what lenses would you bring for travel?

i have quite a few lenses and find it hard to narrow down what i want. however, my top 3 priorities are portraits/food/citysca​pes.

what would you bring if you were me?

I have the following :

3 x 5D classic
1 x t2i

135mm f2 L
100mm f2.8 macro IS
17-50mm f2.8 tamron
28-75mm f2.8 tamron
17-35mm f2.8-4 Sigma UWA (for 5d)
10-20mm f4-5.6 Sigma UWA (for t2i)
60mm f2.8 macro
30mm f1.4 sigma
50mm f1.4 canon
580EXII
2 x YN460II

you would realize there's a lot of 'duplication' - but no worries cos i'm going to sell them away soon lol.

i wanted to buy the 70-200mm f2.8 and bring it together with 28-75mm and 50mm f1.4, but the 70-200mm is crazy heavy - don't want to weigh myself down.

i'm also thinking whether to bring EITHER the 135 f2 or 100 f2.8. 135 is stronger for portraits, whereas 100mm can double up for my food shots and has IS.

tough choice

If traveling light, take T2i, either UWA or 17-50, and get yourself a tele zoom. My Tamron is the biggest / heaviest zoom lens I would travel with. Used to have Canon 55-250 and it was an ideal travel tele; you can pick one up for about $150.

When I go to Yellowstone in September it will be the Sigma 10-20, the Canon 24-105L, and the Canon 100-400L along with the 7D body.

When I go to Puerto Vallarta in November, it will be the Sigma 10-20, the Sigma 17-70, and the Canon 70-200L.

Just back from a trip to Costa Rica. I foung that my Canon 10-22, Tammy 17-50 and Canon 70-200 f4 IS were perfect for the trip. I think you have the first 2 covered but are missing a tele with some versatility in your bag. Have a great time and happy shooting!

When I went to Peru and Machu Picchu last January, I took my 60D with my Canon 15-85 IS as my only lens (24mm-135mm FF equivalent). I did not miss my 70-300 IS at all and got all the shots I wanted. Last week I purchased a Tokina 11-16mm, and I will definitely include that the next time I go on a similar trip. Also, I took one 430EX II flash, which I used for inside people photos.

Given my experience, for your 5D I'd suggest 17-35 UWA, 28-75, and probably also your 135L. That would cover the equivalent range. Also, take a flash, which is almost always useful for fill or as a main light source.

My current travel setup is the Canon 10-22, Canon 15-55, Canon 70-300 L and the 7D. Along with a butt-load of filters and bits and bobs.

From your list, for your stated purposes, I'd bring: a 5D, the 100L, the Tamron 28-75, and possibly the 50/1.4.

FWIW, when I'm travelling I tend to bring my 5D, 24-105 and 50/1.4. That said, I don't do portraits and I travel strictly hand-luggage only.

If I were you I'd bring a 5d. Lug the 17-35, 50f/1.4 and 28-75mm. This covers low light and alot of FL ranging from UWA to very good reach.

Putting a 135L would probably take space and little use...unless your doing alot of portrait work.

A high percentage of photos I'll use a 24mm and 16-35L. Recently I brought my M43 olympus e-m5 to a trip and had 2 bodies (m43 is soooooo small) w/ 28 and 50mm prime equiv.

AlanU wrote in post #14669681
If I were you I'd bring a 5d. Lug the 17-35, 50f/1.4 and 28-75mm. This covers low light and alot of FL ranging from UWA to very good reach.

Putting a 135L would probably take space and little use...unless your doing alot of portrait work.

A high percentage of photos I'll use a 24mm and 16-35L. Recently I brought my M43 olympus e-m5 to a trip and had 2 bodies (m43 is soooooo small) w/ 28 and 50mm prime equiv.

interesting choices so far. keep the comments coming

P.S : I used to own the 70-200 f4 and carried it around for travel, but i realized it really attracts too much attention when i do street photography (even when i already gaffered the whole thing black).. that's why i don't own the 70-200 now. :/

Honestly - why are you traveling? If you're traveling to take photos that requires an entirely different response/set of gear than traveling for pleasure.

If you're traveling for pleasure (and taking photos along the way), I would strictly bring the 5D and the 28-75. Then choose either the 50 1.4 (for low light) or the 135L (for portraits).

TheBurningCrown wrote in post #14671780
Honestly - why are you traveling? If you're traveling to take photos that requires an entirely different response/set of gear than traveling for pleasure.

If you're traveling for pleasure (and taking photos along the way), I would strictly bring the 5D and the 28-75. Then choose either the 50 1.4 (for low light) or the 135L (for portraits).

the fact is it's gonna be a mixture of both shooting and pleasure - but more towards pleasure i guess. weight isn't an issue to me but size is. i'm using a Kata 3n1-20 and it would probably store approx 4 lenses + 1 body + 1 580EXII. i'm strongly leaning towards bringing 2 x 5D, one mounted with 135L and the other with 28-75 for the day, and 50mm + 100mm for the night.

what do you guys think?

Depends on where you are going and your style of photography - for me, almost 75% of my shots are with a 50mm, the other 25% maybe evenly split between telephoto and wide angle.

If i had to pick from your list, 5D + 50/1.4 + 100/2.8 + 17-35 + 580EX

the.forumer wrote in post #14671836
the fact is it's gonna be a mixture of both shooting and pleasure - but more towards pleasure i guess. weight isn't an issue to me but size is. i'm using a Kata 3n1-20 and it would probably store 4 lenses + 1 body + 1 580EXII, or 2 bodies with 3 lenses. i'm strongly leaning towards bringing 2 x 5D, one mounted with 135L and the other with 28-75 for the day, and 50mm + 100mm for the night.

what do you guys think?

You will start to feel like a mule holding heavy gear. Your gonna be more concerned about your gear than enjoying your holiday.

I brought way too much gear on my last trip. I'm contemplating on only bringing my M43 olympus next time. Virtually the same image quality as my 5dc but fraction of the weight.

One thing to think about is shallow dof. I see NO POINT bringing the 135 for a portrait lens. Why you ask?? Many bokeh junkies would blurr out the background shooting wideopen at f/2. You might as well take a photo of family members in a scummy area of town and blurr out the background so you cant even recognize the background. Your Tammy 28-75 stopped down would provide story telling background in a signature image of where your traveling.

Maybe the 135L would be a great street photography lens for more reach.

If your outdoors I'd suggest what I suggested earlier. UWA will give you a feel of your travelling experience.

When I want to travel light I take my G1X and leave the DSLR kit at home

Went to Venice Italy this year, took 50d, 35-350L, 50mm 1.4, 17-40L,430ex,tripod and filters. But this set up would change depending on where I was going.