Packing for Africa...

[milmoejoe]

Sorry in advance: I know similar questions have been routinely asked here. And, I admittedly ignored every single one of them as land-rovering around in Africa hasn't been atop my travel list (as a herp guy). But, I have an opportunity to tag along with a group of biologists for 3 weeks in Kenya, I'm going, and I obviously want to bring the camera gear. I have taken the time to site search (and elsewhere) and read everything I can.

A few Q for you regulars-

1. Do you think 800mm mounted to +1.3x will be too long? Frankly, I'm equally interested in the birds/raptors but don't want to limit myself for not having the 500 for the mammals.

2. Do you all bring a 'personal item'? e.g. laptop / TT UD60 bag?

3. I've previously weeded the Canon 100-400 from my gear bag, but I've heard from a number of friends that it's a near "must have" for Canon shooters in Africa (obviously Nikon provides a better alternative here). Would I be stupid to just bring the 70-200?

4. Is a bean bag like "Wildlife Imaging" OK for a 9 person land rover? (Yes, I've read the been bag blog writeup- thanks for this!)

In the end, my goal is to keep things extremely simple and compact. Specifically, I'm aiming for 2 bodies, 17-40, 70-200 and 800 in a Kiboko + some small junk in the think tank bag. The 2.8 lenses, macro gear, tripod, flash setups, etc. will all stay home. I know this is an unimaginable gap in focal length for most of you, but I'm pretty happy with the range shooting domestically here.

I *could* trade one of the 1d3's for a 1ds3 and re-buy/rent a 500, but I'm not convinced at this rate. However, I imagine I'll be hooked once I'm there and wish I might'a done things differently

Any thoughts much appreciated.

[E.J. Peiker]

1. I think it depends a lot on where you go but if you go to where wildlife is used to Safari vehicles, then I think the gap from 200 to 800 would be too big. Personally I would prefer the 500 with converter to give you more flexibility but if birds is truly your primary objective than 800 might be an excellent choice. But you might have to give up on some closer in mammal shots. I just think the flexibility of a 500, 700, 1000 with a 500 plus 1.4x and 2x would be preferable.
2. Absolutely
3. It is a handy lens to have and better than a 70-200+2x optically. The Nikon 200-400 is my most used lens in Africa so the 100-400 is definitely a good choice but again my primary subjects are mammals. When I was in Tanzania and still shooting Canon, the D30 coupled to 100-400 was a heavily used combo. I basically had 1 D30 with 500 and one D30 with 100-400 for the large majority of the shots.
4. I used a Kinesis Safari Sack for most of my shots. It will depend on what type of Safari vehicle to determine which is best. If it's the type of vehicles they use in Tanzania - Land Rover with Pop=up, I'm not sure a beanbag support with such huge drop downs will work well. Andy Biggs might be better to answer that question.

Personally I think something like a 24-70 would be more useful than a 17-40 but that may be partly style.

If I were shooting Canon and the cost of new equipment were not a consideration, I would want to take a 7D and 5D mark II (both much lighter than the 1D series), a 500, a 400 f/5.6, a 70-200 f/4, and a 24-70 f/2.8. For comparison to give you an idea of what I will take on my next trip in 2010, I will take a D300, a D3x, a 500, 200-400, 70-200, 24-70. That should give you some idea. Hope this helps.

[imagenes_vivas]

I have travelled in African countries several times, and in Kenya for one whole month. My recommendations are:

1: I think the 800mm is too long for a Kenya safari with a 1,3X crop camera. You will have plenty of opportunities at much close ranges. And far away animals will be diluted by the heat with a so long lens. In my trip to Kenya with a EOS-1 Ds FF camera I took the 70-200mm (sometimes with 1,4X) and the 500mm. With the 500mm, when the animals approached sudenty I lost a lot of images. The ideal lens will be a long zoom, like the Nikon 200-400mm f:4 or the darker 100-400mm f:4.5-5.6 from Canon.

2: Yes, buy an adapter for the electric plugs in the lodges, or a car-converter to recharge it from the cigarette lighter in the car if you camp.

3. See 1.

4. A simple beanbag (Not need to buy a sofisticated one) or a window-mount like LL Rue or Kirk Enterprises is indispensable in Africa.

[Phil Shaw]

1. The straight 600 with full frame body is my most used combination on safari. Only when shooting birds do I wish for anything longer and then I usually have to employ the 2x-extender.
2. When travelling alone, I usually travel with a TT international and a TTUD60; when travelling with my wife, I can take more gear so she gets the wheelie-bag and I tote the Kiboko and the UD60. The UD60 usually contains a 300/f2.8, a 70-200/f2.8 and a body as well as laptop, chargers and travel stuff.
3. I think you definitely need something in the 300mm or 400mm range if you are going to be shooting large mammals.
4. The wildlife imaging bean bag will work fine on the window, but that means that you will have to crouch on the the floor of the vehicle (unless you are up-front). It can be used on the roof, turned upside down, but I prefer to use the double beanbags when shooting from the roof, using a skimmer/ground plate and my Wimberly Head. The Kinesis Safari Sac type bean bags also work well. I usually take 4 large beanbags with me to Africa. Sometimes you need 2 or more to provide a suitable support. They are also useful for wedging your equipment into the seat while travelling.
Rather than renting a 500, if thats what you are thinking about, why not rent a Nikon 200-400 and a D3.

[Rich S]

(1) I shoot more with the 500 & 1.4 on the 1D3 than anything else, so the 800 sounds about right.

(2) Definitely a laptop, a requirement for backup and for an initial review to see that you've got what you think you've got.

(3) If I could bring only one lens, it would be the 100-400. But I would recommend putting it on something like the 50D or the 7D. You've got a 1.6 factor there giving you an effective range of 160-640 which is very useful. (The downside is that they don't use the same battery as the 1D3, but the 7D has much better low light performance.) I suspect that buying one of those cameras and the 100-400 and then turning around and selling them after the trip, assuming that you don't get attached, is better than renting a 500.

(4) "Standard issue" beanbags are fine, anything with a strap to tie down, but must admit that I use them more for making sure equipment in the vehicle doesn't float around, as Phil has noted.

Rich

[abiggs]

I get questions like these all of the time from my safari travelers, so here goes:

1) An 800mm lens on a 1.3x body is too much lens for most of the situations. However, there is the golden rule that say that you can never have enough focal length for all situations. The 800mm is a great lens, but I would only consider such a lens for specialized situations. I would have a 500mm or 200-400mm f/4 as my main lens, and then an 800mm could be something to bring if my wife joined me and had the room and weight allowance to carry it for me.

2) I always bring a laptop bag, and I have found that the Think Tank UD50 is my favorite bag so far. I bring my 13" Macbook Pro, external hard drive, iPod, headphones, travel docs and other items in the bag. Works like a charm. I sometimes shift some weight from my main Kiboko camera bag into my UD50 to get through the check-in process, as they rarely weigh your 'personal item'.

3) The 100-400mm is infinitely more useful than the 70-200mm for an east African safari. If you were headed to South Africa I would say otherwise. Keep in mind that if you are looking to do pan/blur types of shots, and if you are shooting in ample light, with the 70-200mm you can only stop down to f/22. This will likely yield only a 1/10 of a second shutter speed at the slowest. Not ideal if you want more blur. The 100-400mm stops down to f/45, which will buy you some more stops. Suddenly that makes a difference. When I shot with Canon, my 100-400mm had just as many keepers as my 500mm f/4.

4) I am partial to the Kinesis Safari Sack, filled up with either red beans (bought in country) or just with the provided buckwheat. Easiest bag to use for travel, as it isn't too small or too big, and when filled up it doesn't weigh 20 pounds.

[milmoejoe]

A big thanks to each of you for all of the fantastic info!

I definitely need to find out exactly what the vehicle situation is. Simply through the grapevine, I understand there will be 5 people in a "9 person land rover", which really could mean anything.

Since posting this, (fortunately or unfortunately) I finally rec'd approval on a short sale home contract (nearly a year later), which severely limits my gear-buying options. I postponed the home-buying option in favor of the 800/5.6 release, but now must skip on a 500/4 as backup. Just to be safe, I think I will re-buy the 100-400 and rent a 5dII for the trip- better safe than sorry. I've got the 24-70 lens, but don't like it for nature shooting for a variety of reasons 1. too tall to pack vertically 2. quite heavy for what it is, 3. zoom range is frankly pretty boring to me. I skipped on bringint the 300/4 as I prefer the 70-200/4+ 1.4x for telephoto shots (300/4 is great for closeups).

Interesting idea to rent a 200-400 + D3, however I don't have a clue how to use the camera and can't imagine getting there and needing to futz with the manual. Not to mention having to transport two systems, as I have no gear toting spouse

Thanks again for the info.

[digimies]

1. Do you think 800mm mounted to +1.3x will be too long? Frankly, I'm equally interested in the birds/raptors but don't want to limit myself for not having the 500 for the mammals.

To keep your logistics manageable you have to give up on something. I would recommend you betting on two lenses and two bodies as a main work horses. At the end of the day *you* are going to be shooting there in your style. Your trip should not be an assignment to satisfy gear forum concesus, imo. There are guys who are very experienced in given situation, shooting with bold assignment style and can handle an array of focal lengths with pace and understanding. The big question is can you do it with your current experience? Or do you even want to 'cover' everything considering the extra burden with logistics? One of my personal big goals is to get lifelong good memories from those trips, and that is coming even before killer portfolios. But to each his/her own.

2. Do you all bring a 'personal item'? e.g. laptop / TT UD60 bag?

No, I haven't bring laptop into photography trip for many years. I'll try to ease of shooting, and has been eliminating the worst 60% of my pictures right at camera since 2002. Fast, big and reliable cards are now very inexpensive compared to Africa tour package. My ideal holiday is also a holiday away from computer. And that is especially true if I would be photographing on East African plains.

3. I've previously weeded the Canon 100-400 from my gear bag, but I've heard from a number of friends that it's a near "must have" for Canon shooters in Africa (obviously Nikon provides a better alternative here). Would I be stupid to just bring the 70-200?

I would bring the focal lengths and lenses I know well already.

In the end, my goal is to keep things extremely simple and compact. Specifically, I'm aiming for 2 bodies, 17-40, 70-200 and 800 in a Kiboko + some small junk in the think tank bag. The 2.8 lenses, macro gear, tripod, flash setups, etc. will all stay home. I know this is an unimaginable gap in focal length for most of you, but I'm pretty happy with the range shooting domestically here.

I would bring external flash for fill, especially for birds as light detoriates down there in no time with high Sun. When I'll travel to Ethiopia early next year I will bring 430EXII and 15" cord for just that -> compact and sometimes doing the business.

Whatever you choose: have a nice and safe trip!

[milmoejoe]

Huge thanks again to everyone for your valuable insight. I am amazed and thankful for the hospitality and free information sharing that takes place here.

I've exhausted my reading and web searching, and it's clear the 100-400 is a sure bet for we Canon shooters. The net is laden with images of safari vehicles and photographers using the 100-400 exclusively (in Kenya). With some additional nudge from Rick Sammon's recent NSN presentation, I'm happy to reinvest in the 100-400, and will plan on keeping it stopped down to f/8-f/14. Meanwhile, my envy for the Nikon 200-400/4 continues to grow

As I close in on my trip, I've decided to bring:

Kiboko Bag
Two 1d3's
17-40mm, 24-105mm, 100-400mm and 800mm lenses + 1.4x/2x TCs.
Speedlight/better beamer/off camera cord.

TT UD60
Macbook pro, power adapters, batteries, sensor cleaning accs, and so forth.

Checked bag
Both wildlife imaging and safari sack bean-bags (just incase).
Also looking forward to using the NSN skimmer + RRS MH-01 with the supertele and possibly experiment using it as a tripod substitute for night shots. This will be my first tripod-free trip

My comrades all seem to pack light and have agreed to intercept some of my carry-on weight, should it be a problem (fingers crossed).

Andy, I especially appreciate your blog. It's clear that you ensure top quality from start to finish on your safari's. Going in, I still don't have a clue what to expect in terms of the vehicles. I'm pretty sure it entails packing tightly into (less than ideal) vehicles with non-photographers and mediocre access. I find myself getting jazzed browsing everyone's great Africa photos, but realize I'm traveling with field biologists who are notorious for the late nights up drinking, sleeping in, nice big breakfast before hitting the field, etc. Great... Much like traveling to Costa Rica in Central America, I imagine this trip to Kenya will be an "Africa Lite" trip. Still, very much looking forward to it and hopefully expanding in the future.

Above all, as a lifelong needle-hater, I must say that I'm not enjoying the numerous trips to the doc for costly preventative vaccinations

Thanks again.

[abiggs]

Joe, have a blast!!! You will have a great time no matter what. If you are having problems with too many people moving around in your vehicle, I have a recommendation for you. Since your fellow travelers might enjoy a few drinks every night, why not bribe them by saying that you will buy them some beers if they just sit tight when you are trying to grab a shot. Movement in the vehicle with an 800mm lens is going to be a killer if you don't have people that are still. Since they are not into photography, they will likely be moving around a bit. Just make up some sort of rule like asking people to say "can I move" or "I am going to move, is it ok?" kind of things when you have your lens in shooting position. This way you won't be frustrated and they will understand your needs.

Just a thought!

[peterkes]

Your lens kit looks ok for me, certainly the 100-400 is going to be an important one (I carry a 28-300 and it is used a lot for wildlife).
But I would leave my PC at home. Practically (my experience) there is little time to edit anyway in Africa. During 'non-shooting' hours you will enjoy a siesta. And believe me, the African heat will force you to or draw you into a possibly available pool. If anything, I would bring a portable disk, to backup your images. I usually do take the beanbag, it is always useful and doesn't occupy much of packing storage. Practically though, a beanbag is (again, in my experience) a hard to use support asset in a safari-4x4. If the 4x4 is full of people, where do you support the beanbag ? Remember that a safari vehicle usually doesn't have windows, where you can rest your beanbag: it is open, sometimes configured with a rain/sun canopy. I would pack a monopod. This is for me the most valuable lens support in a safari vehicle. It is not ideal, but with a full car and no windows, a beanbag will be hard to use. Finally, I would think again about your tripod. As I said, a siesta will mostly be your midday activity. But when I am in the bush, I forcing myself not to sleep (can do that at home) during midday, but to 'hunt'. So I stroll around camp with camera ... and tripod.
Just a few of my thoughts and experiences.

[buddy4344]

you have been given some great advice. Regarding the 800, Andy makes good points on the need for a steady camera while you shoot. Another, maybe bigger issue on this lens. I saw you wrote about a 9 person vehicle - also not sure how many people will be in the vehicle, but that's big glass and if the vehicle is full of people, you are not going to have much 'pivot room'. I have a feeling you will be using the 100-400 a lot more than you expect.

[milmoejoe]

I agree, I think the 100-400 will definitely be used more.

Logistically, we have 11 people to distribute between two 9-person land cruisers.

From what I've heard from other friends who frequent Kenya, the mammals are quite close in some areas, but further off at places like the Mara, leopards in Samburu, etc. I think I'll be OK without the tripod - I don't use one back home in the states either.

What do you all prefer for sensor cleaning over there?

I only have to wet-swab maybe once every six months with normal use. Thinking of maybe adding something like the arctic butterfly?

[abiggs]

11 people for 2 vehicles isn't too bad. Just make sure you are in a row with access to both left and right windows.

I like the Visible Dust cleaning suite of products, even though they rob you blind. Arctic Butterfly for simple dust and their wet solution for stubborn dust. Oh, and a pocket rocket to blow before I even take out the Visible Dust stuff. Don't forget a good light source, and I use Visible Dust's magnifying glass / light combo. I forget the name.

[buddy4344]

Exactly the same as Andy on cleaning. Usually the Rocket Blower will solve the problem if you go over with clean sensors.

Speaking of light sources, one of the most valuable items in my camera bat is a headlamp (you know, the elastic around the forehead with a small LED light in front). Frees hands for things like cleaning sensor, but more important for getting all set up in low light on the morning bush drive. Make sure you take one that also has a RED LED option, so you won't be constantly blinding your companions. These are pretty easy to find these days at sporting good stores and hardware stores. I actually always take 2 of these, because they are that important to me.