Tanzania with minimal gear

[randym77]

I'm going on a trip to Africa next August. I've searched the forums for other threads on this, and there was some good stuff, but I thought I'd ask for some more specific advice.

It's a two-week "Safari Serengeti" tour. Arusha, Tarangire, Olduvai Gorge, Serengeti National Park, and the Ngorongoro Highlands & Crater. It's a more "off the beaten" track type thing. We'll be sleeping in tents and will have to walk fair distances carrying all our gear at some points, so I don't want to bring too much. Plus, there are baggage limits. We'll be given one duffel bag, and everything we need for the two weeks has to fit in it. Plus a carry-on. I presume my camera gear will be in the carry-on.

I was thinking maybe one body and two lenses (and maybe a point and shoot as backup).

I'm willing to buy or rent what I don't have for the trip, so...what should I bring?

 

[Ellen Schmidtee]

In order to know what focal lengths you'll need, what are you going to shoot?

Will you take a crop body or FF body?

E.g. if you want to shoot landscape and take a crop body to save on weight, I'll recommend EF-S 10-22mm, while if you take FF body you'll have to buy the 16-35mm or 17-40mm.

 

[RGF]

Check if camps will do laundry. Often will - which means clothes is not a weight/size limit.

For photo gear, two 7D M2 (or 70D) with 100-400 and 24-105 on each. Plus P&S. Seldom have used a tripod, but (2-3) bean bags are essential. Check w tour operator long in advance about getting beans. I think a std size bean bag will hold are 5kg of beans. You will fill the bags in Arusha.

Enjoy - trip of a lifetime

 

[dw2013]

I've just got back from 4 days in Kruger in SA...was also limited on baggage/weight. I took a 6D, 24-105, 70-200/4 IS, 300/4 IS and a 1.4TC. To be honest, I didn't need the 300/4 as the rangers we were driving with got us so close to all the wildlife.

The 6D was a great camera to have as most of our safari was early morning and late evening so light wasn't great..high ISO was required as didn't have a tripod.

You'll have a great trip, enjoy!

 

[RAKAMRAK]

Ok, given the fact that you have a real constraint here (one duffel bag) I think long telephoto is out of question. But still some times you may want to shoot the thing at a distance. So it would be better to know what would be your photography objects. Without knowing all these my general suggestion would be

If you are shooting with crop then get
Canon EF-S 15-85mm
On top of that if you have space get the 70-300mm L.

And a super zoom p&S.

For a full frame get
Canon EF-S 24-105
On top of that if you have space get the 70-300mm L

and a super zoom p&S

(All these suggestions are based on the real constraint you have, if there is no constraint we could probably bring the entire EF lens line up with us)

 

[xps]

- Which gear do you own?

I´ve been in this area some days ago and did enough muscletraining for the next 10 years, because I took to much with me.

All of the tips from the CR photographers are well argued.

The lens I used most of the times where in the range of 12-24mm, 28-70mm and 100-400mm. My 70-200 2.8 and the other primes have been left in the lodge. I used mostly the 7D. And i bought an not expensive lightweight tripod (Sirui). And do not forget an pol-filter!

My 2 friends used:
Nikon 7100 and D800 with the same ranged lenses (superb shots with the D800!!)
and the other one the
Fujifilm X-E1 with an ~18-50mm and an ~55-200mm.

From the sight of weight, the Fuji was an great idea. And the AF was very fast and the pics are really great.

If you have to carry all your equipment around, think of reducing the gear to the max. There something like the fuji (or coming Canon M2) will be the best for your back.

Oh, and get an gear-insurance (robbery, theft,...)

 

[Mt Spokane Photography]

Take a FF body and a 28-300mm lens. that's all you'll need, unless you want a 50mm f/1.4 for low light.

It really depends on how comfortable you are with changing lenses, and how much weight you want to carry, there are a ton of options, but for a single lens solution, you can't beat the 28-300 for wide zoom coverage, and with high ISO capabilities of FF bodies, you can get low light images.

 

[randym77]

Thanks for the replies. I have a tendency to bring too much gear, but I'm really trying to bring a minimal kit this time.

I like Spokane's idea of one long zoom, plus one 50mm for low-light. I'm also tempted to bring a wide angle, but I could probably just use my point and shoot backup camera for that. I love my tripod, but I think I'll leave it behind this time.

I'm not sure what I'll be shooting, to be honest. Wildlife, I assume. (This is a family trip which I had no part in planning.)

My favorite body is a 1DX, but I'm not sure if that's the one I'll bring. I've heard dust can be a problem, in which case the weather sealing on the 1DX would be good. OTOH, it's big and heavy and expensive. I might bring a cheaper, lighter body instead. Or a 1D Mark IV for a little extra reach? The autofocus on the 1DX is so much better, though.

 

[Vivid Color]

I recently returned from an 8-day safari in Tanzania in August. We traveled in jeeps and viewed animals in jeeps and stayed in lodgings, so my experiences will be different from yours, but the areas I visited all of the areas you cited and I'll share with you what I did and learned.

For gear, I took my 6D and T1i bodies. I generally had my 24-105L attached to the 6D and my 70-300L attached to my crop body. I also took my 18-270 Tamron super zoom (the PZD version) and Canon's 40mm pancake. I also took CP filters for all the lenses and at least one spare battery per camera. And, I took my Canon s100 P&S. I took 20 16 GB San Disk Extreme SD cards but I did NOT take a computer or other device for backup. With cables and chargers and other accessories, my LowePro ProRunner 350AW backpack weighed between 17 and 18 pounds.

My experiences and what I learned: If you can take a 2nd body, do so as you will not want to change lenses in the field (too much dust in August) and even if you wouldn't have the dust, you wouldn't have the time to get the shot. The 70-300L on a crop body was generally sufficient for reach. In cases in which more reach was needed (to get better cheetah and leopard shots when they were in trees 100 meters away), I don't think an extra 100 mm as in a 400mm would have helped much. Something much much longer would have been needed. Canon's PowerShot SX50 HS with its 1200 mm would have been nice in those cases.

Given the weather we had, I only used the polarizing filters on one day. Probably about 2/3 of my shots were taken with the 70-300L, but I'm really glad I had the 24-105L when we were close to the animals and we got really close in many more instances than I would have imagined. Then again, we were in jeeps (Toyota Land Cruisers with pop tops) and you may not get as close on a walking safari. (We had lions and elephants less than 5 feet from our vehicle. I hope you won't get that close!) I used the Tamron super zoom when I went on a ballon ride and when I went to Zanzibar. I used the P&S when I was in Dar es Salaam and I didn't want to be seen with expensive gear. I never used the 40mm pancake.

As for taking just the SD cards and no backup--that method worked great for me. I will, however, highly recommend the Think Tank Pixel Pocket Rocket card holder that holds ten CF (or SD) cards. I took two of them. They add only a few ounces and are a much superior system to plastic baggies for keeping track of your cards and knowing which are used and which are blank. Plus, they come with a ribbon and clip on them so you can clip them to your bag or pack or person and not worry about losing them.

If I ever get to go back, I'd probably keep pretty much the same two-body gear set-up (a newer crop body might be nice but the T1i did just fine). The biggest thing I would do differently would be to get the Powershot SX50 for that extra reach and as a backup and for times when you only want one camera, such as on the ballon ride. Then, I'd leave the Tamron superzoom at home and maybe the P&S and 40mm pancake. Again, this is what I took knowing that I'd only have to lug my pack through airports and to and from the jeep to my hotel room. If I had to carry all my gear on my back all the time, then I'd have to give serious consideration as to how to reduce the weight. However, you may be much stronger than I am and could deal with more weight.

I also want to say this about the ballon ride: If you have the chance to do this in the Serengeti, just do it! I highly recommend it. The operator there is outstanding and it was one of great highlights of my trip.

Hope this helps. I'm happy to answer any other questions about clothes or anything else.

--Vivid

 

[randym77]

Thanks, Vivid. That was very helpful.

I have a PowerShot SX50 HS. It needs really bright light for good results, so I wasn't sure about bringing it.

Was that enough memory cards? And were you shooting RAW?

 

[michael6liu]

100-400 is probably the only lens you need if wanna keep your gear minimal. The only time I swapped it out for a wide angle is to shoot the crater. Most big cats in Serengeti need more reach than Ngorongoro and 400mm is a must. Birds need even longer reach. Elephants and giraffes are large and you can get pretty close to them so you may find 100mm on a crop too close. I brought a monopod last time I visited and it worked very well.

First pic 7D @ 100mm; Second pic 7D @ 330mm

 

[LetTheRightLensIn]

I've just got back from 4 days in Kruger in SA...was also limited on baggage/weight. I took a 6D, 24-105, 70-200/4 IS, 300/4 IS and a 1.4TC. To be honest, I didn't need the 300/4 as the rangers we were driving with got us so close to all the wildlife.

The 6D was a great camera to have as most of our safari was early morning and late evening so light wasn't great..high ISO was required as didn't have a tripod.

You'll have a great trip, enjoy!

In Kruger they can get you a lot closer though more often than in Tanzania.

 

[LetTheRightLensIn]

Thanks for the replies. I have a tendency to bring too much gear, but I'm really trying to bring a minimal kit this time.

I like Spokane's idea of one long zoom, plus one 50mm for low-light. I'm also tempted to bring a wide angle, but I could probably just use my point and shoot backup camera for that. I love my tripod, but I think I'll leave it behind this time.

I'm not sure what I'll be shooting, to be honest. Wildlife, I assume. (This is a family trip which I had no part in planning.)

My favorite body is a 1DX, but I'm not sure if that's the one I'll bring. I've heard dust can be a problem, in which case the weather sealing on the 1DX would be good. OTOH, it's big and heavy and expensive. I might bring a cheaper, lighter body instead. Or a 1D Mark IV for a little extra reach? The autofocus on the 1DX is so much better, though.

A 50mm for low light was my single LEAST needed lens on such a trip. I'd bring some high density camera, maybe 7D2 by then or a 70D and a 70-300L (100-400 if you can handle just a bit more weight) and one wider, maybe tamron 17-50 or something like that (Africa tends to be so wide that no matter how wide you go it all looks the same at some point, the one single place an UWA would be nice is on top of Ngorongoro though, 17mm aps-c doesn't at all fit it in at once).

Many animals just sit or stand and you can even do 10x zoom liveview manual focus so tracking AF is rarely needed (although something precise so as to not focus behind or in front certainly always helps).

1DX doesn't have a lot of reach and it's so bulky, I wouldn't use up my weight on the body when you could put the weight into lenses instead (although the 1DX does have nice video, better than the 70D (other than for focusing where 1DX is a real pain; maybe 7D2 will be out by then and solve it all?)

 

[ajfotofilmagem]

1D Mark IV + 70-300L + 40 pancake. 8) Lighter than that, only leading a SL1. : SX50 can also be very helpful with good light.

 

[Vivid Color]

Thanks, Vivid. That was very helpful.

I have a PowerShot SX50 HS. It needs really bright light for good results, so I wasn't sure about bringing it.

Was that enough memory cards? And were you shooting RAW?

Yes, I had plenty of memory cards. As I mentioned, I had 23 16 GB cards with me--one in each of my 3 cameras and 20 in the card holders. I shot RAW + JPEG (highest resolution for each). According to iPhoto, I captured 5013 RAW and 5013 JPEG images for a total of 10026 files. These were spread out over 14 cards. (Had I been a little more careful with card management, I could have used only about 10 or 11 cards for the number of images I took.) Again, I was on an 8-day photo safari and then spent 4 days in Dar and 1 in Zanzibar. I took only a few photos in Dar. It sounds like your trip will be longer so you may need to plan for taking even more images. And, our shooting styles may vary. I will say that I would not want to have to deal with more than two card holders. While I used 16 GB cards, you may wish to get 32 GB cards for your trip--just to keep the numbers down. The good news is that they are most likely to be cheaper a year from now.

And, something I forgot to mention earlier: I highly recommend B+W's XS-Pro Digital 010 UV-Haze MRC nano filters. I had these filters on my 24-100L and 70-300L lenses and they repelled dust extremely well--so well that I rarely had to clean them. In comparison, my older Calumet MC UV Haze Made in Germany filter on my Tamron super zoom didn't repel dust as well and was more difficult to clean. Sometimes you get what you pay for.

 

[DianeK]

Here's a few of my thoughts:
1. I was in Africa two years ago with my first digital kit: 60D+18-200mm kit lens + 100mm macro.
2. I have since added a 7D body, 70-300L, 10-22, 15-85, Sony RX100 P&S
3. What I found on my trip is that the only time I felt comfortable changing lenses was in camp under dust-controlled conditions which was fine because the 100 macro was only used in camp shooting plants and insects.

If I were in your situation I would do one of two things:
1. Take 60D (so I had video available) with the 70-300L for wildlife (and reasonable macro) plus the Sony for wider-angle landscape and safety when in cities.
OR
2. Convince a family member (you did say this was a family trip?) who is not into photography to share the gear load with you in exchange for your incredible images. One person would carry the 60D + 70-300L, the other the 7D + 15-85.

I know many would argue that the 70-300 should go on the 7D for wildlife but I found wildlife to be so cooperative I didn't miss the better autofocus of the 7D when I only had the 60D. Also, since the 60D allows for video, you can switch between stills and video with the good range of the 70-300.

Diane

 

[langdonb]

I'm going on a trip to Africa next August. I've searched the forums for other threads on this, and there was some good stuff, but I thought I'd ask for some more specific advice.

It's a two-week "Safari Serengeti" tour. Arusha, Tarangire, Olduvai Gorge, Serengeti National Park, and the Ngorongoro Highlands & Crater. It's a more "off the beaten" track type thing. We'll be sleeping in tents and will have to walk fair distances carrying all our gear at some points, so I don't want to bring too much. Plus, there are baggage limits. We'll be given one duffel bag, and everything we need for the two weeks has to fit in it. Plus a carry-on. I presume my camera gear will be in the carry-on.

I was thinking maybe one body and two lenses (and maybe a point and shoot as backup).

I'm willing to buy or rent what I don't have for the trip, so...what should I bring?

Hi, can you tell me the name/contact of the tour company? I wish to do a similar trip..Thanks!

 

[eml58]

I probably spend around 6 to 8 weeks a year on Safari in Africa, so getting gear around has become a bit if an Art.

You mention a Hiking/Tent type Safari, so that may mean your Photography may well be mostly from Foot, as against from a vehicle, and that would suggest two different Rigs, or one Rig that would suit both Foot & Vehicle Photography.

Serengeti/Tanzania can be wide open plains, subjects next to the vehicle, or quite a distance away, if on foot I'de suggest mainly at a distance, which is where you want them if your on Foot, you don't want a Fully grown Male Lion 10 metres away.

A general purpose set up that you need to consider carrying in a backpack while hiking might look like this.

5DMKIII
24-70f/2.8 L II
70-300 f/4-5.6 L

I'de suggest the 70-200f/2.8 L II + 1.4x as an alternative to the 70-300, but be aware the 70-200 f/2.8 gets quite heavy after a while, where the 70-300 is quite a bit lighter, the 24-70f/2.8 or the 24-70f/4 will take care of your wide angle & closer up Imaging, I'de go the f/2.8 here as you will then have something that will take care of those Dawn/Dusk shots.

The 1Dx might be an alternative to the 5DMKIII, but it's heavy and the real world value is better dust protection & 14fps over the 5DMKIII. I've used both in Africa and no issues with either. The 6d might be a choice as well, you loose the wonderful AF Options of the 5DMKIII/1Dx though, and generally I only recommend gear I own & use, but my Son uses a 6D + 28-300 when he comes with me & produces some great Images with this Combo.

This suggested gear will present no issues for Carry On, I had a horrible experience with Carry On gear leaving Dar Es Salam on a SAA flight, it finally worked out, but the Cabin Staff were removing carry on Camera gear at the door, even from Business Class Passengers, tagging and putting the gear to the Hold, in many cases unlocked, and despite Passengers being really upset, in a case like this you are best to refuse to Board and make them remove your checked baggage then get another flight.

Be also aware that any Camera Gear that you put into checked luggage stands a reasonable chance of going missing, out of Johannesburg is unfortunately infamous for this.

Otherwise, enjoy your trip to Tanzania, I was there for 5 weeks in June/July 2013 & totally loved it, except for Dar.

 

[randym77]

Follow up to this post, as my trip approaches...

The tour company sent me a packet with more info. We will be doing some touring in Range Rovers, but will also be walking a few miles a day over uneven terrain. We will sometimes be traveling in small planes, so there are strict weight limits. 44 lbs. for the provided duffel bag, and 15 lbs. for the carry-on. I plan to put all my camera gear in the carry-on.

They said point and shoot cameras don't have enough range for wildlife. They recommend a superzoom camera, or a DSLR with a mid-range zoom (up to 300mm) and a fast prime for low-light shooting.

Based on the comments in this thread, I am going to try to bring two bodies. Both so I have a backup, and so I don't have to switch lenses in the field. I have a 5D Mark II. I was going to convert it to IR, but I think I'll hold off until after the trip. I plan to buy a 5D Mark III, and will bring that, too. Electricity will be unreliable, so they recommend bringing extra batteries.

I'm still deciding on lenses. The lens I bring when I bring only one lens is the 24-105. But I'm thinking I might want to go longer and wider. Maybe my 16-35mm F/2.8 instead of a fast prime, and my 70-200 f/4 plus 1.4 extender. Not as fast as the f/2.8, but so much lighter.

I usually use prime lenses when I need reach, so the 70-200 the longest zoom I have. Well, I have a Sigma 150-500mm, but it's too bulky for this trip. I am considering buying a zoom lens for the trip.

I think the 28-300mm will be too heavy. The 70-300mm and the 100-400mm are possibilities. The 100-400mm might also be too heavy, though it has the advantage of being compatible with the Canon extenders.

I am planning to buy the Pocket Rocket card holders as Vivid Color recommended, and the B&W filters (once I nail down what lenses I'm bringing). And I'm stocking up on memory cards.

Still considering what other cameras I'll bring. I have a point and shoot Lumix I use as a backup and when I don't want to bring all my gear. (I'm planning to leave my smartphone at home.) And a SX50 HS. The superzoom might come in handy, though I am generally not thrilled with the image quality. I also have a point and shoot Lumix that's been converted to infrared. I love IR photography, but I doubt I'll have time on this trip for the long exposures needed when using an IR filter on a regular camera.

 

[wickidwombat]

for me in that situation i would take from the list of what i have

5Dmk3
Tamron 150-600
Sigma 50 f1.4 art
Canon 135 f2L

EOS-M and EOS-M IR
EF-M 11-22 IS STM

lots of batteries and cards