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Anonymous
/p/:

I will be photographing wildlife/landscapes in Antarctica next year, and I will be looking for a Camera that is up to it. I would need a lens with a longrange zoom, and it would need the ability to take pictures rapidly and with excellent quality. And advice?

I am willing to spend at least 3k for the right one.
>> Michifús
semi-pro SLR is probably the way to go. If you're looking to go digital, I have a Canon 30d and I absolutely love it, though you might want to check out the 5d as well.

You can also get any number of lenses to meet your shooting needs, with focal lengths of up to 800mm.

http://www.sigma-photo.com/lenses/lenses_all.asp?gclid=CMGLiYf2kosCFQpgSgod5w4QTA

Is a good resource to see what's available at a glance, and Sigma lenses are *just about* as good as the official equivalent for a fraction of the price.

Also, consider getting a battery grip, some extra batteries, and a few extra CF cards. (Most people forget to factor this into the price of their camera and end up spending a lot more than originally thought)
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
Thanks for the advice, I appreciate it.

OP here. I am a novice knowledge of photography, but I do have a fair amount of experiance.

I scraped by on my last trip with a Minolta dimage f300 but I want something more profesional with ALOT more capability that can outclass that one by leaps and bounds.

This is a genuine original pic I took of a Polar bear in Canada a couple years ago. enjoy, distribute, ect

Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeMinolta Co., Ltd.Camera ModelDiMAGE F300Camera SoftwareAdobe Photoshop 7.0Maximum Lens Aperturef/4.7Focal Length (35mm Equiv)114 mmImage-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution72 dpiVertical Resolution72 dpiImage Created2005:11:28 17:03:40Exposure Time1/90 secF-Numberf/4.7Exposure ProgramNormal ProgramISO Speed Rating64Brightness5.2 EVExposure Bias0 EVMetering ModePatternLight SourceUnknownFlashNo Flash, AutoFocal Length23.40 mmColor Space InformationsRGBImage Width2048Image Height1536RenderingCustomExposure ModeAutoWhite BalanceAutoDigital Zoom Ratio2.1Scene Capture TypePortraitGain ControlLow Gain UpContrastNormalSaturationNormalSharpnessNormalSubject Distance RangeDistant View
>> in before film vs digital des
For wildlife, pretty much any of the dslrs made in the last couple years would be fine. It's an extreme enviroment, so a body with good weather sealing is probably a good idea. The D100(eh), D200 or equivalent. Bring extra batteries because they don't work as effeciently in the cold.
Is this a once-in-a-lifetime trip? You might want to seriously look into also getting a fuji 6x7 or 6x9 rangefinder for your landscapes. They're fairly small for being MF cameras and are a pretty good value these days.

Whatever you choose spend a couple months getting intimately familiar with your gear.
>> Anonymous
It will probably be once in a lifetime. I would prefer to have a camera that is versatile so I can take landscapes, moving birds, ect quickly without having to transition to a different lens or camera. I am somewhat lost when it comes to MM sizes and camera lingo, so I am going to be studying photographic basics soon. Are there any good starting tutorials online?
>> des haet superzoom
D200 or equivalent+this year's 18-200 superzoom darling with VR/IS. I wouldn't suggest it but that's what you want
Dunno about online but check your local library for the Time Life series on photography, kodak's old books, "The Photographer's Handbook", etc
>> Anonymous
Nikon D200
>> ac
>>38727
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/essays/ND-m8-aa.shtml
This page suggests that a rangefinder isn't so much what you want for shooting wildlife and nature in Antarctica. Perhaps the Pentax 67 would be a better choice for medium-format photography?

Although I think his money would probably be better spent on an extra tricked-out digital SLR system than dividing it between incompatible film and digital.
(Although it might make sense to get a good digital SLR and then a film SLR as a backup body. I.e., a Canon 30D and then a couple of EOS 650s or what have you in case something happens to the 30D)
>> Liska !!LIVFOETqL8j
First thing off hand I can think of: dont' let the camera do the adjustments for you in terms of f stop's and such. If you havent' already done so, once you get your camera, play around with white objects and the different settings to make sure any shots you take of the snow actually come out white. I had a friend go to Antartica and take lots of photos.. he got back, and because he didn't adjust all his snowy pictures turned out yellow and dull.

As for the camera you are looking for, i'm assuming you want to go digital so I can't help, but best of luck on finding the right camera!
>> des
>>38741
The reason I suggested it was to have an almost-pocketable MF camera at hand for wide-to-normal angle landscapes, not because it was a rangefinder.
>> ac
>>38749
Valid argument.
>> Michifús
>>38728

The book I use / taught myself on is 'Photography: Eight Edition' by London, Upton, Stone, Kobré, & Brill. It covers film, digital, and everything in between. ISBN 0-13-189609-1

As far as lens types you have the following:
- Standard: replicates what the human eye sees
- Wide Angle: Larger perspective and better depth of field
- Telephoto: narrow viewing angle, appears to narrow your subject. This is the lens you're going to want to get for distance shots.
- Marco: used for extremely close-range subjects
- Fisheye: extreme-wide angle, causes image to appear convex. Not really practical for most shooting circumstances


For focal length:

6-16mm is fisheye
>> Anonymous
D80 + 18-200 VR
or
D200 for weather sealing,
Fuji S5 for highlights and dynamic range

But 18-200 VR is ultimate convenience in one lens (And its quality is quite good compared to alternatives, in fact EXCELLENT)
>> Anonymous
>>38762
What brand is that fisheye, I've been browsing them for a while now in lust and don't recall seeing a 6-16mm
>> Anonymous
>>38856
I was just saying that anything in the 6-16mm range is considered fisheye.

The Canon EF-S 10-22mm covers most of your fisheye ranges with some of your lower wide angle ranges.

For the aforementioned lens:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=12039&A=details&Q=&sku=351542&is=U
SA&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation
>> ac
>>38762
Note that those focal lengths only apply to 35mm or full-frame digital like Canon's 5D. What's normal or telephoto depends on the size of the imaging surface. If you're using a camera with an 18-55mm lens, I'm guessing you're using a digital SLR with an APS-C-sized sensor, which means it's not very-wide-to-normal, it's moderate-wide-to-moderate-telephoto. 80mm is normal on a medium-format camera, 32mm is normal on my Digital Rebel XTi, and the one of the reasons that large-format cameras have those big-ass bellows is because they need that huge amount of distance between the film and the lens to get a normal angle.

To get the "35mm equivalent" of a digital sensor, you need to multiply the lens focal length by 1.3 (for Canon's higher-end cameras like the new 1ds Mk III), 1.6 (for Canon's prosumer and low-end digital SLRs, like the 20d, 30d, and Rebels), or 1.5 (for all of Nikon's digital SLRs). For little point & shoot digital cameras, they'll often have the 35mm equivalent on the lens barrel, but if not, just look it up--they have all different sensor sizes.

Additionally, those numbers you gave are just rough guidelines. Voigtlander, for instance, makes a rectilinear wide-angle (I.e., not fisheye) lens that's 12mm. And the "telephoto" range doesn't just stop dead at 500mm--off the top of my head, Canon's got a 600mm lens, and I think I've seen longer ones.
>> ac
>>38856
He wasn't saying "I have a 6-16mm fisheye zoom lens", he was saying "The range of focal lengths that can be considered 'fisheye' is from about 6 to 16mm"

(Which isn't actually correct--see my previous reply in this thread)
>> Anonymous
>>38874

Canon made a 1200mm f/5.6 until a few years ago. It was a bit pricey at $89,000.
>> Anonymous
>>38879
WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA??!?
>> Anonymous
>>38762
FYI, those numbers are for 35mm frames. Any DSLR save for the highest end canons have a smaller sensor, the Nikon DX sensor format is 1.5x smaller than a 35mm's frame.


I'd say go for a D200 and a http://www.amazon.com/Nikon-18-200mm-3-5-5-6-ED-IF-Zoom-Nikkor/dp/B000BY52NU/ref=pd_bbs_5/105-545047
4-3817250?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1175022081&sr=8-5
that lens, atleast 2 extra batteries and as many CF cards as you can buy. You will also want to bring a laptop with an external hard drive so that you can back everything up and re-use the cards.


Also, make DAMN SURE you shoot in RAW, and become familiar with the camera-finished picture workflow.