Travel in Europe, which lenses to bring?

My sister and I will travel together in Austria, Czech Republic and Germany in September. She will bring a 6D and a Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 lens. I'll bring a 5D but I'm not sure which lenses to bring. 17-40L is a must, the 70-200 IS II isn't really needed I guess. But I'm not sure if I shall bring the Tamron 28-75 or the Sigma 50 + 100mm f/2 since my sister will bring the 28-75 anyway? The reason why I'm considering the Sigma 50 is for low light shots as a night time walk around lens. But since the 6D high ISO is supposedly excellent, maybe the Tamron 28-75 f/2.8 can do a decent job for this as well? Also do I need something over 75mm focal length? The 100mm f/2 is quite light itself so the weight isn't too much of an issue. Any suggestion please?

Cheers!

If you are not averse to sharing lenses (which may involve lots of swapping), then your sister's 28-75 should suffice. You might find the 17-40 stays on your camera most of the time anyway.

I find myself using primes very rarely when travelling, so I would skip the 50 personally. Over 75mm depends on your style, you can get some nice landscapes with telephoto lenses, and its nice to have something longer just in case, especially since the 100 is as you say, quite light.

What is wrong with taking the 17-40 and the 28-75 and the 50mm?

Sirrith wrote in post #16171899
If you are not averse to sharing lenses (which may involve lots of swapping), then your sister's 28-75 should suffice. You might find the 17-40 stays on your camera most of the time anyway.

I find myself using primes very rarely when travelling, so I would skip the 50 personally. Over 75mm depends on your style, you can get some nice landscapes with telephoto lenses, and its nice to have something longer just in case, especially since the 100 is as you say, quite light.

Thanks for the reply.

You're right. Now I'm thinking even though I can share the 28-75 with my sister but it will be too much of a hassle. So I'd bring the 17-40L + 28-75 myself. It's just the 3rd lens which I'm not sure about yet : the 100mm for the slightly longer focal length than 75mm or the siggy 50 which is useful at night ? I even thought about getting a Tamron 70-300 vc coz it's much lighter than the 70-200 IS II and it's nice to have a longer focal lenght just in case.

But regardless of the 3rd lens, I'm sure it'll be a great trip

Mike wrote in post #16171902
What is wrong with taking the 17-40 and the 28-75 and the 50mm?

Yes, that's a good idea. I'll most likely bring this combo now I think about it.

Thanks!

I'm going to break from conventional wisdom just a little bit and say that if I had a 70-200, I would bring it on any European trip. I may not travel to Europe as often as many of this forum, but I have been lucky enough to have made 4 trips there and I have always wanted something a bit longer than what I was carrying. The first two trips were with film cameras but I have had a crop camera (original digital Rebel (300D) and now a 7D) and a 17-70 mm lens for the last two trips (Italy and Spain). Details on some of the buildings, specifically churches, really cried out for a longer lens.

And, again going against conventional wisdom, I think that the 70-200 lens is a great lens for landscapes.

Just my 2 cents.

Tim

A long lens can be used inside cathedrals, for example, for shots of distant stained glass or architectural details. I wouldn't want to drag one around because of the size and weight. In Europe, a wide lens is more often used. When going to museums, and I do that a lot in my travels, I like a fast prime. On full frame, I would bring the fast 50.

When I was in europe the only lenses I really needed was the 24-70mm and 16-35mm. The 50mm 1.4 on a few occasions and 70-200mm infrequently.

genjurok wrote in post #16171887
The 70-200 IS II isn't really needed I guess. Also do I need something over 75mm focal length?

Both of you are taking full-frame cameras so you don't have a lot of reach. I personally would want something that would let me frame a castle on the side of a hill or a gargoyle perched on a cathedral. A long lens would let you get a shot of a person in a market square without being invasive. I guess it just depends on what you want to capture.

My wife and I are going to Germany in September. I'm taking a 6D. One of my lenses will be the 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 DO IS just because I'm sure I will need some reach from time to time. (I lived in Germany for 4 years so I already know the shots that I am going after.)

So think about what you want to photograph. All of your shots will not be tight shots in a medieval city. There is a lot of beautiful countryside in the countries that you are visiting.

If space allows, taking a longer lens is a good idea. I would probably take my 70-200 f/4 but not sure I would want the extra size/weight of the 2.8. If you could "borrow" a 24-105 for the trip it might be a good compromise. As mentioned earlier you will probably use the 17-40 more than anything else.

Since you are traveling together and undoubtedly plan to share photos you will probably find it helpful to synchronize the cameras' clocks as well as use different file numbering ranges (unless you plan to rename the files when you upload to your computer). Having the files synchronized @ time taken and not having any duplicate file names will make organizing your files much easier later on. I learned this lesson the hard way many years ago when traveling with multiple cameras.

Enjoy your trip.

Depends on what you shoot and how. I usually keep a standard and medium telephoto with me all the time during travels. Sometimes while shooting architecture, I always end up shooting some significant part of it on its own, that's where the 70-200 comes in very handy. Also, its wonderful for making family portraits in front of landmarks. Just my thoughts.

Enjoy your trip, that's most important. (=

JRET wrote in post #16172375
Since you are traveling together and undoubtedly plan to share photos you will probably find it helpful to synchronize the cameras' clocks as well as use different file numbering ranges (unless you plan to rename the files when you upload to your computer). Having the files synchronized @ time taken and not having any duplicate file names will make organizing your files much easier later on. I learned this lesson the hard way many years ago when traveling with multiple cameras.

Enjoy your trip.

Great tip! Thanks a lot!

Thanks to everyone and you guys are awesome! That's why I like this forum. People are always so helpful.

Please keep in mind that when in Europe you are going to do a lot of walking. Sometimes, it will be hours on end. The extra weight of a long telephoto is not something to ignore. I used to take a 70-300 to Europe with me, to shoot architectural details of buildings, churches, monuments, etc., but eventually realized that I did not use it that much, and it was not worth dragging the heavy lens bag with me all day long.

So now my travel kit when in Europe (I go there usually twice a year) consists of a crop camera (60D), and three lenses - the 15-85, the 10-20, and a 30mm 1.4 for indoor shots. My wife refuses to carry anything extra, so she uses a T2i with the 18-200. It works well for both of us.

I am heading to Germany this summer and I keep thinking it would be nice to take my 70-200 f/4 L IS instead of my f/2.8 L IS Mark II for reduced weight. Knowing me most likely will take 2.8 for the reason it is 2.8

Actually I've made a decision which I've never thought about before yet makes total sense to me :
I'll buy a nifty-fifty and will bring it instead of the Sigma 50 for the trip coz I really need a low light lense for my style of shooting.
Reason : much reduced size and weight compared to the siggy

So 17-40L and nifty-fifty are in for sure.

The last piece : either the 70-200 IS II or 28-75. I will see.
As a background I often lug the 70-200 IS II around with me. Also I brought it to the U.S and Cuba last year. Even biked 70km in a mountainous area with a Tamron 17-35, 28-75 and the 70-200 ISII,
plus a 1.5L bottle water on a hot summer day in Cuba. So I'm actually kinda used to the 70-200 IS II weight. I'm more concerned about how often it will be needed instead of how much it weighs actually.

Cheers!