DSRL Camera for travel

[MTL18]

I don't have the bodies you are interested in but do own the 18-200mm lens. Fine lens, but it does have distortion at the 18mm range so I'd be pairing it with the new 10-18mm if I didn't already have a better lens in the 18mm range. I'd consider bringing the Canon 50mm f/1.8 for nicer portraits and it doesn't add much weight (or even the pancake 40mm).

I guess it's all a matter of opinion, but as much as I wanted to like that lens when I was shooting crop, I was pretty disappointed. Slow focus, lens creep, not as sharp as I had hoped... Since I've moved up to the 6D, I haven't touched my old crop rig or the 18-200. Actually meaning to sell it for whatever the market will bear.

My last trip was with a 6D 24-105 kit, and my 40mm for when I didn't want to carry around the zoom. The pancake is sharp and makes the setup quite small, and the focal length was great walking around Austin.

All fair points. When evaluating a lens I always try to take the viewpoint of "what is it doing for the price". You're right that there are sharper lenses, the focus isn't as fast as other lenses, and I personally find it annoying that you can shake the camera and the zoom will move automatically (requires you to always lock it).

That being said, for a superzoom in the $600.00 range, it is pretty good. Shooting outdoors (with good light) at f/8.0 and it does a fine job. I have other lenses for indoor purposes, especially portraits, but it is a good travel lens when weight is an issue.

Your 6D +24-105 will be better in terms of IQ, but that combo has half the focal range and weighs more.

 

[mvinson1022]

Do what I did and what canon is about to do. Get a Fuji! I hardly ever shoot my 5DMarkiii anymore except for fast moving grandchildren. One body and three lenses covering 28-300 with zooms and either the 35 or 50 (ff equivalent) will weigh less than you can believe. IQ is fantastic.

 

[sdsr]

If you want to stay with Canon, I too would suggest the SL1, which produces image quality at least as good as any other Canon APS-C body (except perhaps the 70D and leaving aside such things as AF points and the inability to microadjust AF) and - at least if you're in the US - can be bought very inexpensively. I keep reading good things about the most recent Sigma 18-250mm OS Macro and if you act within the next few days, you can buy a new one from Adorama for a mere $260; you'll find a link + code for the extra discount at - hold your nose - kenrockwell.com. It's currently on backorder, but maybe it would arrive before you leave (I just ordered one for such a purpose; at that price it was hard to resist). Anyway, an SL1 + that zoom + one or two small primes you already own may well be more than enough. The same might be true of the EOS-M, if you can do without a viewfinder and don't mind the rather laggy performance.

Vacations pose rather a dilemma, don't they? If you're going somewhere special, it seems silly to compromise on image quality, but you don't want to ruin your day by lugging around heavy expensive stuff. To go smaller/lighter than the SL1 + above, you would need to switch to an entirely different system such as Micro 43, or get a relatively expensive high-end point-and-shoot (such as the tiny Sony RX100 series or the bigger Sony RX10) or, for optimal image quality, a Sony A7/7r and its two primes. But those options will all cost more (a lot more, in some cases) and, depending on what sort of images you take and what you plan to do with them, the differences in quality may well be negligible to nonexistent (some of the options will be inferior).

 

[Ruined]

Hi all,

I am planning to have holidays but I don't want to travel heavy with my 5D3 and the FF lenses. I want to buy a light body and I am between the SL1 and the T5i that could be also light for my kids to use. Obviusly I will have to buy one or two lenses compatible with the APS-C sensor but, I am also thinking about a do-it-all ultrazoom and carry my 35mmf2IS for low light situations.
Any experience or suggestion on those bodies and ultrazoom lens?

70D, 'nuff said

But if between those two, I don't think you can go wrong either way. The T5i's larger grip will make it more usable with your FF lenses in case you did want to use it for some scenario.

 

[Hjalmarg1]

Thanks to all that provided me with good information!

In my holidays I plan to walk quite a bit and need something light, not bulky and responsive for most of the city environment picture opportunities so, zooming is very welcomed. Sometimes, I am concerned about taking the attention of people when they see kind of semipro camera gear or due to security issues since camera gear is considered valuable items.
Suggestions of moving to a good mirrorless camera might suit my needs but exploring prices for the good ones lead to spend US$1,000+ that is more than what I planned to spend. Other option could be as discussed a good P&S camera so, the Sony RX 100 III or the Fuji X100s or the new G16 sounds like also as an option.

 

[surapon]

the eos m kit is dirt cheap and the 22mm is an awesome f2
the 18-55 kit lens is very respectable too

+ 100 for me too, I love my EOS-M
Surapon

 

[Eldar]

My wife has been using an 18-200mm zoom on a 7D on vacations for some time. With a CPL filter she's getting very good results, when she has enough light. For low light situations she turns to my (monsterously heavy) camera bag for a faster prime.

Alternative: I just bought a Sony RX100 MIII to use when I'm flyfishing (a 5DIII with a 24-70 f2.8L II does not fit inside my waders :). It has the equivalent of a 24-70 lens, with good low light performance. I am very impressed with the IQ from this very small thing.

 

[Dylan777]

My wife has been using an 18-200mm zoom on a 7D on vacations for some time. With a CPL filter she's getting very good results, when she has enough light. For low light situations she turns to my (monsterously heavy) camera bag for a faster prime.

Alternative: I just bought a Sony RX100 MIII to use when I'm flyfishing (a 5DIII with a 24-70 f2.8L II does not fit inside my waders :). It has the equivalent of a 24-70 lens, with good low light performance. I am very impressed with the IQ from this very small thing.

I'm about to sell my a7r + FE 55mm and replace with RX100 III. Played with this little guy few days ago at local camera store, I really like the size. Can't go wrong with 24-70mm range.

 

[Rams_eos]

I use a T3i with 18-55 when I travel light and pictures are ok as vacation souvenirs. I would pair a T5i with 18-135 or 18-200 as lens is fairly compact.
I would also bring a 40mm pancake as I found the picture quality outstanding (for the price).
I use it when I want a sharp picture. Then I use either my feet or Stitching. For that I use Microsoft ICE (free and effective).
Other advantage of cheap gear is that you can let children play with no (less) fears

 

[Pitspics]

my 2 cents...

2 years ago i was in a nearly same situation. My opinion is...

If i want i lightweight camera for traveling, i would never take a camera with interchangeable lenses.
you know the benefits of you dslr, it´s heavy with 2-3 good lenses but you want the best image quality you can get...
A small DSLR is nice (SL1) but with a cheap-superzoom-lense it´s also bulky/big/heavy - but you loose a lot of image-quality. so you still have a "big camera" with you but you´ll miss the handling/quality of your "good gear".
(So you can theoretically still use your 5D3 with 24-70... 8) )

that´s the reason i ended up buying a Fuji X20.
Yes, the image-quality is not the best, but this small guy (or any other p&s-camera in this price-range, G1X, RX100...) is just a joy to use for walk around. VERY light, you have zoom-range for most situations (28-120 or so), and no worry about which lense to choose... just turn it on and take your picture. that´s just easy and makes fun...

what do i like about the x20? i love the "zoom-ring" at the lense... "dslr-feeling" ;D and i can use pol-filter or nd-filter with this cam (44mm i think). just like on my 6D... but SUPERLIGHT AND SMALL
and a very imressive macro-mode!!!

what i would like to say...
if i would loose image-quality with a cheap DSLR+Superzoom to my 6D, than its no problem for me to "loose a little bit" more IQ with a good p&s but i have so much more fun and flexibility with a really small and light "walk-around-system".

Here are some examples from my X20.
(yes, at 100% it´s not like my 6D - but for screen and medium-prints... hey, for me this is the way to go!) 8)


or you can check for examples my "triest-gallery" at my website... all shoot with the x20.
it was a really hot day and i was so happy that i have just this little guy with me. WONDERFUL!
http://100iso.at/2013-triest/

or this gallery... all with pol-filter on x20. just great
http://100iso.at/2014-schlosshof/

 

[Eldar]

what do i like about the x20? i love the "zoom-ring" at the lense... "dslr-feeling" ;D and i can use pol-filter or nd-filter with this cam (44mm i think). just like on my 6D... but SUPERLIGHT AND SMALL

FWIW, since I recommended it, the Sony EX100 III has a built in ND filter (have not tried it yet) and there is a small simple adapter you can hook on and use other filters, such as a CPL.

The IQ (provided you shoot in RAW) I have seen from this very tiny package is very impressive. It is supported in LR5.5.

 

[Pitspics]

what do i like about the x20? i love the "zoom-ring" at the lense... "dslr-feeling" ;D and i can use pol-filter or nd-filter with this cam (44mm i think). just like on my 6D... but SUPERLIGHT AND SMALL

FWIW, since I recommended it, the Sony EX100 III has a built in ND filter (have not tried it yet) and there is a small simple adapter you can hook on and use other filters, such as a CPL.

The IQ (provided you shoot in RAW) I have seen from this very tiny package is very impressive. It is supported in LR5.5.

sometimes (for more important stuff - little bit mor DR and no "smuged" images at 100%) i shoot in RAW with the X20 - but for normal stuff and walk around at daylight jpg is just fine...

and not to forget 20MB!!!! RAW vs 3MB jpg :
(on screen you really cannot see any difference)

 

[Cory]

Have some found an EOS M/22mm lens a good solution for a big trip (one not including wildlife)? Just got my M/22 and Aruba is just a few weeks away.

 

[lady]

When I absolutely must travel light (this happens to me on trail rides) I use a Sony RX100. I personally don't bother with interchangeable lenses while traveling light because it's more to store and more to lose.

I usually just bring my 5D3 or 7D along with me while traveling. Which camera I bring depends on what my photography needs are (will I need zoom or nah?) as well as how camera-safe where I'm going is. On a beach trip I brought my 7D as it was less expensive to replace, for example. As for kids handling it, DSLRs are pretty big whether it's a 6D or a 1D.

 

[RustyTheGeek]

I just took the SL1 + Tamron 18-270 hiking over 70+ miles. It worked great.

If you want it to be smaller, use the kit lens or the 40mm pancake or whatever smaller zoom or prime you like.

The batteries are also smaller than the 5D3 batteries.

Let us know what you decide!

 

[KKCFamilyman]

Recently went on a trip where it was hot and lots of walking. I used the 5d3 and 24-70 95% of the time and the 70-300l the other 5

 

[Rocky]

the eos m kit is dirt cheap and the 22mm is an awesome f2
the 18-55 kit lens is very respectable too

I bough the M system with 22mm and the 18-55mm for travel. Now my camera bag is 3ibs instead of 7 lbs.

 

[AJ]

Skip the ultrazoom and get a 18-55 STM and 55-250 STM. Much better performance for less money. Enjoy your travels.

 

[mrsfotografie]

I am in the same boat. I am bringing my 5d3, 24-70 2.8 II, 35mm 1.4, 600ex, 70-300L (only one day where I will need the reach. May bring the 16-35 also. I am going on a Disney cruise with a large group and then all the WDW parks. I know the 24-70 should cover most of that I still find myself researching the sony alpha a6000 with lenses, SL1 with my lenses, Canon G1x Mark ii, etc. I just think in the end if you don't bring your best for some of the more photogenic places you are going then where do you bring it that's new? Anyone else in this boat? If so what did you do?

My standard travel kit:

• 5D3 gripless, 35mm f/2 or 50 mm f/1.8 MkI, 17-40L, 24-105L, 70-300L. This is relatively compact but not really light.
  

Other travel setups I've used:

• 400D + Tamron 17-50 f/2.8 (a truly excellent setup, even though the camera was rather dated. That Tamron is a truly magnificent little lens that delivers 'L' quality optics in a very reasonably priced package. I added a canon 55-250 is ii at one point, which is also a good lens despite the kit lens build.
  
• Sony NEX-6 + lens(es) in losts of different configurations. My NEX has replaced the 400D as my go-to small camera system.

On a business trip to Angola I brought only a cheap point and shoot (Powershot A590IS) and managed reasonable results nonetheless: http://www.mrsfotografie.nl/reizen/angola-2009

 

[bholliman]

I just took the SL1 + Tamron 18-270 hiking over 70+ miles. It worked great.
If you want it to be smaller, use the kit lens or the 40mm pancake or whatever smaller zoom or prime you like.
The batteries are also smaller than the 5D3 batteries.

How do you like the IQ of the Tamron 18-270? I've been looking at buying an SL1 kit as a lightweight option for some time. Carrying multiple lenses defeats part of the purpose of a lightweight/small kit, so a good superzoom would be a nice option for long hikes.