Camera kit for three weeks in Europe.

kaphinga wrote:

I would like to revisit my last post...

When I took a trip to Turkey last October with a lot of M4/3 gear, my three most-used lenses were the Oly 12-40mm, the 9-18mm, and the 14-150mm. I occasionally used a 17mm prime or the Samyang 7.5mm fisheye -- when I needed them, I was really glad that I had them.

When going out for the day I would take two bodies: one body with either the 12-40mm or the 14-150mm attached, and the other with the 9-18 attached. Occasionally, I would tuck the 17mm or the fisheye into my bag , but only when I knew I had a specific need for it.

This setup worked well for me. I would do it again.

I used to carry a LOT more stuff, mostly primes, and left a lot of lenses barely used. We started to only check baggage if we must, so I went on a campaign of gear simplification to keep the photo gear at a reasonable level… carry-on ONLY.

Our last few trips I carried the GX8, 12-40mm, 7-14mm, Voigtländer 17.5mm and Voigtländer 75mm f2.5 (small, light and compact, 250g with adaptor). My girlfriend carries a GX7 with 14-140mm II. I carry an UltraPod II just in case. It's light, weighs almost nothing and doesn't get in the way. If I don't use it, big deal.

We share the 7-14mm and I grab her camera when I want the range of the 14-140mm. I use the 17.5mm at night, so she uses the 12-40mm. I used to carry the 20mm for her, but she prefers a zoom, so, it all works out really well.

We're going to Colombia next week, along the Caribbean coast and Tayrona National Park. I'll leave the 75mm and carry the 100-400mm for nature shooting. I got a set of Kenko extension tubes in case I want to do some macro shooting. If not, they're small enough not to have to think about.