lolo_lasid

You mentioned the Tamrac Daypack, so here it is. It comes in two different sizes (748 and 750, the latter being the bigger). The bottom compartment is fully padded. The 750 easily holds two bodies, a 70-200/2.8, two other mid-sized lens, and a flash (540EZ). With only one camera body, you can have the 70-200 mounted, its long shade on, and still fit it in the bag. There are two pockets on each side, and another big pocket in front for the filters and other accessories. Overall, it's a decent backpack. It is tapered on the top, so unlike other camera backpacks, it is less conspicuos. The top compartment will even hold a six-pack, if that's what you prefer to carry along. More importantly, it has space for things other than your camera gear.

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Hiking with this bag is a different story. As mentioned above, a custom made/modified bag fits best (though not the fastest in terms of access to equipments). The 750 is decent enough for day hikes. The sternum strap takes some weight off your shoulder. BUT, the distribution of the weight (the heaviest being your equipment) is very undesirable for longer hikes. The 750 carries most of its weight on the bottom and it sticks out horizontally, away from your back. Ideally, as you might already know, you want to have the weight as close to your body as possible, and position it in the middle toward the top. In this regard, other backpacks like LowePro Trekker is better since it is slimmer and does distribute the weight throughout vertically. The weight of the bag itself is rather negligible.

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Keep in mind also that backpacks provide slower access to your equipments compared to waistpacks or shoulder bags. Good luck.

My guess is this question does not belong here. Beside, you need to narrow down the question: what type of format (8mm, hi-8, beta, dv, etc), what kind of budget (you're looking at thousands of bucks for what you're asking, i.e., broadcast quality). To say the least, I'm not sure you know what you want or what you're getting into... <p>

 

You can redirect your question to rec.video.* (it's not as bad as rec.photo.* in terms of speculative answers), or start with an amateur video magazine (VideoMaker, etc). Video cameras with interchangeable lenses are very expensive (well, one can find a used Canon L-1/L-2). Quality-wise or if you're investing for the future, go with digital-video format (again, expect to invest no less than a few thousand bucks). Good luck.

I know this is late, but it may be of help to someone with similar intention.

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About the tripod: you can also rent it. I did. Well, I committed the mortal sin of hopping on the airplane w/out my tripod. Upon arrival in San Jose, a few calls to some stores who called themselves 'professional suppliers' on the yellow pages resulted with a suggestion to call Ewert's. They are located off interstate 101 N (San Tomas expressway exit), at the end of Jay Blvd. Ed handled the rental department and was a very helpful person. A Bogen 3021 with grip head was $54 USD for a week (Friday to the 2nd Monday after). If more than a week, of course, it would be cheaper to just buy a 3001 and bring your ballhead along. No one I tried carried foam padding for the legs, including the bigger Adolf Gasser in SF. I hope no else should ever repeat my stupid mistake.

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About the trip, I covered over a thousand miles in one week, and had a chance to see the coastal line (Monterey to Big Sur) and the mountains, as well as cityscape (SF). Camping in Los Padres NF by the beach was just as nice as camping in Sequoia NP and Yosemite NP. Wildlife encounter was minimal with exception to seals (including a dying, solitary one on the beach of Carmel-By-The-Sea), crossing bears at night, mule deer, and coyote in Yosemite. Hiking opportunity was plenty and photographically very rewarding (yes, lug the tripod along). Tourist load was minimal in Sequioa/Kings Canyon, but still quite high in Yosemite NP (all campsites were full). I would agree with anyone who suggests Sequoia/KC NP over Yosemite if only one was to be chosen. Controlled burning was being performed in several areas of the mentioned NP's and the smoke was quite bothersome, if not robbing one of landscape shots due to poor visibility (I lost one sunset). All in all, yes, this region offers tons of nature photo opportunities and one week would not do it enough justice. Backpacking the backcountry is still a dream, so maybe next time. Those who live in this region should be greatful just for the beautiful landscape!

Awesome, awesome work. Five years of work if I am correct, and I'm sure they did gruesome location scouting and tons of early morning shots. They probably saw more dawns than most photographers/cinematogprahers. The images are simply breathtaking. Superb.

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I think most, if not all of it, were done with cinema camera/film and not video as commented above. So they did have to deal with as much troubles with regards to lighting, etc, that are inherent with still photography also. Some artificial lighting were used when control became difficult.

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This production is a must-see for landscape photographers and hikers/backpackers as well, althought sadly parts of the wilderness is no longer the same 200 years later.. the grizzly bears, the american bisons, and the Indian nations are no longer as how the Corps of Discovery encountered them. See it, and if you missed it, order it from www.pbs.org (they will re-air, check your local PBS).

Cheasapeake Beach. Point Lookout State Park. Patuxent Refuge. They're all within an hour drive.

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On the Virginia side, you can also get back to the beltway, and head down 95 south to Prince William State Forest. It's got plenty of enjoyable half-day to day hikes. Mason Neck State Park and Refuge is nearby also, you might spot a bald eagle if you're lucky (take a guided, easy canoe tour for $6, starts at 9 AM, but I'm not sure about the November schedule). Shenandoah National Park, with its Skyline Drive, is one hour from DC, so that's about 2+ hour drive from Waldorf. The drive is the 'highway' (35 mph speed limit) that you mentioned above. What you see from the drive is not everything: there is plenty of trails that will lead you to rewarding waterfalls.

I just got back from Shenandoah National Park. From the Skyline Drive, you can see that plenty are still turning, and I expect more vibrant colors to come out this week (Oct 25-Nov 1). You can see them if the weather is clear (on my out of the NP, visibility was down to 15-20 feet due to heavy fog; I didn't have to worry so much about other cars as it was late, but of crossing bucks, does and fawns!).

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If you hike the trail, you'll still catch yellow and green-yellow hemlock leaves. The water level on the falls and creeks is moderately low compared to spring time, but okay given the precipitation in the last two weeks. In general, it's still not too late to catch the leaves in this section of Virginia (including northern Virginia).

I haven't been to Hawaii except for two brief stopovers. But I can agree about having warm clothing for the higher altitudes. I've been to a handful of tropical volcanoes as high as 12,000 ft where a windbreaker is definitely needed during daytime, and warmer coat after dusk if you plan on camping. Layered clothing works best.

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If you think El Nino might effect your trip, do check <a href="http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/toga-tao/el-nino/impacts.html">NOAA's site</a>. Have fun.

(Off-topics)

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Doug, <br>

Did you try calling Bulbman (800-648-1163)? They carry GE Colortone 50 bulbs that are full spectrum, 5000K, CRI 92 fluorescence bulbs. Although color rendition index is not an accurate measurement (i.e., depends on what the manufacturer do to obtain it -- the best value is 100), the GE bulbs may/should render better color than the SAD bulbs. I've made two light boxes so far. I use the 15" ones which cost $11 each; they should have the 36" tubes.

Got a pair of free round-trip tickets for anywhere in the lower 48 states. Got a slacker schedule (typical big corporation delay). Decided to get away before the big bosses change their minds. Where would you go for a one to two weeks of outdoor photo and hiking trips? The time would be anywhere from late October to late November (shucks, El Nino comes to mind). Many thanks.

Another reason for longer focal-lenght lenses: smaller background area, leading to less distraction in the overall image.

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Remember that longer focal-length lenses have smaller angle of coverage than normal or wide-angle lenses. This means a 200mm lens will cover less area of background for the same subject/foreground size than the background area covered by a 50mm lens (granted, the 50mm lens will have to move closer to obtain the same subject size). Again, with smaller background area, one will <i>normally</i> obtain less distractions unless your background.

Okay, I know that practice makes perfect, and no book can make you a better photographer unless you work harder on the field. But knowing the 'theories' definitely leads to better techniques and results, right?

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So, what's your favorite book on nature photography? Please mention the book's coverage on some of these aspects: compositions, techniques and lighting, technical information, equipments, etc.

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FYI, a search on "book review" yielded this

<a href="http://db.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id=0000ce">relevant thread</a>, and Philip's dead trees section does not mention much of nature photography books...