My frugal photography gear for travel

Happy Father's Day.

We had a happy family gathering today involving three generations. The semi-buffet lunch was really nice. An occasion to take some pictures as well. My son Andrew just came back from the UK last night and he has recently taken up an interest in photography. However our choice of photography gear differs. He is a DSLR man (in Canon) through and through, although he can't afford more than 2 lenses (one used) at this moment. I have more diversified choices. We talked about what gear I used when I travelled to Jeju, Korea last month.

As I'm not young anymore, weight consideration is of paramount importance now. I remember quite well my heavy camera bag, weighing more than 10 pounds, in my younger days, an act often ridiculed by my wife. Now I become lazier and aim at light weight even if that means some compromise in image quality (IQ), or so it seems. I reckon that even if not all lenses are created equal with some better than others on measurement, what really matters is the quality of the pictures and it is not necessarily in direct proportion to the accepted quality or price of the lens one uses.

Although good lenses are never too cheap, I've always maintained that frugality is not impossible in one's choice of photography gear: I've never taken to the foolish habit of showing off one's exotic lenses -- the "see what I got" superiority complex. Andrew asked me to post my choice of gear for travel in this blog, and here it is in the following picture.

The list of gear from left to right in the picture above:

1) Nikon AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor 12-24mm f/4G IF-ED (465g)

2) Nikon D5100 body and Nikkor 45mm f/2.8P (560g + 120g)

3) Panasonic Lumix G3 with Lumix Leica DG 25mm f/1.4 ASPH (200g for the lens)

4) Panasonic Lumix G Vario 45-200mm f/4.0-5.6 (761g for the G3 body + lens)

Total: 2106g

This 2.1kg set serves my purpose and pocket well. It covers the 35mm camera equivalent of focal lengths from 18mm to 36mm (zoom), 50mm (prime), 67.5mm (prime) and 90-400mm (zoom). And it contains 2 bodies. Low-light scenes can be tackled with the f/1.4 normal lens.

As Jeju is well known for its beautiful natural scenery, a good wide-angle lens is a must. This Nikon 12-24mm zoom was bought together with my D70 when they were first released many years ago, and has been a stellar performer as far as wide angles are concerned. I have thought of acquiring the Lumix 7-14mm f/4 ASPH before, but since no filter can be attached to it because of the bulging front lens and it is not cheap, I may as well use my well-tried Nikon zoom.

I chose D5100 because of its tiltable LCD and its middle of the road specifications and price. It also fits the DX format of the 12-24mm zoom. The 45mm f/2.8P lens is not only cute but also sharp and has the lovable "footprint" of old lenses. Although it is manual focus, automation in metering is still possible because it is a "P" lens. I may change it for an autofocus lens in my next trip, using the cheap but very good Nikkor AF-S 50mm f/1.8G instead (not much heavier at 185g).

The micro 4/3 system is chosen for its light weight. The IQ of the "Leica" 25mm f/1.4 lens is excellent. The tele-zoom is particularly handy given its feather weight compared with similar zooms for any DSLR system. For comparison the NIkon AF-S VR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED weighs 745g alone, almost as much as this micro 4/3 lens together with the G3 body. The much coveted AF-S 70-200mm f/2.8G VRII is 1540g in weight and costs significantly more.

The total cost of this set is still less than what one would pay for the new D800 body alone.

Oh I forget to mention that this set has an all-weather mini backup in the form of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3 which my wife carries. This camera has proven to be very handy both in rain and in snow.