Recommendations for a year-long sailing expedition

In a little while I'm embarking on a one-year trip sailing around

the world. I figure this is a once-in-a-lifetime experience and I

intend to document it as such, which means upgrading my paltry P&S

to a decent SLR with some good glass. But I'm worried the toll the

harsh marine air might take on said equipment, particularly with all

the onboard electronics, and particularly for such a long time. What

are your experiences & recommendations here? My only requirement is

that it be an SLR and I'd really really really like it to be a

DSLR... film and film processing are expensive. Thanks much!

There are sail boats and sail boats you didn't say 20' or 100' Asuming we are not talking mega bucks 100 foot boats, I don't think that there is a digital camera made that will hold up to the humidity and salt air.

 

Last I looked at digital camera specs they were about 100 degrees and 80% himidity.

 

 

My wife and I were in the Solomons for 12 days last Oct and by the last day every digital camera on the boat was having mosture related problems.

 

I would get a gaggle of cheap mechanical SLR's off the auction site and throw them overboard as they failed. Something like the old Nikormats or Minolta Sr 101s. Be sure not to buy anything with a plastic body, I think it is against international law to throw plastic in the ocean.

Jonathan,

first, I am extremely jealous. Second, I agree with the above poster. Buying some mechanically accurate old manual focus SLRs would be my suggestion. I just picked up a like-new AE-1 Canon at an estate sale for 25 bucks, and have bought others like it so it is not a rare find. For this price, you won't mind if the salt water corrodes it or renders it useless. The lenses that you can get with these old mechanical babies are cheap too.

Second Doug's motion.

 

My brother, who is a better and more active photographer than I am, has lived on a boat for nearly twenty years now. He sails it much of the year.

 

He's used Nikkormats and Nikkor lenses all that time. He's recently added a Mamiya 645. Old mechanical one, bought used, of course.

 

The cost of film and processing is a canard raised by people who don't shoot thoughtfully. People who had camcorders used to say much the same about shooting Super 8 and 16 mm.

 

You would do well to reflect on the difference in shooting behavior between photographers who use 4x5 and larger formats, those who shoot 35 mm still, and those who shoot digitally. It isn't obvious that the digital folks' cost per keeper is higher.

 

Cheers, enjoy the trip, which sounds great,

 

Dan

 

p.s., the time to learn how to use whatever gear you select intelligently is now. After you've set out will be too late.

<i>I would get a gaggle of cheap mechanical SLR's off the auction site and throw them overboard as they failed. Something like the old Nikormats or Minolta Sr 101s. Be sure not to buy anything with a plastic body, I think it is against international law to throw plastic in the ocean.</i>

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Get pentax spotmatic - M42 lenses are easy to find anywhere in the world cheaply, super takumar lenses are great.

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Spotmatics are easy to find - often the light meter does not work, but the cameras still do though. You can get hand held meters though - and set the aperture and shutter speed that way. But seriously - Pentax Super Takumar glass is world class glass - it really is, and the spotmatic line was produced in such mass quantity - it's like the VW Beetle of the Photography world - you can get them in good working order very cheap - much cheaper than MF Canon.

spent 3 weeks on a sailboat in BOI, NZ and all the above advice is good. also, get a waterproof kayak bag to keep your photo equipment in and one of those large dessicant things that you can dry out in an oven.

I'm thinking we have a slight disconnect between the hard core 'brass bodies or bust' folks and Jonathan's question. I know what *I* would do (probably 2-3 freshly gone through Nikon F2AS) but asking Jonathan to embrace that level of dedication may be unrealistic.

 

Meet him halfway. Give him some choices that will help him make 'snap shots' that tell the story at dawn with Fiji on the horizon without an MFA in photography.

 

Do you have AC or a method to recharge a DSLR? I'm thinking you start out with something like a Nikon D70 (or maybe a Canon D Rebel, but I don't know them) and the 'kit' zoom for it. Add an extra battery, 2-3 CF memory cards, and two methods for charging (AC and DC). You'll probably want some form of 'image tank' (battery operated hard drive to download your digital images and free up your camera CF memory cards). That outfit alone will run you $2-3k by the time you add up all the little bits and pieces.

 

Add to that 1 or 2 backups, in the form of Nikon N75 or N80 bodies for film. Then add in redundant lenses. In the modern age, lenses have electronic components, and they can 'lock up' on you (in the electronic sense) as much as a camera. If it were me, a minimal set of lenses for a sailboat (with cost as a factor) would include a 20mm/2.8, a 24-85-ish zoom, a 70-300 zoom, and either a 35/2.0 or 50/1.8 for speed. Add an external flash if you like (but this is optional for all but the very wideangle stuff). About $2K for this setup with two bodies. +film.

 

Between the two setups, you would probably complete your trip with some ability to still make images, and they each 'spoonfeed' you so that without a major investment in education you can shoot pretty good stuff.

 

If you buy it all, it will all pretty much 'plug and play' together and give you redundancy against failure. If you want to figure out what's the most bulletproof way to spend $2K and still make images in a marine environment (taking into account your perceived lack of experience) I think the film route I outline above is better 'bang for buck'.

 

If you choose to really learn your chops so you can survive on 'sunny 16 and experience', then buying ludicrously cheap manual focus gear and throwing overboard that which fails is a viable strategy.

For one camera, try to locate a Nikonos IVa body and 35mm lens. It will operate with a battery (all shutter speeds) or without a battery (1/90th of a second.) It will take any amount of salt spray -- just wipe it off the next day.

 

 

 

 

For a second camera, any Nikon FM, FM2, FM2n, or if you need a newer version, a FM3a, and a couple of lenses should give you enough gear to get through a cruise.

 

 

 

 

Travel safe!

Canon F-1N 24mm f2.8 35mm f2.0 50mm f1.4 and 80-200mm f4.0 and your set if it will survive antartica to the sahara not to mention it's extra sealing as a proffesional camera. Buy up a half dozen Lithium batteries for it and a but load of film store the film in airtight containers and in your coolest spot at any port you get to mail it to a lab and then on to home or your next port. All of the above equipmet can be had in very good conditon off ebay or KEH. And with a good Clean Lube and adjust serve you well.

 

If you decide you are interested inthis option email me direct and I can send you URLs to read all about the F-1N. If the camera and lenses only cost what your DSLR body would cost you can sure buy a lot of film with the savings.

My suggestion,buy about 20 Russian Zenit Slr's for $15.00 a pop on EBay.Get the critical focal length Pentax SMC Takumar lenses & sunny 16 it the whole way round & you should have several SLR's left to play with when you get home....If you know what you're doing your pictures will be as good as anyones...cheers.

I lived on a sailboat for 8 years, 3 years of those were cruising in the tropics, the balance in mid latitudes.

 

Camera was (and still is) a Canon A2E. Lenses were cheap Tamron zooms, later replaced with better Canon's as funds allowed. Film was mostly unrefrigerated Velvia, and some print films.

 

I think people that have not lived on a sailboat overestimate the severity of conditions you will store your equipment in. We used to keep the camera in a kayakers "dry bag" but later switched to a Pelican box. The dry bag was still used for trips ashore in a dinghy where the possibility of an unexpected swim was likely. The marine air does have more salt but it's not that pervasive. Keep the camera away from spray and you will do fine.

 

The only problem we had was fungus on one lens. Keeping the lenses and camera in the Peli box with a silica gel pack eliminated that.

 

I agree that a 24-85, 70-300 (or -200) zoom, a 50 1.8 or similar fast lens makes a decent package. If you get a modern film camera, take lots of lithium batteries if it uses them; they are hard to find in many of the less developed parts of the world. If you shoot film, watch where you have it developed. Waiting for more modern countries is often a good idea, as is watching the output from the lab and how they handle the negs.

 

If you take a DSLR, make sure there is an inverter aboard to recharge the batteries.

 

Keep your P&S (or buy a brilliant Olympic Stylus Epic) to take on shore excursions where you don't want to lug the bigger camera.

 

Have a wonderful trip.

Why not just buy an underwater camera and lenses. If something is built to handled being underwater, it should be fine with salt spray.

I would definitely go the semi-disposible route. Pentax Spotmatics and SMC screwmount lenses would be an excellent choice, though any well-built mechanical-shutter SLR from the 60's-70's would work fine. Pick up a Goseen Pilot-2 meter (selenium, no batteries, has incident reading capability)since the most likely thing to fail in those old cameras is the meters. If you keep the camera wrapped in a ziplock bag with a hole for the lens (with a multicoated UV filter of course) to poke through, it will keep them relatively free of damage from salt air and light spray. However only something like a Nikonos could be counted on to survive a full-on drenching from a lapping wave. I would suggest the Nikonos II, which has no need for batteries and which is the cheapest. Make sure to put in new O rings.

I would say that you forget about a DSLR and go with an old MF as suggested. My favourites would be Canon F1, Ftb, Nikon F4, K1000 etc.

 

If you do go for something a bit more electronic get yourself some decent storage - like those plastic crates that the Nat Geographic guys use to float down the Amazon!

Look, all of these recommendations are nice, and deserve consideration, but they are missing the most important accessory you will need. To wit: one attractive person of the appropriate gender. This person should be reasonably familiar with the handling of your boat, cameras and anything else that will require, er, handling.

 

Have a great trip. DO carry at least one old MF body and film as a backup.

 

Les