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Best Budget Travel Cameras: Travel Photography Gear for Beginners

Lauren West
Travel Cameras: DSLR, Compact, GoPro, and smart phone

Starter budget travel cameras will help anyone capture their experience without spending a whole lot of money. I’ve written a little about finding the balance between capturing the moment and experiencing the moment while traveling—but what are the easy-to-use and affordable travel cameras best suited for the traveler who still wants incredible captures? I’m gonna share with you all the starter budget travel cameras, the perfect travel photography gear for beginners, that I rely on during every trip I take, including a brief review of their pros and cons in my humble fauxtographer opinion, and quick access links to check them out for yourself!

Now, keep in mind, these are my budget recommendations for travelers looking to get some travel photography gear for beginners, without spending too much money. For our blogging photography needs, we have since upgraded to the Canon 80D, DJI Mavic Pro, and iPhone 12 Pro Max. Subscribe to our email list to be updated when our post for those more advanced travel cameras goes live!

So what travel photography gear for beginners will help a traveler capture their best photos? Here’s the dirty breakdown of what budget travel cameras I always bring with me: a DSLR, a point-and-shoot, an underwater/action camera, an aerial camera, and—because you’ll probably have it anyway—a phone!

 

Introductory DSLR

What do I recommend?: Canon Rebel T7

I highly recommend the Canon Rebel line for anyone who wants to get an introductory DSLR without spending a ton of money. The Canon Rebel is truly a quality travel budget camera to improve your travel photography without dropping a grand, a perfect DSLR addition to your minimalist travel photography gear.

A great DSLR option on the affordable side for a beginning photographer (such as myself), the Canon Rebel once served as my GO-TO travel camera for everything wanderlusty.  It’s an awesome addition to your travel photography gear for beginners.

Grab yourself an ergonomic camera strap for hiking and you’ll be hittin’ nature and taking awesome travel shots in no time!

Why should you have a DSLR in your snap-happy travel repertoire? Higher resolution and thus higher quality photos, increased customizability (in terms of settings and accessories), and high quality videos, are among some of the many reasons to invest in one.

Of course there are far superior DSLRs than the Canon Rebel (with far superior price tags), but this is an ideal addition to your travel photography gear for beginners. The Canon Rebel suited my purposes just fine when I first started shooting, and this camera range will certainly suit most traveler’s needs.

Those with more experience and higher expectations, however, may want to invest in a more expensive camera. I, myself, currently shoot on a Canon 80D (check out the best lenses for Canon 80D here) and am looking to upgrade to the Canon 6D.

Here are the pros and cons of the Canon Rebel!

 

Pros

Cons


Canon Rebel End Result:

 

 

Point-and-Shoot

What do I recommend? Canon PowerShot SX740

The Canon PowerShot SX740 epitomizes a travel budget camera to add to your travel photography gear for beginners fairly easily. I absolutely love the Canon PowerShot SX740 as a fabulous travel budget camera. Here’s why:

Its small size makes it so easy to pop in your bag, perfect addition for your minimalist travel photography gear. Its size might be a touch chunky for a pocket, but it is still far more convenient than a DSLR. A crystal clear flip-up touch screen makes it ideal for vlogging and, yes, taking those Instagram-worthy selfies to show the world you’re alive and proud. And that Wi-Fi & Bluetooth capability is a life-changer!

It’s easier than ever to snap a high-quality photo or video, transfer it directly and quickly to my phone, and have it up on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook in no time at all. Canon’s intuitive interface makes the SX740 easy to use, even if you’re a beginner. It has automatic shooting modes and scene recognition to help you get great shots without fiddling with complicated settings.

With a 40x optical zoom lens (24-960mm equivalent), you can capture everything from wide landscapes to distant details without needing multiple lenses. It’s versatile enough to handle various travel scenarios with ease.

Despite its budget-friendly price, the SX740 delivers solid performance. It features a 20.3 megapixel CMOS sensor, DIGIC 8 image processor, and 4K video recording, ensuring your travel moments are captured in great detail and clarity.

Pros:

Cons:

Canon Powershot SX740 End Result:

 

 

 

 

Action/Waterproof Camera

What do I recommend?: GoPro HERO12 Black

Can’t hit the beach without a great underwater camera! For this reason, the GoPro is totally a travel budget camera to improve your travel photography.

GoPros have long been some of the most popular action cameras—but for good reason. The leader in action cameras, GoPros can be stuffed in nearly any nook and cranny, and they’re damn near essential in any photo-addicted traveler’s camera stash.

However, GoPros are not meant for, and shouldn’t necessarily be used for all photo-needs. It’s certainly more of an add-on camera, and not necessarily essential as part of your minimalist travel photography gear. Still, a GoPro does have its time and place.

While I still use my trusty GoPro Hero 3+ Black (which was, by the way, THE BEST on the market when it came out a million years ago). And even though the newest generation of GoPros are VASTLY superior, the fact that I’m STILL able to rely on my ancient GoPro when needed for an underwater shot or just a different perspective is a testament to the long-lasting durability of the entire GoPro line.

Definitely a valuable addition to your travel photography gear for beginners!

The video below was shot almost entirely on my GoPro. GoPro shots start at 35 seconds in.

 

Action shots, underwater shots, and time lapses—these are perfect uses for a GoPro. Long-distance shots? Forget about it. The GoPro accessories make the GoPro, and you can find anything from mouth mounts to doggy harnesses—but still, the camera has its limitations.

The GoPro is a great budget underwater camera, perfect if you’re just getting into diving. If you want higher quality for your diving adventures, check out these top dive cameras.

Here are the pros and cons of the GoPro Hero12Black!

Questions about the best GoPro accessories to invest in? Subscribe to the blog here so you can be the first to know when I release that post!

 

Pros

Cons:

 

Mirrorless Camera

What do I recommend?: Sony Alpha A5100

The Sony Alpha A5100 is an excellent budget mirrorless camera that’s perfect for travelers. Mirrorless cameras are SUPER handy for travelers — they offer the image quality and versatility of a DSLR but in a more compact and lightweight body. No more lugging around heavy DSLRS! They’re easy to carry around, whether you’re exploring city streets or hiking up mountains.

The A5100 stands out for several reasons. First, its 24.3MP APS-C sensor delivers stunning image quality, capturing detailed and vibrant photos. Its fast hybrid autofocus system ensures you can quickly lock onto subjects, making it great for capturing those beautiful spontaneous travel moments.

One of the highlights of the A5100 is its portability. It’s small and lightweight, so it won’t weigh you down. Despite its compact size, it has a flip-up touchscreen, which is perfect for selfies and vlogging. The built-in Wi-Fi makes it easy to transfer photos to your smartphone for quick sharing on social media.

Pros:

Cons:

Sony Alpha A5100 in action:

Aerial Camera/Drone

What do I recommend?: DJI Mavic Pro 2

We’ve been traveling with a drone for years—long before the ultra-compact DJI Mavic Pro or even more compact DJI Spark were released.

We’ve distilled our years of drone travel experience into these Essential Tips for Traveling with a Drone. If you’re considering bringing a drone on your trip, DON’T miss our guide!

For cold weather drone travel, we also have travel drone tips for flying in cold weather, which is a whole ‘nother set of challenges.

The magic of the drone camera is that it unlocks so much more potential in the kind of images one can capture. With a UAV, you can get incredible, wide, sweeping landscape shots. Your quadcopter can follow a car through the desert. You can get a photograph of your subject at an otherwise impossible angle or height.

Really, the possibilities are infinite.

A drone may not be essential for your minimalist travel photography gear, but it can make a HUGE impact in the caliber of travel photography content you can product.

 

 

We started our drone journey with a DJI Phantom, which is huge in size compared to the DJI Mavic Pro, and which can only really be considered viable for travel with a great DJI Phantom travel drone bag, which we found, and have reviewed thoroughly.

We currently have the DJI Mavic Pro, which is still so amazing I don’t really find the need to upgrade to the DJI Mavic Pro 2.

When we used the DJI Phantom, we used to have a lot of connectivity issues, but with the Mavic, we almost RARELY have that issue. If you’d like to compare camera quality, this aerial views in this video were shot with a DJI Phantom, and the aerial views in this video were shot with a DJI Mavic Pro.

For traveling with a drone, we also recommend getting yourself some ND filters, a monitor hood sun shade, a packing case, extra batteries, and a multi-battery charging hub.

Let’s go into the pros and cons of the DJI Mavic Pro series.

Pros

Cons

DJI Mavic Pro End Result:

 


 

Smartphone

What do I recommend?: Apple iPhone

Sometimes the best travel budget camera to improve your travel photography is already right in your pocket.

A smart phone is absolutely essential for your minimalist travel photography gear.

Never underestimate the power of iPhone travel photography! Every year smart phone cameras just get better and better. making iPhone travel photography skills essential for anyone trying to improve their travel photography.

And since you likely already have one, you’ve already started building your travel photography gear for beginners!

An iPhone (or other smart phone) is a perfect on-hand my selfie and pocket camera. But no matter what smart phone you use, iPhone travel photography is a valuable resource for snapping those you-can’t-write-this-sh*t quick candid moments). iPhone travel photography is often one of the most reliable methods of documenting many of my travels.

Whichever phone I use, however, I make SURE to use a durable phone case when I’m traveling! I’m a clumsy gal, I take a lot of falls, I drop a lot of things, and my well-cased iPhone has been able to keep up like a champ. Still, I have no need for an upgrade in the immediate future. Really, any smart phone you have is a great travel tool, and not only for its camera.

Maps, GPS, access to the internet, currency conversion, notepad, book reader, calculator, MP3 player, GoPro preview screen—the many functions of a smart phone for a traveler are astonishing and varied well beyond just iPhone travel photography. With their many uses, your smart phone is one of the most valuable budget travel cameras and tools you can bring with you on your trips! Don’t forget to snag a great selfie stick to improve your travel selfies too!

Check out this list of the 10 Must-Have Travel Apps you need on your phone!

I’ll outline the pros and cons of smartphones in general down below.

Pros

Cons

iPhone End Result:

For Android phones, we also recommend Google Pixel phones

While we are iPhone users, there’s also plenty of Android smartphones out there with great camera capabilities. We recommend the Google Pixel phones, the newer the better. Everything about smartphones in general applies to Android phones as well — indispensable budget travel cameras!

Pros:

Cons:

Google Pixel in action:

 

So there you have it—a basic overview of what I believe are the best travel budget camera to improve your travel photography, and the things I love and hate about them. I rely on each of these budget travel cameras for different purposes, and I may decide to leave one at home for the day depending on my activities. If it’s super rainy or I’m spending the day swimming, I’ll forego the DSLR and make the GoPro my main squeeze of the day—such as during our very rainy trek up Sigiriya Rock. If I’m going to be shooting subjects quite far away, the DSLR and my telephoto lens are taking a prime ride with me that day—for example, while shooting distant animals on safari in the Yala National Park in Sri Lanka. What are the primary guiding factors for my budget travel camera choices? Affordability, durability, reliability, and ease of use. If these priorities match yours, these budget travel camera recommendations are fantastic starting points for your own research. I’m no photographer and I still have a lot to learn, but these cameras have allowed me to take the best pictures I can in any travel situation, and within my price range!

 

TL;DR

You don’t have to break the bank to stock up on essential budget travel cameras to improve your travel photography. Here are the bare bones essentials to get you started on shooting those epic travel shots!:

  1. Beginner’s DSLR
    • We recommend the Canon Rebel line
  2. Point-and-Shoot
    • Canon PowerShot SX740
  3. Underwater/Action Camera
    • We recommend a GoPro
  4. Mirrorless Camera
    • Sony Alpha A5100
  5. Aerial Camera
    • We recommend the DJI Mavic Pro line
  6. Smartphone
    • Really any will do, although quality generally goes up the more you spend

 

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What budget travel cameras do you use?

Share in a comment below!

 

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