the wander project dispatches from over there

Every RTW traveler has concerns about keeping their gear safe, especially when they’re lugging expensive electronics or camera equipment. TWP asked photographer Austin Mann (who’s no longer trapped in Ethiopia) to tell us how he keeps his computer, high-end camera bodies and assortment of lenses out of the hands of thieves in the field, in transit, and even when he’s not around to stand guard.

In the Field: Be Inconspicuous

“You’ve got to actively work to keep you gear (and yourself) off the radar of would-be thieves,” Mann says.  To avoid looking like a Canon-sponsored target, he tapes over all of the logos with black gaffer’s tape — yes, even third-world crooks are brand-conscious.  Mann also uses a sling-style strap like the  Black Rapid to position his camera behind his back at waist level. “I can walk right past a guy without him realizing I’m even carrying a camera,” Mann Says. It’s much less obvious than letting it dangle from my neck, tourist-style.”

A critical period, says Mann, is the transition between shooting and heading back to your hotel or hostel: If you’re not careful, you’ll let plenty of the wrong people know where your valuables will be spending the night. “Always put away your equipment before you get back to wherever you’re staying,” he says. “You don’t want to be seen walking into the building and through the lobby carrying expensive gear, since people on the street, loiterers in the lobby or even sketchy hotel attendants can mark you as an prime target.” Even worse: letting people see you walk into your hotel room carrying something fancy, which effectively paints a bulls-eye on your door and saves thieves an awful lot of guesswork.

In Transit: Keep It With You

You’ll often be asked to put your gear in the baggage compartment underneath a bus or into an overhead rack on a train. Don’t, or you may never see it again. “I was on a 12-hour bus ride from Addis Ababa to Gondar, Ethiopia last month, and I opted to keep my pack beneath my feet the entire time,” says Mann. “It was terribly uncomfortable, but the assurance that my equipment and I would arrive in the same destination was worth the sacrificed leg room.” If you’ve  got no choice but to stow your gear, put all of your valuables into a daypack that you can keep with you, leaving only clothing (preferably dirty) and easily-replaceable items for thieves.

Leaving it unattended: Keep it Out of Sight

Mann rarely leaves his gear unattended, but values a good hiding spot over a lock system. “Once, in a hotel in Tanzania, I was in a hurry to get to breakfast down the hall,” he says. “I had a camera body and several lenses lying on the bed, so I just threw a towel over them. When I returned after just a few minutes, I realized that my razor (which I’d left out) had been stolen, but my camera gear was still tucked beneath the towel.” While you shouldn’t regularly leave security up to bathroom linens, Mann’s story is proof that most thefts are simple crimes of opportunity— Thieves go for the easiest targets, then move on as quickly as possible.

Laptops are a major concern among travelers, since most rarely need them during the day and would rather not lug them around. Mann suggests that hiding it may be better than locking it, since a thief can’t steal something he doesn’t see. “I’ll hide mine behind the bed’s headboard or on top of a really tall dresser in a lot of places,” he says. “A thief might come in and rummage through your bag, but he’s probably not going to look around for things you might have hidden when he could move on to the next room.”

Of course, Mann does occasionally travel with a pelican box, which he locks and secures to an immobile object with a cable, like those from PacSafe. Still, he maintains that “theft deterrents” like Pelican Cases and PacSafe covers often only serve to help thieves zero-in on something worth stealing.

Keeping all the gear you left home with is a constant struggle, since there’s rarely a perfect solution to securing your stuff. Mann suggests evaluating each situation and determining the best course of action. “The most important thing is to be smart, active and aware,” he says.  “Opportunity creates thieves, and if you create an opportunity by being careless, someone will capitalize on it.”

About Our Expert: Austin Mann is a professional photographer based in Dallas, Texas. Despite having lugged cameras, lenses and nearly every available Apple gadget to places like Tanzania, Sudan, India and Nepal, he’s only had one item stolen: A microphone he set down to chase down a wayward lens cap.