Holiday Kit

CatB

CatB

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I'm sorry to be asking yet more questions (maybe when I actually feel like I know something I'll be able to help with advice too!) but I'd like some advice.

I will be taking my lovely new 400D on holiday in a few weeks and as this is the first time that I've travelled with a DSLR I'm wondering what I should be taking and the best way to carry it all. I'm touring Italy so there will be lots of buildings and ruins and hopefully there will be the chance to leave whatever I won't be using at a particular place, on the coach.

I currently have the 400D with a 18-55 kit lens, 28-90 USM and 90-300 USM (the latter 2 from my original film camera) and I'm seriously considering hiring the 10-22 for the trip.

The lenses all have UV or circular polarising filters that get swapped around as necessary and I have the basics like a lens cloth to clean them, I also have the expedition 3 backpack or the lowepro nova 2 shoulder bag.

So...
1)Do I take all the lenses? If not which ones would you leave behind (I'm wondering how much use I'll have for a telephoto)?
2) Should I hire the 10-22 (I'm thinking it might be useful in cities where I can't get very far away from whatever I want to photograph) - I'd love to buy the Sigma version but I'm not sure that I can justify it on top of the cost of the holiday!
3) Which bag? The expedition 3 fits pretty much all my kit (probably including the hire lens) but I don't like the idea of having anything expensive in a backpack where I can't see it in cities like Naples or Rome - I'd have to put a padlock on it which would be major hassle to get into. The Lowepro only fits the body with one lens attached and one other (maybe 2 at a push) and screams 'I'm a camera bag containing expensive kit'! However it is smaller and I could keep it across my front. Alternatively I could use this as an excuse to splurge and get a Crumpler that would hold more of my kit and not look like a camera bag but they seem to be pretty costly.
4) Memory, I currently have a 2GB CF card, I know I will need more but how much more? 2 x 4GB cards? Or would more smaller cards be better in case of crisis (the alternative is take the laptop and download).
5) Other stuff, I currently just have a brush and lens cloth - I really need some kind of lens/filter cleaning fluid - any recommendations? and is it worth getting a rocket blower in case of dirty sensor crisis?!
6) Everything I have forgotten....

Thanks folks - I know I could ask in a shop but then I'd end up buying everything I've mentioned above and more which I really can't afford!
 
I suggest leaving the 28-90 behind and hiring a 10-20 which I really wish I had in Italy when I visited a couple of years ago.

Rocket blower is good for getting dust off the lens too. Good to have.

Lots of memory needed, yes. 4 2gig cards would be better than 2 4gig ones.

I've carted my gear round in backpacks through busy cities in Europe without hassle but it's whatever you feel comfortable with I suppose.
 
Hi

1. Why would you leave any of them at home? I'd take them all and depending on where I was going on a particular day choose kit to suit.
2. If you can afford it yes!
3. Depends on what you decide on 1. & 2. Less bulkier and more comfortable is best.
4.The 400D can take CF cards up to 8Gb available at £18 7datshop. 8Gb card will give you about 750 shots in RAW.
5. Brush and lens cloth yes
6. Spare battery and charger, and depending on how strong you are monopod or tripod?

Paul
 
Thanks, I am leaning towards the backpack, I guess I could find a way to lock whichever side pocket has my wallet in it and not the main pocket (the camera will be round my neck most of the time!).

Spare battery - I knew there was something that I'd missed... :)
 
You will probably be taking one anyway, but make sure you have a travel plug adaptor with you as Italian sockets are not the same as ours.
 
I would suggest a flash gun, either for fill in or as needed. I'd also recommend not using a padlock as it will draw attention and at that size would be next to useless anyway. A small discreet plastic tiewrap might be better, although you'd need to cut it off and replace it each time you wanted access.

Also, if you plan to go inside the Basillica be aware you will not get in if you're wearing shorts. Long trousers only (for men).

When I went I found my 18-250mm was wide enough for most shots. Keep in mind the sensor on the 400d is 1.6 factor, so unless the 10-22 is designed for the aps-c format at 10mm it will actually be 16mm - not much different from the 18mm of the kit lens (but better image quality I guess).

I took a few CF cards of varying sizes but also took my laptop so I could upload the images and wipe them at the end of the day.

For lens cleaning I'd suggest a lens pen - invaluable!
 
Keep in mind the sensor on the 400d is 1.6 factor, so unless the 10-22 is designed for the aps-c format at 10mm it will actually be 16mm - not much different from the 18mm of the kit lens
Click to expand...

Just to confirm that the numbers do not change, 10 will always have the same relationship to 18 no matter what camera you have.

The real question you need to answer is are you going on this trip to take photos, or are you looking to take photos while your on the trip.

If it's all about getting shots, take it all and make a daily decision about what comes out with you that day and take as much kit as you can carry.

If you're more wanting to get some pics while on holiday, then take as little gear as possible and carry the bare minimum so you can get on with enjoying the trip and not losing out to lugging heavy kit around.
 
hepburn said:
Keep in mind the sensor on the 400d is 1.6 factor, so unless the 10-22 is designed for the aps-c format at 10mm it will actually be 16mm - not much different from the 18mm of the kit lens (but better image quality I guess).
Click to expand...

:nono:

The 10mm will be 16mm on a crop body and the 18mm will be around 29mm.
 
As has been said - it depends whether you're going to primarily take photos or not. Personally, I don't like humping loads of gear around if I don't need too. I tend to decide what lens I'm going to take on a particular outing and stick with it, if I'm short of a lens as it turns out -tough! Working with just one lens can also help you really think about what you're doing.

If you're going with a long suffering partner, who'll be trailing along while you do all that lens swapping, you perhaps ought to think about that too. ;)
I think I'd be inclined to go for a wide angle zoom. :)
 
If you leave a lens behind, Sod's law states that you'll wish you had it! Since none of yours are completely overlapped, IF you'll have somewhere secure to leave them, take them all - AND rent yourself that 10-20!

With the relatively low cost of memory these days, take plenty. I always take some blank CD-Rs as well - most internet cafés will let you burn CDs. I do 2 copies of each card before I format it - and even then, I only format if I need to reuse the card, just in case.

A spare battery is pretty much a must, as is the charger and an adaptor. For support, consider a Pod or a Gorillapod SLR Zoom for those longer exposures - Colloseum by floodlight?

Have a great trip!
 
pxl8 said:
:nono:

The 10mm will be 16mm on a crop body and the 18mm will be around 29mm.
Click to expand...

I was confusing the issue a little I think. I have an 18mm lens designed for the aps-c sensor, so on mine i think 18mm is 18mm. Is the 18-55 kit lens supplied with the 400d not the same?
 
Thanks for all the input, I think the 10-22 is worth hiring and will probably be on the camera most days. Dazzajl and CT have a good idea of taking all the lenses and just selecting one or maybe two appropriate to the outing. They would then fit in my existing Lowepro shoulder bag with a few other bits and pieces and the rest could stay on the coach or in the hotel - I'll just have to keep the bag in front of me where I can see it. I hadn't thought that padlocks may actually attract attention.

It isn't intended to be purely a photographic trip but it doesn't have any other particular focus except to see lots of beautiful places and eat some nice food. I am travelling on my own on a coach tour so no long suffering partner but I am a bit concerned that I might get herded about by a guide (I'm hoping if I talk nicely to them early on I might be able to do some exploring on my own so long as I am back to the coach on time) - I suspect I'll be the youngest person on board by a good 20 years but I'd much rather that than an 18-30 holiday!!

A good tip about religious sites, thank you. I will make sure I have plenty of tops that cover my shoulders and long skirts or trousers.

I had forgotten that I actually have a little Pod thing (beanbag with a screw thread on top) - that may well be worth taking when I know I'll be going indoors to get slightly longer exposures, thanks Nod. I'm not sure I can promise a floodlit Colloseum but I'll do my best! I think sadly a flash is outside my budget.

I will have a look at the prices of memory cards and decide whether to take my laptop or not. Thanks for the reminder about plug adaptors too.
 
hepburn said:
I was confusing the issue a little I think. I have an 18mm lens designed for the aps-c sensor, so on mine i think 18mm is 18mm. Is the 18-55 kit lens supplied with the 400d not the same?
Click to expand...

Focal length has nothing to do with sensor size, it's a physical measurement from a point in the lens to the focal plane when the lines is focused at infinity, wiki explains it well.

A lens designed for a smaller sensor means the projected circle is smaller than that for full frame which saves on production costs (smaller bits of glass) but the crop factor still comes into effect - the only difference is that if the lens were mounted on full frame the image circle wouldn't cover the width of the sensor.
 
Ok my input would be if you can get hold of a 10-20mm lens definately take it, the reason i say this is i went on holiday to Thailand in may, my kit was my D300 18-200mm vr lens and a 50mm 1.8, i knew i would be taking hundreds of photos but i wanted to still travel light, and i thought the 18-200mm would cover most of my needs albeit with the possible loss of some image quality due to it's range, however there where times when i really wished i had a good landscape lens IE 10-20mm or 12-24mm, just because there where situations when i could have done with that extra few mm, and also the added image quality, i actually ended up not using the 50mm although there where times when i really should have IE some of the street portraits i took, but that was down to sometimes could'ent be bothered to change the lens, and other times worried about sensor dust due to where i was located at the time.

Also another point someone else mentioned about taking a flashgun, if you have one take it i have i did'ent and regretted it, and finally you can never have enough memory, so take as much as you can i had 24gb worth of CF cards and i took my laptop but i had major problems downloading my photos due to a windows vista upgrade (but thats a whole different story) i had so much as i shoot in RAW+JPEG, so just as well i had lots of CF cards, and finally just enjoy and have a brilliant time :thumbs:
 
pxl8 said:
Focal length has nothing to do with sensor size, it's a physical measurement from a point in the lens to the focal plane when the lines is focused at infinity, wiki explains it well.

A lens designed for a smaller sensor means the projected circle is smaller than that for full frame which saves on production costs (smaller bits of glass) but the crop factor still comes into effect - the only difference is that if the lens were mounted on full frame the image circle wouldn't cover the width of the sensor.
Click to expand...

Great explanation and link. Thanks :)
 
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