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Goin to Madrid in 3 weeks, which lens should I bring?

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Yukinalesca

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I have sel24f18, sel50f18, selpz16-50, sel1016 and sel18-200. I wanna bring maybe 2-3 lenses. I also have an rx100 so I'm considering bringing it too incase i wanna reduce it down to 2 lenses along with it. I also have a think tank retrospective bag so I dont have much space to bring them all. Its winter so its not advsable to be switchin lenses out in public, is that correct? Thanks, guys!
 
I was going to say the SEL1650P as its so small and very handy when you are out and about, but since you have an RX100, why not bring the 24Z (which I hear is great) and the 18200? You should be covered with that unless you do mainly UWA-photo.
 
I plan on travelling light, I was hoping i won't have to bring 18200. I'm wondering if i will miss much without it. My original plan was 1016, 24f18 and 24f18 for night shots. Is that too limiting?
 
I just came back from thailand, i took the sel 16+uwa, e24, zm50 & Sel18-200mm and my wife used the rx100. the e24 was attached to the cam more than 85% of the time. the e10-18, e24 & the 18-200 should serve you well.

Happy vaccation.

Edit: used the 18-200 only when i went on safari.

--
moh
 
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Yukinalesca said:
I have sel24f18, sel50f18, selpz16-50, sel1016 and sel18-200. I wanna bring maybe 2-3 lenses. I also have an rx100 so I'm considering bringing it too incase i wanna reduce it down to 2 lenses along with it. I also have a think tank retrospective bag so I dont have much space to bring them all. Its winter so its not advsable to be switchin lenses out in public, is that correct? Thanks, guys!
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Leave the 50mm f1.8 home, unless you pan to do a lot of portraits. I'd take the PZ, the 24f1.8 and the 10-18.

You will shoot 50% with the 10-18, 40% with the PZ, and 10% with the 24. Spain in general is a wide angle country, Madrid is a wide angle city, and you will be indoors quite a bit. When you need 24mm, your PZ will cover it.

I spent 3 weeks this fall in Switzerland, Prague, Budapest, Vienna and Salzburg, and shot over 9,000 images. Half my shots were with the 16mm+/-UWA, 20-30% with the PZ, and 10-20% with the 55-210. I carried but never used a 90mm f2.8 Tele-Elmarit and maybe 50 shots with the 35mm f1.4 Summilux.

I travel a lot - I'm off to Flordia this week, San Francisco next week, and Israel in May. Spain and Morocco are on my fall agenda. 2013 was Turkey, Israel and Jordan.

Listen to Ken Sills. He is among the best travel photographers on the forum.

Have fun!

Mel
 
So maybe I can just bring 1016 and 24mm and whenever i need to zoom, i can use my rx100. I also have the sel16 with fisheye adapter but opting for 1016 since i probably wont be coming back there for awhile and dont want goofy lookin pics. I don't like switchin lens so much even more so durin winter so maybe predominantly 1016 on my 5r...
 
Morocco, Spain with CZ 24mm.

Should give you an idea as to what things look like through a 24mm lens. That's the only lens I took on the trip. I like to travel light...... and that's the only lens I had at the time. :)

If you have room for one or two more, I'd take the 50mm and 10-18mm.
 
I have the 1018 and 1650. I have been trying to decide between the 1670 or 24 as a second lens to replace the 1650. I'll keep the 1650 for when i need a smaller sized lens (skiing, backpacking).

The madrid pics look great and show the versatility of composition with the 24 ... where there times you wanted a little more reach?
 
Definately a wide angle lens is needed. If you are visiting a lot of indoor cultural attractions, and fast prime would be nice.
 
Depends on what you shoot, but all wide angle seems limiting.
 
Nice photos! I just got the 16-55 for Xmas. I was London and Paris last summer with the 18-50mm, and the 55-210. The long lens rarely saw action, and at times I wished for a wider angle. Looking forward to putting the new lens through its paces.
 
Many nice shots in there Ken! Looks like the weather played the spoilsport much of the time! You should have squeezed in Kamickochi on the Matsumoto trip and Osaka while in Kyoto...

My fav is the shot of pachinko parlor in Shibuya - crazily noisy places.

Domo arigatou gozaimashita!

SG
 
offtraildog said:
I have the 1018 and 1650. I have been trying to decide between the 1670 or 24 as a second lens to replace the 1650. I'll keep the 1650 for when i need a smaller sized lens (skiing, backpacking).

The madrid pics look great and show the versatility of composition with the 24 ... where there times you wanted a little more reach?
Click to expand...
I was in Sevilla and Barcelona, just fyi. :)

that was about a week or two after I bought the lens. I was still figuring out the focal length. by the end of the trip, I felt 24mm was all I needed for the most part.

as you said, there were times when I wished I had more reach, such as taking photos of the cobras and other snakes (hate snakes) or candid street portraits. actually, I wished I had a wider angle more often than I wanted a telephoto. there are some magnificent structures and architecture in morocco and spain.

but those occasions were easily overshadowed by the convenience of having only the 24mm + nex 7.
 
Definitely no doubt im taking my sel1016 since I bought it for this trip. I plan on goin to Avila and Segovia and Toledo as well. i am leanin towards the rx100 hangin around my neck in case I want some reach and if shallow depth of field is required. Maybe I will bring my 24f18 for nite shots as well and since 1650 is tiny i will bring it too. I can havt my friend carry rx100 so she dont have to use her iphone to take pics! Thanks for the suggestions guys!
 
Imo, no matter what take the 24mm Zeiss. Fantastic lens. I used it for probably 85% of my shots when I went on all my vacations this year including Africa, Hawaii, Whistler BC, Vegas, and Glacier National Park.
 
I would bring....

10-18mm f4 - Your WA lens.

16-50mm - Your standard zoom

A fast/nighttime lens. - Your choice between the 24mm or 50mm.

I generally shoot a normal zoom most of the time. I use a flash so a f1.8 lens is not needed but my lenses are f2.8. If you love WA then that's what you want to leave on the camera, but I think most shooters generally like the 16-50mm as a standard lens. If you use the 18-200mm and 25%+ of your shots are beyond 50mm than the 18-200mm becomes the standard lens.

This is less a question for a forum, and more about you, and how you like to shoot. If you do not know your shooting habits a review of your recent work can show you what your habits are assuming you are not leaving most lenses at home. For example 70% of my shots fall between 24mm-70mm which make the standard zoom my most used lens, but others may use the WA zoom more.

Good Luck!

--
RonFrank
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Take the 1650 for general walkabout. As you wander around, the perspective and viewing distance will keep chopping and changing whenever you turn a corner. You don't want to change lenses whenever you change a corner, and wide is more use than long in Madrid.

Take the 24/1.8 for shooting people indoors in places with "no flash" rules, which you'll see everywhere.

Take the 10-18 if you like building facades, cathedral ceilings and whatnot.

Take a mini-tripod a few inches high, so you can perch the camera on window ledges and so on and drop the ISO. A ten dollar support will do far more for your pictures of interiors and nightime cityscapes than premium glass.

Take the bus/train to Toledo and El Escorial for day trips.

Speaking of messenger bags and changing lenses in public... The last time I was there, Madrid was having a bag snatching epidemic and the local women went around without handbags/purses. But I think it's got better in the last few years. Still, have a care.
 
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I like really wide for interiors and street scenes with lots of DOF and close foreground details in their surroundings. For me therefore a wa of at least 16mm is essential. I want shots of interiors and streets in low light. 2.8 and higher iso will usually handle this. I like small details so I sometimes want to get quite close. I seldom want a tele of more than about 100mm (in cities) and when I need a bit more I can usually get it with a little cropping. I also use sweep panorama mode quite a lot when travelling.

So, I'd suggest you think about your own shooting style, especially at the longer and wider ends because this is where the extra size/weight will be added or saved. I'd be taking that RX100 plus a sel 10-18 and maybe a Sigma 30.
 
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