Abuttolph
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 Re: African safari talk...recommendations? | |
artsupreme wrote:
Abuttolph wrote:
artsupreme wrote:
Abuttolph wrote:
robert_in_ca wrote:
Go with the Kiboko 30L. I have the 22L and use it for my trips to TZ which carries my unattached Z 400mm 2.8TC, Z 70-200mm 2.8, x1.4TC and my Z8 and Z9 with room to spare.
Right now I am in SA and I using my ThinkTank Airport XT roller. It carries the kit as above but with my Z 600 4.0TC instead of the 400mm + Swarovski 10x42 binoculars. However, because I’ve added in my 135mm Plena I carry my Z8 in my small carry on.
Abuttolph wrote:
Recommendations for camera bag for safari needed.
Right now, I have a Shimoda bag with the large DSLR insert. This was sufficient to carry the gear to Namibia that I listed in the previous post. However, for my trip next year, this bag is not sufficiently large to carry the A1 + 200-600 attached, A1 + 70-200 f2.8 ii attached, and (hopefully) the new 300mm (could be attached depending on which lens that I am using), as well as one or two more wider angle lenses. Is there a bag that will fit at least two of the longer telephotos attached to cameras, as well as the remaining lenses? I was looking at the Kiboko 30L and the Mr Jan Boris.
Also, I need a pack with good support and one that will fit the frame of a smaller person. Any suggestions?
My husband is adamant that I get the new 300mm prime. Lucky me!
Thanks for the suggestion on the 30L Kiboko. That is what I ended up purchasing. B&H had it on sale for $90 off and I was able to order at the sale price. It is really a nice pack and very roomy. Also, it is really comfortable - more so that my Atlas or Shimoda bags, which are both very good.
Another question - for people who take two bodies but have more lenses, do you simply pick two lenses for the day and shoot with those, or do you change lenses in the field, which does not seem to be recommended in Kenya and Tanzania? After Namibia, I certainly understand the reasoning for not swapping lenses unless at the lodge.
You can still change lenses in the field unless it's super windy and blowing a lot of dust. I changed lenses in all conditions even though I had a 4 body setup with 4 lenses attached, I still had to change between video and still setups in the field. I suggest bringing a small microfiber towel and keep it in your bag. Take it out and wipe down the lens and camera to get rid of dust so that you aren't creating a lot of dust when you make the swap. if you have someone to help you hold the new lens it makes it even that much quicker/easier.
Great advice - thanks. How did you carry four bodies with four attached lenses (plus additional lenses)? Were these all in one pack/case, or did you bring along more than one pack/case in the vehicle?
What I do to get my gear there is very rarely necessary because most of the time you should never be asked to weigh your carry on luggage. But being a surfer, they like to pick on us when we walk up with tons of cargo and board bags the size of caskets. It's very rare they don't weigh our bags, so I always plan for the worst. I have been called out once going to Africa in Qatar, but it's rare and shouldn't happen. For insurance and loss purposes I always take photos of my gear I'm bringing on that particular trip. Since I pack gear in vests this helps me remember what gear goes in what vest when I'm re-packing for the next destination. For Africa, I don't use my expensive thinktank camera roller bags as I can save 6lbs with these cheap rollers that weigh just 5.6lbs with bubble wrap and padding included. I wrap my gear in bubble wrap and then make sure it weighs the max limit without the vest, and then I add the vest loaded with other gear. If I'm ever asked to weigh my carry on, we just take out the vests and put them on knowing our total carry on weight will be right at the limit. If you care to look at the list below, you'll see on this last trip we carried on 82.5lbs of carry on gear when the limit allows for 66lbs. Once I get to my camp in Africa, I lay everything out in the tent and just carry my 4 bodies/lenses to/from the vehicle each day. I use my backpack for my drone and some accessories. My backpack doesn't get much use in the vehicle unless I need to change a lens or fly the drone. If you are sharing a vehicle with others, your bags in the vehicle will be more useful for storage.
Thanks for providing this info on how and what you and your wife pack and then how you handle things in the field. Your experience with bringing surfboards along no doubt has made you cautious and it never hurts to be prepared. The way that you did this makes excellent sense, and I will probably do something very similar. I probably will bring my photo carry-on roller (It is one of the discontinued Vanguard Alta rollers and I really love it) and prepare things similar to what you have done. I have never had my carry-on weighed in the US and am 99.9% sure that it won't be on my upcoming trip. The return flight home might be a different story so I want to definitely be prepared for any restrictions. My carry-ons have been weighed in the Brussels airport for a Qatar Airways flight, and then in the Windhoek airport on a departing AirLink flight.
You were smart to actually weight each piece. I have tended to just get the gear/bag/pack weights from online specs and go from there.
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