Motorcycle Travel Kit Thoughts

jkdwings wrote in post #15815923
Thanks for the links! I had checked out MotoJournalism before, but had not seen The Oasis of My Soul; I'll give it a peruse! In terms of carrying the gear, I definitely won't have it on my back. I've got side bags for most of my equipment, and will probably mount a locking Pelican as a top case for the camera gear. When I want quick access, I'll carry the camera in my tank bag, where there is the least jarring around from the road. I have been reading adventure bike travel ride reports for the last couple years, and have seen many people carry their gear this way with no problems.

In terms of going to a smaller setup, I've certainly thought about it. I think I would really regret not having an SLR with me, as the joy of using it outweighs the weight and size most of the time. Going back to my Europe trip again, I could have carried all my gear in my 40 liter pack, however I brought my 70 so that I could bring the camera and lenses. I'm glad I did.

Thanks again to a fellow rider!

Jason

I dont blame you for leaning towards the DSLR instead of the smaller camera. Since you plan to use a pelican case on the top of the rear, thats good. Yes, you're right, many do have a tank bag for convenience. Knowing you will have to make some space compromises and extra expenses (pelican case) to have the camera you want, go for it!

kin2son wrote in post #15815612
I would look into mirrorless solution such as Fuji XE-1, Nex series or OM-D.

L.J.G. wrote in post #15817046
+ 2 for this. The OM-D is highly portable and gives great IQ with the 2 kit lens.

I will third this option. For traveling the OM-D is an absolute joy. Great build quality, compact yet meaty enough for someone who is used to a larger camera, excellent image quality, plenty of compact and nice performing lenses. you could pack the OM-D and a trio of lenses for it in the amount of space just a 7D would take up. The XE-1 looks nice as well, but it it still limited for lenses compared to m4/3rds, and the lenses available are all pricey.

jkdwings wrote in post #15815923
In terms of going to a smaller setup, I've certainly thought about it. I think I would really regret not having an SLR with me, as the joy of using it outweighs the weight and size most of the time. Going back to my Europe trip again, I could have carried all my gear in my 40 liter pack, however I brought my 70 so that I could bring the camera and lenses. I'm glad I did.

All I can say is don't count it out until you try it. I purchased an OM-D for a two week trip to Europe in the fall, I also brought my DSLR's in case I really hated it, and they never left the room.

ChuckingFluff wrote in post #15817036
They are some great images on the thread below taken with the lens.

https://photography-on-the.net …&highlight=28-300&page=73

That does, in fact, look like an amazing lens! But at $2500, it's more than I want to spend. It's also very large and heavy, which I wouldn't want all the time, I think.

Billginthekeys wrote in post #15817492
I will third this option. For traveling the OM-D is an absolute joy. Great build quality, compact yet meaty enough for someone who is used to a larger camera, excellent image quality, plenty of compact and nice performing lenses. you could pack the OM-D and a trio of lenses for it in the amount of space just a 7D would take up. The XE-1 looks nice as well, but it it still limited for lenses compared to m4/3rds, and the lenses available are all pricey.

Alright, alright, with all the recommendations I've been hearing for the OM-D lately, I suppose I'll have to take a look at it before I drop the coin on the 7D. Thanks for giving me more options/decisions to have to make Haha, when I get some free time, it's back to the local shop!

jkdwings wrote in post #15817529
That does, in fact, look like an amazing lens! But at $2500, it's more than I want to spend. It's also very large and heavy, which I wouldn't want all the time, I think.

Also 28mm on a crop body is not really wide angle. It would be a better "take one only lens" on a FF.

I had to give this some thought less than a year ago. I did a loop from NorCal to East Florida last year. I had to decide was I going on the trip to take great photos or great memories. In the end I decided to take a small compact Canon S100. The amount of places I stopped and enjoyed it would have been more of a burden to pull the DSLR out rather than just take a snapshot with my compact. Knowing me I would have spent more time swapping out lens, adding filters, HDR etc. time lost enjoying the moment with my wife.

I had taken the DSLR to the Grand Canyon during a previous year ride. I didn't use it as much as I thought I would. That played into my decision. One thing to keep in mind is the weather. I rode through rain, hail, salt storms and I would have never taken out the DSLR under those conditions. All of the photos on my blog site were taken with an iPhone or S100. It really was about the ride, photos were secondary.

Oh! May consider a GoPro. I attached one on my windshield and have hours of footage. I think I watched 2 minutes worth.

My ride
My 2c.

From another ADV Rider - fyyff

Given the $300 difference - measure this against a warranty. I'd probably take the new camera.
I used to use a 17-85 on my 7D but found the lens creates a lot of CA that I couldn't correct. Apart from this, the 15-85 is a bit wider and the slight overlap with your 11-16 will cover all bases.
The 70-200 works well with the 7D.

On biking - well my scoot and I parted ways when I moved to Toronto but my 20 years of expeditions around Southern Africa had some priorities - first petrol, second tools, third shelter, fourth camera. I used an OM system which was a whole lot more compact tho.

cebuRyda wrote in post #15817703
I had to give this some thought less than a year ago. I did a loop from NorCal to East Florida last year. I had to decide was I going on the trip to take great photos or great memories. In the end I decided to take a small compact Canon S100. The amount of places I stopped and enjoyed it would have been more of a burden to pull the DSLR out rather than just take a snapshot with my compact. Knowing me I would have spent more time swapping out lens, adding filters, HDR etc. time lost enjoying the moment with my wife.

I had taken the DSLR to the Grand Canyon during a previous year ride. I didn't use it as much as I thought I would. That played into my decision. One thing to keep in mind is the weather. I rode through rain, hail, salt storms and I would have never taken out the DSLR under those conditions. All of the photos on my blog site were taken with an iPhone or S100. It really was about the ride, photos were secondary.

Oh! May consider a GoPro. I attached one on my windshield and have hours of footage. I think I watched 2 minutes worth.

My ride
My 2c.

Thanks for the couple pennies! Every bit of experience people here have shared with me is proving to be valuable and create more options. Going as simple as a point and shoot has its appeals to my minimalist side, however, I don't think I'd be satisfied. This trip won't be on a time crunch at all, so I plan to take it slow and photography is something I'd like to make a good part of it. I'll be taking off indefinitely after convocation, until the money runs out I suppose. At that point, I may stay somewhere for a period of time before coming home.

Jason

noisejammer wrote in post #15818527
From another ADV Rider - fyyff

Given the $300 difference - measure this against a warranty. I'd probably take the new camera.
I used to use a 17-85 on my 7D but found the lens creates a lot of CA that I couldn't correct. Apart from this, the 15-85 is a bit wider and the slight overlap with your 11-16 will cover all bases.
The 70-200 works well with the 7D.

On biking - well my scoot and I parted ways when I moved to Toronto but my 20 years of expeditions around Southern Africa had some priorities - first petrol, second tools, third shelter, fourth camera. I used an OM system which was a whole lot more compact tho.

That's kind of what I've been thinking too, regarding new vs used, and I'm still stuck on it. The way I see it, the costs work out roughly like this for a 7D and 15-85 combo (based on prices I have found):

(1) New 7D kit with 15-85 = $1870 incl. taxes
(2) Used 7D ($880) + Used 15-85 (~$650) = $1530 incl. taxes

So that's an extra $340 for a new body and new lens as opposed to both used. Well, now that I've typed those numbers out, it's a bit more difference than I was thinking. But it doesn't change the fact that the shop doesn't know the history on the used body, which I quite honestly find strange. They said I could take 2 weeks with it to check it out, so I could find out the shutter count and make sure it runs through all its paces. $340 is a good bit of coin to save. In fact it more than covers the cost of the tripod/ball head I just ordered. Grrrr...decisions. And that's assuming I want to go with the 15-85 (which I am leaning towards, unless anyone has other suggestions).

Have any stories/accounts written up from gallivanting in South Africa? Sounds awesome!

L.J.G. wrote in post #15817541
Also 28mm on a crop body is not really wide angle. It would be a better "take one only lens" on a FF.

Another valid point. The 11-16 would complement it pretty well, but then I'd be missing the whole point of a one-lens option.

I wouldn't bother with the 7D. Anything in the Rebel series from the T2i/550D on will give exactly the same results. Same sensor, same pictures. The bonus of the Rebel, is that it's smaller, lighter, cheaper, and because it's plastic, bounces better. Buy the cheapest body, and spend more on Canon lenses.
I have a 550D and 15-85 as my motorcycle travel kit, and it works a treat. Tried a mates 7D, and the only advantage I can see, is you can shoot fast moving subjects using outer focus points. Centre point on a Rebel is fine. If you buy a 650D, it has all 9 cross type AF points. Same as a 60D, but smaller and lighter.
If you want a bit more reach, just pick up the excellent, cheap, small, light and highly under rated 55-250. Plenty good enough for motorcycle travels. I shot these with that exact lens and my 550D on a cloudy overcast day http://www.flickr.com …0/sets/72157632​651954209/ To get anything much better, I suspect you'd have to more than quadruple your spend. But that's just me
I have the excellent 40mm pancake for inside type shots, and also a 24mm f/2.8. For me, it's the Goldilocks setup.

jkdwings wrote in post #15818573
Have any stories/accounts written up from gallivanting in South Africa? Sounds awesome!

Sadly not - many of them predated the ubiquitous internet but highlights were trips to Cape Town (4000 km loop), Botswana (1500 km loop), the Lowveld (1100 km loop with the classic bike club), two trips to the Drakensberg mts and QwaQwa (each a 1500 km loop). I started planning a solo expedition to Namibia (also around 4000 km) when work got in the way and moved me to the GWN.

Stick to the 7D the Rebels are cheaper for a reason. I've shot t3, t3i and t4i and I wouldn't trade my 7D for all of them combined. The t4i is pretty impressive indoors with low light but there are some posterization (some think it's banding) issues that I noticed in the images. If you still want a one lens solution and don't want the weight or cost try the Tamron AF 18-270mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC LD. light weight cost a lot less and image quality is pretty impressive.

https://photography-on-the.net …page=116&highli​ght=18-270

nice to see so many ADVRider's here.