Lenses for Cuba Trip

[agencal]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

I will be going Cuba this weekend with my three photographer friends for 10 days.

 

I have 2 set of cameras and a little bit confiused.

 

1.

 

Leica M with 24mm Elmar,35mm 1.4 ZM,50mm Apo,90mm Macro Elmar

 

 

2.

 

Nikon d810 with 16mm Fisheye,70-200mm f4 VR

 

 

The question is;

 

Is two body an advantage?

Mostly portrait photography so AF is a must?

 

If two body than

 

M+ 24 elmar + 35mm distagon + 50mm apo

 

D810 + 16mm fisheye + 70-200mm f4 VR

 

 

Or you can say go with leica only and a set with 24,35,50,90

 

 

Please help

[Overgaard]

I would go M with 24, 50 and 90mm.

 

And mostly walk around with just one lens.

 

You want to be able to move around and blend in. Not be tired after a day carrying a lot of equipment and constantly making decisions about what to use.

[Advertisement]

The Leica Q3 is available for pre-order at B&H Photo Video and Adorama

[keithlaban.co.uk]

Have to agree with Thorsten.

 

I'd take two M bodies with 21, 35 and 90 lenses. Most of the time I'd actually walk around with one M240 body + handgrip and wrist strap with 35 lens and the rest would be back at the hotel.

 

Keep it simple.

[KM-25]

I'll be going in the Fall with the following:

 

Leica M3, Zeiss 50mm F2 Planar ZM, Leica M6TTL, Leica 35mm 1.4 Asph & 60 rolls of Fuji Provia 400X.

 

Keep it simple and have fun!

[gjames9142]

As with the others, keep it simple. I have seen groups of tourists in photo groups going around Havana with tripods and bags as if they were in the Serengeti. A bit embarrassing. Havana brings out the worst in photographers. Promise not to photograph a 50s yank car or a lady in traditional dress who will pose with a cigar for a small fee. With the influx of our American friends, I think Havana is going to become unbearable.

[KM-25]

As with the others, keep it simple. I have seen groups of tourists in photo groups going around Havana with tripods and bags as if they were in the Serengeti. A bit embarrassing. Havana brings out the worst in photographers. Promise not to photograph a 50s yank car or a lady in traditional dress who will pose with a cigar for a small fee. With the influx of our American friends, I think Havana is going to become unbearable.

 

Hence my wanting to go there before the Starbucks start popping up. I'll possibly even be hiring a fixer to help me engage with the real folks.

[gjames9142]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

There will be no shortage of people offering to help you. Always bear in mind that this a country of interesting, highly educated people.

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

[DMJ]

Take the M240, the 35mm ZM & the 24mm Leica. The Nikon will be to bulky. I have the Zeiss & it is a remarkable lens (I also have the 50Apo). If you take them all then you will be forever changing lenses & not taking photos. If all else fails you can crop in Photoshop. If I'm going anywhere new then I take a 35mm & 21mm SEM. If I'm going back to the same place then I might chose a different selection once I know the area.

[otto.f]

M with 35 and 90 collapsible. I would see no need for my 24 as in other countries. Cuba is about people not about architecture etc. Nikon too big and heavy

[otto.f]

There is a recent thread with same question

[Jeff S]

Enter "Cuba trip" in search box and find many threads, like this.

 

Jeff

[keithlaban.co.uk]

Above all take the focal lengths you need rather than the focal lengths recommended by others.

[agencal]

Ok Leica only than.

 

So is it 35-50-90 or 24-35-50?

 

I am asking this couse this will be my first time in Cuba so i am not familiar with the streets,architechture and photp subjects.

 

Thank you for your help.

[KM-25]

Ok Leica only than.

 

So is it 35-50-90 or 24-35-50?

 

I am asking this couse this will be my first time in Cuba so i am not familiar with the streets,architechture and photp subjects.

 

A point of note, most of the world's very best Leica shooters never selected a lens or camera based on the country but how they shot. Alex Webb shot mostly with a 35 and *sometimes* a 50 in Cuba among other places. If he were to get an assignment to go to the International Space Station...he would most likely take his 35.

 

It has *zero* to do with the gear and everything to do with talent, people skills and what you normally use.

[james.liam]

Ok Leica only than.

 

So is it 35-50-90 or 24-35-50?

 

I am asking this couse this will be my first time in Cuba so i am not familiar with the streets,architechture and photp subjects.

 

Thank you for your help.

 

Listen to Thorsten who does this stuff for a living

 

I would go M with 24, 50 and 90mm.

 

And mostly walk around with just one lens.

 

You want to be able to move around and blend in. Not be tired after a day carrying a lot of equipment and constantly making decisions about what to use.

 

10 days traveling through Italy in 2012 with a D700 (sold), 14-24 (sold), 24-70 (sold), and CV 180 taught me a few things. Pointing a bazooka at buildings and people isn't cool and neither was my aching shoulder. Traveled to Istanbul last year with just a Ricoh GR and re-learned the discipline of a single FL.

 

Liberating.

[NB23]

I'd only go with 2 bodies and a lens on each.

 

28+35. In your case it would be 24+35. A 50mm is too long, imo. A xpan is ideal.

[philipus]

A point of note, most of the world's very best Leica shooters never selected a lens or camera based on the country but how they shot. (...)

 

It has *zero* to do with the gear and everything to do with talent, people skills and what you normally use.

 

So true, I fully agree (but if everyone were to follow this excellent piece of advice the lens forum would be devoid of these fascinating threads, the horror )

 

To the OP, challenge yourself and take just one lens, preferably the one you use the least.

 

Safe trip

Philip

[mirekti]

I'd go with 24+35+90.

35mm would be glued to the camera, and other two used only if the situation requires it.

[gjames9142]

For the record, I was working on a book about Cuba four years ago , but put it on the back burner when my Vancouver publisher went bankrupt. I took one camera out every day with one lens when working -- wide-angle Rollie, which got busted, and then a Mamiya 50 (same focal length). I also worked with a Noblex, a scanning camera, with a 50 mm lens. When I go back next time, I will use a Monochrom with a 28, which is close to the MF focal length. Contrary to what one poster said, there is actually a lot of architecture. Havana, with Lima, was one of the two largest cities in the Americas in the late 18th century, bigger than NY or Boston. The only problem is apart from Havana Vieja, which is a kind of Potemkin Village, the rest of the city is falling down. An average of two houses collapses every day from the salt water and neglect. It has its tragic side, but the people are heroic. I have many friends there, and there is a lot of talent in a lot of fields. It's a complicated place, and the tourists rarely connect with it.

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

Edited April 9, 2015 by gjames9142

[Advertisement]

Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[Guest NEIL-D-WILLIAMS]

I've tried this two different camera stuff before and it doesn't work, you will mess up trust me. You first of all need to decide do you want auto focus or manual.......if its the former then take you Nikon gear and post a thread on the talk photography forum in the UK and they will keep you right on what to take............if you decide you want to miss most of the shots then take the Leica gear you will get loads of advice on here about what to take............

Just lidding about missing all the shots you will still get some