[slowpez]

I just found out that if you wear a lot of fleece you will have fuzzies all over the outside of your lens. What a mess that turned out to be - thank heavens for PP. No matter how much I wiped the lens, the fuzz from my jacket stayed put. Next time - no fleece!

[heliphoto]

How about changing lenses while walking on a street and stuff? What are the things I should take care of and which equipment should I have just in case some dust does go in? I read about the air blower. Anything else?

I am also now thinking of buying a second hand lens. What are the things I should be aware of?

Is changing lenses while doing travel photography really an inconvenience?

I change lenses often when shooting. Since I've turned on the -dust removal startup action- option I only had dust visible on my sensor once. Two or three air squirts with the rocket blower, and it was gone. I don't find that the clean sensor option works well when I already have dust affecting my images, I've always had to use a blower for this, but I do think the start-up action does help keep newly arrived dust from really settling in on the sensor and requiring further action.

[Marc Sabatella]

How about changing lenses while walking on a street and stuff? What are the things I should take care of and which equipment should I have just in case some dust does go in? I read about the air blower. Anything else?

No reaosn to carry a blower with you while walking around - it's not like you'll be likely to notice dust in time to do anything abut it, nor would you often be likely to feel like stopping somewhere safe for long enough to fix it. At most, run the dust removal every once in a while if you feel like being unnecessarily paranoid.

Mostly, though, just use common sense when changing lenses. Have the new lens ready to go (already in hand, rear cap off) before removing the old, and put the new lens on immediately (before bother to cap the old lens and put it away). Having the camera hanging by the strap around your neck makes this easy - the camera is open for only a second or two. Keep the camera pointed away from the wind, preferably more pointed down than up, and don't do if there is so much dust in the air it makes you cough.

Really, you might get a speck of dust a couple of times a year, and you might need to spend an extra few minutes cleaning up a few pictures (dust specks will only be noticeable when shooting at small apertures, and most when they appear in the sky). In the grand scheme of things to worry about that might ruin your photographs, I'd rank dust on sensor somewhere below the risk of accidentally shooting for an entire day on the "wrong" ISO or finding out you had left the camera in MF mode when you thought it was in AF, but maybe above the risk of accidentally shooting for an entire day with the lens cap on.

Is changing lenses while doing travel photography really an inconvenience?

I think it seems like it when you first get started, before you get the hang of how to change quickly, and before you develop a sense for what lens you will want to have on your camera. There are some common sense thigns to think about here, too: for instance, if you're with a group of people, and you come upon a scene where you can see wanting to take some shot with an 18-55 and some with the 55-300 (for instance), consider maybe taking all the 18-55's firs,t then all the 55-300;s, rather than constantly switching back and forth.

Sure, there may be times when a fleeting opportunity is missed, but really, I think this is hugely overstated. And the converse risk is that with something like an 18-250, there will be shots missed because it doesn't have wide enough maximum aperture, because its AF is too slow, or the IQ just won't be as good as you might have hoped for. Those risks concern me far more.

[Kerrowdown]

I only use fast prime lenses, so I change all the time, i.e. whenever I need to, but hey, maybe I've got it all wrong, I thought that's what owning an DSLR or SLR was all about.

If you don't want the hassle of lens changing, just buy a P&S with a zero to four trillion mm lens built into the credit card sized camera.

[simonkit]

As already mentioned it doesn't make sense to let potential dust issues limit your photography options, change lenses as needed & just be a little careful about it...

regarding the 18-250 vs 55-300 I'd expect the new 55-300 to be the better lens, I own one & find it very sharp even wide open, not sure the same applies to the 18-250 though ??

simon

[krypticide]

18-250mm is best stopped down for optimal sharpness. It's pretty decent for what it is, but you do sacrifice quality for convenience.

As for a traveling lens, my girlfriend may not be particularly patient, especially if she's tired or the weather is crappy. When I was in Japan, I just had the 18-250mm and 50mm f/1.4 with me. I changed to the 50mm only at night or when I knew I'd be in dim light for a while. If you are traveling alone and no one is nagging you, changing lenses isn't a big deal especially if you have things arranged for easy switching.

If you are traveling light and don't need low-light capabilities, the 18-250mm is hard to beat...

[rfortson]

I use the situation to dictate whether or not to change lenses. If I'm traveling light, or with my family, I'll usually go with the 18-250 as they don't want to wait on me to change lenses (and yes, if you're paying attention to your family, it does take a minute or so to grab the new lens, change it, store the old lens, etc). Meanwhile your family is waiting. I don't expect to wait on their hobbies so why should they wait on mine?

On other trips more photo-oriented, I sometimes seem to carry every lens I can find, just so I can give them all a good use. Or, sometimes I'll go just to exercise a particular focal length. Either way, those trips are for photography and I'll have no qualms about changing lenses.

Just a side note on the 18-250 and low light - the SR really enhances the low light capabilities of the lens, so you can still get some good low light shots. Of course, if you're looking for low light action then you're really running up against it, but the lens is a lot less limiting than you might expect. I've got numerous examples of shots in the ISO800-1600 range and 1/2s - 1/10s range, some even published, so it can be done. Of course, if you're printing posters or doing extreme cropping, you'll start to notice the trade offs. For normal work though, you won't miss much.

[patrickt]

I don't change lenses often. Some days, I go out with a lens on the camera and return without having changed it. If a really great picture presents itself, I'll change lenses but it will take me a couple of minutes to set my bag down, get the lens out, swap, and get back to shooting.

Sometimes a change is planned. I went through a large museum with my 12-24mm on the camera and when I finished my tour I swapped for my 50-200mm and retraced my steps taking some other photos.

But, dust isn't something I worry about. With my IstD, it was a headache. I had to wet clean five or six times a year and blowing did nothing. With my K10D, and I'm assuming the K20D, the antistatic stuff works and I've not had to do a wet clean in two years. My rocket blower does the trick.

As mentioned before, cloning out dust spots is really nothing. I wouldn't want to do it for every photo forever but an occasional batch is not a major problem.

[roverlr3]

I will change between lenses several times a day. And most days I shoot, I'll carry 2-4 different ones. I too leave my camera on "sensor cleaning at start up", it seems to work for me. I shoot outdoor/landscape quite often and only a few times have I noticed the "dreaded dust specs" on my images. Like others have said, have your change-out lens ready, face the camera down, take off the lens your using, install the new one, re-install the caps, done. As for your question about the 16-45mm f4, I own that lens and it has worked well for me. I thought the price was very reasonable. If you buy it I think you will like it. Good Luck, Jeff

[Wombat]

One of the things I found when I first got a digital camera was a sense that suddenly everything moved a lot faster. I wasn't taking my time any more, being thoughtful and methodical in assessing the situation and choosing a lens carefully. With the DSLR it was bang-bang-bang, swap lenses quickly, bang-bang-bang again. I wonder if this is perhaps niggling at you too? Since I bought an ME F and started shooting film again I find myself taking my time a lot more when I later pick up the K100. So, dust is seldom a problem because I'm being more careful and, coincidentally, I'm enjoying the process more.

I also give all my lenses a squirt with the blower when I get back from a trip, just as a maintenance routine. It only takes a couple of minutes and is a pleasant way to relax and reflect on the day's shooting. So basically, my two cent's worth is about slowing down and relaxing with the process. Practice changing lenses at home so you can do it smoothly and easily when you need to. Read some books and find out why the pros change lenses. You'll benefit from following their advice.

With regard to second-hand lenses, some things to look for are signs of abuse (dents, scratches, missing screws), fungus, discoloration, signs of water entry, gritty adjustment rings, missing caps and hood. Open the aperture wide and have a good look through it. Make sure all the stops click properly. Put it on your camera and take a shot at every stop and check for proper focus and exposure. Buy from a reputable camera shop, even if you have to pay a little more. I'm sure others will have more advice.

[Phazed]

I shoot a lot of rock climbing indoors and out. There is always an abundance of chalk in the air and I change lenses a fair amount. Never had any problem cleaning the sensor.

[Lowell Goudge]

Like most readers here I change lenses frequently.

I follow the same rules I did with film, basicallykeep the camera either horrizontal or if possible pointing down as much as possible.

Blow off the back element of the lens with a blower (but don't use one with a brush, this just smears finger oil every where,

Mount the lens, and start shooting.

about once per day activate the sensor cleaning and inspect the sensor and blow it off with the blower. You can do this more frequently if you are in a dirty environment.

I think the reason people look for the single ultra zooms is the convenience of not packing 2-4 lenses on a trip. For me, unfortunately they don't go wide enough, and are too slow for interior shots inside castles, cathedrals etc, where extra width also helps.

While I have had spots from time to time, these mainly can be resolved during editing, and are in my experience usually apparent only on large solid colored objects, (unless it is a hair)

[Terje-L]

And yeah, for some reason I feel that the 18-55 AL which came with the kit is no more good.

Many people regard the SMC Pentax 1/3.5-5.6 18-55mm AL the best kit lens around.

[shuie]

I drive around with all my gear pretty much at all times. I change lenses rather frequently. Living in the southwest dust gets everywhere. I don't let that stop me from changing lenses. Usually I worry more about dust on the rear element than dust on my sensor. If i notice it really badly while shooting I will clean it in the field. If not a little more work in PP and then a good cleaning of all my gear.