Photo backup system for Antarctica. Laptop + one portable hard drive. Will there be enough space on the laptop to keep a copy of photos there, too? I want at least two copies. Should I buy a second portable drive? (Don’t really need a second one otherwise, but they’re only like $60…)

Camera transporting system. Backpack or wheeled bag (need to check weights of bags to make decision, I think). Dry bag. Plus of using a backpack instead of wheeled is that if I wanted, the entire backpack could go inside a dry bag to carry onto land. Do I really want to bring an entire backpack full of gear onto land, tho? If not, how do I protect the cameras inside the dry bag as I’m transporting?

Avoiding condensation. Sealing up the dry bag outside, then leaving it closed for 60-90 minutes after bringing it back onto the (warm) ship should prevent condensation from forming on the cameras as they warm back up. That means any cameras I take onto land (2 bodies + a waterproof? all at once? hmmmm) will be out of commission for at least an hour each time I come back on the ship. WHAT IF I WANT TO TAKE PICTURES IN THAT HOUR. Srs bzness. Do I bring a fourth camera (the Fuji?) for that?

Learning video. I think both Antarctica and Alaska (where I’m going next summer) are going to have some prime opportunities for shooting video. Need to learn optimal settings, and then what to do with it after.

Buying our plane tickets. I was hoping to buy these with miles, but it turns out it’s not actually that easy to use miles when I have very specific dates and no real flexibility. I’m still trying to figure out a way to get at least one of us there on miles. For cash tickets, I can find tix for $1500/pp but they include THREE layovers and take a total of 36.5 hours of travel time. Or for $2000/pp we can have just one layover (as it should be–in Buenos Aires) and get there in 19.5 hours. $500/pp is a lot of money but I’m pretty sure about halfway through that 3-layover/36-hour nonsense I would be ready to pay even more than that just for a chance to lie down flat in a bed. (Plus think of all the chances for them to lose our luggage.)