The Digital Trekker

08/28/2026

I don’t know if the Western world understands the magnitude of what is happening in Nepal. I’m seeing very little of this on the news, yet the devastation shown in these videos is staggering.

This may very well turn out to be a disaster on the scale of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami. The reported numbers of dead and missing do not seem to capture the magnitude of what these videos are showing.

Please pray for Nepal in these days. Pray for those who have lost loved ones, for those still missing, and for the thousands who are facing unimaginable loss.

I am honestly without words.

The death toll on the Nepal-Tibet border has climbed from 7 to 389 ...

08/21/2026

The New Airline Battery Rules Could Create a Problem for Photographers

Read: the full article here: https://thedigitaltrekker.com/2026/08/airline-battery-rules/

If you travel with camera batteries, flash batteries, LED lights, or video equipment, you may want to pay attention to what's coming in 2027.

The new IATA guidance puts tighter restrictions on power banks, including a limit of two per passenger. But here's the question I haven't seen adequately answered:

When is a camera battery a power bank?

Some of the batteries photographers now use can power a camera, flash, LED light, or monitor—and can also charge another device through USB-C.

So where do those batteries fit when airlines start enforcing the new rules?

I started digging into this, and there is considerably more gray area than I expected.

For photographers who travel internationally with lighting or video equipment, this could become an important issue.

I'd really like to hear from other photographers. Have you encountered an airline that treats multifunction batteries differently? How many batteries do you typically travel with?

And if you know photographers who travel with lighting or video gear, get the word out. Share this with them and let's see what the photography community is hearing from the airlines.

And yes, I'm already thinking about what this could mean for my 2027 Pushkar Camel Fair photography tour.

The Romance of Rajasthan – Pushkar Camel Fair

03/02/2026

Seeing Like a Storyteller: Light, Contrast, and Caravaggio

Seeing Like a Storyteller: Using Light, Shadow, and Intentional Exposure I spent part of my recent trip in Malta standing inside St. John’s Cathedral in Valletta, studying one painting by Michelangelo Caravaggio. The painting was The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist. Caravaggio changed visual storytelling through his use of chiaroscuro — dramatic contrast between light and shadow. Caravaggio used light like a spotlight on a stage, pulling your attention directly to where the story was unfolding while allowing everything else to fall away....

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01/16/2026

Bolivia Photo Adventure — Registration Now Open!
We’re headed deep into the heart of the Bolivian Altiplano — from the otherworldly salt flats of Salar de Uyuni to rainbow lagoons, high-Andean peaks, and markets full of color. Bolivia is a photographer’s dreamscape — and this trip is crafted to give you time in the best light, with the right people, in the right places.

Spots are limited and open now.
Secure your place and get the full itinerary, cost, and other details here:
https://thedigitaltrekker.com/bolivia-photo-adventure/

Capture bigger landscapes. Shoot deeper stories. See Bolivia through your lens.

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12/22/2025

I finally published my full review of the WaterField Designs, Tech Folio Backpack. It excels as a mobile office, but when I tried to repurpose it as a camera bag, things broke down. Some of that is on the design, some of it on my expectations. If you’ve ever tried to make one bag do everything, this review might save you some frustration.

https://thedigitaltrekker.com/2025/12/waterfield-designs-tech-folio-backpack/