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Choosing lenses for a trip
  • My wife and I are headed to Ecuador/Galapagos Islands next month. I'm going to be a bit limited in the gear I take. So the question is - which 4 lenses should I bring?

    Some thoughts…
    Most of the filming opportunities will be during the day.
    Most of the animals will be fine with "close up" photo/video.
    Most evening hours will be aboard ship.
    3 days/nights in Quito.

    My lens inventory:

    Panny
    7-14mm f4
    14mm f2.5
    20mm f1.7
    14-140mm f4-5.6
    100-300mm f4-5.6

    Minolta Mount
    45mm f2.8 Rokkor-x
    50mm f1.4 Rokkor-x
    58mm f1.4 Rokkor-x
    28-200mm Vivitar f3.5-5.6

    My thoughts:
    0. 14mm (too small to count against the limit :)
    1. 7-14mm
    2. 14-140mm
    3. 20mm
    4. 50mm

    What lens would you swap or leave? Why?
  • 3 Replies sorted by
  • I agree with your choices. The only thought I have is that you might want to consider swapping the 14-140 for the 28-200, depending on the extent to which you appreciate the additional focusing options with the 14-140. If you come across something unexpected, you might really want that extra reach, and my memory is that the bokeh is a bit more pleasant on the Vivitar, so your pictures would look a little less "snapshot" like with it.

    But honestly, you can't go wrong with the ones you already are thinking about. Hope you have fun! :)
  • I was there last march, great country. Don't miss Isabela, beautiful beaches, volcanoes (your 7-14 may not be wide enough to have all the Sierra Negra crater in one shot !), not too many tourists.

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  • This:

    14mm f2.5
    20mm f1.7
    14-140mm f4-5.6

    -14-140 will cover majority of everything you need throughout the day. I have ETC on my Fn2 button so I can gain the reach if necessary.

    -14 and 20 for evening hours.

    -the 7-14mm would be nice, but is more weight for me personally.

    I hate changing lens on trips because then I'm concerned about which lens will get the better shot and I'd rather just take one to cover all.