Iceland with M10?

[6bit]

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I would be more worried about composition and light than about specific gear. Just about any decent camera nowadays can take a good photograph. The bottleneck is the photographer. And the best images are not taken by gear-laden ones in my experience.

 

 

When I am there I will be focused on composition. However, knowing what focal lengths work for people in a country I haven't visited before is super helpful. Many good points were brought up about sand and weather being a concern in Iceland, you are far away from most things so a really wide angle isn't that important, and many other good info. 

 

I am still deciding on I will take but once I'm there it will be work with what I decided to take.

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[Stuart Richardson]

I live here. I mostly use normal lenses. I have both the S and M, and the S is a better fit for the country (in my mind, primarily because of the higher resolution and full weather sealing). If you are on vacation, I would recommend something like a 35mm and 75mm, or a 24-28, 50 and 90mm. Don't carry too much, it's a vacation, not an assignment. Bring waterproof clothing and a bag that will keep your gear dry. Please do not go into the highlands unprepared. It can be freezing up there in a matter of minutes if the weather turns, and every year a few tourists die because they were not properly prepared. You can find some advice here: Safetravel - The official source for safe adventure in Iceland Given that it is summer, it should be fairly mild, but for the highlands that still means it will likely be between 5 and 15C with wind. If it is wet, you can get very cold very quickly. It might be 20C in the lowlands and 3C in the highlands next to a glacier, so be aware that the climate varies significantly in sheltered areas vs. the interior. The East and North are warmer in the summer, and Reykjavik and the South tend to be cooler and wetter. It could very well be in the 20s or warmer in the highlands if you are lucky, but more often than not it is chilly. If you are working with your hands out, you will want to bring gloves and a hat. You may not always need them, but you are fairly likely to want them at some point if you are photographing and spending a lot of time outside.

 

I agree with the advice to be careful with very wide angle lenses...the country is already very wide open, if you use super wide angles, things just look far away. Personally, I think the super wide angle aesthetic just looks like you could not decide on a particular subject, but that is my subjective opinion. I do, however, find longer lenses useful. A 135mm tele-elmar is fairly cheap and rather useful here if you want to photograph mountains in the distance or birds/horses/glaciers (it is not really long enough for most bird photography, but it is about as long as you can reasonably hope for on the M without large adapted lenses). Generally when I go out with the M10, I bring the 50mm and 90mm, but that is my preference. 

Edited June 9, 2018 by Stuart Richardson

[6bit]

Thank you Stuart for your advice. We have been told to never expect the temperature to be above 65 F / 18C in the highlands and also as cold as 5C. We are going with a native guide so we won't be doing anything stupid without at least one native Icelander joining us. 

 

Your advice on focal lengths is appreciated and well received. I have decided I need two bodies and two lenses. I just have not decided on what bodies and lenses yet. That will round out my kit for the trip. I don't want to swap lenses while we are out and I definitely don't want to carry too much. I have been warming up to 25mm and 85mm as my two choices. I could throw in a small 35 or 50 to cover if I don't like the 25. The 25 is pretty wide. What you have said about 35 and 90 make a lot of sense too. I still have some time to ponder my choices.  

[camnh]

I visited Iceland in February 2012 (before I had my Leicas), but I had a Fuji X100 with the fixed 35mm equivalent lens and it worked out reasonably well for most of the trip. Here's an OOC jpg shooting over the harbor; it's a cull I had on an attached disk but something to give a feel for the 35mm view:

 

http://pic90.picturetrail.com/VOL2250/773650/24061746/413922096.jpg

 

The weather was amazing; on the day this picture was shot we had sun, drizzle, pouring rain, sleet, partial sun, a blizzard, driving winds, then more rain. (All the snow -- about 3" fell -- was gone by the next morning.)

 

I've traveled in some places with unpredictable weather, but Iceland was impressive in its weather variability!

 

EDIT: I'm not sure why the image is not showing, but there's the link to a copy.

Edited June 9, 2018 by camnh

[Abram]

I went to Iceland (as well as several parts of Europe over a 5 week trip) in 2015 and with me I brought an M240, M2, 28mm Elmarit III, 35mm f/1.2 Nokton, 50mm Zeiss Planar and a Konica 90mm f/2.8 Hexanon. (as well as a dozen rolls of Portra 400 for the M2). Kind of an eclectic mix I admit but it's what I had at the time. 

 

What I found was that I absolutely didn't use the 90mm. I shot maybe a handful of frames and didn't feel it was needed. I shot primarily everything on the trip with the 28mm and 50mm. I did use the 35mm Nokton a lot but I grew to lament its size. That being said I almost certainly would have been fine with just a 35mm. That's what I plan to use going forward, an M10 with a 35 Summilux FLE and that's it. 

 

I'm working on keeping things simple going forward and focusing on the places I go rather than what gear I bring with me. 

Edited June 9, 2018 by Abram

[Stuart Richardson]

Also, don't worry about changing lenses. It is not like a dust storm or anything, unless you are in a dust storm...

[bransom]

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Iceland is a beautiful country — we visited last year and hope to return next year — but as everyone mentioned, the weather can be challenging. As you’re driving, be sure to keep an eye on the digital signboards that give wind and weather conditions, so you know what to expect. An explanation of them is here: https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g189952-i223-k11031554-Road_Signs_Explained_weather_warnings-Iceland.html

 

As for cameras and lenses, I didn’t own the M10 at the time. I took my Q, which I used for probably 70% of the photos i shot, plus a Sony A6300 with 10-18 and 18-105 lenses. I bought the Sony system used just for this trip. It was small and light, and had some basic weather sealing, so I thought it would be a good match. And, while it worked fine, the UI is such a jumbled mess that I hated pulling it out of the bag. I came home, sold the system, and bought the M10.

 

If I were going back today, I’d bring the Q and the M10 with a 50 and 90. Would I occasionally want a wider or longer lens? Occasionally. But as someone else mentioned, it’s a vacation, not an assignment. I can always panorama-stitch or crop, and my back will be happier for it.

[6bit]

It seems that everyone is satisfied with 28/35 being the widest and 75 and 90 covering the long end. Some preferring the 50 over the 35. This is great information. 

[M11 for me]

I’ve been in Ireland recently (not Iceland of course but there are similarities) and I wondered for a very long time if not I should take my Canon gear as I have focal lengths from 16 to 400mm on an full frame 5D. I thought that the weather sealing and the hughe choice of focal length would be of high importance. Then I packed the bag putting in the 16-35mm, the 24-70mm then the 70-200mm (for weight reasons I packed the 4.0 and not the 2.8) and the 2x converter. Then for night sceenes I need a fast 35mm and 50mm prime. And I have a backpack to fit all that gear plus the tripod. Then I put it all on the weighing scale . . . That was it then and I wondered how I did a few years ago.

 

Then I turned to my Leica stuff. Should I take my little ONA bag that would fit 3 maybe 4 lenses? No not either. I packed the little Lowepro Flipside 200 AW II. It takes all my lenses plus the leica tripod head plus tripod and a few filters. And this on my back was a delight compared to before. Yes I was very happy that I took the 21mm to 75mm with me plus some in between. I could have left the 35mm Lux at home and just go with 21, 28, 50 and 75mm. Now I took them all. Often with landscape you can not walk to get your frame right. You can only change the lens. So I changed frequently depending on the sceenes.

 

BUT: When developing my pictures in lightroom I saw that a lot of pictures showed an awful lot of dirt. The little pump that I bought being back home did the job and the sensor is without any dirt as before. Just by blowing into the camera with the new tool.

 

Finding: Just to travel with 1 or 2 lenses is not my thing. In a town you can walk backwards or forward as you please. But with landscape that is not possible to the same extend. I needed my lenses and was happy to have them all with me. And I was most happy having decided for my Leica gear. The dirt on my sensor turned out to be absolutely no problem as I just could blow it out of the camera.

[Abram]

Oh yeah and when I went to Iceland I stopped by to visit with our own Stuart Richardson and see his studio. 

 

Hi Stuart!

[6bit]

Anyone have a bag reccomedation, especially for rain? Two bodies, 3 lenses at most. One small tripod.

[willemr]

Define 'small tripod' (dimensions-wise)? Should it go attached on the bag or in the bag? Which bags do you own? Do you want/prefer a back-pack or shoulder-bag? etc.

In other words: need more input.

[Stuart Richardson]

Hi Abram! Hope you are well, and that we see you back here one day. 

 

R.E. The bag, I tend to like Fogg (the e flat is my favorite) and Billingham bags if I am working from a car or for short walks. They are elegant, easy to work from and waterproof. For backpacks, I generally use one of two: a run of the mill patagonia backpack with the camera and lens just wrapped in something and thrown in there. It will hold a tripod in the side pockets and has enough dividers to keep things separate. It is lighter and has better straps than most dedicated camera packs I have used. I think it is a Refugio 28L circa 2012.

 

For bigger trips, I have a photobackpacker bag that was made for 4x5. That has a proper suspension and is based on a Kelty P3 backpacking pack. Unfortunately, Bruce stopped making them several years ago...it was by far the best solution I have found for lugging a lot of gear around (speaking as a guy who often shoots the S system and 4x5 at the same time at night with full size studio flashes....I lug around a lot of stuff). 

Edited June 9, 2018 by Stuart Richardson

[6bit]

I have the Billingham Hadley Small, L2, and Hadley Pro. Love all three. All were purchased at different times in my life. I also have a Peak Design 20L. I am thinking the Peak Design is the bag that will make the trip because I don't want to hike a lot in the Highlands and have a shoulder bag though. I also have the Flipside Sport 10L and 15L Sport AW. These are great but if you get caught in the rain, they suck.

 

Tripod outside the bag. Benro TSL08C Slim Carbon Fiber.

 

I was just hoping that someone had a good rainproof bag without a cover and cushion for some minor bumping around.

 

24 oz water stainless water bottle

 

Would be nice to hold a 13" MBP and a few other things on the plane over. My PeakDesign 20L is more than big enough. I just haven't tested it out like I have the Billinghams.

Edited June 9, 2018 by 6bit

[Jeff S]

There’s the Billingham backpack.... good in rain but not for tripod or larger laptop... at least based on reviews.

 

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1266040-REG/billingham_bi_502501_01_rucksack_25_black_canvas_tan.html?ap=y&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI_fz5udLH2wIVRESGCh38tQ-rEAQYASABEgITLvD_BwE

 

Jeff

[Stuart Richardson]

Your water bottle made me think of another thing...don't buy water! They are always trying to sell tourists water in plastic bottles, but the water in those bottles is the same as the water from the tap. You cannot ask for cleaner, better tap water than there is in Iceland...I am at a farm right now and the water source is literally a pipe stuck in a mountain stream. They collect the water in a basin and filter it for sediment. That's it. The municipal sources are generally from deep springs...the cold water is low in mineral content and really pure. The water companies are basically just bottling tap water...it is bad for the environment despite their "carbon offsetting" and totally pointless since water is freely available everywhere. Just ask for tap water at a restaurant...it is universally expected here, (unlike in Germany etc) so no one will give it a second thought. 

[6bit]

Since all we drink is water, great advice! Thanks!

[Guest]

I was just hoping that someone had a good rainproof bag without a cover and cushion for some minor bumping around.

 

These are the best ...

 

https://www.wotancraft.tw/creations/camera-bag

 

https://www.wotancraft.tw/product/trooper-l-ash-green

 

https://www.wotancraft.tw/product/waterproof-shock-resistant-insert-large

 

Their waterproof insert is just that ... water and bombproof. Very quick shipping and great customer service.

 

I have Billingham, Lowepro, Thinktank, and Wotancraft. When it gets wet or dirty ... WC gets the duty.

 

Bob

Edited June 9, 2018 by docmoore

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[jaapv]

The LowePro AW series all have an incorporated "raincoat" that you can pull over the bag/backpack to make it completely weatherproof.

[6bit]

The LowePro AW series all have an incorporated "raincoat" that you can pull over the bag/backpack to make it completely weatherproof.

 

 

I can post a photo but it doesn't not make the the bag completely weather proof. You can't wear it on your back when the rain cover is on. If you do, and that is a big if, water gets between your back and the bag soaking the bag. If you carry it, you have to pay attention to how you hold it to keep most of the water out. Don't ask me how I know so much about it.