As newer and better gear comes out, we all find that there is more that we want.  New stuff is exciting and opens up worlds of great opportunities for creating different and unique images.The more gear we have, however, the more we are faced with the challange of deciding what to bring.  There is something to be said about bringing all your gear to a location and having options.  But this will eventually cause you to need back surgery, as action sports typically take place at distant locations that involve a serious trek to get to.Packing lightly also has it's benefits.  And not just for your back.  If you pack lightly, you'll be faced with the challenge of deciding what gear to bring, and what should be left behind.  This can be a serious nightmare, but will force you to be more creative on location.  Instead of having endless options, the limited amount of gear will make you think a bit more about what to do to get a great shot.  It also helps you to learn how to use the gear that you do bring, and come up with new ways of using it.

You don't need every lens you own on every shoot….. This is tough to face, but if you bring less lenses, you'll learn new and better ways of shooting each lens you do bring.  It forces you to make a decision and really think about composition.  Rather than using whatever lens fits everything from the angle you plop yourself down in, you'll have to pick an angle that works with the lens/lenses that you brought with.The same goes for flashes.  Rather than bringing 5 flashes into the woods, try using just 1-2.  Often times that's all you'll end up using/needing anyway.  Pack lightly, be more creative, and save your back!Even though you are traveling lightly, you don't want to forget a key component like a pocket wizard sync cable.  That's why we created the action sports photographers equipment checklist, and you can customize it however you want!  Download the checklist from this page.