to avoid making a claim if you can, and there are many ways you can reduce the risk of equipment loss during your summertime travels.
Let’s take a look at some simple ways you can protect your photography equipment while traveling and how Photographer Insurance from Full Frame can help.
How To Protect Your Camera Equipment While Traveling
1. Choose A Bag That’s Effective But Inconspicuous
A good quality bag is an important part of protecting your gear. The best equipment bags to travel with are lightweight, durable, and even weatherproof. Good bags provide the high-quality protection your gear needs without being overly large or cumbersome. There is something else to consider when looking for the right bag to take with you on your travels, and that is how it looks.
Most equipment thieves are opportunists, so it’s a good idea to use a bag that doesn’t necessarily look like an equipment bag. After all, if your bag looks like there’s a $10,000camera inside it, it’s more likely to be stolen, and that’s a photographer insurance claim you’ll want to avoid. To combat this kind of theft, many photographers travel with older bags that don’t attract the eye, while still providing the protection they need.
There are many manufacturers of high-quality bags and options available at different prices. With a little research, you are sure to find a bag that works for you.
2. Always Wear A Strap While Using Your Camera
Traveling exposes your gear to a lot of risks. With all the fun things you’re doing, it’s natural to want to capture those moments with your camera, but trust us: a cracked lens or a camera lost at the bottom of the ocean can seriously dampen what would have otherwise been a phenomenal vacation.
The truth of the matter is that many photographer insurance claims can be avoided by simply choosing to wear a high-quality camera strap, especially while travelling. A good, strong strap can prevent damages from accidents like dropping your camera. It can also act as an extra precaution against theft should someone try to snatch your camera when you’re not looking.
What’s more, good camera straps are everywhere these days, so it’s easy to find a strap that is both comfortable and durable. You won’t want to go without one on your next trip.
3. Don’t Bring What You Don’t Absolutely Need
As a professional photographer, it’s important to travel light. The more you carry around with you, the more you risk having to use your photographer insurance to reimburse damaged or stolen gear. Of course, you aren’t going to try to bring your entire studio with you—no one would do something silly like that—but at the same time, it can be surprising just how much we tend to pack when we don’t absolutely need it.
For most trips, if you can get away with simply bringing a camera and a few lenses with you, you can drastically reduce the risk of damage and theft. Depending on the trip, though, you may find that you do need to bring more equipment. In those cases, there are still some things you can do to keep your equipment safe, like storing it in the hotel safe (the big one, not the mini safe in your room) and only carrying with you the equipment you plan to use that day.
Of course, accidents can still happen regardless of how much gear you bring on your trip— there’s a reason why photographer insurance is a thing, after all—but reducing the amount of equipment you bring also reduces the risk of something happening to it on your travels.
4. Be Mindful Of How And Where You Keep Your Gear
The best place to keep your photography equipment while traveling is on your person. Doing so allows you to know exactly where it is at all times and reduces the risk of inadvertent damages and theft. At the same time, it’s smart to be aware of how you carry your gear, as that can make a big difference in how it can get damaged or stolen.
Bags loosely held or simply hanging over your shoulder make great targets for quick snatches and can also easily be dropped, leading to equipment damage and photographer insurance claims. Instead, carry your gear firmly and close to your chest, making it less of a target. If you find yourself carrying multiple pieces of equipment, try carrying some things in different places, like a memory card case in a pocket.
In similar fashion, storing all your equipment in one place in your hotel increases the risk of losing all your gear in the event of theft. Instead, consider storing your gear in different places, reducing the risk of opportunistic theft. Even though it’s a little cliché, there is a lot to be said about the effectiveness of hiding a memory card in a pair of socks.
5. Write A List With All Your Important Equipment Information
When planning what gear to take on your trip, make a note to write down the models, serial numbers, and descriptions of every piece of equipment you decide to bring. In the unfortunate event that your gear does get stolen or misplaced, it’s possible to recover it, but having a list of important information will help authorities know what to look for and help you prove that the gear actually belongs to you.
Most of the time, stolen equipment is quickly resold to turn a profit. This transaction might take place at a local pawn shop, but it can also occur online in places like Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, and eBay.
If your gear is stolen, make sure to file a police report right away. In most theft cases, items are returned to their owners within 60 days, although it’s not always guaranteed. That’s why it’s crucial to protect your equipment as best you can and cover it with a good photographer insurance plan.
Protect Your Gear With Photographer Insurance
Additional Insureds
Hopefully these tips have given you a few ideas for how you can protect your gear on your next trip. Taking extra precaution while traveling is a great way to reduce the risk of damaging or losing your gear, but unfortunately nothing you do can remove the threat altogether. That’s why it’s so important to make sure your gear is covered with a high-quality Photographer Insurance plan.
What is Photographer Insurance?
Photographer Insurance is designed to protect professional photographers from the financial repercussions of claims. It can reduce, or in some cases completely eliminate, the out-of-pocket costs that photographers face when their equipment is damaged or stolen. It also protects from other claims, like third-party bodily injury and property damage claims, that can arise as a result of your photography business.
Cover Your Gear Today With Full Frame
Taking your gear with you on your travels can be fun. You can capture some truly incredible moments that, thanks to your photos, you can remember for a lifetime. However, your photography gear is expensive, and without insurance, if your gear were damaged or stolen, it could cost thousands—even tens of thousands—of dollars to repair or replace.
Full Frame’s Photographer Insurance is affordable, high quality, and easy to get covered. Starting at just $184 a year, you can protect your business and your gear with up to $1 million in coverage for general liability and up to $5K in equipment coverage. Additional gear coverage is also available if you need it at extra cost. Our easy online application takes less than ten minutes to complete.
Why not protect your gear instead and gain the peace of mind that comes from traveling with a good insurance plan?
