Prime Len for Travel Photography

[sinned79]

I was posted to Hong Kong for work for about half a year not too long ago. I brought along a combo of D90 with 35mm f1.8 and the kit lens 18-105mm f/3.5-5.6. I also brought a tripod.

I brought both lens because they were the only lens I had in my possession. I was using them to take the following images of :

1) my 2-month old daughter who was growing and changing with every passing day while she made the trip with my wife and me to Hong Kong.

2) food and gloriously good food (from 茶餐厅 to Yum Chas to Michelin-starred restaurants)

3) as I was on a business trip, I was taking photos at nights on Mondays-Fridays and day/night shots on weekends.

4) Landscape shots were taken at places such as The Peak, Lantau Island and Lamma, Big Buddha, Stanley, North Point, Mong Kok, Hong Kong Island from Sheung Wan to Tai Koo and Kowloon to Lai Chi Kok and even Yuen Long and Ma On Shan!

5) Theme parks that I had visited included Disneyland and Ocean Park.

6) Weekend getaways to Macau as well.

During my time there, I must say that I had 80% of my shots using the 35mm. Since I take mostly images of food and my family, the 35mm f/1.8 was able to capture suitably well in low lights. The only times when the 18mm was needed were for:
i) the nightly laser shows from Tsim Sha Tsui overlooking Hong Kong Island and vice versa. (even the 18mm is not able to capture the entire Hong Kong Island)
ii) the view from the Peak (the 18mm was also not able to capture the entire view in 1 shot)
iii) views from Lamma Island
iv) shows at theme parks where I ensured that I'm seated at the "No splash zone" so as to protect my camera equipment.
v) The Ruins of St. Paul in Macau

Since TS does not have any intention to switch to FF, a 35mm lens is effective about 50mm already so it does present a tight angle to shoot with. Fortunately for me, the 35mm focuses to about 1 foot so I never really have to stand up to take a picture of a food in a busy and cramped 茶餐厅 or Yum Cha place around Hong Kong)

At the Avenue of Stars, I was taking the statue of Bruce Lee in low light (The sun sets around 5:30-6pm in Hong Kong). Using a tripod, I was able to set a longer exposure with the 35mm fully open compared to the 18-105 kit lens at f/3.5. With the f/3.5, my subjects were moving like they were practicing 無影腳 (shadowless kick)!

Changing lens is quite challenging in Hong Kong due to bad streetside air quality (very high PSI readings) and strong winds. It is advisable to change your lens indoors before you go outdoors. At places like The Peak and Avenue of Stars, I was running indoors to change my lens.

I hope you will enjoy your trip to Hong Kong. Regardless of the lens you bring, it is more important to enjoy the trip than to worry about the adequecies of the gear you bring. I did not bring my tripod every day as well and ocasionally relied on my wife's PnS camera or the camera phone for those times when I went jogging at Happy Valley Racecourse or to Stanley and to some cosy cafes with free wireless access point.

i brought my 35, 17-40 and 135 and end up using 35 + 17-40 mainly and most of the time i am using 35 haha. My 135 I only used once for less then 5 mins. :bsmilie:

 

[enzeru21]

usually you won't use the long ranges la... very hard to manage.. and quite unlikely you will use, unless like you really know you will be far away from a certain subject..

 

[sinned79]

usually you won't use the long ranges la... very hard to manage.. and quite unlikely you will use, unless like you really know you will be far away from a certain subject..

or stalking a subject? :devil:

 

[enzeru21]

or stalking a subject? :devil:

usually 17-55, 15-85, 24-105 this kinda range is more than enough le.. stalking who?? pretty girl?? :bsmilie:

 

[sinned79]

usually 17-55, 15-85, 24-105 this kinda range is more than enough le.. stalking who?? pretty girl?? :bsmilie:

talking about pretty girls, HK got alot on the streets! Damn i got not enough time to switch to 135mm to shoot then using 35mm, walked too close, they siam :bsmilie:

 

[enzeru21]

talking about pretty girls, HK got alot on the streets! Damn i got not enough time to switch to 135mm to shoot then using 35mm, walked too close, they siam :bsmilie:

must ask ma.. just be nice.. say "hello sorry i would like to take a photo of you"... then ask for their email so you can send to them later on...

 

[PeacefulDogie]

Mind to ask how about 18-135 suitable for travelling?

 

[enzeru21]

Mind to ask how about 18-135 suitable for travelling?

every lens is suitable, bcos every lens can let you take photos...

just that you must consider what type of lens you need for what kinda shooting style.. and what kinda quality u need ur photos to be...

18-135 why can't?? wide, tele... good enough... if you can accept the IQ of the photos while shooting with it... and you are ok with the range, weight.. why not?

 

[PeacefulDogie]

cos going to buy canon with kit len 18-135 ...
ok or not? or 18-55 better ?

 

[enzeru21]

cos going to buy canon with kit len 18-135 ...
ok or not? or 18-55 better ?

do you need that kinda range??? do you know how long is 135? have you tried it??

if not, i would suggest u try it out... u may realise that you dont need 135 for daily use... so save the $ and just get the 18-55... the extra money will serve better purpose else where...

and if you do need that kinda range, are u willing to use the 18-135 at e expense of IQ/sharpness etc.. if not now, then mayb in the future then get a lens that will give u e extra reach...

 

[PeacefulDogie]

i would like to have long distance shooting for my school event like sports day etc...so how you suggest?

 

[hotwork77]

i would like to have long distance shooting for my school event like sports day etc...so how you suggest?

Depends on how near or how far you want to place yourself relative to the action. Some people stand from the sidelines and use 300mm lens. Some use 18-55mm lens. Some use 18-135mm. So it actually depends what you want to photograph. I prefer 50mm prime on FF.

 

[PeacefulDogie]

but if 18-135 is the more far than 18-55 ? better buy kit 2 ?

 

[alantkh]

I think you definately need a 17-35mm and a tele prime maybe 100mm.

I used to travel with 2 DSLRs with a UWA and a teleprime.

Now I travel with one DSLR with a UWA and telezoom + a compact NX10 with 30mm f2 lens. I think getting a smaller EVIL with a good lens is actually very useful. There are many times on the trip where I don't want to lug out my D700 with 70-200m mounted....

The normal 45mm perspective and bright aperture of the 30mm lens also makes it very versatile.

 

[alantkh]

usually you won't use the long ranges la... very hard to manage.. and quite unlikely you will use, unless like you really know you will be far away from a certain subject..

not really. If you take family portraits during your travels, 70-200mm perspective is actually very beautiful.

If you make the effort to back away from your subject and shoot with a tele, the pics are quite different.

my recent NZ travel trip

http://www.keehian.com/siteNz2010

 

[alantkh]

Dont you think 24-70 is too heavy for travelling purpose?

actually depends on how your travel.

If you are doing a self drive, it is actually very manageable. I lugged a D700, 14-24, 70-200mm on my recent NZ self drive.

but if you are taking trains.... then it is pretty tiring.

 

[hotwork77]

actually depends on how your travel.

If you are doing a self drive, it is actually very manageable. I lugged a D700, 14-24, 70-200mm on my recent NZ self drive.

but if you are taking trains.... then it is pretty tiring.

I used to use D700 for my travels. Found it too heavy and cumbersome. Revert to my old D60. Alas still heavy and then finally settle for a pns. :bsmilie:

 

[PeacefulDogie]

can anyone tell 18-135 better for travel or not ?

 

[sinned79]

can anyone tell 18-135 better for travel or not ?

dude, this is personal preference, there is no hard and fast rule what lens to use during travels, as long as u are comfortable to use this lens, just go ahead.

 

[betta01]

Using a Nikon 50mm f1.4D for most of mine travel/vacation photography, now very much addicted to travelling with light gear especially when photo qualities are not affected.
May purchase a 20mm f2.8D prime for use in crowded urban cities.