Travel photography - Bikepacking through Slovenia
With the bike through Slovenia
In June we (Melissa and Jonas) did a bikepacking tour through Slovenia. 2 weeks only with the Gravelbike on the way. Of course, the memories were extremely important to us, especially because of our photo book, which we wanted to create afterwards. But especially since you have to think about every gram when bikepacking, you also need light equipment in the photo area. Our Fujifilm X-T20 (successor X-T30II) with the 23mm f/2.0 was the perfect choice for us. You can read about the challenges and exciting experiences we had on this trip in this blog post.
The successor of our X-T20:
Fujifilm X-T30 II black
- Fujifilm X-T30 II
- 26.1 megapixel X-Trans CMOS 4 sensor
- X-Processor 4
- AF with face/eye detection
- 2.36 million pixel electronic viewfinder
- 3-inch (7.6 cm) foldable touchscreen with 1.62 million pixels
- Continuous shooting mode with up to 30 frames per second
- 18 movie simulation modes
- Professional video recording in 4K/30p (incl. F-Log)
- Wi-Fi connectivity and remote control via smartphone
- energy-saving Bluetooth technology
Lightly packed, great memories
Back in 2021 we did our first bikepacking tour from Augsburg to Lake Garda. Since this was our first tour, we booked ourselves in advance various hostels and hotels, so that we could plan the day tours exactly and had a destination in each case. This year's trip was not like that. We were completely on our own: Tent, stove, sleeping bags, sleeping pads and even chairs fit into our compact bike bags. With this setup, we had maximum flexibility as we could decide how far we wanted to go that day, depending on our mood of the day.
Slovenia's north was particularly appealing to us in our route, as mountain landscapes inspire us incredibly. Our paths went over single trails, forest paths, gravel roads and panoramic trails. Of course, there was also a fair amount of altitude, which is why we relied on a lightweight camera. The Fujifilm X-T20 (successor X-T30II) has long been our companion. Together with the 23mm f/2.0 it is a particularly lightweight setup. So that we didn't have to stuff the camera into any bags, we opted for a camera strap that is very easy to open and close with the help of magnets. This makes it easy to carry the camera on your back. There it is protected (unless you lie down :D) and quick to operate.
The somewhat different travel (photography)
Travel photography. A term with which probably everyone can do something. The term is flexible and includes many possibilities. City trips, landscapes, nature, culture, sights, just all the experiences that you make on your trip. Depending on how you travel determines the equipment and therefore the results of your photographs. As I said, for us, weight was the most important thing. Our focus was on the moments, we didn't want perfect pictures of places that have been photographed x times before. We were more interested in capturing many different perspectives, showing messy moments, just what we experienced. Also a lesson from the year before. There our pictures were quite the same, because we have mostly photographed from the bike and have not really taken time and thought about what is important to us. That's something you just learn by trial and error. Especially in photo books you want to show many different moments and not just the perfect pictures that tell nothing of the trip itself. This is also a tip from us: determine before the trip what exactly you want to photograph and what look you want to have in the pictures. This will then result in your lens choice and the focus you put on your images. If we were currently buying a new camera, it would definitely be the Fujifilm X-100V. It's small, lightweight and has a fixed lens. Perfect for our type of travel!
Fujifilm XF 23mm f/2.0 WR Fujifilm X black
Snapshot-ready lens for all weather conditions.
- Fast, compact and weather sealed
- fast autofocus
- excellent resolution performance
- splash-proof and dust-proof
Bikepacking - what makes it so special?
Traveling is a completely different experience on a bike. For me, it's a completely different experience to ride through the countryside either in a closed vehicle or on a bike, where you can perceive smells, heat or cold, sounds and your own body. Above all, you get to places that you would not have been able to reach by car, for example. Sometimes you are alone in a forest, then you are in front of an incredible panorama or you ride far away from civilization, along hiking trails, where only you, your bike and a few alpine cows are.
In my opinion, you perceive nature much more intensively and then the angles in the pictures also result from this. Sunsets, quiet forests, the thunderstorm over the lake, the chapel on the mountain, a small bird in the backlight that wakes you. What excites me just as much is the spontaneity. You can go virtually anywhere, because you just always have all your stuff you need to live. Are we going to the sea today? Maybe. stay 3-4 days longer in the mountains? Why not?
Our highlights from Slovenia:
- Lake Bled
- Lake Bohinj
- Ljubljana
- Triglav National Park
- Karavanke (mountain range in the north)
- Soca Valley
To show you where we have been at all, here is a small representation of our route.
All in all it was: 14 days, 61,6 hours riding time, 894km, 14.200 meters altitude
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