So, considering the photos I want to take, what is the gear that I plan on taking?
I was pondering which lenses I should take, but ultimately, I came to the conclusion that for one reason or another, I should take all my lenses, except maybe Big Bertha. Big Bertha’s usage is still being assessed.
As I may have mentioned before, this is the brightest lens I have. It is also an ultra wide angle lens. I will use it to take night sky photos. I have the night sky photo planned out, but may also use the lens in other photos. I will bring no filters for this lens, as the dome shape of the glass does not allow it to take any filters (and therefore, I have none).
I’m still tossing up between taking this lens AND the 24-85. Why? Because I would take it, mainly, for the same reasons. The only things that would make a difference would be in case we decide that it’s a good idea to take nature photos (birds in trees). This is the time this lens would come handy. That means I would also need the tripod with me. I will bring the following filters:
- Polaroid Multicoated UV
- AGFAPHOTO Circular Polarizer
- AGFAPHOTO Warming
Being completely honest, I don’t think I’ll end up using the CPL filter as it increases the F-Stops for the photo to come out well, and if I’m taking photos of things moving quickly, then this won’t be good (unless there is A LOT of sun).
I know I’m already taking a wide angle lens, the Sigma 20mm, but as described in the text it does not support filters. As such, I may have a desire to add circular polarizing filters to the lens, or a warming filter to explore the different effects. The filters I plan on bringing:
- Gobe Circular Polarizer
- Kenko Air Multicoated UV
- Tiffen Wide Angle 812 Warming (pending arrival)
Now I really need better quality filters for this lens. Gobe is pretty decent, and Kenko was the cheapest one I could find of a certain price range when I bought the lens. I will look to buy better quality filters and maybe more creative, i.e. GND in the case, filters.
This has started becoming my most used lens. Whenever I take my camera out, there are high chances that this will be one of the lenses that I will be taking. I love the fact that it is a prime lens and that it is very bright. It is not for EVERY occasion, especially with quick moving objects/subjects that need quick reframing (such as a small moving puppy). As it will be the lens I will use for all non-purpose photos (i.e. not one of the pre-defined photos) I am bringing these filters:
- Hoya NXT Plus Circular Polarizer
- Polaroid Multicoated UV
- Hoya HMC 81A Warming
- Hoya HMC 81B Warming
My beautiful macro lens. It can be used for other things beside taking macro/close-up shots, it’s got 3 focus distance settings: 0.312-0.45m, 0.45m-∞, and Full. I usually use it for macros on the very close up setting. I sometimes use it for portraits, but that is a more rare occurrence. I’m planning to take a lot of macro photos during the hikes we do. The only filters I plan on taking are:
- Polaroid CPL
- Polaroid Multicoated UV
- Polaroid Warming
I’m not entirely sure if I’m taking my Nikkor 24-85mm lens. It used to be my primary lens, but as I slowly migrated to the Nikkor 50mm (prime), I stopped using it. The 24-85mm is a great versatile lens, but that’s just it – it is versatile. It would be lens I would take to a trip that I had no REAL photographic purpose (which now rarely happens). It has a lot of filters and I could take them all. But the useful filters that it has that I dont’t have on other lenses are (variable) ND and Fluorescent ones. For these reasons, I do not plan on taking the lens.
Other gear that I will also take (excluding lens/filter cleaning material etc), is the Manfrotto tripod, the Mini Tripod, the shutter remote control, a red light head lamp and a picnic rug to sit on.