I've never been on a cruise, but will be going on a short one later this summer. I primarily use prime lenses on my Canon SL1 (24mm & 40mm). I do own a couple of older kit lenses from my film days, a 35-80mm f/4-5.6 and an 80-200mm f/4.5-5.6, as well as the kit lens from my previous Canon T2i (18-55mm). Whenever I pull out the 80-200, it is always disappointing from an IQ perspective.
I am assuming that for the most part, I will be as happy with my prime lenses as I am here at home - I mainly expect to take pictures of people (we're cruising with extended family) and I'm well used to my feet doing the zooming. :) But I've never cruised before and am wondering if I'll need something with a longer reach? I mean, I expect the ocean days to be pretty boring scenery (oh, look, more water) but what about coming into/leaving port? What if I'm considering taking a photography excursion at our destination?
@sarahsthreads Depends on where you're cruising. I've only done one cruise, in Alaska, and there were times I wanted a longer lens as the sea life was pretty amazing, along with scenes on the shore. But, that may have been a unique situation. Other than that, the prime lenses should be great.
Prime lens are more than enough if your photo subject stays within the cruise. But as @taffy mentioned, if you chance to see some dolphins and other sea life (don't wanna miss clicking), you may need a zoom lens. (I carry a good point to shoot with high optical zoom for such situations as a backup).
I've been in 3 different cruises- Canada, Bahamas and Mexico- just bring a small P&S w/ zoom -just be sure it can stand wind, mist,dust, heat and even water!-I don't advice U to carry expensive and heavy gears, the place is crowded-(old & young) & most of the time U eat,eat, & eat- lots of dancing,drinking, games and party too and strapping a bulky toy is a big minus-Enjoy the cruise and Bon Appetite!:)- oh carry lots of hand sanitizer too- it's a must!:)
Given the selection, I'd go with a 18-55mm for close subject matter and a 80-200 for far(away) subject matter. But primes are often very good at overall light quality...
It should anyway be lenses you are comfortably with - unless your focus is to challenge yourself...
Personally, my best all-round lens is my Sigma 18-200mm as it covers all the basic needs. It has replaced the original kit lenses (18-55mm, 50-200mm) for me. On trips, I usually bring this - and at least one Lensbaby combo (35mm or 50mm).
Bringing a p&s (compact) if you've got one is also a very good idea.
@sreehari@taffy We're going to Canada (East coast) so I don't know about wildlife. It would be awesome to see dolphins or whales! That's a great idea to bring a P&S, we do have one that has a decent zoom range - and it weighs practically nothing. My husband brings it with him on business trips to other countries, and it does a good job taking travel snapshots despite his complete lack of interest in photography. :)
@joemuli My SL1 + 2 prime lens kit is pretty compact and very lightweight, and considering I'm traveling with three kids - including a toddler still in diapers - I'm resigned to dealing with a largish bag anyway. I have a Lowepro sling bag that fits my camera gear and a diaper change kit pretty handily. If I were going to bring another lens I might have to invest in a padded pouch, though, because I doubt I could fit it in the camera "box" part of my bag.
Thanks for the tip on hand sanitizer - with a thumb-sucking toddler it's going on the top of my list! I'm not normally a germaphobe, but that many people in that small a space...yeah. Hand sanitizer, it is!
@bankmann Definitely not looking to challenge myself, just capture the trip with photos worth printing and sticking in an album. :) I'd kind of thought to bring the prime lenses and maybe a longer zoom - either what I currently have or something new. I'm always somewhat disappointed when I use that 80-200mm lens. I don't know if I would feel the same about a better quality zoom lens? Or if it's a zoom vs. prime thing for me more than anything. I really noticed when I started using prime lenses that I became much happier with my photos overall - I truly "see" what I'm about to shoot and put much more thought into composition because I have to move about much more than I did with zoom lenses.
I'd love a Lensbaby, I've been playing around with freelensing this spring and I love the effects! Maybe I should save my money for that instead and go with the primes and our compact P&S for the trip. :)
@sarahsthreads I'm a fan of primes myself for the exact reason you mention, it forces you to move you feet and "work the shot" rather than just sniping snapshots. Having said that, several factors actually cause me to think you're in a prime scenario for a good quality all-purpose telephoto. The 80-200mm lens is an economic telephoto lens, so it's not surprising you are dissatisfied with picture quality from it. But budget permitting, perhaps you can rent a good quality all-purpose zoom? Renting is a great option for vacations. Even though I own high quality lenses, I still rent for vacation. You could for example, rent a $2,400 24-300mm telephoto from Aperturent.com for 10 days fully insured for about $140. They ship to you with a return box and labels. I'm certain you would be much happier with the images it produces. You could bring that for pretty much all daytime photography, and then maybe one of your favorite primes for indoor/low-light situations. I rent for vacations so that I don't have to worry about the lens. Even though my lenses are insured, whenever I take them out for "personal use" I'm still always worried about them because they're "mine". When I rent for vacation, I pretty much couldn't care less if anything happens to the lens and I can enjoy my vacation yet still get great photos from a high quality lens. I personally rent from Aperturent.com, but there are also other online lens rent options who will ship to you, plus your local camera store might also rent.
Then it sounds like you'd be the happiest with the primes. Go with that. :-)
And you'd love a Lensbaby! :-)
The unhappiness with the zoom is probably just because you haven't 'figured it out' yet. I have some lenses I've really had to work at - and yes, they've been the zooms... or longer primes. It is a bit harder to 'frame' what you want when the distance to your subject matter grows, because your angle of view gets constricted. But don't give up on it. You'll figure it out.
@vera365 It really is a great bag - it says something that I've carried the same bag for four years now, I've never stuck with the same purse/bag for anywhere near this long before! I also appreciate that it doesn't really look like a camera bag, I'm not a fan of the standard black box-like camera bags. :)
@bankmann I definitely should keep working on it. I've been considering a longer prime as well, but feel like my next lens investment probably should be a better zoom lens - maybe in the meantime I should pull my kit lens out and force myself to figure out how to take great pictures with it! :)
Well, maybe my next lens investment should be a Lensbaby, actually...
Hi Sarah... When I saw you were doing Eastern Canada, I suspect you're taking the fall colours cruise past Nova Scotia and into the St Lawrence to Quebec. If I'm correct, you'll be in for some amazing scenery! Ken & I have cruised a lot, and my favorite all purpose is a high end bridge camera, a Panasonic Lumix...60x zoom, close up features, and for some of the fun events on board, I was glad to have the video as well. I was so happy with that camera (though I'm sure there are many others with similar capabilities) I sold a friend on it, and it was her camera of choice on a trip to China! It's my opinion that when cruising, your time on tours won't allow for much really serious photography. If you don't have to struggle with lenses, you'll get many nice photos that will bring back good memories. And don't forget that on the ship, you're likely to find nice things to photograph as well...as jdM said, the food presentation and the day they show off the galley and the beautiful displays of food, carving , etc...some of the nice art displays around the ship in their collection, staff members you'll enjoy and want to remember as well as new friends you'll meet, and even a menu close up so you'll remember all the choices you were given! You'll find even more than all that!
IF your cruise takes you to Halifax, may I make a suggestion, as a 14-yr homeowner 1 hour south of there in Lunenburg? Halifax is a nice "large town" with it's interesting history and a wonderful Citidel, but for photographic moments, catch a tour south to Lunenburg, stopping at Peggy's Cove along the way. I promise, you won't be disappointed! Have a look at my summer photos (as we're there typically from late June to as late as early Dec) I've covered a lot of NS territory, and am so happy to call Lunenburg home! Contact me if I'm talking about the cruise you're taking and I'm happy to maky suggestions if you'd like.
G'day Sarah. I've been on a number of cruises, the most recent was seven weeks. There are always things to capture and even the sea days can be an interesting time to explore the ship.
Back in 2010 I sailed in the Mediterranean with three lenses and frequently found I had the wrong lens for those quick situations that develop as you enter or leave a port.
When I got home I put the whole lot on Ebay and bought the Panasonic Lumix FZ150 replaced it with the FZ200 after an accident. Couldn't be happier. The long zoom caters for just about everything and the unit weighs a lot less too.
Feel free to browse my images with the tag "ruby_princess" or "royal_princess".
Hope that's been of some help.
@Weezilou I wish! That sounds really fun, but we're going to Saint John - it's a really short cruise to celebrate a big anniversary for my in-laws. :)
However, if we love it, I have no doubt I can talk my husband into future cruises, and a fall colors cruise would be so my cup of tea!
Thanks for the tips, and that Panasonic looks like a great camera! Even if I don't upgrade my point & shoot, my oldest is starting to take an interest in photography, maybe that could be a good gift in a year or two.
@tonydebont Wow, you have some great photos and collages with those tags! I love the idea of getting our early enough to catch the sunrise over the water - my kids are fairly early risers anyway, so it's not like I'll get to sleep late. :) Looking through your photos gives me some ideas of what to expect, which is great. Thank you!
Updating to say that I brought my 24mm & 40mm primes, a 35-80mm that I mostly use for freelensing, and my 80-200mm zoom. I used the 24mm for 85% of my photos, the 40mm for 10%, and the two zooms for the remaining 5% - none of which are going into my "print & put in an album" list. We saw dolphins twice, but not for long enough that I would have been able to get out my camera, so we just watched them!
The photography excursion was actually for coastal landscape photography, so I used my 24mm exclusively for that and was pretty thrilled with the images I took.
I was happy to have my external flash. But next cruise (it may be five years or more from now, but there will be a next time!) I'm just bringing my primes and my external flash and calling it a day. :)
Thanks! I'm looking forward to my cruise... Only a little over a week away. I'll likely be taking my full lens kit of 5 'just in case'! Wish I had a decent telephoto :)
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It should anyway be lenses you are comfortably with - unless your focus is to challenge yourself...
Personally, my best all-round lens is my Sigma 18-200mm as it covers all the basic needs. It has replaced the original kit lenses (18-55mm, 50-200mm) for me. On trips, I usually bring this - and at least one Lensbaby combo (35mm or 50mm).
Bringing a p&s (compact) if you've got one is also a very good idea.
Thanks for the tip on hand sanitizer - with a thumb-sucking toddler it's going on the top of my list! I'm not normally a germaphobe, but that many people in that small a space...yeah. Hand sanitizer, it is!
I'd love a Lensbaby, I've been playing around with freelensing this spring and I love the effects! Maybe I should save my money for that instead and go with the primes and our compact P&S for the trip. :)
Then it sounds like you'd be the happiest with the primes. Go with that. :-)
And you'd love a Lensbaby! :-)
The unhappiness with the zoom is probably just because you haven't 'figured it out' yet. I have some lenses I've really had to work at - and yes, they've been the zooms... or longer primes. It is a bit harder to 'frame' what you want when the distance to your subject matter grows, because your angle of view gets constricted. But don't give up on it. You'll figure it out.
Well, maybe my next lens investment should be a Lensbaby, actually...
IF your cruise takes you to Halifax, may I make a suggestion, as a 14-yr homeowner 1 hour south of there in Lunenburg? Halifax is a nice "large town" with it's interesting history and a wonderful Citidel, but for photographic moments, catch a tour south to Lunenburg, stopping at Peggy's Cove along the way. I promise, you won't be disappointed! Have a look at my summer photos (as we're there typically from late June to as late as early Dec) I've covered a lot of NS territory, and am so happy to call Lunenburg home! Contact me if I'm talking about the cruise you're taking and I'm happy to maky suggestions if you'd like.
Back in 2010 I sailed in the Mediterranean with three lenses and frequently found I had the wrong lens for those quick situations that develop as you enter or leave a port.
When I got home I put the whole lot on Ebay and bought the Panasonic Lumix FZ150 replaced it with the FZ200 after an accident. Couldn't be happier. The long zoom caters for just about everything and the unit weighs a lot less too.
Feel free to browse my images with the tag "ruby_princess" or "royal_princess".
Hope that's been of some help.
However, if we love it, I have no doubt I can talk my husband into future cruises, and a fall colors cruise would be so my cup of tea!
Thanks for the tips, and that Panasonic looks like a great camera! Even if I don't upgrade my point & shoot, my oldest is starting to take an interest in photography, maybe that could be a good gift in a year or two.
The photography excursion was actually for coastal landscape photography, so I used my 24mm exclusively for that and was pretty thrilled with the images I took.
I was happy to have my external flash. But next cruise (it may be five years or more from now, but there will be a next time!) I'm just bringing my primes and my external flash and calling it a day. :)
The photos I've uploaded here so far are tagged "carnival splendor": http://365project.org/tags/carnival%20splendor
@kph129 Tagging you since your cruise is coming up!