Safari Decision... leave the Oly 40-150 Pro behind?

Chizuka wrote:

Hello. I will be going on a safari in Tanzania. I was planning to take the PL 100-400 mounted on the Lumix G9, the Olympus 40-150 Pro mounted on the Olympus EM10 mk2 and the Olympus 12-40 Pro in my bag, or mounted on the EM10, with the 40-150 in the bag.

For space and weight reasons, I am wondering if I could afford to leave the Oly 40-150 Pro behind?

What are your thoughts?

I have a few (thoughts).

Firstly that we are in M4/3 (among other things) to make our gear transportable. Dusty conditions and speed of reaction favour several cameras each with a lens to make swapping cameras easier and more practicable than swapping lenses.

For travellers with multiple set ups the GM5 was made for the business as it is only a pack of cards bigger than the lens it is attached to.  Sadly they are out of production and the G9 is indeed a great camera even if it is a monster beside the GM5.

There were extensive discussions on the 40-150 Pro lens on thread(s) where complaints were made regarding the hood on that lens “flying apart in scrattering bearings and spring ‘bits’ everywhere”.

I have the Pro 40-150 and love it to death as a lens.

It does work well on a GM5. My 40-150 Pro hood is still intact.

In use the hood must be one of the best designed hoods ever.  But it does have that question mark over its ruggedness.  Life on a safari could be hard on gear. So the question is on whether the 40-150 would be useful - I think that it would - presumably it was bought to take memorable pictures and it cannot do that left at home.

You need to decide on whether to take a chance and also overcome the amateur photographer’s eternal packing doubt.  What lenses do I need to take that I will probably not use and what lenses if left behind I will wish that had come with me.  The source of a few prospective mental breakdowns for me.  Made easier for me with GM5 bodies.

And if you do take the 4-150 Pro then that was what you bought it for - not much use in wrapping it in cotton wool.  If you do take it then never, I repeat never, pick it up by the hood.  

If something does break then it was just another cost of the safari and the opportunity to make great images.

Pro-shooters accept collateral damage - so why shouldn’t we?