proenca Posted January 7, 2010 Share #1 Posted January 7, 2010 Advertisement (gone after registration) Hi there, I'm going to Tanzania / Kenya and Zanzibar for a couple of Safaris on July 2010. Planning to take my M8 and my MP for scenics and portraits. Current lens line up : CV 15 Leica 35mm Summaron Leica 50mm Noctilux Planning to take these plus my MP and should get me covered well. Now, I was planning to get a Leica 24mm Elmarit or a Leica 21 ASPH but Im on hold with that : I also bought myself for xmas a Nikon D2H at a very very cheap price and now I have to get a tele for it, so I will take it as well on the safari days... I like the Noctilux for Portraits, 35 for walkaround ( altthough I like a bit wider hence wanting the 24 or 21 ) and the 15 for landscapes... taking the MP with some Velvia 50 gives me a few more options ( 33% less ... ) . Seems all ok ? Ideas ? Tips ? I bought couple of extra M8 batteries. Oh and I didnt book the safari yet.. ideas are most welcome ! and good tour organizers as well ! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted January 7, 2010 Posted January 7, 2010 Hi proenca, Take a look here Lens for Africa ?. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
ezc203 Posted January 7, 2010 Share #2 Posted January 7, 2010 I just discussed this topic with my Uncle yesterday. (What a coincidence!). I was planning on bring my M8 and M4-P and a very similar line up of lenses. However, my Uncle laughed at my naivete. He said that if I wanted any kind of animal shots I should take a DSLR with some SERIOUS tele lenses (in the 800mm to 1600mm range). His experience was a few years back when he went during migration season (August) and waited by the waters to capture crocodiles/hippos feeding on the migrating animals, and said that any "normal" lens was completely useless for anything but landscapes. So after this discussion I'm planning on bring a 5Dii (and another bag to carry it ) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted January 7, 2010 Share #3 Posted January 7, 2010 For safari camps google "Porini" They will book your safari for you, and their Masai Mara camp, although quite rustic, is imo the best venue to explore that area from. Stay away from the big luxury things. Everything over 10 rooms/tents is detrimental to the safari experience. Hotels in the bush:mad:. Remember you will be flying small planes, don't count on taking immense amounts of foto-gear. Avoid being stashed in a mini-van with the cell-phone camera crowd. The best camera to take on safari is one with a long zoom, and an extender. My standard focal length on the DMR is a 105-280 with 1.4x extender. 1600 mm is ridiculous. How are you going to hand-hold the thing? A tripod is useless in a safari vehicle. A bean-bag is the best you can use. You will be reasonably to quite close to the game, but shooting from a fixed point. hence the zoom. For people general stuff and landscape the M9 with a 35 and a 90 or 75 is ideal, a fast lens is very useful as well, maybe a 28 or 21 for interiors and landscape, depending on your style. You don't really need much for a complete kit. There are battery charging facilities everywhere, at least everywhere you will go as a tourist. I would not take the MP. You don't want to drag film around beside you digital stuff. You have to take care with airport-xrays, with the heat, etc.. Just take a short light zoom for your DSLR as back-up. But take plenty of cards and batteries. My kit consists of: DMR, Vario-Elmar 105-280 1.4x apo-extender 2x apoextender M9 Summilux 24 Summicron 35 asph Summilux 50 asph Summicron 90 AA Backup: Digilux 3 Kit zoom 4/3-R adapter Apo-Telyt 180/3.4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samir Jahjah Posted January 7, 2010 Share #4 Posted January 7, 2010 Hi there, I'm going to Tanzania / Kenya and Zanzibar for a couple of Safaris on July 2010. Planning to take my M8 and my MP for scenics and portraits. Current lens line up : CV 15 Leica 35mm Summaron Leica 50mm Noctilux Planning to take these plus my MP and should get me covered well. Now, I was planning to get a Leica 24mm Elmarit or a Leica 21 ASPH but Im on hold with that : I also bought myself for xmas a Nikon D2H at a very very cheap price and now I have to get a tele for it, so I will take it as well on the safari days... I like the Noctilux for Portraits, 35 for walkaround ( altthough I like a bit wider hence wanting the 24 or 21 ) and the 15 for landscapes... taking the MP with some Velvia 50 gives me a few more options ( 33% less ... ) . Seems all ok ? Ideas ? Tips ? I bought couple of extra M8 batteries. Oh and I didnt book the safari yet.. ideas are most welcome ! and good tour organizers as well ! I think a 90mm is a must ! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BishT Posted January 7, 2010 Share #5 Posted January 7, 2010 On a visit to Rwanda last month I used an M8 with a 28mm for landscape/town and a 5D II with 70-200 and 1.4 extender for a safari day. I was happy with the results, but could have used a little longer tele for photos of the birds. Have fun on your trip! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
@bumac Posted January 7, 2010 Share #6 Posted January 7, 2010 Safari - edition??? I think your sellection is ok. Don't waste your money. Enjoy yourself. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stefan-S Posted January 7, 2010 Share #7 Posted January 7, 2010 Advertisement (gone after registration) I would take a googled 2.8/135(~2.8/180 mm) for the m8. Works fine and is not expensive anymore. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted January 7, 2010 Share #8 Posted January 7, 2010 But far, far too short for wildlife, and d*rn heavy. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
fefe Posted January 7, 2010 Share #9 Posted January 7, 2010 Last time I brought my M8 in Africa, I was carrying the CV 15, 35 Cron asph, and 90 Macro Elmar. I got as much use from the 90 than the 15mm if not more. I find f/4 on a 90mm to be fine for portraits in bright light, it is very light, cheap (for a Leica), compact and sharp. It's also great for flower shots . However for wildlife shots, besides monkeys that'll let you get close enough, 90mm is going to be too short for pretty much everything else even if you are ready to crop quite a bit. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
earleygallery Posted January 7, 2010 Share #10 Posted January 7, 2010 Take your DSLR and a decent range tele zoom for wildlife shots, and the MP and 15/35 lenses for landscapes and people - I dislike digital landscapes or rather more specifically the skies always come out looking 'wrong'. All this talk about xrays and film, I've yet to actually hear of anyone having films ruined by them. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted January 7, 2010 Share #11 Posted January 7, 2010 Not just X-rays - dragging around about 100 films - that is the pain. And if you see your film disappear into an X-ray machine that looks like it was designed by old Julius himself and spent the next 100 years without maintenance, wouldn't you worry? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimleicam3 Posted January 7, 2010 Share #12 Posted January 7, 2010 I went to those same locations, but did not own my M8 at the time. I used a Canon 20D with 100-400mm , and a 24-105mm. For sure get something long, you really need a tele lens in Africa. Also watch out for the dust!! Keep your lenses in zip lock bags, even inside your camera bag, because the dust is everywhere! Have a safe trip, enjoy. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted January 7, 2010 Share #13 Posted January 7, 2010 Especially with the Canon 100-400, aka "Dust-pump" Btw, this is what one can do with a 400 mm lens. On the M8.... 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! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/108914-lens-for-africa/?do=findComment&comment=1178669'>More sharing options...
ottocrat Posted January 7, 2010 Share #14 Posted January 7, 2010 You will get up close to wildlife, seriously close. A DSLR with a telephoto would certainly be a good idea, but if you only take your M8 and a 50mm you will still get some great wildlife shots. Some of my favourite safari shots were taken with a 50mm. You'll be amazed at how close those drivers get you to wild animals... you'll need a wide angle for some of the bigger ones... ...and of course to capture situations like this: Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveYork Posted January 7, 2010 Share #15 Posted January 7, 2010 a rangefinder is not suited for this trip Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted January 7, 2010 Share #16 Posted January 7, 2010 Shudder.... Proves my point about minivans... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted January 7, 2010 Share #17 Posted January 7, 2010 a rangefinder is not suited for this tripNews to me. I've been taking them on trips like this for twenty years.... 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! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/108914-lens-for-africa/?do=findComment&comment=1178679'>More sharing options...
SteveYork Posted January 7, 2010 Share #18 Posted January 7, 2010 Usually on a safari more reach is needed then the 135mm focal length will produce. And although I love rangefinders, many people find autofocus preferrable for wildlife. That's not to say it can't be made to work, but it's sort of fitting a round peg into a small hole. Now, if you're traveling to Africa for something other then the wildlife (e.g., people), then of course rangefinders are very adept for that subject. But for wildlife, rangefinders are genrally not suited. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted January 7, 2010 Share #19 Posted January 7, 2010 As proven by my shot of post #13 ... Or this one with a Summicron 90 AA on M8: But yes, of course a tele is needed on safari - see several posts of me in this thread. I utterly differ on the subject of autofocus. It is extremely difficult when using long lenses to get the plane of focus right with autofocus. Manual focus is much more effective. 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! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/108914-lens-for-africa/?do=findComment&comment=1178698'>More sharing options...
ottocrat Posted January 8, 2010 Share #20 Posted January 8, 2010 Some of my favourite safari shots were taken with a 50mm. (not taken with my M8) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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