SLR Camera? What kind of camera do I need for Round the World trip?

v.e.r.b.a.l

Hi!

Myself and my girlfriend are planning an Around the World trip for 12 months starting end of January next year (to see details click here). In short, we'll be travelling through Central America (Mexico, Cuba, Jamaica), South America, New Zealand, Australia and South East Asia.

My parents have just told me that they are planning on pooling together with my sister to get me a camera before I go as a xmas present. I just have to pick out the camera.

My dad is a bit of a photography buff and recommends that I get an SLR camera with a lens of 15mm - 45mm range. I'm not too familiar with the technical difference between SLRs and compact digitals (e.g. what would this camera do that this camera wouldn't??)

I'm really looking for a camera that can take amazing pictures of things from the likes of Lake Titicaca in Peru, to a retro car in Cuba to a kangeroo in motion to Sydney Opera House... Not asking for much I know!!! :rolleyes: But I figure, I'm going to be seeing some of the most amazing sights of my life and I really want to capture them as perfectly as possible!

Any help from people in the know is greatly appreciated!

ThOnda

Get Pentax K10D or K20D - DSLRs, weather sealed, cheap, built-in image stabilising, not so big, user friendly.

The major differences between DSLRs and compact cameras are two:

The DLSRs have bigger chip - better picture quality, lower level of noise especially at higher ISO.

Interchangable lenses only with DSLRs. You'll get completely different camera by only changing a lens.

And the third one - it is rare to get compact camera with wide focal lengths. I don't remember any camera wider than 28mm (35 mm equivalent). And you'll need to have wider lens to make landscapes, street photography and photos of your companions.

Thirdfox

There are some 24mm compacts I think...

Anyway, if you're not looking to expand past the initial investment then Pentax or Olympus can be a good choice (or Sony) - they all have built in image stabilisation and in the case of Pentax and Olympus I've heard that the weather sealing is better than comparable cameras.

But... there's no escaping the big two Canikon (Canon and Nikon). Their stuff is widely available anywhere in the world and there's nearly everyone uses either of the two. But for someone who has no investment in lenses/accessories etc. it may be worth looking at the smaller brands.

I started off and chose Nikon - mainly because of the brand reputation, the fact it felt good in the hand and that the quality was no different to the other budget dSLR cams from the other companies.

They also have the new 16-85mm VR lens out - it looks to be a good choice for somewhat wide to somewhat long shots... or you can get a 18-200mm VR which extends further into telephoto but loses some wideangle-ness. (the 2mm does make a difference!)

Another possibility is the "bridge" camera - these pseudo-SLR cameras don't allow you to change lenses and offer massive zoom ranges (up to 20x I believe). As long as you're not planning to take action shots in low light (and bring a good tripod with you) you can get some pretty decent shots.

A good option would be to go to flickr.com and search the photos taken by particular cameras - this way you'll see what kind of quality you're getting for your money.

Have fun on your trip!

Shameless plug for Nikon:
Here's two of the shots I've taken - one was with the kit lens that comes with the D40 (18-55) and another with the 55-200 VR - click on them to get the large sizes:
Tunisia (18-55, should have used a tripod!):


Trinity College (55-200):

Zillah

Get a digital SLR. Bring plenty of spare memory cards and batteries. Any of the Nikon or Canon range are excellent. D70s is what I have, I'd upgrade to a D80 if I was motivated enough.

v.e.r.b.a.l wrote: »

15mm - 45mm range

I'd go for more a 15 - 200 if possible. 15mm is very wide, but 45mm is still considered to be a bit wide. I assume you'd sometimes want to zoom in. I'd go for at least 75, the higher the better.

Thirdfox

15mm on DX is not really that wide (equiavlent to 22.5mm on 35mm film) - look at the 10-22mm Sigma for true wide-angles. 45mm is a moderately long lens in DX terms (33mm is the "new" 50mm 35mm film standard).

But if you want a convenient all in one package there's the 16-85, 18-200 or Tamron 18-250mm

Burnt

VERBAL, it depends what sort of trip your planning on taking? If it's an around the world going from city to city you won't beat a DSLR, personally i like Nikon's offerings. Third fox gives a pretty good run down.

However speaking from personal experience, if you going to some of the wilder
or more remote areas of the world; way from civilisation for more than a week
or two, memory space, charging batteries or extreme cold can be a pain.

If this is the case you could pick yourself up a nice manual/mechanical 35mm
film slr e.g. Nikon FM2n with a 50mm f1.8 for about $200, it not too heavy or
bulky and is very robust. Yes I am a ludite...

Regardless get yourself a small water proof stuff sack, nothing more annoying than getting you camera dunked and then finding mould growing in your lense.

robinph

Lots of memory cards and somewhere online that you can upload your shots to each time you reach civilisation as carrying a bunch of cd/ dvd's around with you for a year would not be the safest way of saving your shots off the memory cards.

shrapnel222

if you start off in lima, buy it at the thieves market, best bargains in the world for cheap DSLRs

leinsterman

shrapnel222 wrote: »

if you start off in lima, buy it at the thieves market, best bargains in the world for cheap DSLRs

Yes and don't worry about your fellow traveller lying in a pool of his own blood on the next street ... I hope that was tongue in cheek...


Back on topic ...

It sounds as if you are not a hobby photographer ... but correct me if I'm wrong ... from the question you asked about comparing two Nikon cameras (one being a DSLR the other a P&S) then I'm guessing you are more into making photos in Auto mode than exploring the creative side of shooting pictures ...

The thing about DSLRs is the manual features they offer, the flexibility of lens swapping and the quality of the essential bits and pieces (lenses, sensors, shutters, metering, build quality, manual features etc) ... not the gadgets, mega pixels and gizmos as with most P&S ... the more you pay for a camera the less it will do for you in auto mode ... My professional DSLR for example does not really have any auto shooting mode except Programme and it has no built in flash ... this cost an arm and a leg ... but boy was I glad of it as I travelled from Lusaka to Cape Town over the Christmas period ... it also had weather sealing ... and the sand in the Namib desert is like powder

I do a lot of travel photography and I often carry many kilos of gear ... but on a round the world you also need to consider weight, size etc .. As the quoted poster above points out ... a DSLR represents a big prize for the muggers in Lima ... and it is harder to hide ... though having travelled from Peru to Brazil via Ushuaia I can say as long as you are careful and discreet with your gear you should be OK ...

In places like Chile (the Atacama for example), Bolivia (Uyuni) you will be glad of a good resilient camera which is resistant to dust and other crud ... but I'm sure there are decent P&S options offering this from the likes of Canon and Nikon ...

there are some great P&S options from both Canon and Nikon ... personally I'm not a fan of Pentax having had a play with their DSLR ... I feels a bit like a camera version of a Lada ... sturdy and solid ... but no style and basic handling ... (sorry Thonda ... but you did suggest I look at one at PMA earlier this year) ...

EDIT - If you are going to Bolivia then don't use an iPOD ... they have a nasty habit of exploding with continuous use at altitude (I have personal experience of three different occurrances all in Bolivia after several hours of use)... The iRiver on the other hand was fine ...

leinsterman

I should add I got into photography travelling with a bunch of people in South America who were complete geeks for it ... one of my personal favorite photos of all time (of my own) was a panorama taking with a Canon IXUS type camera ... it is a combination of a few shots in photoshop taken in Torres Del Paine in Chile ... the place that really triggered my love of photography ... it is no work of art but it invokes special feelings for me ...

Here it is -

melekalikimaka

Zillah wrote: »

Get a digital SLR. Bring plenty of spare memory cards and batteries. Any of the Nikon or Canon range are excellent. D70s is what I have, I'd upgrade to a D80 if I was motivated enough.




I'd go for more a 15 - 200 if possible. 15mm is very wide, but 45mm is still considered to be a bit wide. I assume you'd sometimes want to zoom in. I'd go for at least 75, the higher the better.

slightly off topic, but why upgrade from the d70-d80, what benifits are there?

sheesh

I really don't see why you need a dslr for a round the world trip. I would have thought that smaller would have been better something like Canon g9 would be alot more practical than a dslr or even a bridge camera. or the waterproof, shock proof olympus stylus 790

but to answer properly I would have to ask what kind of photography you hope to do.
Landscapes? people? or just happy snappies. Where are you going to store the camera when you want to go out on the piss with the girl friend? you can't bring a massive lump of a camera and be drunk, you'll just get mugged. this will also be extra weight + 1-2 lenses (1 walk around + 1 Zoom + charger + battery+ cards)
look for a small camera with a good lens and good frame rate that way you will be able to capture some things all the time.
bring a small tripod that will fit in your pocket for low light conditions

BanzaiBk

I used a Canon G9 on my RTW. I think a dSLR is madness for a RWT, especially considering where you are going. Also, space?! P&S or a bridge camera will be the best bet, for your safety and comfort imo. Honestly, do you want to spend a year clinging onto your pack for dear life incase someone tries to take it 'cos of the camera?

leinsterman

BanzaiBk wrote: »

Honestly, do you want to spend a year clinging onto your pack for dear life in case someone tries to take it 'cos of the camera?

That is a very important point ... my trips are all less than 3 months and usually I only bring a lot of gear when I know I'll have somewhere safe to put ... e.g. in Africa I travelled with Africa in Focus ... they provide safe lockers in which you can stow your gear .. and the truck is always guarded when in places where there is risk ... other travel companions on this trip were even carrying Full Format ... for my part I have two bodies (5d & 1d) ... two big teles ... 2 teleconvertors ... 1 all rounder ... 1 super wide ... 1 fast prime ... flash unit ... plus plus plus ... but I never got into a situation of having to worry about my gear ... on a this 5-6 week trip I shot 4000 images or 40GB of data (mostly RAW + small JPEG for blogging)

In my case for a longer trip I'd restrict myself to 1 body, 1 all rounder lens (in my case a toss up between sigma 18-125 & Canon 24-105 F4L, 1 small cheap tele (70-300 USM), 1 fast prime - 50 F1.4 ... this is still a lot of gear ... which if travelling independently you'd have to have on your person 90% of the time ...

I agree the the best option is a bridge camera in your case ...unless you are thinking seriously about making the trip a photography thing ...

BanzaiBk

I met a person in Cambodia who's group was followed across 3 townships because some people spotted her with her dSLR. Someone in my group brought a laptop and in the end she just left it behind her because it was so much hassle. She could never sleep on buses or trains because she was paranoid. Putting you or your gf/travelling partners wellbeing and comfort in danger is crazy for the sake of a few pictures.

Zillah

melekalikimaka wrote: »

slightly off topic, but why upgrade from the d70-d80, what benifits are there?

Off the top of my head, you can get larger prints from the D80 and I think it has a DOF preview which the D70s doesn't have. I remember there being other stuff I wanted but its been a long time since I looked into it.

Burnt

As an aside, I have heard of people making up lables, even
just putting some insulating tape on their cameras; to cover up brand names and make it look less attractive to would be theives

shrapnel222

leinsterman wrote: »

Yes and don't worry about your fellow traveller lying in a pool of his own blood on the next street ... I hope that was tongue in cheek...

yes and no to be fair. when you travel, you are number one target for thieves, and some tourists are targetted more than others. I met plenty of people over there who had stuff stolen from them who went to the market to basically buy it back very cheaply.

thewing

Great, I was planning on travelling next year and taking my 40d, 50mm 1.4, 10-22mm, 24-70mm and 70-200mm with me...this thread is now making me reconsider and just bringing my ixus....is it really that bad or is common sense your safest bet e.g. don't take your camera into downtown rio late at night? Was also thinking of bringing a laptop as well all in a lowepro rover bag....

leinsterman

thewing wrote: »

Great, I was planning on travelling next year and taking my 40d, 50mm 1.4, 10-22mm, 24-70mm and 70-200mm with me...this thread is now making me reconsider and just bringing my ixus....is it really that bad or is common sense your safest bet e.g. don't take your camera into downtown rio late at night? Was also thinking of bringing a laptop as well all in a lowepro rover bag....

There is no reason to be totally paranoid ... you just need to have your wits about you ... I have carried a Canon Film SLR around Rio with no problems, even at night ... you need to be discreet ... everywhere has hot spots where extra vigilance is required ... Lima is a good example ... bear in mind you are a rich millionaire to the locals ... you back pack contains the equivalent of more than a years wages ... but they are not all out to get you ... the biggest hassle is more to do with street hawkers trying to pinch something pick pocket style or hassling you to sell you crap ...

Places like Chile and Argentina are as safe as any European location with the odd exception e.g. La Boca late a night in Buenos Aires ... your guidebook will give you all the warnings you need, I generally use Lonely Planet ...

I have travelled extensively in Europe, Middle East, Africa and South America ... in my experience once you get away from the cities your gear is generally safe ... in the cities the usual precautions apply ... the biggest hassle with bulky camera gear is finding somewhere safe to put it when you don't want to have it with you ... e.g. when you go out on the town ...

BTW - Even if you decide to bring an SLR it is also a good idea to bring a compact P&S as well. There are plenty of situations where you will not want it with you.

The Lowepro Rover AW II or Computrekker are both ideal bags for RTW ... they are black which is more discreet ... after a few months on the road they will look old ... and they have space to carry both camera gear and day pack essentials like Water, guidebooks, food etc... the other option is to also bring a wearable camera bag in the form of a photo vest like this one - POTN Vest

You will look like a dork ... but who really cares ?

leinsterman

... Forgot to add you may want to consider getting a snug fitting Neoprene cover for your SLR and some dry bags (available from Gt Outdoors) for all your electronics to give it extra protection when stowed ... I had both in Africa and they were a life saver ... dry bags also keep out the dust of the desert ...

shrapnel222

leinsterman wrote: »

... Forgot to add you may want to consider getting a snug fitting Neoprene cover for your SLR and some dry bags (available from Gt Outdoors) for all your electronics to give it extra protection when stowed ... I had both in Africa and they were a life saver ... dry bags also keep out the dust of the desert ...

+1

shrapnel222

thewing wrote: »

Great, I was planning on travelling next year and taking my 40d, 50mm 1.4, 10-22mm, 24-70mm and 70-200mm with me...this thread is now making me reconsider and just bringing my ixus....is it really that bad or is common sense your safest bet e.g. don't take your camera into downtown rio late at night? Was also thinking of bringing a laptop as well all in a lowepro rover bag....

that's a lot of gear to carry around all the time- you'll definitely feel the weight of it after a while, because you end up doing a lot of walking with all your stuff.

Sleepy

leinsterman wrote: »

BTW - Even if you decide to bring an SLR it is also a good idea to bring a compact P&S as well. There are plenty of situations where you will not want it with you.

Great advice, keep the SLR for your day trips or night photography when you're not going on the piss and have a pocket-sized point and shoot for the crazy nights out that you'd like some snapshots of.

leinsterman

A little off topic ... but relevant nonetheless ... my credit card company just called to sat someone had skimmed my card ... there is a good chance this happened in Africa ... someone has tried to draw money from it over in Milan yesterday ... and managed to do so in Zurich two days ago ...

I'm not out of pocket because the card company takes the risk here ... but a lesson in being careful is to be learnt nonetheless ...


Only yesterday there was a thread banned here for someone selling credit card CVV's ... boy would I like to get my hands on that little b**lix!

BanzaiBk

thewing wrote: »

Great, I was planning on travelling next year and taking my 40d, 50mm 1.4, 10-22mm, 24-70mm and 70-200mm with me...this thread is now making me reconsider and just bringing my ixus....is it really that bad or is common sense your safest bet e.g. don't take your camera into downtown rio late at night? Was also thinking of bringing a laptop as well all in a lowepro rover bag....

It depends on how you are travelling. If you're going around staying in hostels and campsites, then I think it would be absolutely crazy to bring both a dslr and a laptop. Really have a think about the usage these will get, and try to justify that against the paranoia and comfort you will have trying to mind these items for however long you are gone. If you're going to be in hotels and secure lodgings then by all means take them.

The fun of a RTW in my case was jumping on buses and trains and planes to go where ever we could whenever we had the opportunity. Overnight buses and trains were a doodle because I never had to worry about my pack. Sure if it was stolen it was no biggie, I could pick up clothes and other bits cheaply in the next town. I wouldn't have been comfortable with my 20d and an array of lenses for 14 months on my back, maybe others would feel differently.

v.e.r.b.a.l

Thirdfox wrote: »

Another possibility is the "bridge" camera - these pseudo-SLR cameras don't allow you to change lenses and offer massive zoom ranges (up to 20x I believe). As long as you're not planning to take action shots in low light (and bring a good tripod with you) you can get some pretty decent shots.

Was just looking around a few places in Dublin and all seemed to give us the same advice - a "bridge" camera, which is essentially a compact digital camera with all the benefits of a dslr, without the hassle of changing lenses etc.... The one I was looking at in particular was the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18... I think it could be the perfect solution - all the functionality we'll need of a dslr (with a wider range of lens capability with a fixed lens with 18x zoom and a huge lithium battery!) and it's actually lighter than my girlfriend's tiny sony t9 camera!!!

As for a tripod, I've been assured by many that the two image stabalisers are all I'll need... is that true?

v.e.r.b.a.l

Sleepy wrote: »

Great advice, keep the SLR for your day trips or night photography when you're not going on the piss and have a pocket-sized point and shoot for the crazy nights out that you'd like some snapshots of.

And this makes very good sense too - Lumix bridge camera for the glorious daytime shots and pocket-sized Sony T9 for the sloppy nights of drinking!

BanzaiBk

Well you won't be disappointed with the Lumix, it's a fantastic camera.

Thirdfox

v.e.r.b.a.l wrote: »

Was just looking around a few places in Dublin and all seemed to give us the same advice - a "bridge" camera, which is essentially a compact digital camera with all the benefits of a dslr, without the hassle of changing lenses etc.... The one I was looking at in particular was the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18... I think it could be the perfect solution - all the functionality we'll need of a dslr (with a wider range of lens capability with a fixed lens with 18x zoom and a huge lithium battery!) and it's actually lighter than my girlfriend's tiny sony t9 camera!!!

As for a tripod, I've been assured by many that the two image stabalisers are all I'll need... is that true?

Have a look on flickr and see what sort of photos you can take with the FZ18 and whether the quality is good enough for you.

Image stabilisation isn't a magic bullet - it will help (a lot in some cases) but some shots are impossible without a rock steady base (night time shots running 1 second and above)... of course you can just use any flat surface lying around but a tripod is necessary if you want to ensure you have all options available.

On my 55-200 VR lens (VR is Nikon's image stabilisation) I can handhold a 200mm shot at 1/15th second - normally it would be blurred until at least 1/100th second. So an improvement but I wouldn't be taking night shots with it and expect everything to be tack sharp.

But you'll have to balance that with the hassle of carrying a tripod everywhere...

melekalikimaka

Zillah wrote: »

Off the top of my head, you can get larger prints from the D80 and I think it has a DOF preview which the D70s doesn't have. I remember there being other stuff I wanted but its been a long time since I looked into it.

its an expensiver upgrade for those two things, prob has very slightly improved noise reduction too. maybe more af points, i'm not 100% sure, but its trading an entry level dlsr for another, it'd be a grand replacement but i dunno would i consider it for a upgrade

shrapnel222

Zillah wrote: »

Off the top of my head, you can get larger prints from the D80 and I think it has a DOF preview which the D70s doesn't have. I remember there being other stuff I wanted but its been a long time since I looked into it.

i have the D70 and there is a DOF preview button. i'd be surprised if they took it off the D70s.

leohoju

shrapnel222 wrote: »

i have the D70 and there is a DOF preview button. i'd be surprised if they took it off the D70s.

The D70s does indeed have a DOF preview button.

From here:

DOF Preview

When CPU lens is attached, lens aperture can be stopped down to value selected by user (A and M modes) or value selected by camera (Digital Vari-Program, P, and S modes)

thewing

leinsterman wrote: »

There is no reason to be totally paranoid ... you just need to have your wits about you ... I have carried a Canon Film SLR around Rio with no problems, even at night ... you need to be discreet ... everywhere has hot spots where extra vigilance is required ... Lima is a good example ... bear in mind you are a rich millionaire to the locals ... you back pack contains the equivalent of more than a years wages ... but they are not all out to get you ... the biggest hassle is more to do with street hawkers trying to pinch something pick pocket style or hassling you to sell you crap ...

Places like Chile and Argentina are as safe as any European location with the odd exception e.g. La Boca late a night in Buenos Aires ... your guidebook will give you all the warnings you need, I generally use Lonely Planet ...

I have travelled extensively in Europe, Middle East, Africa and South America ... in my experience once you get away from the cities your gear is generally safe ... in the cities the usual precautions apply ... the biggest hassle with bulky camera gear is finding somewhere safe to put it when you don't want to have it with you ... e.g. when you go out on the town ...

BTW - Even if you decide to bring an SLR it is also a good idea to bring a compact P&S as well. There are plenty of situations where you will not want it with you.

The Lowepro Rover AW II or Computrekker are both ideal bags for RTW ... they are black which is more discreet ... after a few months on the road they will look old ... and they have space to carry both camera gear and day pack essentials like Water, guidebooks, food etc... the other option is to also bring a wearable camera bag in the form of a photo vest like this one - POTN Vest

You will look like a dork ... but who really cares ?

After reading this and the other comments in response to what I said, I really don't know. Yeah, most likely staying in hostels/camping so expensive camera equipment may not be a very bright idea. The other bone of contention is the bag - I have a dryzone rover which I picked up second hand with all the tags on, but think it's too big for my needs(very bulky with the waterproof compartment.).

I was thinking more lime the tamrac adventure 10 would suit all my needs.

It would be a shame to go RTW, see the planet, and not capture it's beauty for myself.....

v.e.r.b.a.l

Thanks for the advice! I've decided tha camera that fits my needs most for my travels is the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ28K http://www2.panasonic.com/consumer-electronics/shop/Cameras-Camcorders/Digital-Cameras/Lumix-Digital-Cameras/model.DMC-FZ28K.O_11002_7000000000000005702#tabsection

Your thoughts and advice on the above camera are always appreciated! One thing I'd like to hear from someone who has it, is when taking a video can you zoom in and out while filming? or can you just zoom before you start filming? Not that i'll be making too many videos on it, but it's something that'd annoy me!

thewing

Sorry to resurrect this thread again, but the planning for my trip is now in full swing, and i'd appreciate some advice on which lens to take for year away - i've decided to limit myself to just two lenses. Here is what I have

10-22mm
50mm f1.4
24-70mm f2.8
70-200mm f2.8
18-200mm f3.5-6.3 (Sigma)

As landscape is my thing, i've decided the 10-22mm is indispensable. So that leaves the rest - 70-200 is too big, too white, too heavy and the prime while great in low light doesn't give me the range I need - it really comes down to the 24-70 or the 18-200.

At this stage i favour the 24-70 due to the fact that quality and aperture of this lens is really what i'd be after in my travel photos. I took the 18-200 on a trip to oz last August, and I found myself hardly ever using it at it's longest length, and zooming with my feet most of the time so as to make sure I could get the f3.5.

So a few opinions is all I'm after, i'd greatly appreciate them - thanks

Anouilh

I'm in the same boat and have been gathering my equipment for a trip to Australia. With the exchange rate so good it might be worth waiting until you reach your destination and buy some bargains there?

I have a Sigma 70-300 dg apo macro, which is quite heavy for its size. In time I will probably make a collection of lenses that are very light and easy to carry.

When the recession is over...

Also, don't forget to buy a travel size external hard drive for storage.

CabanSail

thewing wrote: »

As landscape is my thing, i've decided the 10-22mm is indispensable. So that leaves the rest - 70-200 is too big, too white, too heavy and the prime while great in low light doesn't give me the range I need - it really comes down to the 24-70 or the 18-200.

At this stage i favour the 24-70 due to the fact that quality and aperture of this lens is really what i'd be after in my travel photos. I took the 18-200 on a trip to oz last August, and I found myself hardly ever using it at it's longest length, and zooming with my feet most of the time so as to make sure I could get the f3.5.

I think you have answered your own question.

Just looking at the list I was going to suggest the 10-22 and the 18-200 as that covers the most territory, but if your experience tell you that the 24-70 has suited your photography better then go with that.

Of course, whatever you choose to take, you will miss something about the lens you leave behind & see all these great shots you have missed due to not having it. Such is life.

thewing

Thanks for the advice

I guess that is the bones of it really - I know I missed the aperture in oz with the 18-200, but then I know there will be a situation that calls for longer than 70mm while I'm away....such is life!

thewing

Oh yeah, I have a Western Digital Passport 320gb - great invention.

leinsterman

I'm currently travelling in the National Parks of Southern Utah ... if you do landscapes you'd be hard pressed to find a better place to express yourself ...

I like to travel as light as possible on long trips ... unless there is wildlife involved I tend not to bring my longest lenses ...

My main gear list -

Canon EOS 5D MkII body
Canon T-S 24mm F3.5L (best landscape lens in my bag ... and converts to a 34mm with a TC)
Canon 200mm F2.8L (also takes a TC for extra reach)
Canon 50mm F1.4
Canon 24-105 F4L
Canon 1.4x TC
Gitzo GT1540 Traveller Tripod ... you'll be glad of the weight of this when as I did yesterday you have to hike up a 800feet cliff ...
Acratech Ball Head
Buffalo 320GB Hard Drive (on this occasion I have alp top, normally I don't bring one)


I have found myself not using the 50mm at all ... thanks mostly to the ISO performance of the MkII

The 24-105 while slower than the 24-70 is the best all round lens for the money if you are travelling ... I use it the most on a full frame camera ... it also has a handy macro function and it lighter than the 24-70 ...

Next the TS 24mm ... this get a lot of use on the trippod when I want wide sweeping landscapes, have to capture something big from close up or panorama's using the shift function ..

Finally you need reach for certain types of landscape ... the 200mm is very good for this ... particularly if you want perspective compression ...