Large format lens for Yosemite valley

[david_sacco1]

I am planning a trip to Yosemite Valley in late February and

currently only have a 150mm lens for my 4x5. I am looking to pick

up another lens and was not sure which would be more useful a 300mm

or 90mm for the valley. Any thoughts? Also what is the chance of

snow on the ground in late Feb, are storms frequent?

 

 

thanks dave

[RobertChura]

Tough question. If it we me I would take 300.

[ted_stoddard]

I got some great shots with my Fuji 250mm and also my Nikkor 90mm.... There most likely be lots of snow but always check the road conditions before hand... call caltrans for the current road conditions they change very frequently especially in the winter.... have fun in the valley....

[eric_leppanen]

David,

 

 

If pressed, I would say take the 90, but there are so many photo targets in Yosemite that it's hard to limit oneself to two lenses (at least for me!). My most frequently used Yosemite lenses were 110, 150 and 300 (I know, I'm not being much help!).

 

 

 

It would obviously be helpful for lens selection to identify ahead of time which subjects you want to shoot. To this end, I would suggest picking up a copy of Michael Frye's "The Photographer's Guide to Yosemite", which is probably the seminal book on the subject (of recent vintage). Also, the Yosemite issue from Robert Hitchman's "Photograph America" newsletter (http://www.photographamerica.com/issue23.html) is also very good, albeit much briefer. Between these two sources, you should be able to get a better idea as to which focal lengths you'll use. One tidbit: both sources are several years old and some of the photographs are older, so the foliage has grown taller in the meantime; also, the Jeffrey pine on Sentinel Dome collapsed several years ago, so that's out as a target!

 

 

Since you're going in February, capturing Horsetail Fall at sunset in a possibility. It requries a very long lens (200-300mm with a 35mm camera) but is a spectacular shot if you can pull it off. It might be worth taking along a 35mm SLR/DSLR with a long lens just in case the opportunity presents itself.

 

 

Good luck and have fun!

[bruce_watson1]

I've been to Yosemite a couple of times. My experience was that I needed to carry four lenses - 80mm, 110mm, 150mm, 240mm - a set with about 15 degree increments of field of view.

 

If you can only have one besides the 150mm, I would pick the 90mm.

[jim_rhoades]

Like Robert, I'm a longer lens guy. I think a 150 & 300 would be a perfect two lens combo. But how do you see? Wide views of everything or details and abstracts? That's where the answer is, not from me or anyone else. From reading these forums for years I bet there are more wide angle guys that will respond. That's not the answer though.

[gandicarter]

I personally would bring my 90mm.

 

I recommend that you bring a 300mm.

 

I find that making a satisfactory image with a wide-angle much harder than a longer lens. It's easier to pick and isolate detail than to bring a greater area of landscape in a composition. That's why I give that recommendation -- but I personally feel that well executed wide-angle images more inviting to the viewer. Less "clinical".

 

Think about what it is you want to acheieve in your photography and see if that guides your decision. If it doesn't, toss a coin!

 

 

Gerald

 

( http://www.suresoft.ca/homepage/gcarter.html )

[alec_kennedy]

<p> If you want the coverage of a wide angle lens, consider taking two pix side by side with the 150 lens and then stitch the two frames together. You'll double the resolution, which is very useful if you're going to print as a panorama. <p> Personally I'm going off wide angle lenses with their light fall-off, and dim edges for focussing, and loss of resolution on wide prints.

[david_sacco1]

Thanks for the responses but I'm thinking the the 300MM would be a little bit better for me since I normally have a tendency to crop my negs when enlarging.

 

dave

[Glenn McCreery]

Think about what you want to carry. Getting away from the maddening crowd and finding the best compositions in Yosemite requires hiking (or skiing or snowshoeing) away from the roads. A light-weight setup with only your 150mm lens is better than too much equipment and no mobility. Forget the 300mm lens; you can always crop. A 90mm lens would however be useful.

[scott_davis5]

Personally, having been out to the Sierras recently (this past October), I'd bring along a 300 or even longer if you can find one. Everything out there is so big, and frequently far away, that you'll want the ability to narrow your perspective. It also helps to get shots of things you would want to approach but can't because of geography, geology, or just personal safety. I found I got a tremendous amount of use out of my 150, whereas I would have thought before I went that I would have preferred more wideangle stuff. My most-used lens on that trip was my 150, followed by my 300. The 90, the 75, and the 210 all got a few shots each, and my 110 got used once I think.

[noah]

I must second jim's statement. It depends on your vision and how you see and

photograph. When you shoot with your 150, do you more often back up for sweeping

views, or try to get close to you subjects to isolate details or make more clean

compositions? Which lens do you most often wish you had when you're out shooting? If

you're happy with the 150, why not just stick with that? Or, if you can find some bargains,

get both! Best of luck in any case.