Kayak for shooting?

Anyone use a kayak or similar to shoot from? I know a guy locally that does it with his 1D and 500mm. He gets spectacular shots. I would be hesitant about taking that much equipment in a kayak but this weekend my uncle told me about pontoons made for kayaks to keep them from turning over.

Just mainly wonder how many people use a small boat to shoot from.

Try looking on Utube for a guy called flecktonesrock . He hs a number of videos with his 500EF on a tripod in a canoe !!!

My brother got a Kayak recently and I took my gear out in it. Its a bit wider and pretty stable and I had no problem having my gear out in it.

I also bought a seal line dry bag to store the camera in during transit and for any quick imersion situations. They say they are not made for imersion but I tested mine and it was good for a quick dunk similar to flipping.

http://www.cascadedesi​gns.com/sealline/dry-bags/category

I use one in West Bay, Galveston, Tx. The bay stays pretty smooth, but does get choppy at times. No problems.
The key with Kayaks is to get one you sit in, in stead of on. Some of the newer ones have you sitting "on" them, which makes for a higher center of gravity. I have a zip up drink cooler that I put my gear in and it works fine. Prior to putting everything in the cooler, I put each individual piece o equipment in a large ziplock bag.

There are a bunch of people that use them on the Fred Miranda forum. go to www.fredmiranda.com and click on the nature forum.

Larry Weinman wrote in post #10955538
There are a bunch of people that use them on the Fred Miranda forum. go to www.fredmiranda.com and click on the nature forum.

I do not use a kayak but a very light weight flat bottom jon boat.

Here a link i found recently this guy his specialty is shooting from a kayak
there s also a config how he packs his kayak if i remeber

http://www.garyluhm.ne​t/home.html

Greetings Steven

This guy is GOOD -- really good -- and the bonus -- he is a Canon shooter with a 5dMK2 and a 7d -- His home page is really worth checking out!!

I shoot from a canoe alot, nothing is as silent and unintrusive as a kayak or canoe slipping along a river bank. I used to keep a styrofoam cooler onboard to drop the gear in if it started raining, then I got pelican cases and aquatech raincovers. Now I feel pretty confident on the water that I can protect my gear, but I wish I had a weather sealed body and some weather sealed long glass.

Some of my Pelican cases came from some odd sources. I search the online sale sites for outdated test equipment or old underwater film cameras that were sold in a pelican case. If you buy at a camera shop, you will pay the highest price, online from a retailer or direct from pelican is better, but you can't beat something like the old analog electric test meter in a pelican I picked up for ten bucks- the case was worth 7 times that new and I have never broken one or worn one out. They last forever, float, and come in bright colors.

One watercraft that I never see mentioned is the two man fishing boat, available from Bass Pro, Cabela's, etc. They're designed to be used w/ an electric trolling motor and cost in the $4-500 range plus $100 for the motor. They are extremely stable and I would have no hesitation in taking any of my equipment out in one. I canoed a lot as a young man, but now, in my 70's don't have the strength or endurance to use a paddle for very long. I initially bought mine for fishing, but after frequently seeing good opportunities for waterfowl and wading bird photography, I started carrying a camera and long lens on all my trips. I wouldn't take one on big waters, but most of my fishing is on small watershed lakes, etc. I rigged one up specifically for photography, w/ lowered seats, camouflage, etc. but found I could approach just as close in the conventional mode, so I've stuck with that.

While sponsons can help on quiet waters, they are not very handy. You may instead want to try two inflatable paddlefloats (you already have one on board anyway for self-rescue I hope) + some home made quick release system (broad velcro strips, rope, etc...) to fix the paddle on the cockpit or on the lifeline running right and left on the deck of your seakayak while shooting. That will stabilize the kayak but will not prevent it from drifting.

To store the equipment, do not put 100% trust in bags(I mean the roll-top Ortlieb type). Pelican cases are great but expensive. A budget alternative is the round screw-top plastic containers made by Curver. They float well if dunked. The two smaller sizes fit in the cockpit of most seakayaks, won't take the larger zooms or prime teles. Consider though that it can be a pain to store one of those in the cockpit if at least you don't want to compromise your safety and capacity to maneuver.

Paddle a double kayak if you want to be on the safer side. One kayaker does the shooting while the other caters for stability, steering, etc...

The adjustable "double Kayaks, such as made by Mad-River and Perception are nice. I like the Prodigy 2 by Perception http://www.perceptionk​ayaks.com …/prodigy/prodig​y_ii_14-5/

It is a very stable roomy Kayak I have used several times, for shooting and I have no problems in taking my gear in it in reasonable weather. It is much easier to use than my 18 ft Grumman canoe, for taking pictures, the canoe especially with one person in it is too high and the wind moves it around too quickly. These Kayaks are what most of the rental places offer in a two man kayak and are adjustable for when only one person is using it. I am a "load" at 6' 225 but feel very comfortable in the Perception 2 person kayaks both by myself and with my wife aboard. I would suggest playing around in one first "before" you load it with gear and take off for a day of picture shooting, make sure you feel comfortable "first".

That being said, I would not take my 150 to 500 and all my gear out in Gale winds on an open water environment either, you have to use some common sense or you deserve to get you and all your gear wet. Kayaks and Canoes are made for getting wet, don,t forget that and use some caution and you will love it.

How about a 'belly-boat' (float tube) - wouldn't be a lot of room for storing extra gear. I have one, and a camo 'tent' that I could put over me and the tube. But, I'm wondering if the tent would even be needed. Will be several months before I can try out any of this as our rivers are beginning to freeze over right now.

I've taken a small setup out on the kayak. I have the sit-on type, but it has an enclosure that is inside the kayak with a nice big opening and it seals well - combined with a sealed plastic bag it is pretty safe. Put inside when getting out on the water, if it gets rough or coming back to shore, but once out on the water it's not so risky.

I've only done that on fresh water though so it was quite flat, would be more worried about rougher conditions. I also only took the 20D + a cheap zoom with me.

just a thought , how about insurance. i have $5,000 policy for $50 buck a year, covers everything but wear..............Outd​oorsman11