Top Questions Photographers Must Ask when buying an RV|Maria Struss Photography

When I decided to buy an RV for photography travels, my head was filled with visions of driving from one beautiful photo destination to another like those shown below.

Little did I know…

RV travel as a nomadic photographer turned out to be far different than I had envisioned. Why?

My first RV, a 40 foot Phaeton, was the wrong RV for how I traveled. It was a great RV, just not the right RV for me. You see, I focused on the manufacturer’s reputation and the RV’s floorpan, but failed to pay attention to why I was RVing.

To help other photographers avoid the same mistake I made, I have written both this List of 9 Questions and the accompanying Perfect Photographer’s RV Checklist.

First Step

Begin with the end in mind! Decide if you are primarily buying an RV for the RV lifestyle or for photography. Maybe it’s both, but still pick your top reason.

With that answer in mind, next proceed to the “9 Questions Photographers Should Answer Before Buying An RV”.

Note these questions only relate to RV usage for photography and do not address other RV issues such as towing capacity, etc.

The 9 Questions to Ask

What is your budget for an RV?
Where and when do you plan to travel for photography?
Where do you want to camp?
On average, how long do you plan to stay at each photo location ?
Full time or part time?
Are you willing to sacrifice comfort for mobility in order to photograph more locations in a given timeframe?
How much RV maintenance are you willing or capable of performing yourself?
How much space do you need in an RV for sleeping, cooking, working, etc?
New or used?

Now let’s take an in-indepth look at each of these questions.

1.What Is Your RV Budget?

When calculating a budget for an RV, be sure to include the following:

Cost of the RV.
Add ons such as solar, wifi booster, tow bars, sway bars, additional batteries, and similar items.
Add extra $ for the cost of routine maintenance which will vary depending on the type of RV you purchase. Check with owners of similar models for estimates.
Budget an extra percent for repairs. It is best to check estimates based on your specific RV type and features to determine an amount.
Include the cost of insurance based on full time status.
If you are planning to store the RV, include the cost of storage.
Include an amount to immediately replace the crappy tires that come on most RVs unless you were able to negotiate a tire upgrade in your purchase.
Add an additional amount for hotel stays if your RV has to go in the shop for an extended period of time. A week is usually a good estimate.

As you can see, RV travel gets expensive quickly. Based on the above budget and how much you plan to travel, think about alternatives to onwing an RV.

2.Where and When Do You Want To Travel?

Where you want to travel greatly influences the type of RV you should buy.

Cold Climates- Need true 4 season package
Warm Climates-AC and insulation
Mountain Passes with grades-Adequate power and brakes
Coastal Areas-Mold, mildew and rust
Popular tourist areas -RVs that can access the majority of campsites will improve chances of finding open campsites.
Backroads, dirt roads, etc.

Answering the above question will help you avoid purchasing an RV that can’t handle your photography destinations. I once had to leave the Tetons during fall to prevent my pipes from bursting.

3. Where Do You Want to Camp?

Your preference in campgrounds will guide you in deciding how tall and long of an RV you should buy. Defining campsite preferences will help you decide how much power and tank capacity an RV should possess.

RV Parks and Resorts- Normally located off highways of decent width and height clearances for most RVs. They also tend to have longer sites. Note: many resorts have age restrictions on RV’s of 10 years.
National Forests– Campsites tend to be smaller, road access may be tight, and may or may not have power and water. Many do not. Also ground clearance may be an issue.
BLM Lands- Expect bumpy and rutted roads and no amenities. Need a camper that has adequate tank facilities and power and possibly greater ground clearance.
National and State Parks– State parks usually have electric and water hookups but not sewer. National parks vary in amenities. Both national and state parks only have a small number of larger RV sites( if any) and all sites book up months in advance. Smaller RV’s work best in these parks.

4. How Long At Each Location?

Give careful thought to your primary photography plans. Are you traveling to stay in one area and write a book or other project in a small area such as the Everglades?

Maybe you are like me and want to photograph the entire country. Only you know the answer. What I know from personal experience is, for those of us who like to move around frequently, the wrong RV can make frequent moves more challenging.

Slides- The more slides you have, the more interior packing you will need to do prior to moving.
Wind and Weather- The more susceptible the RV is to wind, the less you will be able to move at will from one location to another.
RV Set up and Take Down– Do you travel alone or with others. Fewer hands means a longer and more tiring set up or take down. After a while you will find yourself skipping photo destinations just to avoid this process. This is especially true of bumper pull trailers.

5.Full Time Or Part Time

Decide if you are planning to travel on a full time basis, for extended stays of 6 months or longer or part time?

Full Time- The RV has to accommodate everything you need to live.
Extended Stays- The RV should be able to accommodate only the items you need for a period of time but not necessarily all your belongings.
Short Trips – Perhaps you are buying an RV to take trips to photograph areas closer to your home or shorter extended trips of a couple months. If so, storage, living, and climate control factors may not be as important in your purchase decision.

6.Comfort Versus Mobility

This is a tough one since we all want as many creature comforts as possible. However, the type of RV, the length of the RV and the number of slides definitely impacts the RV’s mobility.

Presently, I have given up a number of comforts to travel in my van (will be changing shortly) in order to move quickly to as many photo destinations as possible. A photographer friend of mine, however, values comfort over mobility. Only you know what is right for you.

7. RV Maintenance

As I have mentioned in other RV posts, maintenance can take more time than you expect and negatively impact the amount of time you have in the field for photography. Don’t underestimate it!

Here are just a few examples of items that should be done on a frequent basis. Note: These do not include the yearly more time confusing tasks.

Lube slides
Apply protectant for rubber seals
Inspect roof for problem areas
Check lug nuts on tires and tire pressure
Clorox fresh water tanks
Flush black tanks
Wash and wax
Caulk areas as needed

8.How Much Room Do You Need

Give careful consideration to your day to day living and how much room you need in each area of the RV. For instance, if you mainly cook outside or eat out, don’t waste RV space on models with larger kitchen areas. Buy the RV that meets your specific needs.

Do you photograph in remote areas, if so, you will likely be carrying extra food with you.
Do you work from the road? If so, look for comfortable areas where you can sit and work.
Do you have a kayak, waders, or other larger gear that you need for photography? If so where will you put it?
Continue to ask yourself questions like above as you look at different RV floor plans.

9.New or Used?

When buying new, especially as a photographer, be aware that you will likely be traveling distances from where you purchased the RV. Sadly, most dealers around the country will not perform warranty work on RV’s that were not purchased from them.

If something goes wrong, you need to be prepared to take it back to the original dealer and or the factory. I know this as I once had to travel over 900 miles to have something repaired.

My personal opinion, based on the above warranty challenges and the terrible quality of RV’s today, is that it may be better to buy used. Repairs can then be more easily performed locally.

Recap

There are many important factors to consider when buying an RV besides what is mentioned above.

As photographers, however, most of us travel to capture images, not spend time tending to our RV’s. Therefore careful consideration to the items on the Perfect Photographer’s Checklist along with answering the above 9 questions will guide you in deciding on the right RV for your photography travels.

Thanks for joining me on RV/Van Travels and I look forward to hearing your thoughts on my list of questions.

4 Comments

bill birdsong says:

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What an instructive and interesting saga! Like many, I follow your adventures from home and when Susie and I are on the road….in California right now…..airbnbs for us, I am afraid, our van days for 20 years of the past are over. All your decisions seem rational and linked to the time and place of your photography journey….I hope the next phase will be what you want and need. I follow the English landscape photorapher, Thomas Heaton, and he developed a van for his photography trips, much simpler than what you need. His trips are much shorter in time and distance but the modifications he made might be of interest to you. He can be found on Youtube. Good luck…and keep us all in the loop!

1. Maria Struss says:
  
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  Bill, you And Susie were way ahead of most of us with van travel. I will always remember meeting you in Wyoming for the first time in your camper van! I too follow Heaton at times.
  
GariRae Gray says:

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I will continue to follow your saga on finding/creating the perfect photography RV. I’m struggling with that issue also, and appreciate the stages you went through. Have you, or any of yoir photography friends thought of carrying a small scooter on a rack attached the back of a Class B? Ive thought the scooter would be good for trips to local markets amd hiking trailheads, allowing the RV to be parked. Any thoughts?

1. Maria Struss says:
  
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  A scooter is a good idea at times depending on how much gear you carry and also where you photograph. It would not work in rain or the grizzly country I spend time photographing. I guess it all depends on where you go and what you photograph. Oh,I just modified this post into two sections today but you probably already read the checklist so ignore the new post. Somehow you read this while I was updating it. I would love to hear your thoughts on your perfect photographer RV as I really do struggle with what to do next. Two important factors for me are to be able to bring my RV as close to where I plan to photograph as possible so I can go back and forth during the day since I have a pet and to camp in cold weather.

9 QUESTIONS PHOTOGRAPHERS SHOULD ANSWER BEFORE BUYING AN RV