Travel advice needed

[kwest]

I will be going on a weeks beach holiday followed by a mediterannean cruise this

August (visting Italy, North Africa, Spain, Majorca ext) and as I have never

taken equipment before I am after edvice.

I have a Nikon D70, 18-70, 18-200Vr, 50mm and a SD800.

 

My query is should I just take the D70 with the 18-200 & speedlight? Also, what

precautions should I take. I am worried about taking this equipment as I cant

afford to replace it if I damage it.

 

I will be travelling with my wife and two children who are not the most patient

people in the world. So if I am composing my shots they will be off, so should

I just take a point and shoot camera to save time?

 

I am really open to any advice people have. I want to capture everything but

also want to make sure my equipment is safe, not just from damage but also theft.

 

Hope you can help!

 

Karl

[jeffrey moore]

That's not really very much equipment to haul around; I'd take it all in a small shoulder bag. But if you are determined to narrow it down to just the camera and one lens, the 18-200 seems the obvious choice to me. Check to see if your homeowner's insurance will cover the equipment.

[james_symington1]

The 18-200 is probably all you'll need. I personally hate flash and wouldn't take one ever and just rely on VR for bad light. You could also take your 50mm as well as it's fast and small.

 

Perhaps you should insure your kit too and that way you won't be nervous about using it. The pictures from the D70 will be way better than your p&s and therefore worth it on such a trip.

 

Good luck.

[james_symington1]

One thing you might consider is buying a pocket tripod - they can be invaluable on that kind of trip.

[george_lupton]

get yourself an understated shoulder bag to take your kit in. go for the 18-200 also and

take the flash. most home insurance will cover phot kit up to a certain value outside the

home. i would also recommend taking a couple of plastic bags to keep the sand and sea salt

away from your kit too.

[mark u]

Just take the same precautions you would if you were going to Hawaii - don't let sand or water get in the camera, don't leave it lying about while you swim, etc.

 

I think I'd take the flash to soften some harsh shadows in the strong sun. Make sure you have plenty of storage with you.

[richard_f1]

Hi Karl,

 

Take your point and shoot too, especially if it fits in your pocket. You don't want to walk round some places with a giant camera hanging round your neck but you won't want to miss shots while waiting to haul it out of a bag. For one thing you will look like a really obvious tourist which might make it harder for you to get certain images (because the huge SLR can be off-putting to people when you go up to them, though once you start a little conversation they are often quite happy to have their photo taken, which is when you pull out the SLR). For another thing, you might be an easy target for robbery (certain places in North Africa in particular warrant concealing your big expensive camera except for the moments you are actually using it).

 

I travel quite a bit in third world places and off the beaten track. I have a shoulder bag with my SLR in it and a few lenses. The bag is not obviously a camera bag, but you can fold the top open and quickly grab the SLR.

 

Then I jam a little point and shoot in my pocket. It's small and quick just means that if I see something cool that I'd like to take a photo of, but for whatever reason I don't want to get the SLR out, I can quickly do it.

 

The last thing I'd say is that physically-short lenses look a lot smaller and are easier to get out of a bag and back in quickly than really big lenses.

 

You might want to keep the smaller one attached and only dig out the big one when you really want it.

 

Have a great time!

[klix]

The D70, 18-200 and SB800 should suffice. I assume you already have a small bag; if not, get one. A lightweight tripod would be helpful for those "Honey, I want you in the picture as well" kind of shots.

 

Also, bring along a portable storage device or laptop or several CF ards.

 

Sounds like this is a family vacation first, and a photo trip second -- so enjoy the trip, and don't let composition worries get in the way of enjoying your trip.

 

Just shoot away -- you can always delete unwanted shots later.

 

KL

[kuryan_thomas]

This article may be of interest to you.

 

http://www.photosafaris.com/Articles/Domesticus.asp

[szrimaging]

As for the tripod suggestions, andother option is a bean bag. I have one called the POD. It is awesome, small, and easily packed.

[charles_stobbs3]

Why not a P&S for each member of your family? Involving them in photography may make them more tolerant of the need to satisfy

each other's (esp. your) compositional wants.

[linda_vesci1]

I just insured my equipment and I feel a whole lot better. It was fairly cheap, 1% of the value. I insured $7,000 worth for $70/year, with no deductible by adding it to my homeowners policy.