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05-17-2017, 09:51 AM   #31
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Another recommendation for the 15mm f/4. I have rarely used my 8-16mm Sigma since I got it. I'd prefer the later for towns and cities in the Mediterranean, but usually I'm fine with longer focal lengths further north. In my experience, the excellent handling of extreme contrasts of the 15mm is invaluable insight historic buildings and outweighs the flexibility of an ultra-wide zoom. When there's space in my bag, I add the 8mm Samyang fisheye, which - besides the fisheye use - stitches extremely well for hand-held ultra-wide shots, see e.g. this interior picture of a 'historic' building (by Pacific Northwest standards).

05-17-2017, 10:28 AM   #32
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My own collection for a trip like this is my DA15, DA18-135, and either my DA35 f2.4 or M50 1.4. I recently purchased a Kiron 28mm f2.0 and I'm not all that hot at focusing the thing but on crop that would be my preferred focal length for a fast prime. In any case, if I wanted to save weight and space, I would leave the fast glass at home and keep the DA15 and 18-135.
05-17-2017, 10:49 AM   #33
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QuoteOriginally posted by formercanuck Quote
I'm considering the Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 due to cost and optics/focal length.
As a guy in Europe, I would recommend this. Or, better yet, Samyang 16mm f2. A little faster aperture, not as awkwardly wide, can use filters, easier to focus, and it seems to have fewer QC problems. I have the Samyang 14mm, and I had to return the first one due to decentering. Second one is not perfect, but its acceptable. The distance scales are miscalibrated. So I would recommend you get Samyang 14mm or 16mm with warranty and TEST it before you go on your trip. If I was buying today, I would go with 16mm. 14mm is really really wide, too wide for many shots, especially due to distortion.

QuoteOriginally posted by formercanuck Quote
DA 18-135mm WR
And take this with you as well.

When I go around Europe (France, Germany, Italy) I usually take Samyang 14mm, DA 21mm, DA 35mm, DFA 100mm. And then maybe another prime like 50mm, or I leave the 35mm and take 40mm XS.. I take most photos with 35mm, but since i got the 21mm, this one is replacing it. The 100mm macro is great, because it gives you some telephoto, and it also lets you take stunning closeups

If I were you, I would buy Samyang 16mm, maybe DA 35mm f2.8 macro ( I like having a macro with me), and take the 18-135mm along, as well as one of the f1.4 lenses just for low light, indoor, and night photos. 50mm or 85mm, depending how much space is left in the bags. I would use the 35mm macro for 60% of the shots, the Samyang for the wide angle, the zoom lens for bad weather and telephoto. And I would use the f1.4 for low light stuff.

It kind of depends on where you will be going. Small, cluttered towns, or nature parks? Museums? Somewhere with bad weather, or sunny places? You can kind of predict which lenses you will use at each location. This can help you decide.

Good luck, and have a fun trip!

Last edited by Na Horuk; 05-17-2017 at 10:57 AM.
05-17-2017, 11:39 AM   #34
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Hello formercanuck

My contribution goes a bit against the flow…

Take the DA 18-135. It’s great for day photos and night photos - the outstanding iso capacity of the K70 lets you take photos at night using iso 6.400 and / even 12.600 with minimal noise reduction necessity on post processing.

If you want to really cover most of the hypothesis take the M200 (for far away photos) and one of the f/1.4 low light lenses or even the sigma 24mm for extra for low light options.

So, you travel with 2 lenses (3 if you choose to take the M200); spend zero on lenses… and use the saved money to enjoy even more the trip itself.

Best regards,

05-17-2017, 03:33 PM   #35
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QuoteOriginally posted by schnitzer79 Quote
Have done trips around Europe in the past with a relatively light bag. Had my K-50 back then and took with me the following lenses :

18-135 for walkaround
55-300 just in case I needed a telephoto
DA 15mm for landscape shots
DA 35mm f2.4 for indoor and low light shots

80% of my shots were with the 18-135, the other 15% with the DA15mm. The rest were with the DA35mm and 55-300.

You definitely need WR because in England/Scotland it will be raining a lot.

If I were to do it again with my current lineup, I would only take the 18-135 and DA15mm. My 17-50 f2.8 might come in useful for indoor shots, but isnt exactly light. Would probably end up taking that as well and hardly using it

Trust me, you will need a light bag. Your shoulders with thank you
I suspect that my shooting will be similar to yours - 18-135 on the camera the majority of the time, with something wide/fast for indoors. I do suspect that it can (will?) be wet around Scotland/Ireland/London.
I've had one trip with my old Sigma 18-200 on my old Pentax K-x into Alaska - and it was a mess. Lens had to 'defog' for many hours. Fortunately, someone lent me their bigma (50-500mm Sigma) at the glacier (rare to have another Pentax on a cruise - same one that I saw a 645D out in the same mist)
I was thinking 'a bit' about the DA15 mostly because its a great lens, and it is small and light. The K-70 does well in poor lighting, and I can bump the ISO a bit.
05-18-2017, 12:55 PM   #36
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QuoteOriginally posted by formercanuck Quote
I've had one trip with my old Sigma 18-200 on my old Pentax K-x into Alaska - and it was a mess. Lens had to 'defog' for many hours.
..like, condensation? That's a common problem in cold climate. Specifically if you go from a big difference of cold to warm. In winter, you have to keep your gear in a plastic bag until it acclimatizes. You can read up more about this online, there are thread and blog posts about this (think its called 'winterproofing'?)
This probably won't be a problem in spring and summer, unless you go visit cold underground caves or something. Just keeping the gear in a closed camera bag is enough for it to acclimatize in those conditions.

I chose Samyang 14mm for myself precisely because the Pentax primes in that range are rather expensive. I got a used DA 21mm for a good price recently and its a great lens. The Samyang might be a little sharper, but the build quality and the overall rendering, the contrasts, are better on the Pentax.
05-18-2017, 02:35 PM - 2 Likes   #37
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QuoteOriginally posted by Na Horuk Quote
..like, condensation? That's a common problem in cold climate. Specifically if you go from a big difference of cold to warm. In winter, you have to keep your gear in a plastic bag until it acclimatizes. You can read up more about this online, there are thread and blog posts about this (think its called 'winterproofing'?)
This probably won't be a problem in spring and summer, unless you go visit cold underground caves or something. Just keeping the gear in a closed camera bag is enough for it to acclimatize in those conditions.

I chose Samyang 14mm for myself precisely because the Pentax primes in that range are rather expensive. I got a used DA 21mm for a good price recently and its a great lens. The Samyang might be a little sharper, but the build quality and the overall rendering, the contrasts, are better on the Pentax.
It was a combination of rain/drizzle and just overall condensation. This was 'summer' (almost Canada Day), and I suspected that this might happen going from outdoors to indoors and back.
It was also a spot where I caught the rarest of things... a handheld 645D in the drizzle

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05-23-2017, 06:47 PM   #38
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Looks like it will be part of the southern Mediterranian vs. England/Scotland/Ireland/France.
- Rome, Dubrovnik Croatia, Venice, Koper Slovenia, Split Croatia, Corfu Greece, Olympia Greece and Valletta Malta

I expect a bit more direct sun there than I would in say Ireland/Scotland and even England, but some awesome cathedrals and Greek sites.
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