choices for Tanzania

[Ricardo1]

Hi all

I'm going on a photosafari to Tanzania in september and I will take the following equipment:

Canon 450D, canon 5D MKII, canon EF 400 DO, canon EF 70 300 DO, canon EF 24 105 L IS, sigma 18 125 OS, sigma ex 70 macro, sigma ex 10 20.

I have been advised to limit lens changing to the minimum whilst in the cars (too much dust).

What makes more sense, to have the 400 DO on the 5D MKII and the 70 300 DO on the 450D or, as the 450D has more pixel density, have the 400 DO on the 450D?

Thanks for your help!

[stever]

good question, i'm going in July and planning to take 24-105, 50 1.4, 100-400, 400DO (rented), and 1.4X-II with 5D (or 40D) and soon-to-arrive 5DII.  i'm going to do some testing, but won't be able to test the 400 DO until shortly before i leave.  also taking a 580 flash with better beamer for daytime fill and night, and probably a 72mm 500D.

i've used the 100-400 a lot with 20D and 40D and the 400DO on one trip with the 40D

my limited experience in africa is that the 100-400 is really useful on a crop frame camera with quite a few images at 640 equiv -  but lots of images at less than that.  and there are a few times (mostly birds) where 640 isn't enough

additionally, f5.6 isn't fast enough in the morning and late afternoon (and the 100-400 isn't very happy at f5.6 either) - hence the argument for taking 5D and 5DII which both have lower high ISO noise than the 40D - using the 5D on the 100-400 and the II with the 400DO with or without the 1.4X.  

will a 40D with 400DO have better IQ than 5DII with 400DO+1.4X (assuming adequate light)?  
will the 400DO+1.4x 40D for 900mm eff be better than a cropped 5DII? - i think it will, but
will using the 5D & 100-400, 5DII & 400D)+1.4 should result in fewest lens changes? - dust is a problem even with ultrasonic cleaning

i hope your 70-300DO is a lot better than mine from 200 to 300 - and i hope mine is better when it gets back from Canon repair - so far it's been useless for wildlife, and not something i'd put on a 5DII even if Canon does make it better - i'd definitely recommend using the 70-300 on 450 (and using it at longer focal lengths only if you have to).  And i'd definitely recommend a 1.4XII (i found it to be enough better than my original 1.4X to justify replacement) to use with the 400DO

curious why you're bothering to take the Sigma 18-125 when you have the 24-105.  also expect that the 10-20 will get little use

i'll let you know what happens when i get back the end of July, in the mean time, i'd also like to hear from someone with direct experience

[Bill Caulfeild-Browne]

I've been a couple of times - 1Ds II and 5D - never needed wider than 24 mm, nor longer than 400, tho' I did have a 1.4 TC I never used. 300 mm was my most used lens and then the 70-200. I travelled light - 24-70, 70-200, 300 and 400 DO.

Dust is awful, at least in February and April, and I highly recommend keeping one lens per camera and avoiding changing until you absolutely must. And take an Arctic Butterfly!

Bill

[OwlsEye]

Hi all

I'm going on a photosafari to Tanzania in september and I will take the following equipment:

Canon 450D, canon 5D MKII, canon EF 400 DO, canon EF 70 300 DO, canon EF 24 105 L IS, sigma 18 125 OS, sigma ex 70 macro, sigma ex 10 20.

I have been advised to limit lens changing to the minimum whilst in the cars (too much dust).

What makes more sense, to have the 400 DO on the 5D MKII and the 70 300 DO on the 450D or, as the 450D has more pixel density, have the 400 DO on the 450D?

Thanks for your help!

I was on a two week safari in Tanzania last June. We spent 12 days in vehicle. I shot a 1DmkII + 300 f2.8IS + 1.4x  and a 5D + 70-200L or 17-40L. The 1DmkII was married to to the 300+1.4x for the entire trip to avoid dust and dirt problems. My wife mounted a Sigma 120-300HSM 2.8 + 1.4x on a 30D and 17-85 IS on a 20D. Neither lens was removed from their bodies during the entire trip. Because Tamy used a 1.6x body, she had a tighter portraits than I. In contrast, I had the contrast and acuity associated with a the 300 f2.8 IS.

Since I am as interested in landscape/animals in landscape images as I am portraits, I did not want to shoot with a 1.6x body. You need to decide on your priorities. If you want tight portraits, then mount your longest lens combo on the cropped body. If you are looking to maximize image quality and the expense of some telephoto, then mount your 400 4.0 DO on the 5DmkII.

To read about my experience in Africa and learn about what you might encounter, visit my website and click the "Tanzania Blog" link. ( http://www.btleventhal.com )
cheers,
bruce

[Ricardo1]

good question, i'm going in July and planning to take 24-105, 50 1.4, 100-400, 400DO (rented), and 1.4X-II with 5D (or 40D) and soon-to-arrive 5DII.  i'm going to do some testing, but won't be able to test the 400 DO until shortly before i leave.  also taking a 580 flash with better beamer for daytime fill and night, and probably a 72mm 500D.

i've used the 100-400 a lot with 20D and 40D and the 400DO on one trip with the 40D

my limited experience in africa is that the 100-400 is really useful on a crop frame camera with quite a few images at 640 equiv -  but lots of images at less than that.  and there are a few times (mostly birds) where 640 isn't enough

additionally, f5.6 isn't fast enough in the morning and late afternoon (and the 100-400 isn't very happy at f5.6 either) - hence the argument for taking 5D and 5DII which both have lower high ISO noise than the 40D - using the 5D on the 100-400 and the II with the 400DO with or without the 1.4X.  

will a 40D with 400DO have better IQ than 5DII with 400DO+1.4X (assuming adequate light)?  
will the 400DO+1.4x 40D for 900mm eff be better than a cropped 5DII? - i think it will, but
will using the 5D & 100-400, 5DII & 400D)+1.4 should result in fewest lens changes? - dust is a problem even with ultrasonic cleaning

i hope your 70-300DO is a lot better than mine from 200 to 300 - and i hope mine is better when it gets back from Canon repair - so far it's been useless for wildlife, and not something i'd put on a 5DII even if Canon does make it better - i'd definitely recommend using the 70-300 on 450 (and using it at longer focal lengths only if you have to).  And i'd definitely recommend a 1.4XII (i found it to be enough better than my original 1.4X to justify replacement) to use with the 400DO

curious why you're bothering to take the Sigma 18-125 when you have the 24-105.  also expect that the 10-20 will get little use

i'll let you know what happens when i get back the end of July, in the mean time, i'd also like to hear from someone with direct experience

The thing is I'm going with my wife Paloma, my daughter Carla and two of my three sons. One of my sons Pepe and my wife also want to take photographs but I dont want to buy more equipment... the solution:

- I use the 5DMKII with the 24-105, the 400DO + 1.4XII and share the 70-300 DO with my wife
- Paloma uses the 450D with the Sigma 18-125 OS and shares the 70-300 DO
- Pepe uses the 300D with an old EF 100-300 f/5.6, the sigma 10 20 and shares the sigma 18-125 OS with Paloma
- We will all share the 50 1.4 and the sigma 70 macro

I would much prefer taking a 100-400 IS L but I dont have one and dont want to buy one only one just forthe trip. Its true tha the 70-300 DO is on the soft side at 300 but we are amateurs and dont print bigger than A3+ and for our purposes its more than adecuate. I wished more DO lenses came out, I would buy a 600 DO ond a 200-400 DO...

I hope you have a fantastic trip and show us yor photo results!!!

[Ricardo1]

I was on a two week safari in Tanzania last June. We spent 12 days in vehicle. I shot a 1DmkII + 300 f2.8IS + 1.4x  and a 5D + 70-200L or 17-40L. The 1DmkII was married to to the 300+1.4x for the entire trip to avoid dust and dirt problems. My wife mounted a Sigma 120-300HSM 2.8 + 1.4x on a 30D and 17-85 IS on a 20D. Neither lens was removed from their bodies during the entire trip. Because Tamy used a 1.6x body, she had a tighter portraits than I. In contrast, I had the contrast and acuity associated with a the 300 f2.8 IS.

Since I am as interested in landscape/animals in landscape images as I am portraits, I did not want to shoot with a 1.6x body. You need to decide on your priorities. If you want tight portraits, then mount your longest lens combo on the cropped body. If you are looking to maximize image quality and the expense of some telephoto, then mount your 400 4.0 DO on the 5DmkII.

To read about my experience in Africa and learn about what you might encounter, visit my website and click the "Tanzania Blog" link. ( http://www.btleventhal.com )
cheers,
bruce

You are right, I will use the 5DMKII+400DO combination the better quality + higher ISO will help me in the morning and evening. Once I'm there I'll decide if I uee the 1.4 extender.

Nice blog!!!