Tomas Havel

Hi, my name is Tomas Havel. I am a landscape and travel photographer from the Czech Republic. I try to capture the most beautiful sceneries on our planet and motivate people to enjoy the natural beauty and discover new places with respect for nature.

Ever since I was a child, I have been fascinated by art and I was constantly creating something. I always wanted to be an architect or a painter.

I have spent most of my free time in nature and on the road. It turned out that I really liked the combination of being able to do something creative and being high in the mountains or deep in the forest (see forest photography tips here). 

I discovered a true love for photography during my first trip to Northern Norway.

My first camera was a Nikon D5100, then I upgraded to a Canon EOS 6D. Now it is one of the cheapest full-frame cameras on the market but still a great DSLR.

Now I am completely in love with the Sony mirrorless system and I truly believe it to be the best system available for my travels.

Gear I use for my travels

Camera

As a travel photographer, I always try to find a balance between weight, affordability, and quality.

Sony A7R II

This camera combines amazing flexibility with a stunning dynamic range and delivers impeccable images.

I need to produce high-resolution images for commercial projects. This full-frame with 42.4Mp CMOS sensor offers larger formats if needed for my prints and other work.

I also love its 4K S-Log recording at 100Mbps. It’s a small powerful tool at a reasonable price which feels well-built and confident in your hands.

Second body – Canon EOS 6D. Older but still a very good camera for my astrophotography and time-lapses while I am using my Sony.

Lenses

Canon EF 16-35mm f/4 L IS USM

I use this lens for almost 80% of my landscapes. I use my old Canon lenses alongside the Sony A7R II mirrorless camera. The adapter Sigma MC-11 certainly seems to do an incredible job on a7 II–series cameras as they do on native Canon DSLRs.

For a long time, I’ve been using this lens and I literally fell in love with its features; this lens makes such an amazing sun star effect and brilliant sharpening.

Usually, I have 1-2 lenses in my bag. I don’t need more.

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM

Versatility. The perfect companion to any situation. I use this lens especially when I need more different images during a short moment without the need to constantly change the lens.

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2,8 L USM

A telephoto lens for wildlife and details in nature (see guide). It is super heavy, but I absolutely adore the image quality. Therefore this lens often stays home when I plan to make a longer trek to the mountains.

Samyang 14mm f/2,8

I use this lens only for astrophotography.

Tripod

I use a Manfrotto BeFree Advanced MKBFRTA4BL-BH and I am very satisfied with that light-weight tripod. However, I look forward to the Travel Tripod by Peak Design.

Drone

DJI Mavic 2 Pro  – I love the fancy new Hasselblad camera and large 1-inch sensor giving it the ability to take awesome photos and videos. Mavic 2 Pro is perfect for travel photographers. It’s super easy to pack and ideal for creating professional images.

Bags

There is no one best camera bag for every assignment. I carry Peak Design Travel Backpack (45l) + Camera Cube M for most of my shorter travels. I love that the bag is the right size for cabin baggage.

I also use the superior organizer, the Peak Design Tech Pouch together with the Wash Pouch.

In the mountains, I carry Osprey Aether AG 70 for multi-day and more challenging treks.

Filters

LEE Filters ND 0,9 Gradual Soft + Filter Holder

Lee Big Stopper ND 3.0

Hoya Filter CIR-PL HD 77mm

Other accessories

GoPro HERO7 Black Edition

I love the compact size and incredible quality it produces. You can carry it everywhere you go. GoPro’s new “Hypersmooth” image stabilization feature is insane.

YouPro YP-870 Wireless Remote Shutter Release

SanDisk Extreme SDXC, Class 10, U3, V30

Peak Design Capture Camera Clip

Peak Design Slide

Equipment for editing and storage

Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (2016)

Lacie 2TB Rugged Hard Drive – Thunderbolt USB-C

Wacom Intuos Wireless Graphic Tablet (Medium)

Adobe Lightroom

Adobe Photoshop

www.tomashavel.com | @tomashavel

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