Chris Burkard's Essential Sony Camera Kit

Adventure photographer Chris Burkard has outlined his essential camera kit for outdoor photography in a video for Sony Alpha's YouTube channel. He builds a streamlined setup around the Sony A7R V camera and a selection of key lenses. Burkard, a Sony Artisan of Imagery, described the process in a quirky video as if building a character in a video game. The humorous short starts with weather-appropriate clothing, including closed-toed shoes, a puffer jacket, and an oversized rain shell, before moving to the camera gear. This collaboration is part of a new series with Sony called Inside, Out There, which is about learning to see the world with more intention.

The Always-Present Workhorse

The lens Burkard says is "always in my bag" is the Sony FE 24-70mm f/2.8 GM II. He calls it a workhorse zoom. The second-generation model improves handling with a lighter design and more robust weather-sealing, while also improving sharpness and reducing chromatic aberration.

Burkard's Favorite Lens

Burkard's favorite lens, however, is even wider: the Sony FE 16-35mm f/2.8 GM II. Digital Camera World Reviews Editor Gareth Bevan noted that this second-generation lens is not only lighter and more compact than the original but is also sharper, with noticeable improvements in distortion and vignetting.

Completing the Zoom Trinity

Beyond those two favorites, the streamlined kit that Burkard builds finishes what's commonly referred to as the "holy trinity" of lenses, adding the Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II to the trio of zooms.

The Prime Lens Choice

Burkard chooses just one prime lens for the streamlined kit: the Sony FE 24mm f/1.4 GM. He says he grabs this lens for night photography and for a shallower depth of field than the f/2.8 zooms can provide.

The camera body anchoring this kit is the Sony A7R V. Burkard calls it his "high-resolution workhorse for shooting landscapes in the field." While Sony now has the newly launched A7R VI, the A7R V remains available at a lower price point than the latest model. The video provides insight into the gear an experienced outdoor photographer relies on for a simplified, effective setup. For more technical details on camera gear, you can explore our comprehensive stats and injuries pages, which track performance and reliability metrics.