Shadowblade
15th of June 2009 (Mon), 11:31
With the release of the D700 (and, to a lesser extent, the D300), Nikon produced two lines of cameras uniquely suited for travel photography - 51-point autofocus to capture fast-moving animals and minimise focus-and-recompose (good when working with thin DOFs) and full weather-sealing (for the D700 at least) to keep out dust and moisture. For the moment, Canon has no answer for the travel photographer. Either you carry a 1D3 body and a slew of heavy, full-frame, weather-sealed lenses (not much fun carrying 12kg of equipment when climbing up and down mountains), or you give up the autofocus and weather resistance which are so invaluable in the great outdoors.
Just a few observations regarding travel photography:
1) 'All-in-one' bodies such as the 1D series and Nikon's D3/D3X offer few advantages for a travelling photographer, but weigh significantly more and take up more space in a bag or on a harness system. I'm happy to put up with extra bulk for things like a 100% viewfinder, but not for what amounts to a permanent battery grip.
2) For many purposes, the APS-C format is more than adequate for great photos. Full frame only makes lenses heavier. (I won't mention the crop factor advantage for telephoto shots, since you can achieve the same effect on full-frame by cropping; however, you're then carrying the heavier lens for nothing)
3) The ability to write to two CF cards is invaluable, in case one of them fails. Card failure may be rare, but is definitely no fun when it happens during a once-in-a-lifetime trip. Use SD cards if physical space within the body is a problem.
4) Many things happen once, and only once. More so when travelling - after all, you can't just come back the next day. Nothing worse than losing a shot due to suboptimal autofocus or a slow frame rate that fails to capture the moment of action.
5) Solid neutral-density filters don't do anything that can't be replicated by a lower ISO. Except collect dust, add flare, take up valuable space, waste time attaching and detaching them and block your view (and that of the autofocus) when you're trying to compose a scene through them.
6) Tilt-shift lenses are a godsend for perspective correction when photographing buildings/trees/other vertical objects, and for increasing DOF when photographing landscapes. Zoom lenses are a godsend for travelling. They shouldn't be mutually exclusive...
7) Dust, rain, sleet and snow aren't good for unsealed bodies and lenses. Dust, rain, sleet and snow are also most likely to be encountered when travelling. Lightweight bodies, which, at the moment, are not sealed, also happen to be preferable while travelling, for reasons of bulk and weight.
Given all that, here's my wishlist, hopefully in time for my next trip:
1) A line of full-frame, fully weather-sealed bodies with the 5D form-factor, 45 autofocus points and an inbuilt focus-assist light, with native ISOs from 2-6400 and a 100% viewfinder. For full-frame image quality in harsh environments without the bulk of a 1D-style body.
2) A line of APS-C, fully weather-sealed bodies with 45 autofocus points and an inbuilt focus-assist light, with native ISO 2-3200 or 2-6400 and a 100% viewfinder. 10fps shooting would also be good here. Lighter than the full-frame system, but still capable of producing great results while shooting in harsh conditions (the body may only be marginally lighter, but the lenses will be half the weight or less). Just because you don't want to carry around a big, heavy body and lens doesn't mean you don't want the best possible autofocus system when the cheetah sprints in for the kill, or the fast frame rate to capture the moment when it sinks its teeth into the prey.
3) A line of weather-sealed L-lenses in the EF-S format. Start with the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8L IS USM and go from there. Or, even better, a 15-50mm or 15-60mm lens (the 24mm equivalent is far too useful...). Add to that an EF-S 50-135mm f/2.8L (or even F/2L - after all, EF-S is lighter) IS USM, an EF-S 10-20mm f/2.8L USM and an EF-S 100-400mm f/5.6L IS USM to complete the lineup. Professional-grade lenses for professional-grade APS-C cameras, designed for work in harsh, strength-sapping environments where you really wouldn't want to carry a 1DsIII and 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM.
4) An autofocus tilt-shift zoom lens. 20-50mm would be a good range.
Too much to ask? Even for a price tag equivalent to the 1DMkIII, I'd take the smaller body - it's just so much more convenient.
Just a few observations regarding travel photography:
1) 'All-in-one' bodies such as the 1D series and Nikon's D3/D3X offer few advantages for a travelling photographer, but weigh significantly more and take up more space in a bag or on a harness system. I'm happy to put up with extra bulk for things like a 100% viewfinder, but not for what amounts to a permanent battery grip.
2) For many purposes, the APS-C format is more than adequate for great photos. Full frame only makes lenses heavier. (I won't mention the crop factor advantage for telephoto shots, since you can achieve the same effect on full-frame by cropping; however, you're then carrying the heavier lens for nothing)
3) The ability to write to two CF cards is invaluable, in case one of them fails. Card failure may be rare, but is definitely no fun when it happens during a once-in-a-lifetime trip. Use SD cards if physical space within the body is a problem.
4) Many things happen once, and only once. More so when travelling - after all, you can't just come back the next day. Nothing worse than losing a shot due to suboptimal autofocus or a slow frame rate that fails to capture the moment of action.
5) Solid neutral-density filters don't do anything that can't be replicated by a lower ISO. Except collect dust, add flare, take up valuable space, waste time attaching and detaching them and block your view (and that of the autofocus) when you're trying to compose a scene through them.
6) Tilt-shift lenses are a godsend for perspective correction when photographing buildings/trees/other vertical objects, and for increasing DOF when photographing landscapes. Zoom lenses are a godsend for travelling. They shouldn't be mutually exclusive...
7) Dust, rain, sleet and snow aren't good for unsealed bodies and lenses. Dust, rain, sleet and snow are also most likely to be encountered when travelling. Lightweight bodies, which, at the moment, are not sealed, also happen to be preferable while travelling, for reasons of bulk and weight.
Given all that, here's my wishlist, hopefully in time for my next trip:
1) A line of full-frame, fully weather-sealed bodies with the 5D form-factor, 45 autofocus points and an inbuilt focus-assist light, with native ISOs from 2-6400 and a 100% viewfinder. For full-frame image quality in harsh environments without the bulk of a 1D-style body.
2) A line of APS-C, fully weather-sealed bodies with 45 autofocus points and an inbuilt focus-assist light, with native ISO 2-3200 or 2-6400 and a 100% viewfinder. 10fps shooting would also be good here. Lighter than the full-frame system, but still capable of producing great results while shooting in harsh conditions (the body may only be marginally lighter, but the lenses will be half the weight or less). Just because you don't want to carry around a big, heavy body and lens doesn't mean you don't want the best possible autofocus system when the cheetah sprints in for the kill, or the fast frame rate to capture the moment when it sinks its teeth into the prey.
3) A line of weather-sealed L-lenses in the EF-S format. Start with the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8L IS USM and go from there. Or, even better, a 15-50mm or 15-60mm lens (the 24mm equivalent is far too useful...). Add to that an EF-S 50-135mm f/2.8L (or even F/2L - after all, EF-S is lighter) IS USM, an EF-S 10-20mm f/2.8L USM and an EF-S 100-400mm f/5.6L IS USM to complete the lineup. Professional-grade lenses for professional-grade APS-C cameras, designed for work in harsh, strength-sapping environments where you really wouldn't want to carry a 1DsIII and 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM.
4) An autofocus tilt-shift zoom lens. 20-50mm would be a good range.
Too much to ask? Even for a price tag equivalent to the 1DMkIII, I'd take the smaller body - it's just so much more convenient.