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Photo Forum / Digital Photography / DSLR Cameras / September 2005Looking for Equipment Recommendations - Hawaii
I am planning a 2-week trip to Hawaii around January. I have a Canon EOS Rebel G 35 mm camera; a 35-80 mm kit lens; an EF 28-135 mm IS USM lens; a Velbon El Carmagne 540 tripod; a Minolta DiMage G500 5 MP digital camera; and a Canon ZR60 miniDV video camera. I plan to visit 7 of the 8 main Hawaiian group islands (I have the option to add the remaining island, but I don't know that I want to spend another $350 for it). I want to photograph as much of the islands as I can (mostly landscape shots and close-up nature shots), from many different angles. I plan to spend at most 3 days on any single island. I expect that I will need a zoom lens and a wide-angle lens. How much zoom would be useful? Would 300 mm have much use in Hawaii? How about 500 mm? I saw a 500 mm "mirrored lens" (?) zoom lens at Wolf Camera, but I don't know how it is designed to be used; I would prefer image stabilized lenses. What is the best way to carry photographic equipment? Is a backpack or a duffel bag more useful? What film speeds are best? I am thinking of shooting with Velvia film ($130 for 700 exposures from Wolf Camera), though the salesman warned me that it is a very slow film (but beautiful if used in bright light with a tripod or IS lens). My Canon Rebel G comes with mid-roll rewind. Does the use of that feature sacrifice the unexposed remainder of the roll? If not, how would I resume shooting where I had rewound? I probably will pick up a disposable underwater camera, though I don't forsee my spending very much time under water. If I try to shoehorn one more major activity into this vacation, I might need a hospital stay when I return. However, the local dive shop says I still have time to become scuba certified. That, in addition to attending college, working full time and planning and equipping myself for this trip. Does anyone have any other equipment recommendations? Thank you. > I am planning a 2-week trip to Hawaii around January. I have a Canon > EOS Rebel G 35 mm camera; a 35-80 mm kit lens; an EF 28-135 mm IS USM [quoted text clipped - 34 lines] > > Thank you. You might want to consider learning to dive with a resort course. That is where you take the classroom, and pool phases at home, and then complete your training by taking the open water part of the course at a Hawaiian resort or dive shop. ALV >> I am planning a 2-week trip to Hawaii around January. I have a Canon >> EOS Rebel G 35 mm camera; a 35-80 mm kit lens; an EF 28-135 mm IS USM [quoted text clipped - 41 lines] > > ALV And with that said, here is a list of lenses that I will be taking with me to Maui next week to use on my Canon 300D. Tamron 17-35 f2.8-4 Di LD Aspherical Canon EF 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 II USM Canon EF 100-300mm f/4.5-5.6 USM I thought about taking my Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II as well, but I might leave that spot in my bag open to store my Magellan GPS instead. The other thing I might add is that trying to do seven islands in 14 days won't give you enough time on any of the islands to see much besides the airports. You might find it more relaxing and productive to cut back and concentrate on one or two islands this trip and save the rest for the future. On my previous two trips to Hawaii I concentrated on Oahu and the Big Islands each time. And I know the week I spent on each island only scratched the surface of what is there to see. ALV > You might want to consider learning to dive with a resort course. That > is where you take the classroom, and pool phases at home, and then > complete your training by taking the open water part of the course at a > Hawaiian resort or dive shop. A Resort Course is generically a good idea, but it still requires 2 days of diving to finish off the dive Certification: 4 checkout dives @ 2 dives/day. As such, with only 3 days on any one island, between airport transfers (coming & going) and with "dive-to-fly" safety restrictions, the bottom line is that its going to be very difficult to pull this off. Plus, as another person commented, UW photography isn't exactly an easy task, partly due to the light absorbtion properties of water (reds get lost first, and very rapidly). The simple bottom line here is that an UW disposable compatible with snorkeling depths is the only "quick, easy, cheap" option. For full-blown UW photo with a Rebel, the OP is roughly looking at: a) $600 for an Ikelite housing for the Rebel SLR b) $500-$2000 for 1 small to 2 large UW Strobes for same c) $300-$1000 for the right lens/ports/gears combinations d) $1500 worth of (warmwater) diving gear PLUS: e) $2000-$4000 for 50-100 dives worth of diving experience. This last one is probably the most important, since one really needs to have gained scuba experience so as to become reasonably skilled at the basic task of diving before one increases your work taskloadings by adding an UW camera. Otherwise, they risk becoming a 'reef crasher' who ends up damaging the reef habitat that they're alledgedly trying to enjoy and photograph because they tried to add too many new things at once, and the inevitable result is a crappy diver who takes crappy photo's. -hh >I expect that I will need a zoom lens and a wide-angle lens. How much >zoom would be useful? Would 300 mm have much use in Hawaii? How about >500 mm? I saw a 500 mm "mirrored lens" (?) zoom lens at Wolf Camera, >but I don't know how it is designed to be used; I would prefer image >stabilized lenses. I don't think you'll be happy with a mirror lens. For the long range, I would recommend the 75-300 IS. And I would get a wide angle for landscapes - try to pick up a used 17mm or 22mm. >I probably will pick up a disposable underwater camera, though I don't A great idea, and a lot of fun. -Joel ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Free 35mm lens/digicam reviews: http://www.exc.com/photography ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- On Sat, 03 Sep 2005 18:18:54 -0700, pooua wrote: > I am planning a 2-week trip to Hawaii around January. I have a Canon EOS > Rebel G 35 mm camera; a 35-80 mm kit lens; an EF 28-135 mm IS USM lens; a [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > close-up nature shots), from many different angles. I plan to spend at > most 3 days on any single island. I think you're being overly ambitious. 7 islands in 14 days? Not enough time or way too many islands. One or the other. I spent 7 nights and 8 days on just one -- The Big Island -- shot for 5 days and scratched only the surface of what was available. Didn't go to the observatory on Mauna Kea or descend into Waipio Valley or tour the Parker Ranch or go to South Point, etc., etc. Not enough time. But even with all the places I didn't go, I still shot around 700 very discriminating exposures. > I expect that I will need a zoom lens and a wide-angle lens. How much zoom > would be useful? Would 300 mm have much use in Hawaii? How about 500 mm? I > saw a 500 mm "mirrored lens" (?) zoom lens at Wolf Camera, but I don't > know how it is designed to be used; I would prefer image stabilized > lenses. You already have a good zoom, the 28-135, which should do for most "landscape" and travel-type shots. A 20mm or wider lens (prime or zoom) will come in handy. I took a 20 on my trip and used it quite frequently. As far as a long lens, unless you intend to shoot surfers on those big North Shore waves -- not much other wildlife in Hawaii that you can't get close to -- or are into compressed perspective scenic/travel shots, the 135 focal length should do. I took a 180 with a 2X extender and only used that combo a few times. Mostly when I needed a long lens, the 180 by itself was sufficient. Of course, I didn't do any surfing shots. Not much good surf on the Big Island. > What is the best way to carry photographic equipment? Is a backpack or a > duffel bag more useful? I put all my stuff, except a lightweight Bogen/Manfrotto tripod, in one F2 Original Domke bag. Here's my Big Island trip equipment list: 2 Nikon FM2 bodies w/o motordrives, 20, 24, 28-70, 35, 85, 180 + matched 2X extender, Vivitar 285 flash with Quantum battery, filters, Minolta IIIF and Soligor 1 degree spot meters, 12" Wescott folding diffuser, monopod, notebook, pens, pencils, small tool kit, and room left over for 10 rolls of film. > What film speeds are best? I am thinking of shooting with Velvia film > ($130 for 700 exposures from Wolf Camera), though the salesman warned me > that it is a very slow film (but beautiful if used in bright light with a > tripod or IS lens). I opted for 100 speed chrome for everything. I figured if I needed faster, I would buy it once I got there. I didn't need it. Although, the monopod did come in handy, especially in the rainforest and other heavily forested areas. > My Canon Rebel G comes with mid-roll rewind. Does the use of that feature > sacrifice the unexposed remainder of the roll? If not, how would I resume > shooting where I had rewound? Don't know how the G does it. When I need to change film mid-roll, a very rare occurance, I just rewind until I feel the leader come off the takeup spool, open the camera, and with a Sharpie write on the leader the number of exposures taken, put the roll back in the film can, which I mark as partially exposed, and put in a special place in my bag away from unexposed and fully exposed film. When I reload the roll, I leave on the lens cap, set the lens to the smallest f-stop, shutter to the highest speed, and advance the film to 2 to 3 frames PAST what was exposed. With this method, I've never double exposed a previous exposure. Mostly, I never reload in mid-roll. That's one reason I carry another body or two. > I probably will pick up a disposable underwater camera, though I don't > forsee my spending very much time under water. If I try to shoehorn one > more major activity into this vacation, I might need a hospital stay when > I return. However, the local dive shop says I still have time to become > scuba certified. That, in addition to attending college, working full time > and planning and equipping myself for this trip. Leave the scuba for another day. Without special underwater flash, you won't get any decent shots deeper than 10 feet or so, usually shallower. Below 10 feet, the water starts filtering out all the other colors except blue. So, by 30 feet or so, everything will be blue or very bluish. So, if you want to do underwater stuff not invovling getting about $1000 to $2000 worth of specialized photo gear, all you'll need is mask, snorkel and fins. > Does anyone have any other equipment recommendations? Think I've recommended more than enough. Stefan > On Sat, 03 Sep 2005 18:18:54 -0700, pooua wrote: > > > I am planning a 2-week trip to Hawaii around January. > I think you're being overly ambitious. 7 islands in 14 days? Not enough > time or way too many islands. One or the other. Normally, you would be correct. But, I'm not actually going to Hawaii to take pictures. I am going to Hawaii because, when I was ages 5 to 7, my family was stationed aboard Barber's Point Naval Air Station in Waipahu, Hawaii. My Mom promised me several times that we would go to the Big Island, some day. I was really looking forward to that. But, it did not happen. Instead, we moved to Chattanooga, Tennessee. I am going to Hawaii to revisit my childhood home and VISIT THE BIG ISLAND!! Everything else is extra, things I'm doing because I might as well do them while I am there. After all, it's been 32 years since I was last in Hawaii; there is no telling if I will ever be there, again. Barber's Point NAS was decomissioned several years ago. I hope to see it before they bulldoze it into a Wal-Mart parking lot. And, yes, there isn't enough time. I know that. I probably would want to spend a day just walking around where I used to live. Maybe a week. I still remember playing there. I remember my friends. I remember starting my first days in school there. I remember our front yard was full of stickers, and our back yard was full of kaovi thorns. > > I expect that I will need a zoom lens and a wide-angle lens. How much zoom > > would be useful? Would 300 mm have much use in Hawaii? How about 500 mm? I [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > "landscape" and travel-type shots. A 20mm or wider lens (prime or zoom) > will come in handy. I took a 20 on my trip and used it quite frequently. Thanks, I'll be looking for a good wide lens on eBay. > > What is the best way to carry photographic equipment? Is a backpack or a > > duffel bag more useful? > > I put all my stuff, except a lightweight Bogen/Manfrotto tripod, ... I just bought a Velbon 540 tripod ... > in one F2 Original Domke bag. > Here's my Big Island trip equipment list: 2 Nikon > FM2 bodies w/o motordrives, 20, 24, 28-70, 35, 85, 180 + matched 2X > extender, Vivitar 285 flash with Quantum battery, filters, Minolta IIIF > and Soligor 1 degree spot meters, 12" Wescott folding diffuser, > monopod, notebook, pens, pencils, small tool kit, and room left over for > 10 rolls of film. Thanks for the list. > > What film speeds are best? I am thinking of shooting with Velvia film > > ($130 for 700 exposures from Wolf Camera), though the salesman warned me [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > monopod did come in handy, especially in the rainforest and other heavily > forested areas. I hope to be able to take photographs from aircraft. I expect to take at least one helicopter tour, and maybe a fixed-wing tour. I also plan to attempt a visit to the Mauna Kia telescopes. [snip] > Leave the scuba for another day. Without special underwater flash, you > won't get any decent shots deeper than 10 feet or so, usually shallower. [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > to $2000 worth of specialized photo gear, all you'll need is mask, snorkel > and fins. Good points. Also, I have to make my dives after my visit to the Big Island. Because of the altitude on Mauna Kia, tour companies won't take people to the top within 24 hours of scuba diving. > > Does anyone have any other equipment recommendations? > > Think I've recommended more than enough. Thank you. >My Mom promised me several times that we would go to >the Big Island, some day. I was really looking forward to that. But, it >did not happen. Instead, we moved to Chattanooga, Tennessee. Could've been worse. Could've been Longview, Texas. >I am going to Hawaii to revisit my childhood home and VISIT THE BIG >ISLAND!! They should rename that island, "THE BIG UGLY." Photographically speaking, you'd do much better spending more time on Maui or Kauai. http://www.pbase.com/bret/maui As for equipment, I'd recommend traveling light. And keep the equipment with you and not left in the car. The 28-135 IS will probably serve you well, especially on a film body. I prefer digital myself, of course. Not much use for long lenses on Hawaii. The only time I used mine was shooting surfers. Since you'll have a tripod, don't forget to get some shots of the night sky. Go up on Haleakula or Mauna Kea and it will scare you how many stars you can see. I wish I'd done more of that. Maybe next time.... Forget the mid-roll rewind. You'll screw up more times than not. I've got some very interesting double-exposures by trying to save a half roll of film. Ever seen a deer and a wedding couple in the same shot? Gives new meaning to "caught in the headlights." Either buy film with less exposures per roll or score a second body to have loaded with the different emulsion. Of course, digital doesn't have this problem. I'd recommend renting or borrowing a 20D for the trip and a sharp wide angle lens like the 24-70L. The only drawback to going Totally Digital in Hawaii is that you'll either have to have lotsa memory cards or a way (laptop) to download all your pics each day. Film is easier in that respect, but the disadvantages of film make it less attractive, IMO. Either way, have fun and take lotsa pics. Better to take too many than too few, that's what I say. > >My Mom promised me several times that we would go to > >the Big Island, some day. I was really looking forward to that. But, it > >did not happen. Instead, we moved to Chattanooga, Tennessee. > > Could've been worse. Could've been Longview, Texas. Chattanooga as I remember it was worse than Longview. We moved initially to the industrial side of Chattanooga, which was old, poor and suffering from urban decay. I remember driving past a big billboard every day that had a picture of what appeared to be a naked man scrunched up inside a hypodermic needle, with a caption saying it was Hell. This was over by some old industrial yards next to the freeway. Longview doesn't have much going for it, but it is much smaller. The "ghetto" section of Chattanooga is larger than the entirety of Longview. True, 3 decades makes a difference. Soon after I moved to Longview, the City condemned and confiscated by eminent domain the properties on a certain street intersection, where throngs of people engaged in all manner of low-brow activities, including illegal drugs and prostitution. But, notice that was only one street intersection; that's all that Longview really had like that (though I must admit that those throngs of people have simply moved to other parts of town). > >I am going to Hawaii to revisit my childhood home and VISIT THE BIG > >ISLAND!! [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > Maui or Kauai. > http://www.pbase.com/bret/maui I want to see the observatory on Mauna Kea and I want to see an active volcano. That requires me to visit the Big Island. Besides, it is *the* island! > As for equipment, I'd recommend traveling light. > And keep the equipment with you and not left in the car. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > Not much use for long lenses on Hawaii. The only time I used mine was > shooting surfers. OK, maybe I can save money on equipment? > Since you'll have a tripod, don't forget to get some shots of the night > sky. > Go up on Haleakula or Mauna Kea and it will scare you how many stars > you can see. > I wish I'd done more of that. Maybe next time.... It would seem to me that the night sky is pretty much the same anywhere. I've travelled across Texas at night, and the sky is amazing. Of course, it is all lost inside the cities. But, I've been around the McDonald Observatory at night (OK, so it rained that night, I was still there at night). I may not be able to go up Mauna Kea, either, as there are frequent storms in January. We are going try it, though. > I'd recommend renting or borrowing a 20D for the trip and a sharp wide > angle lens like the 24-70L. > The only drawback to going Totally Digital in Hawaii is that you'll > either have to have lotsa memory cards or a way (laptop) to download > all your pics each day. Film is easier in that respect, but the > disadvantages of film make it less attractive, IMO. Yes, I prefer digital, too, but it has some serious drawbacks, too. I've run around in heavy rain, taking photos with my Canon EOS Rebel G and my old Olympus C-3040. I'm not sure I would want to try that with a Canon 20D. I hear that they don't take well to water. Then, there is the price. I could buy 5 of the Rebel G for what it would take for me to buy a single 20D. I'm taking my little point-and-shoot Minolta Dimage G500 for the majority of my pictures. I love to take snapshots, and I take about 10k of them a year. I'll leave the better shots to my film camera. I might yet break down and buy a nice digital SLR, but not until November. I'll let prices settle a bit. But, I must admit, it is a real pain having to deal with film, especially because I insist on scanning all of my photos, instead of allowing the labs to make prints. Scanning 500 exposures is not a trivial task. Downloading 500 digital photos into my computer only takes a few minutes and little interaction on my part. > Either way, have fun and take lotsa pics. Better to take too many than > too few, that's what I say. Thanks! >>My Mom promised me several times that we would go to >>the Big Island, some day. I was really looking forward to that. But, it [quoted text clipped - 40 lines] >Either way, have fun and take lotsa pics. Better to take too many than >too few, that's what I say. Regarding the downloading of the digital images, I got good reviews on King Photo, and had planned to use them (Oahu, Maui, Hawai'i-Kona) for burning CD's, but didn't need them. Might be worth a look, or maybe an i-Pod/Epson 2000/ Nikon CW, etc. However, CF's are fairly cheap. Sixty -> 80 GB of storage can come in handy. Hunt On Mon, 05 Sep 2005 06:51:49 -0700, pooua wrote: >> On Sat, 03 Sep 2005 18:18:54 -0700, pooua wrote: >> [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > while I am there. After all, it's been 32 years since I was last in > Hawaii; there is no telling if I will ever be there, again. Then, do it up right: Stay a month!!! That should give you more than enough time for long, remembering walks and extensive photography of 7 islands. And it will be cheaper than doing another 2 weeks in 10 or 20 years, if ever. Okay. So, a month is out of the question, but 3 weeks isn't. And as a girl friend, who left the Big Island -- Hilo, specifically -- years ago to see the world, is fond of saying: "Take time to smell the flowers." Oh, and by the way, her favorite Hawaiian island is Maui, where she returns periodically to "...cleanse my soul, renew my spirit, and get back on "Hawaiian Time."" ;-) Stefan On 9/6/05 6:59 PM, in article <snip> > And as a girl friend, who left the Big Island -- Hilo, specifically -- > years ago to see the world, is fond of saying: "Take time to smell the [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > returns periodically to "...cleanse my soul, renew my spirit, and get > back on "Hawaiian Time."" ;-) She's right, you got yourself a "keeper" - make sure you work hard to "keep" her.....:) PC > On 9/6/05 6:59 PM, in article > [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > She's right, you got yourself a "keeper" - make sure you work hard to > "keep" her.....:) Way ahead of you. Already have... Stefan On 9/8/05 7:14 PM, in article >> On 9/6/05 6:59 PM, in article >> [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > > Way ahead of you. Already have... Don't let up.....:) PC >I am planning a 2-week trip to Hawaii around January. For a 2-wk trip to just two islands, I took D70, 12>24, 24>50, 35>135 (with limited macro), 105 Micro and tubes, 80>200 and 300, plus about 16GB of CF storage. Didn't use the 300 much. One comment though, with the exception of Lanai, each island has four distinct regions and each is unique. Three days/island is hardly enough to even visit each region, much less capture anything but snapshots photographically. Then, there is the ever-present "weather." While a whirl-wind trip can be great fun, I'd be more concerned about seeing, than really photographing on such an expedition. Also, Jan-Feb can be a bit taxing with an abundance of high-level clouds. Hunt |
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