Wide Angle Lens - opinions please

Photearoa wrote:

jm10 wrote:

Photearoa wrote:

Absolutely.. that is on my wish list! Prioritising the wide angle as I have a trip coming up and really want to have a go at the remote New Zealand skies!

The 14mm lens has been an outstanding performer for me since 2014. I r!eeccommend it highly! I have a trip coming up also to your neck of the woods (South island). All I see is rain and showers in the forecast. Sometimes for some locations it is not a bad thing but in moderation:-) How is the weather where you are?

jacob

Ah exciting for you! I’ve lived in NZ for 2 years now and one of the things I have learned is you cannot trust a weather forecast.. its so changeable, which can be bad, but also great.

right now up in Auckland we are having a very hot autumn.. still definitely beach weather. When are are heading out?

End of March. Looks like the weather reports can be of some value only about 2 or 3 days ahead; if longer - it is pure guessing...Also Auckland weather appears to be quite different from the west coast of the South island...

jm10 wrote:

End of March. Looks like the weather reports can be of some value only about 2 or 3 days ahead; if longer - it is pure guessing...Also Auckland weather appears to be quite different from the west coast of the South island...

Prepare for rain. God, I remember tramping and camping out that way years and years ago, rained for 11 days. My feet were rotting so finally gave up the outdoors for a bunk at a quonset hut run at an RV park that was filled with campers who were similarly soaked to the bone. The smell of thoroughly soaked flesh and charred clothes and scorched vulcanized cloth (people were holding their soaked clothes and tent flies over a cast iron wood stove) haunts me to this day. Still, it was a glory to be dry, indoors and puttering about in a clean dry lava lava.

PeterFXCassidy wrote:

jm10 wrote:

End of March. Looks like the weather reports can be of some value only about 2 or 3 days ahead; if longer - it is pure guessing...Also Auckland weather appears to be quite different from the west coast of the South island...

Prepare for rain. God, I remember tramping and camping out that way years and years ago, rained for 11 days. My feet were rotting so finally gave up the outdoors for a bunk at a quonset hut run at an RV park that was filled with campers who were similarly soaked to the bone. The smell of thoroughly soaked flesh and charred clothes and scorched vulcanized cloth (people were holding their soaked clothes and tent flies over a cast iron wood stove) haunts me to this day. Still, it was a glory to be dry, indoors and puttering about in a clean dry lava lava.

Thanks for the warning Peter! I think I am mentally prepared - always planning for the worst case. Physically - not sure. But not exactly planning to rough it the way you did...

I will also make it a point not to show your post to my better half who is going with me on this trip

Photearoa wrote:

Hi all

Here's my dilemma:

I'm currently working on upping my photo game. I haven't long been in manual mode (few months after years of auto) so am still getting to grips and learning as I go.

I have a trip coming up and want to have a go at some night skies and think my current lens set up might not be the best.

Usually, I mostly take landscapes or photos of my family. I'm fairly happy with my 23mm or 18-55 kit lens. I would at some point like to add the 50mm to my kit but for now think I need a wide angle.

I can see the benefit of the 10-24 in the flexibility but the F4 seems not great? Also think I'd prefer the sharpness of a prime.

16mm 1.4 - I've read great things about this and think the wide 1.4 will be great for night skies, but is 16mm wide enough to get the best results?

14mm 2.8 - Is the extra width better to have and trade off the on the F1.4 from the 16mm..

I know there are samyang wide options but I don't want to add manual focus into the mix right now. While that's probably not a problem when shooting night sky I can't see me using it for anything else as I am still focusing on Fstops/iso/SS.. could do without another thing to think about lol

Anyone got any advice that would help me. Have researched the hell out of each lens but would really value some more practical advice.

thanks

F4  is enough - especially with OIS- and high ISO shot with Fuji cameras are quite good.

Primes can have more sharpness in theory - in real life difficult to see.

Read imaging-resource.com tests

My samples with 10-24 , handheld, high ISO - a dark place :

jm10 wrote:

PeterFXCassidy wrote:

Prepare for rain. God, I remember tramping and camping out that way years and years ago, rained for 11 days. My feet were rotting so finally gave up the outdoors for a bunk at a quonset hut run at an RV park that was filled with campers who were similarly soaked to the bone. The smell of thoroughly soaked flesh and charred clothes and scorched vulcanized cloth (people were holding their soaked clothes and tent flies over a cast iron wood stove) haunts me to this day. Still, it was a glory to be dry, indoors and puttering about in a clean dry lava lava.

Thanks for the warning Peter! I think I am mentally prepared - always planning for the worst case. Physically - not sure. But not exactly planning to rough it the way you did...

I will also make it a point not to show your post to my better half who is going with me on this trip

That coast experiences serious wet. I just sort of cruised into it on a general tent, pot n'knife backpack meander but everyone I bumped into along the way afterwards had gotten rained on to some degree of soakedness though it may have been a seasonal condition. The Paparoa park has been expanded to include easy day hikes that are manageable with sneakers and good socks. The official park tracks are well maintained in NZ (though slides and falling foliage can disrupt them) and the grading system is accurately applied. Most parks have campsites with huts and their own rules. Never stayed in one as families were so prevalent that I let my spots go both times I'd managed to snag one but they were well maintained if spare. Use them. After a few days of silence with a chance to focus, your perceptions as a photographer will shift, after a few weeks or months, even more so.

https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/places-to-go/west-coast/places/paparoa-national-park/?tab-id=50578

PeterFXCassidy wrote:

jm10 wrote:

PeterFXCassidy wrote:

Prepare for rain. God, I remember tramping and camping out that way years and years ago, rained for 11 days. My feet were rotting so finally gave up the outdoors for a bunk at a quonset hut run at an RV park that was filled with campers who were similarly soaked to the bone. The smell of thoroughly soaked flesh and charred clothes and scorched vulcanized cloth (people were holding their soaked clothes and tent flies over a cast iron wood stove) haunts me to this day. Still, it was a glory to be dry, indoors and puttering about in a clean dry lava lava.

Thanks for the warning Peter! I think I am mentally prepared - always planning for the worst case. Physically - not sure. But not exactly planning to rough it the way you did...

I will also make it a point not to show your post to my better half who is going with me on this trip

That coast experiences serious wet. I just sort of cruised into it on a general tent, pot n'knife backpack meander but everyone I bumped into along the way afterwards had gotten rained on to some degree of soakedness though it may have been a seasonal condition. The Paparoa park has been expanded to include easy day hikes that are manageable with sneakers and good socks. The official park tracks are well maintained in NZ (though slides and falling foliage can disrupt them) and the grading system is accurately applied. Most parks have campsites with huts and their own rules. Never stayed in one as families were so prevalent that I let my spots go both times I'd managed to snag one but they were well maintained if spare. Use them. After a few days of silence with a chance to focus, your perceptions as a photographer will shift, after a few weeks or months, even more so.

https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/places-to-go/west-coast/places/paparoa-national-park/?tab-id=50578

Thanks for the info Peter. I think I got the general idea.

Did not mean to hijack the thread - it started with wide angle lenses...

jm10 wrote:

Photearoa wrote:

jm10 wrote:

Photearoa wrote:

Absolutely.. that is on my wish list! Prioritising the wide angle as I have a trip coming up and really want to have a go at the remote New Zealand skies!

The 14mm lens has been an outstanding performer for me since 2014. I r!eeccommend it highly! I have a trip coming up also to your neck of the woods (South island). All I see is rain and showers in the forecast. Sometimes for some locations it is not a bad thing but in moderation:-) How is the weather where you are?

jacob

Ah exciting for you! I’ve lived in NZ for 2 years now and one of the things I have learned is you cannot trust a weather forecast.. its so changeable, which can be bad, but also great.

right now up in Auckland we are having a very hot autumn.. still definitely beach weather. When are are heading out?

End of March. Looks like the weather reports can be of some value only about 2 or 3 days ahead; if longer - it is pure guessing...Also Auckland weather appears to be quite different from the west coast of the South island...

Ah yes, much wilder down there! Still the forecast the farmers use says a long hot autumn country wide so fingers crossed for you. Have an awesome trip down there!

Just use what you have now, learn from the experience, results, and practice. If you see any limitations, then revisit the question.

Photearoa wrote:

jm10 wrote:

Photearoa wrote:

jm10 wrote:

Photearoa wrote:

Absolutely.. that is on my wish list! Prioritising the wide angle as I have a trip coming up and really want to have a go at the remote New Zealand skies!

The 14mm lens has been an outstanding performer for me since 2014. I r!eeccommend it highly! I have a trip coming up also to your neck of the woods (South island). All I see is rain and showers in the forecast. Sometimes for some locations it is not a bad thing but in moderation:-) How is the weather where you are?

jacob

Ah exciting for you! I’ve lived in NZ for 2 years now and one of the things I have learned is you cannot trust a weather forecast.. its so changeable, which can be bad, but also great.

right now up in Auckland we are having a very hot autumn.. still definitely beach weather. When are are heading out?

End of March. Looks like the weather reports can be of some value only about 2 or 3 days ahead; if longer - it is pure guessing...Also Auckland weather appears to be quite different from the west coast of the South island...

Ah yes, much wilder down there! Still the forecast the farmers use says a long hot autumn country wide so fingers crossed for you. Have an awesome trip down there!

Thanks Photearoa! On your Samyang 12 selection; I never owned it but have seen multiple reviews and user's comments that it is an outstanding and well regarded lens. But one word of caution - try to perform a good test of the lens after you get it (within the exchange period). There have been reports of sample variations and the lens had to be exchanged. I really don't want to add this note of negativity here, but it is better to be informed. I hope it does not happen to you. Good luck with the new lens!