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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
05-28-2013, 01:15 PM
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Hi, sorry for the long dealy in replying to the previous posts. It's been hectic post-expedition.
The cameras worked extremely well even down to -30C, the batteries less so but this was to be expedted and it was a case of putting them close to my body for 10 minutes prior to shooting. I had a small problem removing the batteries at the battery cover was hard to handle with gloves on.
In the end i used a 8-16mm sigma and a 17-50 tamron lens with my k-7 and k-5 respectively. There was no freezing in the barrels and i had a quick mount on the bottom of each for easy loading onto a manfroto tripod. Below are a couple of my photos, there are more on my website Svalbard Solo | A 5 week expedition to the high Arctic.
My canon compact lasted 1 day in the arctic so I only used the dslrs and they worked very well. I just had to keep them away from my stove when it was melting water. Best to keep it outside the tent.
Again thank you to everyone for their advice it helped out on the ice.
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Forum: Sold Items
12-28-2012, 05:11 AM
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Is the 10-17mm lens still available?
Regards,
Liam.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
11-21-2012, 11:45 AM
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Thanks for all the advice guys. I received the 18-55 mm WR and 50-200 WR lens today so will be putting them in the freezer over the weekend to see how they cope with the cold and taking some pictures.
Liam.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
11-18-2012, 07:07 AM
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Hi D0n,
I receive my final delivery of equipment in the next 3 weeks apart from a few small items I will post the complete amount in once picture its quite a lot. a 1.2kg tripod is worth the weight if i can get some good aurora pictures. I also want to do some time lapse pictures and so the tripod will be essential. Everything will be in a pulk/sledge and so size isn't a big problem although too much weight could be an issue on the ice.
thanks for the hint on the Bembo i will look into that.
Also no trees on Svalbard so no fire. Due to remoteness of my expedition my emergency tent is my pulk and so I can zip myself into it if I need to, this is a worse case scenario of course. Emergency blankets would be useless with the amount of down/merino wool clothing I have with me.
Thanks again.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
11-18-2012, 06:13 AM
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Thanks for all the advice,
I should have mentioned I will be taking a small point and shoot Canon powershot camera which I have used on a previous arctic trip temperatures down to -25C. It worked fine with Li-ion batteries by keeping it in my internal fleece pocket. So if worse comes to worst i know i have a camera to get some stills, although not to the standard that I want.
I don't think I will take any film as I will then need to change the film every 36 shots or so and i'm not great at that in the first place, plus tearing the film will put me in a bad mood and I need to keep my mind in a good place to do my job properly. As well as looking out for bears, sea ice and incoming weather systems on top of the other jobs that I will need to be doing on a daily basis and 5 minutes to change a roll of film will add up in the longrun. So this isn't really an option for me.
With regards to temperature, due to the elevation changes I will be going through the minimum estimate that I could hit is -50C being at 1500m (4500ft) above sea level in a cold snap. However I will be moving down the ice cap if this comes in. This is not likely, but could happen and i need to be prepared for it. I will not be touching the cameras at this temp as the metal shutter could snap easily enough.
I've got a tripod and will be getting a cable release for the longer exposures and landscape stills in a couple of weeks time.
With regards to the bear defence system I have a 7.92mm bolt action rifle with snub nose rounds, small flare gun and a large flare gun and a full perimeter wire trip system for the evenings. But hopefully none of them come round for tea.
Also I spoke to Pentax and everything is only rated to -10C, the best they could say was that people do use them in such conditions but they could not guarantee that they would survive the cold.
I will report back on how everything goes up in the Arctic, there will be a website going live in February for the expedition and I will link it here when it does go live. There will also be a short film about it too around July of next year.
Again thank you for all your input it is much appreciated, and I will let you know how I get on once I am back in April.
Liam.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
11-17-2012, 11:52 AM
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Hi Jack,
I'm going to Svalbard/Spitsbergen at 78N. I have a huge down jacket which will hopefully keep me warm and enable me to do some decent shooting. Sea ice has begun to form up there with temperatures being below 0C for a week or so now. Hopefully the snow begins to arrive soon.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
11-17-2012, 11:42 AM
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The cameras will not be able to be kept warm at all times due to my skiing and needing to have a rifle on my back at all times plus i will have a harness on so it will interfere with this, most of my DSLR shooting will be done in the morning and evening with occasional shooting during the day of progress is good.
The freezer bag comment doesn't really apply for myself as the inside and outside of my tent will probably not be greater than 5C and I am not staying in any permanent shelters so i dont have to worry about the change in relative humidity.
Any advice on specific lenses?
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
11-17-2012, 10:50 AM
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interested_observer,
I currently have 8 1860mAh li-ion batteries and will be getting another 10. I will be skiing and so charging will be done via solar panel during the day. i will probably be taking between 50-100 shots per day depending on area, weather and light.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
11-17-2012, 10:40 AM
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Hi D0n,
I would need WR due to the high wind speeds I will probably encounter when shooting as spindrift/snow can find its way into the camera. Also most of my photography is mountaineering/adventure photography so it will be needed for this as well where water sand etc will be more prevalent. Manual focus won't really be possible with a big pair of gloves on i'm afraid due to temperatures.
Thanks for the reply.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
11-17-2012, 10:16 AM
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Hi,
I am going on a 5 week arctic expedition in March and need some advice on what lenses to take. I will be constantly outside for the whole 5 weeks and so all my lenses need to be able to withstand the cold. Lowest temperatures could be around -45C and an average of -20C.
The bulk of the photography will be landscapes and then a smaller amount of portraits/action shots.
I will be taking 2 K5 bodies and have enough room for 3 or 4 lenses. Weight is an issue as I will be moving up to 20 miles a day. All the lenses would need to be WR and be able to be take a knock or two although I am hoping to avoid this of course.
I am looking at the following lenses.
Pentax DA* 16-50MM F2.8 - this would be my main work horse lens for landscapes etc.
Pentax DA 50-200MM F4.0-5.6 ED WR to capture some wildlife/ close ups on glaciers when it's too dangerous to get up close.
Rokinon 8mm F3.5 Fisheye
Pentax DA 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 AL WR (as a back up to the main 16-50mm)
Has anyone used any of these lenses for an extended period in sub zero temperatures? Can anyone think of any alternatives to these lenses?
Any help would be very much appreciated.
Kind regards,
Liam.
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