Next month's problem

I'm off to Belgium next month [ middle-ish ] and of course cameras [ yes the K-x and the P70 ] are coming too .

NOW

Photos will be taken - both interior stuff and exterior stuff but I can't put up any from last year to give you an idea - 'cos they were taken on Fuji S5000 and Kodak P&S before both of them demised .

Exterior stuff will include a few landscape shots - the countryside is beautiful and peaceful - fields , a few cows , that sort of stuff . There will be also some exteriors of buildings .

Interior stuff will include Churches - lots of iconography on the walls and the buildings will be unlit . It is possible to get a reasonably good shot looking from inside to the outside through 2 open doors and the effect of the bright sunny light outside does give a good result.

Now - I'm intending to take the 40mmLtd with me but since I'm travelling as light as possible [ going all the way by trains] I only want one other lens - should it be the 18-55 or the 50-200 ?

Suggestions and your reasons for them please - I really don't know which to take

Ooooo !
Difficult one Techno - I don`t know how heavy the 50-200 is - presumably about the same as my 70-300 FAJ and a lot lighter than my Sigma 28-300.
You say "a few landscape shots" but "lots of iconography" so I am inclined to opt for the 18-55 as I have had many good results from mine and the 3.5 aperture is reasonably wide open.There does not seem many opportunities from what you propose for the 200 end of the other.Ideally a teleconverter would solve the problem methinks but then ideally I would like a 12-24..............................dream on laddie !!

regards

Tony

I rarely need a long lens. The majority of my images come from the narrow end of the zoom range. You have a good quality prime to leave on most of the time and the 18-55mm for when you have to get a diffent angle.

The 40mm is tiny anyway and you can leave it in your pocket so perhaps don't even consider it. Just put the 18-55 on the camera, 50-200 as a spare and 40mm in a pair of socks.

Somebody was asking about a Kata bag that took a camera with lens and two more lenses. It wasn't too big.

I would also go for the 18-55. As a general purpose lens, it is a lot more practical than the 50-200 lens, and is reasonably wide, so it can give good results with landscape.

I would also add a flash to the kit. It could come in real handy inside dimly lit buildings.

Maybe you could post a link to a couple of photos if you don't want to post them here?

I'd say the 18-55 too, though I agree with Doug that the 40mm is so small it would tuck in somewhere and then with the 18-55 on the camera you could manage the 50-200 too.

But I don't think you'll need the length by the sound of it, unless those cows play hard to get.

Oh and Doug - she already has a severe case of BBA - she doesn't need any encouragement to go out and buy another one .

Oh yes the Kata H-10, or H-12. room for phones and mp3 etc etc

Doug - BAH

I'll be going with a bag with my lappy in ,also in this bag will be a small holstertype with the K-x and probably 18-55 on it with the P70 in a side pocket , front pocket will have cards , batteries etc. the 40mm will be in it's pouch loose in the bag [ no room in the wee holstertype ]

OK as evidence from last year of the type of thing

http://gallery.me.com/technoidiot#100068

The pic of the bridge is taken in Dinant from the Café Leffe

Looking at this another way, don't you already have the answer in the exif data from the shots from previous trips? (Assuming they were digital images)

Just check out what the focal lengths were for the shots you took, and presuming you were happy you didn't miss anything, you'll have the answer in the range of focal lengths used?

Techno

don't for get a tripod or a beanbag off flash if you can carry it

ND filter's also come in handy

James

OY - what do you all think I'm taking - a flipping pantechnichon ?

I have 2 messed up elbows - I've a case on wheels and a' carry on' type bag. I've to travel down to London , next day get Eurostar , which means I leave the house at very silly o'Clock , get over to Brussels where I'll be meeting up with my travel companion and we will then get a local train and then get picked up by car. My Flash will probably go in my case with the charger for the P70 and other electrical stuff for my hairdryer [ natch I'm female ] and the computer stuff. Sadly no chance of taking my tripod BUT I may be able to get a chance of using a Monopod if it was bought in Paris [ not be me, I hastily add ] . There will be a thick small towel for putting under the K-x if I park it on a wall to take a shot.

John - I'm really intending to re-shoot most of the things I took last year - and hopefully make a much better job of it - the Fuji and Kodak were used as P&S .

Alternative thought: if travelling light is the thing, leave the laptop behind and travel with cameras plus 18-55mm and 50-200mm lenses. The 40mm is neither here nor there it's so small, but it won't be as versatile as the two zooms.

To make up for not having the laptop, take an iPhone if e-mail is needed, or lots of SD cards if memory was the issue, or both.

Shave your head, loose the lappy and hair drier, buy 5*8gb extreme 20MB/s cards (3000+ish images), and hire a porter to carry your bags, forget the P70....sorry, this is not a dream.... I have issues.

Just the 40mm and the 18-55mm then

But you look so so butch in your avatar

James

AHA John - that had been the original intention - but there's no Internet where I will be this time - but the lappy has PSE on it - and I'm going to conquer my fear of said programme Yup - I am having my hand held while I get to grips with it .

The lappy is a Macbook Pro so reasonably light

I could force myself self to use the Lowepro Fastpack 250 which certainly would have room for everything , but I'll need a small bag for carrying my camera about once I'm there. And of course the real problem is that rubbish expands to fill the space available

Using a combination of your friend's shoulder as a camera support, and the K-x's great ISO 1600, you probably can get away without flash or tripods etc even in the most dimly kit places.