Namibia, bodies and confusion - help!

charliefox

charliefox

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Chris
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Hi Gang

I'm lucky enough to be going to Namibia (again) in April for 3 weeks :)

My current setup is a 40D and L glass covering 17mm to 400mm.

I've been arguing with myself for the past 3 months about going FF. I'll be shooting everything from landscapes and portraits through to wildlife. I should just say that I'll be keeping the 40D either way as I appreciate it's 1.6 crop and fps for sport at home.

So, questions....

* Do I really need full frame - I can't help thinking that the L glass would be better served with a FF body :thinking:

* If I do go FF, with approx. £2000 to spend, I'm torn between the 5D MKII or the 1DS MKII.

Will someone put me out of my misery please? If it helps - the bank manager's favouring "stick with the 40D" option!

Any thoughts / comments greatfully received :)
 
Just my opinion (and since I'm a Nikon user, what do I know?)...

Stick with the 40D. The extra reach with the crop body might help you get the distant wildlife and a Sigma 12-24 will give you wider angles for the landscapes. I recommend the 12-24 over the 10-20 since you've already expressed an interest in going FF and the 12-24 is suitable for FF use (where it's insanely wide, as said by StewartR in another thread!). Not sure what other lenses you have but some may need to be replaced if you go FF and that would eat into your budget.

Enjoy the trip.
 
Cheers for the advice nod - the Bank Manager thanks you ;)

I resisted listing lenses :thinking: Here goes:

* EF-S 10-22mm
* EF-S 60mm Macro
* EF 17-40mm L
* EF 24-105mm L
* EF 100-400mm L

I appreciate that the EF-S won't fit a FF body but as I'm keeping the 40D that shouldn't be a problem. In fairness, the 10-22 would probably go as landscape shots would be the domain of the FF body.
 
If you're going to sell your 10-20 for a reasonable price...let me know. :D

And I was here first haha

Enjoy Namibia. Would be awesome!!!
 
pixeljunkie said:
If you're going to sell your 10-20 for a reasonable price...let me know. :D

And I was here first haha

Enjoy Namibia. Would be awesome!!!
Click to expand...

Selling out of Classifieds is a sure way for a wrist slapping! That certainly wasn't my intention when mentioning that it would probably be sold.

Please - no more solicitous comments, however well intentioned :)
 
Lucky you - I love Namibia.

I don't think you need full frame. For most landscape stuff, 24mm is wide enough on FF and 17mm should be ok for crop. It depends where you are going. The best shots I've seen of Sossusvlei and the dunes were taken with a 70-200 to get perspective distortion.

Just noticed you have a 10-22 so you'll be fine.

The only thing I would caution about would be the 100-400. I've seen lots of problems in Africa with them pumping dust (and once even an insect!) into a camera body. I'd consider something like a 400/5.6 prime or 300/4 which would probably also serve you well once back home.

Also, get a beanbag from Dean at camerabeanbags.co.uk on here as holding stuff steady is important and if you have a small tripod, try to squeeze it in.

THe other thought is a spare body. I've had kit die in the field in Africa and need repairing when home and I've seen others have it too... ANother 40D for about £500 (get Les Mcleans off here with a grip!) would seem to be a wiser option than a new top end body.

I've spent about £1300 of your £2000, but not on what you wanted!

Paul
 
Cheers Paul - all sensible thoughts, thank you.

Brief itinery - Windhoek, Sossusvlei, Swakopmund, Erongo Mountains, Etosha, Caprivi, Bushmanland and back to Windhoek. 3,000 miles in total spread over 3 weeks!

I know what you're saying about the 100-400 but it does cover so many bases in a reasonably compact & hand holdable format. Hopefully dust shouldn't be an issue all the time. I have toyed with sticking the Kata on it for that very reason :thinking:

Whilst the prime is a nice idea it's a size / cost / weight issue as usual. As it is, both my wife & son will be generously giving up most of their carry on allowance with my camera kit.

As for a backup body, my wife will be taking my old 20D with her :)

Beanbag is already packed, as is the Manfrotto ;)

Thanks again - I'm definitely leaning towards just the 40D at this stage.
 
charliefox said:
Selling out of Classifieds is a sure way for a wrist slapping! That certainly wasn't my intention when mentioning that it would probably be sold.

Please - no more solicitous comments, however well intentioned :)
Click to expand...

Interesting...ok....forget I said anything. ;)
 
Sounds good and a great trip. We did a self drive in 2003 (back in the days of film!) and it was awesome. Last time I was in Caprivi the war was still going on in Angola and I was woken by mortar fire from over the river!

Spare body carried by your wife sounds a good plan. On that basis, I reckon its time to just go and enjoy. No need for more kit (except maybe one of these for the 100-400)

Paul
 
Wise words - thanks Paul. Guess I'll stop torturing myself looking at the WE website and all of it's "item on back order" icons ;)
 
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