At Yakushima, Borneo

July 23, 2019

Photographer / Yukihiro Fukuda

Recently, I often carry my equipment from tropical jungles to the depths of rural forests. However, I am getting older and I have to carry heavy equipment, so reducing the weight of the equipment has become a direct factor in the success of my photography.

This is because fatigue encourages negative decisions. Therefore, the key is to reduce the strain on the body caused by the weight.

I used to use a Hatler video head on the largest Gitzo tripod, the 5-series model. It is very stable, but very heavy. So about three years ago, I introduced the Markins Q20iQ-BK lever shoe type ball head with a BV-HEAD attached.

This is a revolutionary product that allows you to use the ball head as a pan/tilt head. It weighs less than 3kg including the tripod. It was over 5kg before, so we were able to reduce the weight by 2kg. This has made it much more maneuverable. It is extremely stable when you fix the knob, and it stops perfectly.

I used this in the jungles of Borneo in May. The black body-colored head quickly becomes too hot to touch when exposed to strong direct sunlight. I was worried that the heat would cause it to stop poorly, but I was able to fix the Canon EF500mm and EF200-400mm very comfortably. It's easy to see why so many photographers are already using it.

In June, I used it to shoot Yakushima while chasing Yakuzaru monkeys. A tripod is not suitable for moving around while shooting, but with the Markins version, I was able to carry it around without any problems. If I had used the old Hattler version, I might have left it behind along the way.

Recently, I introduced a thermal scope, a piece of equipment that visualizes heat, to search for animals that are hard to find. This scope and the Markins head are a great match.

When I find an animal and quickly switch to a telephoto lens, I can switch to shooting mode with just one touch, so I don't have to move around much. A moment's delay can mean missing a photo opportunity, so being able to use one head in a variety of ways is a big advantage.

Mirrorless cameras, which are lighter than single-lens reflex cameras, are becoming mainstream, and the weight reduction of the entire shooting system will surely bring more freedom to animal photography in the future.

No matter how lightweight and how effective the image stabilization is, there are still scenes where a tripod is absolutely necessary. The Markins Q20iQ-BK + BV-HEAD are lightweight enough to carry with you whenever you want to shoot, and extremely effective in an emergency, so they will continue to be essential items for me.

Yukihiro Fukuda

Born in 1965. Graduated from Nihon University College of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine. In 1981, during spring break as a high school freshman, took an overnight train to Kushiro, Hokkaido, to see red-crowned cranes. Fascinated by their beauty, has been visiting Hokkaido every year since then. After graduating from university, worked as an office worker for a year before becoming a freelance photographer. Used a used minivan bought for 30,000 yen as a home and traveled to Hokkaido to photograph animals. Spent half the year working part-time as a truck driver, packing all salary into the car to cover Hokkaido for over 10 years. During that time, released two photo books, Life and Dobutsu Nisshi (both published by SEISEISYA). After that, began taking photos at the sea, which had always been a long-held dream, and now covers animals, underwater, and landscapes. Motto is "Mountains are great, but the sea is great too!" Anywhere there is nature, it's fun. Photography style involves taking time in places liked and where there are animals.