How many lenses is too many to take on a trip?

[Experiment_626]

I was about to say I take everything I own, but I realized that isn't really true. I always take my D300 with my 10-20, 18-135 and 50mm f1.8. My wife has an 18-200 VR (Sigma, not Nikon), and I might use that if I can get her to give it up for a bit. But I also have an N65 film camera with a 28-70 zoom, and I might take that (in addition to the digital stuff) on an upcoming trip -- but if I do that, I'll rent a locker for some of the gear. I always have a tripod as well, day or night.

My dream accessory is an assistant/caddy to carry everything for me and hand it out when I need it -- without complaint! I don't think B&H can help with that.

SSB

 

[pointandshoot]

I try to keep it simple. We have two photographers, my daughter and I, and we keep gear to a minimal.

2 bodies - Nikon D40 and Canon 40D
2 Nikon kit lenses - 1 wide and tele zoom
1 Canon 16-35mm 2.8
1 Canon 24-105mm 4.0
1 Canon tele - either the 100-400 IS or the 70-200 2.8 IS
I tripod
1 Speedlight - either Nikon or Canon
1 Pacsafe to lock up stuff in room

I may toss in a fast prime. I try to cover the focal range. I am a little short on the wide end using a crop body.

If my daughter and I are going to a park specifically to shoot, I will carry full gear. If it is a family play day, it is only 1 body and a midrange lens. Only family photos and grab shots.

I find if I lug too much gear, I spend time fiddling with stuff and not looking for good images. I try not to switch lenses too much.



Chuck

 

[handicap18]

I'll be leaving in a few days...

I plan on taking:
Nikkor 18-135mm
Nikkor 70-300mm VR
Sigma 10-20mm
Sigma 30mm f/1.4
Tamron 90mm f/2.8 MACRO

The last trip I took the 90mm Macro, but didn't use it. This time we're going without the kids and I'll have a bunch of free time so I think I'll try and get some MACRO shots this time.

I'm still not sure if I'll take the 50mm f/1.8. Kind of redundant with the 30mm f/1.4 but it is so small and easy to carry around.

ETA: I'll also bring along the 18-70mm as a backup. One can never be too sure.

 

[boBQuincy]

Today I carried too much around the NC transportation museum: Xsi, 24-105, 10-22, 70-200, and a tripod. It was *really* hot and humid so I had a water bottle too. The load was really too much and made for a rough day.

As usual, I didn't use the 70-200 much but did get a few photos that made it worth carrying. It's still more gear than I care to carry for a whole day of walking around. Unlike WDW the museum is mostly outdoors or not air conditioned. We rarely go to WDW in the hotter months anyway, now I remember why!

 

[PhotobearSam]

How many lenses is too many to take on a short trip?


As many as the Sherpa can carry without falling over....

 

[kaffinito]

How many lenses is too many to take on a short trip?


As many as the Sherpa can carry without falling over....

So that's what I still need to get for my kit!

I wonder if I can rent one at AK?

 

[Groucho]

I'll be leaving in a few days...

I plan on taking:
Nikkor 18-135mm
Nikkor 70-300mm VR
Sigma 10-20mm
Sigma 30mm f/1.4
Tamron 90mm f/2.8 MACRO

The last trip I took the 90mm Macro, but didn't use it. This time we're going without the kids and I'll have a bunch of free time so I think I'll try and get some MACRO shots this time.

You don't need to go macro for that lens... I used my 105mm macro a bit last trip for "regular" photos. Your Tamron is faster and almost certainly has clearly better IQ than your other lenses in that range. I also found leaving a longer lens on like that for a little while inspires some photos that you might not normally have thought of. Regardless, the IQ and shorter DoF should be enough to consider making it one of the primary lenses!