[Lowell Goudge]

You should consider if you like birding, sanabel island and corkscrew marsh, and a trip to Everglades national park, but if so, do take something a little longer.

I generally take something that can reach out to 400mm

[whitelotus9]

As a resident of central Florida, I might suggest the following as a "day trip"... Rise early and drive over to the Atlantic (East) coast and watch the sun rise over the ocean. Then drive to the central part of the state (Orlando, Kissimmee/St. Cloud, etc.) during the middle of the day. Then drive over to the Gulf (West) coast and watch the sun set over the Gulf of Mexico. The Florida peninsula is the only place in the country where a person can do this! Check a site like weatherunderground.com to find out what the sunrise and sunset times are and plan accordingly. You can get some great photos of sunrises/sunsets that way. Also while in the area, you might wish to visit Bok Tower & Gardens in Lake Whales. Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales, FL | A Piece of Florida History near Tampa and Orlando Have a very memoriable and enjoyable trip!! And yes, you will be here during our rainy season....daily showers are the norm thanks to the East Coast and West Coast sea breezes..for emergency purposes, you might want to keep a Walmart bag handy in case you find yourself "out and about" when the sky opens up.

[ablundon]

We have a summer home in Bradenton (just North of Sarasota). I've found my DA 55-300 sees a lot of use followed by Pentax-M 28 2.8 (although I've had trouble with focus and softness with that).

Your message prompted me to set up a Flickr set... my first!: Florida - a set on Flickr

Couple of things we enjoyed:
Tampa Lowry Park Zoo (45 min north)
Florida Railway Museum (20 min north)
Siesta Keys Beach
Busch Gardens (45 min north)
Tampa Devil Ray Game (45 min north)
Mote Aquarium in Sarasota

There is also a cool Classic Car Museum if you're into that.

AB

[Jason 407]

I'll echo the other posts on weather. Depending on where you are on the peninsula, you'll get heavy thunderstorms at some point during most days in the summer. Keep that in mind.

If you make it as far as Orlando, you can go to Leu Gardens, which are beautiful. There's also the Disney parks -- Animal Kingdom offers some interesting things to shoot and Epcot can be awesome if the Flower and Garden Festival isn't past when you get here. Also, consider an airboat ride where ever you can find one. Gators and other wetlands creatures should abound. WR might come in handy here, too.