Next Saturday, friends of ours are getting married on the top of Mount Holdsworth. 1470m. Most of the wedding party, including the bride and groom will be hiking/climbing to the summit. (About an 7-8 hour round trip)
I've been tasked with doing some of the wedding photography. As such, I won't be walking up, but will join some others who are not keen on a bloody big workout and we'll be taken to Powell Hut by helicopter. This should give me the opportunity for some photography from the air.
Holdsworth roadend to Powell Hut/Mount Holdsworth: Wairarapa tracks and walks, Tararua Forest Park, Wellington
From Powell, I'll have to hike the remainder of the distance to the summit. It's about 200m in vertical height from the hut, but very steep and likely to take about an hour and a half. So, I'm not planning on carrying too much gear.
For gear, I'll be using the K-1II as my main camera, and the K-5 as backup.
AF Lenses I have to pick from: (I'm no thinking of taking MF lenses to the top, but happy to be given advice on that point. - That would expand on the lens availability quite a bit)
DA18-55mm AL-WR
SMC-F 50mm F1.7
SMC-F 35-70mm F3.5-4.5
SMC-F 35-135mm F3.5-4.5
SMC-F 70-210mm F4-5.6
Sigma DG70-300mm F4-5.6
Other stuff:
Cactus RF60 flash.
I'm not planning on taking tripods or other gear to the summit.
For photos from the helicopter, I figured the K-5 and the DG70-300mm may be a good choice. That camera and lens combination always seem to work well.
So far, the long-range forecast is showing good weather. 24degC at base level (but it could be 6-9degC up there) and little wind.
Advice greatly appreciated!