going to Costa Rica - only going to bring 1 camera and 1 lens - help

this is a trip with the wife to relax
- going to do 2 or 3 full day trips off the resort

i own your basic pro wedding gear plus some other stuff

my choice of camera bodies to bring (5DSR, A7Rii, 7D2)
- I'm thinking 7D2 because it has the best weather sealing and has built in flash but given crop, depending on lens, i'm open to bringing something else?

lenses (35L II, 35F2 IS, 40mm pancake, 85L II, 100L, 135L),(8-15L, 17-40L, 24-70 F2.8 II, 70-200 F4 IS, 70-200 F2.8 IS II, 100-400L II), Sigma 18-35 F1.8, Sigma 24-105 F4 OS
- the 'typical' answer would likely be the Canon 24-105 F4 IS (I sold it for the Sigma and the Sigma is NOT weather sealed)
- I'm thinking about 70-200 F4 IS or 100-400L II or 17-40L (all weather sealed)

Possible setups
- 7D2 with 17-40L (light, weather sealed)
- A7Rii with 17-40 (lighter, weather sealed hopefully, wider angle)
- 7D2 with 70-200 F4 IS (wildlife light setup, weather sealed)
- A7Rii with a 24-70 F2.8 II (weather sealed hopefully, not light, not small, but overall useful)
- A7Rii with Sigma 24-105 F4 OS (not weather sealed but good FL range)
- 5DSR with 100-400L II and 40mm in the pocket (weather sealed and 'throwaway' 40mm if needed)

thoughts?

thanks

SX60HS, or G16.

Every time I travel I tend to use my wide to normal more than telephoto. Of your choices I would probably pick the A7R2 with the 24-105. Given the choice of a 2nd lens I would bring the 35LII for evening use without flash.

Unless your off resort trips are going to require something specific you can get along with any body and standard zoom.

I've lugged all kinds of lenses all over, and for a typical travel scenario such as you are contemplating I use my 24-105 on a FF sensor and not much else. I could very rarely want wider than 24mm, and almost never need longer than 105mm. I also don't use very fast apertures on vacation much, so f/4 is plenty.

IMO a 70-200 would be a disaster. Having 70mm as your widest possible would mean coming home with very few pictures.

17-40 would work, but unless you are super enthusiastic about ultra-wide, I think you will find 41-105mm to be a lot more useful than 17-23.

What do you expect to see "off the resort"? For wildlife, the 100-400 is the best option, whether on the 5DS or the 7D2. However it needs a companion, wider, lens for landscapes, people, etc. Can you convince yourself to take both the 100-400 and the 17-40 in your carry-on bag for the flight down and just leave the 100-400 in your room while at the resort, bringing it out only when you expect the situation to warrant it. FWIW, at the beach resort where we stayed (Playa Hermosa), I used my 300 f/4 on the Howler Monkeys, Great Kiskadees and Inca Doves right on the grounds.

Review the content at http://www.theguardian​.com/travel/costarica. It isn't photography orientated but you will get a feel for the photo ops.

Jon wrote in post #17835385
What do you expect to see "off the resort"? For wildlife, the 100-400 is the best option, whether on the 5DS or the 7D2. However it needs a companion, wider, lens for landscapes, people, etc. Can you convince yourself to take both the 100-400 and the 17-40 in your carry-on bag for the flight down and just leave the 100-400 in your room while at the resort, bringing it out only when you expect the situation to warrant it. FWIW, at the beach resort where we stayed (Playa Hermosa), I used my 300 f/4 on the Howler Monkeys, Great Kiskadees and Inca Doves right on the grounds.

I'd agree with this. The 100-400 II has a nice MFD for close-ups of butterflies and such and will bring in much wildlife - looks splendid on the 5DsR (personal experience - the 1.4x v3 is a good complement). The 17-40 covers the wide to mid-range, and you can crop from it cover the intermediate FoV. All depends on what you feel like capturing. If I were limited, I'd take the 100-400II and 16-35 f/4IS (I upgraded my 17-40 to that one) and feel well covered

Nikon P900. Or break the rule further and take two lenses.

7D2, Pancake and 70-200

If you aren't going deep into the rain forest you're not going to need a ton of reach. CR beach resorts typically have small birds, a few monkeys, and lizards that are fairly used to humans. 200mm is the most you'd need for that kind of wildlife. The sea life you'll see from a resort is going to be a bit farther away with the exception of the passing larger bird. In Guanacaste there are some rivers where you could find Caiman where the most reach would be nice.

If you're "resorting" around Arenal or Pacquare, and want to shoot the animals, then more reach is helpful. That is more "country side" where animals aren't as accustomed to humans. A low light white gun + flash and high ISO would be helpful here.

If you don't care about adding some Costa Rican animals to your photography portfolio, then take the 7D + 24-70mm and an extra battery or two...no need for a charger. Have a plastic bag near the camera and you don't have to worry so much about the weather sealing. Before the insane 30 min shower hits you'll see the dark clouds coming. And on the days when it rains all day you're not going to be out in it shooting much anyway. The 7D and 24-70mm should fit into your hotel safe. If you're in a southern resort there are a number of people with sticky fingers so you'll want to keep an eye on your gear.

Costa Rica is a birding paradise. All kinds - big, small, all colors and shapes. Plus a lot of other wildlife - snakes, monkeys, bats, crocks, etc. It would be a shame not to try to shoot them all. That's where you will want a crop camera with a long lens. When I was there I had the 70-300, but I still felt short.

At the same time there is a lot of natural beauty in this country, e.g., spectacular volcanoes. You may want to use a normal zoom for that.

If I were going there again, I would just take a FF frame camera (I have the 6D), and two lenses. There is no way one lens would do the trick for me.

Now, if you are going around now, the weather should be fairy dry. Later, starting March, it is going to change to rain, that's when you will need all the weatherproofing you have!

Lbsimon wrote in post #17836232
Costa Rica is a birding paradise. All kinds - big, small, all colors and shapes. Plus a lot of other wildlife - snakes, monkeys, bats, crocks, etc. It would be a shame not to try to shoot them all. That's where you will want a crop camera with a long lens. When I was there I had the 70-300, but I still felt short.

The OP has the 5DsR which has ~the same pixel density as the 7D2, so the crop advantage is moot (there's a 7D2-like sensor in the middle of the 5Ds's sensor). The AF isn't up to the 7D2 but it's still pretty good and the 1-400v2 combo is great for the biodiversity. We're still not sure whether OP is relaxing on the beach or doing wildlifey stuff

AJSJones wrote in post #17836269
The OP has the 5DsR which has ~the same pixel density as the 7D2, so the crop advantage is moot (there's a 7D2-like sensor in the middle of the 5Ds's sensor). The AF isn't up to the 7D2 but it's still pretty good and the 1-400v2 combo is great for the biodiversity. We're still not sure whether OP is relaxing on the beach or doing wildlifey stuff

Agree, I forgot about the sensor in the 5DSR, you are correct.

The OP mentioned one day long excursions, and that's was the reasons for my recommendations.