Antartica expedition - what camera/lenses

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colinharwood

Senior Member
Hello all,

I have a trip booked to South America and Antartica in january. I am assuming this is going to be a once in a lifetime opportunity, and am racking my brain trying to think about the correct lense.

I currently have a d7100, will this be sufficient for an Antartic trip, or do I seriously give it all I have and get a d810 and keep the 7100 as a backup cam.

Also what lenses should I take? im trying to minimise the amount of times I have to swap lenses etc..

current set-up is d7100 with Sigma 70-200 2.8. (only had lense 1 day :)
 
Horoscope Fish

Horoscope Fish

Senior Member
colinharwood said:
Hello all,

I have a trip booked to South America and Antartica in january. I am assuming this is going to be a once in a lifetime opportunity, and am racking my brain trying to think about the correct lense.

I currently have a d7100, will this be sufficient for an Antartic trip, or do I seriously give it all I have and get a d810 and keep the 7100 as a backup cam.

Also what lenses should I take? im trying to minimise the amount of times I have to swap lenses etc..

current set-up is d7100 with Sigma 70-200 2.8. (only had lense 1 day :)
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The D7100 is an entirely capable camera and I say that owning both a D7100 and a D750. As for lenses the 70-200mm is a must have and I'd want a good 35mm prime (either the Sigma 35mm f/1.4 Art series lens (which is fantastic) or the Nikon 35mm f/1.8G) and for wide angle I'd suggest the Tokina 12-28mm f/4.

And personally, I've never understood the "issue" with swapping lenses. Get a small messenger bag to carry a couple lenses and practice swapping lenses in and out of that bag for a few minutes every day. With a the right bag and a good routine it takes only a few seconds to do a lens change quickly and cleanly.
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C

colinharwood

Senior Member
thankyou for the advise :).

I can swap lenses no problems but I do have the worry that if I have a failure then my entire trip is without photos which is one of the reasons I am going.

If i purchase another body I dont really want to buy the same camera as I will then have 2 bodys that do the same thing..

the 35mm sounds like a great lense, perhaps I should do some research.
 
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Chito

Senior Member
If I were you, first I'll make sure I have 4 lenses, a 10-24 (or any UW lens), a 24-70 and a 70-200 plus the already mentioned 35mm. The issue with getting a 750 at this point is you will need to get the lenses for it too. So I suggest getting the lenses first and a used 7100 for your backup.
 
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analoguey01

Senior Member
Colin, I'd suggest somethg entirely left-field. Buy 2 backup Nikon film bodies -The non-electronic kind. And about 30 rolls of Ilford delta / fuji velvia. (for the Antarctica bit)

Also, check out the manual Nikon wide angles. Caution - if you aren't used to wide angles, practice first before shooting at location.


Also, Better to not have to swap lenses - pls carry additional bodies if you're luggage limits allow that/ you're comfy carrying multiple bodies on your person.
 
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Marcel

Marcel

Happily retired
Staff member
Super Mod
Why not stick with DX and get a 7200 and use your 7100 for backup. You'd have money left for a 11-16 Tokina 2.8 and a 35 and a Tamron 24-70 2.8 VC. Unless you plan on selling your shots (even then...) and printing billboard sized prints, the DX should be fine.
 
Horoscope Fish

Horoscope Fish

Senior Member
Marcel said:
Why not stick with DX and get a 7200 and use your 7100 for backup. You'd have money left for a 11-16 Tokina 2.8 and a 35 and a Tamron 24-70 2.8 VC. Unless you plan on selling your shots (even then...) and printing billboard sized prints, the DX should be fine.
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Agreed. You'll have two fantastic cameras and both will have a button/menu format you're familiar with, and all your existing gear will be compatible.

Then use some of that $3,000 you didn't spend on a D810 and spend it on your photographic education instead. Read some books, take some classes... Take a LOT of classes.
....
 
Eduard

Eduard

Super Mod
Staff member
Super Mod
EXTRA BATTERIES!!! Batteries drain much quicker in cold weather so I'd suggest bring extras along with multi-battery charger.
 
B

Blacktop

Senior Member
Wow! With all that expensive gear everyone seems to think the OP needs, I'm surprised noone mentioned the most important thing. A few quality filters. A CP would be on the top of the list. Antartica and all that ice and reflections?...

Speaking of other gear? I would not hesitate to take my current setup as is, to a once in a lifetime trip.
 
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C

colinharwood

Senior Member
well thats the thing, it is for me a "once in a lifetime" thing. this will be the first time I have gone traveling alone and somewhere other than Bali.

I am not buying a camera just for the trip, I would like to have the camera to use for many other things, hence I see purchasing a 7200 or another 7100 pointless, d610 is same price

So, currently I have a 10-20 sigma, 18-250 3.5sigma, a lens I managed to geat cheap (tokina 24-70 atx pro) which happens to be my favorite lense.

When I bought the 50-200 2.8 I got the FX version so its compatible with both my crop and if I ever went there a full frame.

so I could use the 50-200 2.8 on a fx and then the 18-250 3.5 on the 7100
 
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