I have been among those who have asked for lens and gear advice in preparation for a specific trip. Before my trip, I specifically asked for advice on a wide lens to bring along on a 10-day cruise in the Mediterranean along the coast from Rome to Barcelona and back. I had a Sigma 10-20 f4-5.6, but I was wanting something faster and smaller. The result was that I picked up a used SMC Pentax-DA 21mm F3.2 Limited. (
Decision thread here. Thanks again for the advice.) We had a wonderful cruise and a great time with family. I ended up taking about 1500 shots which ended up being closer to 1300 after getting rid of the really bad ones. Here's a quick report to describe what worked (or not) for me photographically.
I didn't want to take a ton of gear, but I wanted to be prepared. This was more of a family outing than a photo outing, but I knew I would have many opportunities for taking pictures. My goal, therefore, was to travel light and have a versatile kit for everything from landscape and street photography to indoor and nighttime shots.
BAGS: Here's the
gear list from my last travel adventure, and it was similar this time The Tenba Discovery Photo/Laptop bag worked out great again for holding everything, and I used it as one of my airline carry-ons. It is comfortable to wear, but when I was out for a day with family in the midst of crowds, it became too much. Anticipating as much, I did also bring along a fanny pack which can hold the K-30 w/ the DA 18-135, incidentals (e.g., battery, SD card, Lenstip cleaner, CPL filter, even the DA 21 if I fit things properly). My wife had me wear it as a man-purse instead of a fanny pack. When in Rome... I also carried one of those nylon string knapsacks for water and other things I might need for the day, and I often put the Sigma 10-20 in there. I have an Op/Tech SLR Wrist Strap on my K-30, and I find it very easy to walk around just holding the K-30 with the strap. Oftentimes I would end up carrying the K-30 with the DA 18-135 and then putting the Sigma 10-20 in the man-purse.
CAMERAS: My main camera is a K-30. I did also bring along my K-x as a backup. When I carry my Tenba bag, I leave the Sigma 10-20 on the K-x so that I have quick access to UWA if I need it.
Results: I almost exclusively used the K-30. I easily could get a full day's worth of shooting (most in one day was ~250 pics) from the battery, and so I just charged up each night or used my spare.
LENSES: I ended up taking the DA 18-135 which would be my main walkaround lens. With the K-30, it is a great WR combo. The last time I took a trip, I had the DA 35 f2.4 which worked out well , but I did find that it was often not as wide as I would like for indoor (including museum shots) and street photography. Hence the quest for a wider lens in addition to wanting something smaller as compared to the rather large Sigma 10-20. The result was that I got the DA 21 Limited, but I still also brought the Sigma 10-20. Finally, I brought the DAL 55-300, because if I didn't, then I would doubtless need it! I should also note that I brought along a Marumi Super DHG CPL filter for the 18-135 lens.
Results: The Exposure Plot graph (at bottom of this post) shows what I ended up shooting. All the 10-17mm range (and some of the 18-20mm) were shot with the Sigma 10-20 which turns out to be about 150 pics or 11-12% of my shots. For me, that's enough to make it worthwhile to carry the lens. In fact, I would usually start with the 18-135 until I needed to switch to the 10-20 and then just leave that on until I needed to switch back for something longer. On the long end, I only used the DAL 55-300 for 11 shots. You see the spike at 21mm. Some of those are with the DA 18-135, but about 150 or so are with the DA 21 Limited, i.e., about 11-12% of the total pics. A number of times I made a conscious effort to use the DA 21 as my walkaround lens. As you can see, then, over 75% of my pics were taken with the DA 18-135. As the chart shows, I tend to shoot at the wide end with over a third of my shots in the 18-21mm range. Still, the 135mm end got significant use.
OTHER GEAR: I took along extra batteries, a bunch of SD cards, cleaning supplies for the camera, and a Win7 tablet. I used a 16GB SD card in the camera, and this ended up being all I needed, but... I backed up my photos every evening to the tablet.
CONCLUSIONS:
The K-30 with the DA 18-135 is an outstanding combo. Fortunately we had very nice weather, but one afternoon when there were some light showers, it was great to have a WR package. Some particular things to note regarding the lenses and how I used them.
- In the bright Mediterranean sun, I ended up using the Marumi Super DHG CPL almost all the time on the DA 18-135. There is very minor degradation in sharpness, but it was very much worth using. I did also have the hood on the lens as well.
- The DA 18-135 really is an incredibly versatile lens, and I am very happy with my results. On my particular copy, it actually is quite good at the long end. It is comparatively weaker at 18mm, but at 21mm it is good enough, even in comparison to the DA 21.
- The DA 21 Limited can produce great pictures, but I found it unsatisfactory as a walkaround. It often was either too long or too short. I am glad I brought it, however. When I wanted to travel light, be less conspicuous, shoot indoors, or walk around at night, the DA 21was great. In addition, for static scenes, its low distortion characteristics make it a good choice for creating stitchable panoramic shots.
- The Sigma 10-20 was needed for all those shots wider than 18mm. It is not always possible to gather the shots to create a panorama. Additionally, the 10-20 is capable of producing some dramatic pics, especially when there are clouds in the sky to add interest. The lens was really more useful for long or wide interiors or tall towers than it was for landscapes, and some of my favorite pics from the trip were shot w/ this lens.
NOTES FOR NEXT TIME:
Well, I hope there will be a next time! But for any kind of trip like this, here are notes to myself.
- The DA 18-135 is really useful. Remember to bring the CPL.
- I will bring the DA 21 f3.2 Limited along again. For the uses noted, it does a great job. Other options would be the DA 35 f2.4 or the DA 50 f1.8. Those latter two are faster and almost as small, but 21mm just works better for indoors.
- The Sigma 10-20 is fine, but it is big. I think if I ever get the DA 15, I would be inclined to take it instead of the 10-20. OTOH, a disproportionate number of my favorite pics were shot in the 10-14mm range.
- Leave the DAL 55-300 at home. It's a great lens, but for this kind of touring, I really don't need the long end, and the DA 18-135 does a satisfactory job for most telephoto needs.
Pictures? HERE is the Flickr photostream with all the EXIF intact. (46 pics total) I'm guessing you'll be able to pick out the Sigma 10-20 pics rather easily. The pic of the Monte Carlo Casino is a 4 pic pano using the DA 21. Night pics and pics on the ship are all with the DA 21. The rest were taken with the DA 18-135.
I'd be happy to answer any questions, receive suggestions, and accept comment/critique on the pics.