Am I missing anything? cruise in 3 weeks

We are going on an Alaskan cruise in 3 weeks. I've learned a lot here in the last 8 months. If there is anything obvious missing, or stupid, please speak up.

We start in Vancouver-Tracy Arm fjord (small boat trip)-Juneau (whale watch)-Skagway (general scenery)-Glacier Bay (glaciers and wildlife)-Ketchikan (flightseeing trip to Misty Fjord)-end in Seattle plus spend several days in the Seattle area post-cruise.

I'm taking 3 main cameras:

Sony A6000 is the primary camera if the weather isn't wet. Preferred for action or low-light shots.

Sony A3000 as a second e-mount body. This also has no weather sealing but works well except for action type pictures.

Panasonic FZ-300 for bad weather days and as a very stabilized super-zoom with the tele-convertor attached.

Lenses:

e-mount: 18-55mm kit, 55-210 kit, 16-50pz kit, 12mm Rokinon f2.0

FZ-300: 1.7x tele-convertor setup with tripod mount (1000mm eq. and a tripod is not mandatory)

Filters/adapters:

1x UV filter for FZ-300, 2x 52mm circular polarizers (for glacier pics), 1x 52mm grey gradiant filter (sunrise/set pics), 1x 52mm 10-stop NDF (for waterfall at Mendenhall glacier with tripod), 4x 49mm-52mm adapters (use 52mm filters on Sony 49mm), extra 49mm and 52mm lens caps

Batteries/chargers:

Sony: 2x aftermarket 120vac chargers plus usb chargers, 2x factory batteries, 4x aftermarket batteries

FZ-300: 2x 120vac chargers, 1x factory battery, 2x aftermarket

Support:

1 x light-weight 68" tripod, 1 x 72" monopod (stand behind short person, tilt camera lcd down, shoot pics over their head)

OP/Tech dual camera harness - http://www.amazon.com/OP-TECH-USA-Dual-Harness/dp/B002IUQ180

Shoulder-strap telephoto camera case to carry FZ-300 with tele-convertor installed http://www.amazon.com/Case-Logic-DSH-102-Luminosity-Holster/dp/B00IDYS0XY

1x speedlight clone, medium flash for interior ship pictures

2x Rain Sleeves that will fit any of the cameras with lenses and a few rubber bands to hold in place on lens hoods

Lens hoods: 49mm and 52mm rubber lens hoods for flightseeing trip in Misty Fjord otherwise use plastic lens hoods

Cleaning: air bulb, lens pen set, 4x microfiber cloth, sensor cleaning swabs, sealed 1x use lens-cleaning towlettes

Remote shutter cables: 1 x Sony, 1 x FZ-300 (in case a fixed 2 or 10 second delay is not the best option)

Storage/memory:

plenty of 8/16GB cards for the cameras and 2x 64GB U3 cards for 4K video with the FZ-300.

1x laptop computer with photo-shop elements 14 installed and a 2TB external hard drive that is usb-powered for secondary backup.

Additional optics:

2x sony cybershot P&S cameras (handy, small, easy to use) - with charger and spare battery - our phone cameras are really bad

1x HD car DVR system (when the bear runs in front of the rental car, there will be evidence :D)

Nikon Monarch 8x42 binoculars (with binocular tripod adapter)

Alpen 8x25 binoculars (small and light weight but decent optics, needed for 1 in our group)

Back belt and a bigger luggage allowance?

(I'm sorry, it's late, I'm an ...)

Why an 18-55 and a 16-50? Pick one. Why so many filters? I don't think you'll have time to use half of these. Good luck with your aftermarket batteries. They'd always fail for me at the worst time. I've been buying true Canon batteries for years with no regrets. Too many chargers IMHO, unless you can't make it through a day on a single set of batteries.

Are you taking the monopod just to stand behind a short person? If so, leave it home. Why tell us that your laptop has PSE on it? More importantly, is it big enough to hold your week of shooting? If not, your storage plan is apparently memory cards (primary) and external drive (backup), so I hope you have enough cards. If your laptop is big enough to hold your week of shooting, you've overdone your memory cards.

Wait...two DSLRs, a point&shoot for wet days, AND two more point&shoot cameras? You're going to be the whipping post the next time anyone grumbles about me taking a 600 f/4 to Alaska. Trust your gear or sell it now. I fear that you're going to be the guy at the back of the pack every time, yelling "Wait for me, I just want to take a p----i-----c----t----u----r---e!" while I'm up at the front of the pack, blowing past everyone else even though I've got three cameras and four lenses totaling 30+ pounds. Sorry, but I roll with a 3-stop ND for waterfalls and no other filters, a laptop with three 1TB drives since DW and I can fill up 340GB in a week of Alaska, and just barely enough memory cards to get through our worst single day which was 157GB. That's five Canon DSLRs shooting RAW across two people. Every camera can last a day on its battery, and the five cameras share two styles of battery so we only head out with one set of spares total, and if everything goes on chargers before dinner, I have enough batteries refreshed after dinner to go out again if needed.

The only thing that I can see that you are missing is a porter to carry all your stuff. How much does all that stuff weigh and how are you planning to get it all to AK. You certainly can not get it all into your carry on so you are going to have to trust the baggage handlers with the equipment.

Seriously, you are stark raving bonkers to take all that stuff.

DON

Are you moving there are going on vacation. 80% of what you are taking will never come out of the carrying case.

Not to pile on, but don't let picture taking get in the way of actually ENJOYING the scenery and the PEOPLE you'll be with.

Wow! I used to carry a lot of DSLR stuff but my iPhone takes such good pictures that it mostly gathers dust.

Not to pile on, but don't let picture taking get in the way of actually ENJOYING the scenery and the PEOPLE you'll be with.

What if the picture taking is a major source of enjoyment on the trip? Suppose you find that you actually enjoy more of the scenery by studying its subtleties as a subject instead of the usual "Yup, there it is!" moment. Imagine the people you travel with understand your passion for photography and realize that there is plenty of time in the day for socializing (just not at sunset! ;) ).

:)

flatlander: Decide between the 18-55 and the 16-50. They are both close in performance so my vote would be for the jacket-pocketability of the 16-50 (opinion). Filters are up to you. They're small. Most will stay in the case (experience). Unless you are taking the city bus to Mendenhall and not a tour, you will not have time for tripod pics of the falls as it is a bit of a hike to get close enough. DO NOT use the tripod on a tour boat. Actually, don't use any support aid. The crowded environment makes it very cumbersome and you will be the target of angry stares. Besides, the tripod or monopod will transmit engine vibration and boat movement (experience). The rainsleeve + poncho + A6000 will trump the FZ-300 (opinion). External flash for interior shots usually results in overexposed near-field or dark far-field. Ambient light is usually more than enough, especially with the fast 12mm on the A6000. I carried an external flash for 16 cruises before I decided that the two times I actually used it didn't warrant the bag space it took up (experience).

That said, all your stuff makes up a fraction of the mass and volume that a comparable DSLR kit would and sometimes it's better to have and not need than to need and not have. I used to drag a backpack and a Pelican 1520 to and from the ship and now revel in my whole kit fitting in an under-seat LowePro.

My 2¢..

Enjoy your trip. Alaska is amazing!

Dave

I have a luggage scale and will weigh everything tonight. There are 3 of us to share the luggage load and "bags fly free on Southwest". All of the "good stuff" will be carried on the plane. I've seen how checked bags can be treated.

The 15" laptop isn't a lightweight, but with PSE installed I can review pictures during the trip and use it for other trip planning especially post-cruise in Seattle. It's also 250GB of picture storage. I'm planning to sneak it into my son's carry-on backpack :)

The purpose of the multiple chargers is mostly to reduce the time for recharging batteries and provide redundancy if one fails on the trip. They don't weigh much or take up much space. I've been using the aftermarket batteries exclusively for the last few months with no issues. Also, mirrorless cameras go through batteries much faster than a dSLR.

I'd planned to take a monopod anyway then had the idea of a tall monopod taking pictures over a short person on a crowded rail. The tripod might be handy on our balcony but it will be essential at Skagway. We're taking a rental car up the Klondike highway and a tripod is the best way for the "welcome to Canada" type group pictures with everyone. The monopod and tripod will likely have to be carefully packed in checked luggage due to length.

We'll have a rental car in Juneau so we won't be rushed at Mendenhall and we might see some interesting sites driving the coastal roads. We're there from 7am-10pm so plenty of time to explore even with back-to-back whale watch trips. It'll be late May so the sun won't be setting until 10pm or so. We'll also have a rental car in Skagway for the same freedom from the crowds and tour schedules.

The small cybershots are for my wife and son roaming around the ship. They're not camera enthusiasts and don't want to deal with one of the better cameras. We have older/basic cell phones and the cameras in them are low quality.

I don't plan to carry 3 cameras at once, except maybe the day at Glacier Bay if the weather is nice.

If any lens stays home it will be the 16-50pz. I don't have a lens hood for it and it uses different size filters (40.5mm). The 18-55 uses the same filter as the 55-210 and I have the plastic lens hood for it. I'll probably take the 16-50 just for roaming around the ship with the A6000 in my jacket pocket.

Will your week's shooting fit into 250GB? If not, for however much won't fit, do you have enough memory cards to leave it there?

Again, good luck with your aftermarket batteries. A few months experience isn't enough to see them fall off a cliff. Maybe you're lucky, maybe you're not.

You're overthinking the monopod over short people thing. Instead, you should be overthinking your photo opportunities so it's not a problem. It's silly to take so much gear but put yourself into large-group excursions. Instead, find excursions with smaller groups, so there's simply fewer heads to contend with.

By the way, if the cybershots are for family, you could probably ignore them when posting here to see if you have enough stuff...

There's NO REASON to take three cameras for Glacier Bay with the lenses you have. Pick 2, at most. My humble opinion...

Will your week's shooting fit into 250GB? If not, for however much won't fit, do you have enough memory cards to leave it there?

 

I think 250GB will be enough, but will also take 2x 64GB thumb drives.

 

Again, good luck with your aftermarket batteries. A few months experience isn't enough to see them fall off a cliff. Maybe you're lucky, maybe you're not.

 

I can have 2 for the sony's and 1 for the FZ-300 go bad and still have enough. Also one of the chargers for each type can work from a 12Vdc cigarette lighter in an car.

 

You're overthinking the monopod over short people thing. Instead, you should be overthinking your photo opportunities so it's not a problem. It's silly to take so much gear but put yourself into large-group excursions. Instead, find excursions with smaller groups, so there's simply fewer heads to contend with.

 

I am definitely taking a monopod so I decided to make it a tall one for more versatility, nothing more. I agree about avoiding the crowds and large excursions. That's why I'm renting a car in 2 places instead of going on tour buses. The whale watch is a smaller boat. The flightseeing is just us in a Cessna 185. I'll do the best I can in the other situations where there are crowds.

 

By the way, if the cybershots are for family, you could probably ignore them when posting here to see if you have enough stuff...

 

I realized that later, but couldn't edit the posting.

 

There's NO REASON to take three cameras for Glacier Bay with the lenses you have. Pick 2, at most. My humble opinion...

 

If possible, I don't want to change lenses outdoors. If the weather cooperates, my thought was the A3000 has the 18-55 or the 12mm for close or wide landscape type shots, the A6000 has the 55-210 for medium distance telephoto, and the FZ-300 has the teleconverter installed for long range. I'd put the Sony's on the double camera harnesss and carry the FZ-300 in the telephoto camera bag by my side on a long cross-strap. We don't leave the ship for Glacier Bay, so if there was an issue, it'd be easy to go to our room and change what didn't work. I wouldn't want to run a marathon with it, but the setup is fairly comfortable and everything accessible.

 

Supposedly the cruise ship goes very slowly through Glacier Bay and it may be steady enough to effectively handhold the FZ-300 at full zoom. This would be more likely useful for wildlife sightings on the way in and out of Glacier Bay.

My answers in red above.

Just keep us posted what you used and lost. t hat is all.

Have fun don't forget Ketchekan can be a very wet area so no waterproof cases huh?

My personal opinion is that you're not going to need the "long-range option" in Glacier Bay. It's something to experience personally, and take some pictures so you can encourage others to go enjoy it in person as well. You're never going to be able to capture the "4D" experience of being at the glacier in a 2D image - there's no way to capture the sounds, the smells, the calm, the crack/bang/splash, etc. Sure, you could take a picture of the few animals you might see among the ice, but if you shoot too close-up, your shot has no perspective, yet it's a long way away and the animal will still be tiny in the frame.

Just keep us posted what you used and lost. t hat is all.

 

Have fun don't forget Ketchekan can be a very wet area so no waterproof cases huh?

I'll do a post-trip report of how the camera/optics kit worked. You are correct about no waterproof cases; good catch.

It would be good to have a smaller waterproof case for a few extra camera items and maybe a cell phone.

Take one camera and just swap lenses as needed. You are going to Alaska not the Sahara desert. :rolleyes: Way to much stuff in my opinion. I'm leaving for a Europe cruise on Thursday and I am taking a D610, 24-120mm lens, 50mm lens and maybe a 70-300 lens (still on the fence for that one). One charger, one CPL filter with 2 16gm memory cards. along with my 13" macbook....that's it.

Take one camera and just swap lenses as needed. You are going to Alaska not the Sahara desert. :rolleyes: Way to much stuff in my opinion. I'm leaving for a Europe cruise on Thursday and I am taking a D610, 24-120mm lens, 50mm lens and maybe a 70-300 lens (still on the fence for that one). One charger, one CPL filter with 2 16gm memory cards. along with my 13" macbook....that's it.

I also carry two bodies. One on a strap with the lens of the day (now the 18-105 f/4) and the other with the alternate, either wide or long to compliment the other (usually the Rokinon 12mm f/2.0). It's one of the reasons that I finally dropped the DSLR for travel and went with the e-mount. The second body fits in a discreet belt pouch. All that weighs about the same as, say, a D610 with a 24-120 f/4 lens. ;)

I find the second body is much handier than switching lenses when the need arises (or fancy strikes). I find I get to use lenses like the ultra-wide, fisheye or Lensbaby far more often by having them available at the flip of a switch.

To each their own, but the switch to e-mount has allowed me do the two camera thing and travel with what used to be a large roll-on worth of equipment in a medium backpack. My ageing bones really, really appreciate it too!

Dave

Thanks for the support Dave. I thought all the cool photographers carried 2+ camera bodies with complimentary lenses installed.

I weighed everything listed in the first post.

The total is 33 pounds, 24 pounds without the computer, and not all will be carried/used at the same time.

Everything except the laptop, monopod, and tripod fit in my carry-on backpack.

All air travel is domestic (SWA) for this trip. The breakdown is below.

5 cameras, all lenses, all batteries, flash, all in padded cases: 13 pounds

Business-class laptop, power supply, and external hard drive: 9 pounds (in son's carry-on backpack; his has a padded laptop pouch)

The monopod and tripod in carry cases: 5 pounds (likely in checked luggage)

All the filters, adapters, chargers, mem cards, cleaning stuff, and other accessories: 2 pounds

Both binoculars in their cases: 3 pounds

The car dash-cam kit: 1 pound

How much does your complete travel camera/optics kit weigh?

I'm looking forward to reading your post-cruise comments when you return. Alaska is amazing. Don't get so wrapped up in taking pictures that you don't take some time to enjoy it while you're there.

Did I miss mention of a flash?

I actually have no issue with the amount of kit you're taking, I've taken more in the past.

Let's get real. You are taking a Sherpa (a porter)with you...

You have way too much weight & equipment you will never use on this trip.

I went on a 7 day pre-cruise land excursion ( DIY ) before we got on the ship in Seward to Vancouver B.C. Yes I took a tripod, it folds down for easy carry-on, worked great out of our rental car. Only used it once on the ship from our balcony room while sailing about the Hubbard Glacier. Don't take if you are only cruising. Filters are light, however I only used a CPL. Found that the 17-70mm & 70-300mm covered all my needs. Maybe for some Eagles, I wished I had the 150-600mm ( still hand-hand would have been difficult )

Zip-Lock plastic bags, extra cloths, cleaning equipment, 2 batteries for each camera, 2 32GB & 2 16GB memory cards were plenty. Still shot over 3500 photos. Over-kill I know but managed to downsize the whole trip in just 750 pictures. Basically 2 DVDS including some short video of salmon & bears.

I would really re-think what you will use on this cruise. Finally I have a very small backpack to place all of these items in. It was light & easy to carry. Also a place to keep my gore-tex rain jacket handy should I need it.

Happy Travels, John

Did I miss mention of a flash?

 

I actually have no issue with the amount of kit you're taking, I've taken more in the past.

I'm taking this flash: http://www.amazon.com/Neewer-NW320-Display-Speedlite-RX100II/dp/B00VE5HQ4I

It works fine in TTL and other modes on the A6000 and A3000.

Thanks for the support Dave. I thought all the cool photographers carried 2+ camera bodies with complimentary lenses installed.

Geez...I haven't worried about being cool (which I really wasn't) since I got married to the girl of my dreams. :)

Seriously, it isn't a "cool" thing. I just know if I have to stop, find a wind-shielded spot and swap lenses when I see something that would look better in a different lens, I will likely not do it. The second body is pure convenience and the tiny A6xxx cameras are very convenient.

How much does your complete travel camera/optics kit weigh?

With both bodies, six lenses (two mounted), charger and batteries, some filters, cleaning tools, a Surface Pro (work machine in case we get stranded by weather or standby traffic), a Kindle Fire, backup device and a Giottos micro tripod, it all still fits in a LowePro FastPack 350, fits under an airplane seat if needed and comes in at around 23-25 lbs. The empty fanny-pack rides in the checked luggage and gets packed for the day depending on the targeted subject matter.

My Pelican 1520 that I used to haul the extra DSLR stuff in weighed 10+ lbs empty!

Enjoy Alaska! We're thinking of going again either this fall or the next because you just don't get tired of it.

Dave

I also carry two bodies. One on a strap with the lens of the day (now the 18-105 f/4) and the other with the alternate, either wide or long to compliment the other (usually the Rokinon 12mm f/2.0). It's one of the reasons that I finally dropped the DSLR for travel and went with the e-mount. The second body fits in a discreet belt pouch. All that weighs about the same as, say, a D610 with a 24-120 f/4 lens. ;)

 

I find the second body is much handier than switching lenses when the need arises (or fancy strikes). I find I get to use lenses like the ultra-wide, fisheye or Lensbaby far more often by having them available at the flip of a switch.

 

To each their own, but the switch to e-mount has allowed me do the two camera thing and travel with what used to be a large roll-on worth of equipment in a medium backpack. My ageing bones really, really appreciate it too!

 

 

Dave

I actually keep looking at the fuji XT-1 system myself. Just the XT-1 and the 18-135 lens would save me 540g over the d610 and 24-120. Just have to decide if I really want to do the complete swap and learn a new system and start from scratch with gear. :eek:

I actually keep looking at the fuji XT-1 system myself. Just the XT-1 and the 18-135 lens would save me 540g over the d610 and 24-120. Just have to decide if I really want to do the complete swap and learn a new system and start from scratch with gear. :eek:

Have you looked closely at the Sony A6300? With the 18-105, it's smaller and lighter (less expensive, if that matters) with higher resolution than the XT-1 and has significantly better AF with live-view shooting at the medium 8fps burst speed.

Admittedly, it doesn't look like a cool little DSLR with all the fiddly little dials, but I've never had anyone say, "That's a beautiful picture...what does your camera look like?" :)

Dave