First time to Europe

[Don Haines]

Having both a 6D2 and a 7D2, I would take the 6D.....


You will appreciate FF for interiors, and the wider views for cities and panoramic views in Iceland. 24 mm may not be wide enough, if it were me, I'd be searching for something down around 15 or 16 mm. Using 24mm, for static objects, you can take multiple images and assemble them into a panorama later....

 

[axtstern]

Hello and my two cents...

You will visit two of the worlds pickpocket capitals. So think not to much about your gear but how to store and to carry it. Less is more. I worked in both cities and believe me the only times you use something like a 100-400 in those cities is because you have it with you, rather then a motive demanding for it.
I would leave the 6D at home and rely on the wide angle lens and the 17-55 you have.
Stop worrying about you equipment, start planning where to use it. Amsterdam is a nice source for inspiration at day, but you can picture only so many Grachten and fancy colored doors. Amsterdam lives by night so prepare to do shots at low light or occasions when it is advised to do hit and run. The Netherlands is a small country, do not limit yourself to Amsterdam. 35 minutes by train waits Amsterdam with its Beachquarters at Shreveningen, an easy way to get a different feeling of the Netherlands. An absolute must is in my eyes a trip to "Kinderdijk" choose a proper spot and you have the dijks, cows, water and maybe 5 historical windmils in one picture. I you are a foody find an Indonesian restaurant, order a rijst tafel for two people and start to shoot the hundred small dishes they put in front of you. If you like street photography the bike stalls arround major railway stations will surprise you.

When in Paris less is even more than in Amsterdam. Almost any sight you will visit was made before they had elevators. Carrying your lenses up Sacre Cour, Notre Dame, etc... Again you want to be equipped for taking longer exposures based on bad lighting. Three things I would suggest: Napoleons Tomb with the right equipment to let the angels shine (you will understand what I mean when you are there) The catamcobs (with the right equipment to let the dead look decent) and well now something a litlebit special. Find a model that is not shy. Head over to the Paris Opera. Arrive about an hour before the show... never mind which show. Book 4 cheap tickets with reduced sight. The four tickets together will cost less than what you expect to pay for one. What they will over you is a seat in the old loges. That is a room for four which you can lock from the inside. You will see only have of the stage but likewise people in other loges will only see half of you. Your inside now of one the oldest and most gaudy operas of the world. If Boudoir is your thing you have found your place. Oh and if you want to dress up for this occasion... there is a shop called "theatre hall" not far from notre dame selling cloth cut from the styles people prefered when France was ruled by kings.
If you want to invest a lot of time: Tour Eiffel a must at day and again at night but the real challenge is to find an approach to it. Whenever I thought I nailed it this tower started to look more attraktive from a different street, a different roof etc... If you take the elevator up, take the stairs down. Some of the best shots can be made on the way down when all these steel bars and bolts seem to belong to you.

Finally what usually ruins the day of my friends when they visit Paris for the first time: The louvre
Arrive at the wrong time and loose half a day. Queue at the wrong queue and loose the other half.
Marvel at the art at the wrong place and loose your camera, wallet and passport as well.

What I write here is specific for the Mona Lisa but can be applied to all major photo occasions. There will be plenty of people pressing close to you and all have their hands up to shoot with their smartphones over the heads of other people in front of them. Never mind those, mind the few who not have their hands in the air. Those marvel at you and the opportunity you present.

 

[FramerMCB]

The OP is going to travel with a 7DII, not FF. So, the 24-105 is not optimal - big, heavy and too long at the short end, with a field of view equivalent to 38mm on FF. A much better lens for crop is the 15-85mm, which has excellent IQ and has a field of view equivalent to 24mm.

Alan...the OP also said his brother has a 6D available for him to borrow/use on his trip. With the 17-40mm and 24-105mm f4.0L lenses...

 

[Geek]

I've carried a 7D mark II all through Ukraine, Israel, Jordan and Greece with a 24-105 and a 16-35 with the 24-105 being the most used by far. There were a few times that I wished I had something wider, but only a very few. Most of the time I could take a few steps back and get the shot that I wanted anyway, even with the 24-105.

As others have mentioned the 6D mark II is going to give you better results inside the buildings. But unless you plan to make high quality prints, the 7D II will give you good quality pictures for the web or sharing on social sites, even inside the buildings.

I agree with those that say the 6D mark II and 24-105 and maybe the 17-40 would be your best bet. Either choice is a great camera. Now go take some pictures and don't sweat the tool that you are using. Have Fun!

 

[monsieur_elegante]

My 2 cents based on my Europe trip (Greece and one 10-hour nighttime layover in London) and other travels abroad:

I think the 6D + 24-105mm would serve you really well. I would even be okay for the entire trip with just that body and that lens. If weight is no concern, I would throw in the 17-40mm and maybe the 50 1.8. Some people advise bringing a second body in case something happens (so you don't end up stuck without a DSLR), but I've never really done that. I did bring both my old 6D and 7D2 to Japan once, but I regretted it and ended up using just the 6D the entire time.

I went on my Europe trip with a 6D II, 24-70mm f/4L, Sigma 35mm 1.4 Art, and 50mm 1.8. I shot with the 24-70mm 99.9% of the time. That's not an exaggeration: I used the 35mm 1.4 maybe once, and I believe not even once for the 50mm 1.8.

The reason I ended up using the 24-70 the entire time boils down to: 1) as much as I love my prime lenses, changing lens on a cobblestone street w/ a ton of people/tourists around you (and potentially bumping into you) is a HUGE turn-off; 2) the ~4-stop image stabilization on the 24-70 (or the 24-105) is extremely handy--the attached shot, taken handheld at 1/6 of a second, would not have been possible without the image stabilization; 3) if you're traveling with a non-photographer, they will thank you for bringing a 24-105, instead of stopping and switching between three different lenses all the time.

My old 6D stood up well in rainy weather (I live in Seattle), so I wouldn't worry about that too much (within reason, of course...). During my 10-hour layover in London it was drizzling the entire time. I wandered the streets of London for 7+ hours with my 6D II + 24-70mm out the entire time -- no problem at all. Of course, the 6D II supposedly has improved weather sealing over the 6D, plus the 24-70 is a weather sealed lens, so do take that into consideration. I would not have done that with my 35mm Art or the 50mm 1.8 (or any of the pancakes), since they are not weather sealed.

The only factor that would change things for me is if you plan on doing birds or wildlife in Iceland, in which case the 7D2 + 55-250mm would be very useful.

 

[mihazero]

I have a question. Are you going to europe to enjoy your trip or take photos? Because based on that depends on what You bring. If you want to take photos 6D 17-40/24-105/501.8. If you are enjoying your trip, rent 18-135 STM lens for period of your trip and bring 7D. Or rent Canon SL1 or SL2 aka 200D, since its super small and light and takes up almost no space and weight at all. Those are 1 lens solutions you need for the trip as leisure photographer.

If rain is your worry get optech rain cover ... i think 2 pack is like 4$. It will protect your gear just fine and its reusable. I used it with much much MUCH more expensive gear and i still have it.