The Perfect World Traveller M Kit?

[Rayt]

Two bodies with 35mm and 50mm on each. No matter how much gear I accumulate I only use these!

[besk]

VC 28/3.5 on an Bessa L body and the 50/2.5 Nokton on the IIIf (sorry - sold my M's.)
If I wanted to go out with one camera it would be the IIIf and one or both lenses and leave the L at the hotel.

[back alley]

based on the one camera one lens kit you are talking about it seems that you want a really simple combo to shoot with...that is fine as long as you don't get bored/frustrated with it as you're talking about months of traveling. that's more of a personality thing than a gear thing.

my personality would prefer to haul around the rd1 with all 6 tiny lenses plus the x100 in my 5xc bag. it would all fit. it would be heavier than i might prefer and the bag is just a touch too big to really 'enjoy' carrying it for all that time.
but i would prefer to bitch about it and suffer than not have a lens that i could have used but left at home.

i'm heading to toronto in september...and thinking about my bag/kit already and not happy about any combo i think of. take it all? take just the x100?
take the x100 plus the rd1 and the 40/75? or maybe just the 75 or better yet the 50!
35 on the x100 and 50 on the rd1! that would be simple and would all easily fit into the 5xa or b...

damn....

[rover]

So far this week I have used 75% 35mm and 25% 50mm. The 28 hasn't come out of the bag yet.

[FrankS]

Where and what one photographs determines what focal length to use. Here in my little town north of Toronto I wouldn't dream of taking people shots with a 28, heck, I wouldn't bother with street photography here. Toronto is a big, anonymous city however. Acting like a tourist is the ultimate camouflage, way better than an all black ninji outfit.

[secksthoi]

I have a similar plan to travel after I graduate, while accumulating a kit as I go along before next year. In my bag I have a Hasselblad 500C/M with an 80mm Planar, Ricoh GR1v for auto exposure snapshots, and a Leica M2 currently with no lens (plan to maybe fit a fast 50mm or super-wide).

Like others' suggestion, if no plans to carry an extra camera then at least pack extra lenses. I learned my lesson during my travels when I only had a 50mm or a fisheye for my DSLR, while noting I did just start photography with no knowledge of how great wides are hehe.

[Harry Lime]

In your crappy looking bag or waistpack:

1.4/35
1.4/50
2 x M-bodies. Preferable one pre-M6 body for the 50 (better framing accuracy)
Sekonic 308s
A suitcase full of Tri-X.



All of the above gear will easily fit in a small waist pack, that you can get almost anywhere for less than $20.


Speed is king. Get the fastest glass you can afford.

Film can be expensive and difficult to find on the road. Black and white and 120 are rarely sold in anything but good cameras stores these days.

Budget 1 - 2 rolls of 135 per day. You may not shoot that much every day, but it's a good rule of thumb.

If you insist on color or want someone to take a shot of you standing in front of landmark 'X' perhaps something like a Canon S95 with spare battery, charger and SD cards. It's tiny, has an f2 lens and shoots RAW.

Personally I think the 28 is too wide, unless you plan on spending a lot of time on old narrow European streets or your name is Garry Winogrand.

I would skip the tools. I carry a tiny Leatherman, but any serious repair will require a technician. But that is why you should take two bodies.... If you can't swing the second M-body consider a CL, Voigtlander or simply the P&S.



If you plan on developing on the road.

In your suitcase:

Small measuring beaker
Stainless Steel developing tank (2 - 4 reels)
Film retriever
Changing bag
Piece of string
A few push pins to hang your line
8 x clothes pins to hang film
Sheets to file negatives
Small digital scale to measure chemicals, if you brew your own.

[Harry Lime]

Originally Posted by Rayt

Two bodies with 35mm and 50mm on each. No matter how much gear I accumulate I only use these!

Amen.

;-)

[Cagliostro73]

My carry around kit is:
M2, 40, 50, 90 summicron.
Leica CL.
Lunasix 3s and spare batteries (they fit the CL too).
FP4 and HP5+ one roll a day each.
1 Dark yellow, 1 dark green and 1 red filter.
Cloth bag and a plastic bag (in case of rain).
A shower cap, for shooting in the rain.
Cleaning cloth and brush (for dust).
My best shoes and my curiosity!

[kievman]

Alot of good advice here, definitely bring a back-up body of some sort ----One area that has been missed in the posts I have read so far is :Film supply!!!!!!!!!!! You did not say where you are going, but during two month long trips to Central America over the last 2 years 2010 and 2011, Film was very scarce if not non-existant during my travels thru C.A in Panama, Costa Rica, and Nicarauga forget about buying film on the road. Plan on bring the film you think you will need with you. For my month long trips I bring about 60 rolls and usually have about 15-20 rolls left over. Good Luck - Kievman

[akiralx]

I am going to Europe next month for 5 weeks (UK and Finland mainly) and am taking:

M9 + 35 f/1.4 ASPH
M7 0.85 + 90 Summarit
24 Elmar f/3.8
CV 15 f/4.5

[Bingley]

Originally Posted by raid

Hi Steve,
I have extensive experience with travel photography over the past 30 years, and I feel that for my photography needs and for the purpose of enjoying my trip, the lenses are most important. Camera bodies come next.I can place these three cameras back to back in a small camera bag, ready for use.

The 35/1.4 Version 2 Summilux is very sharp, while being very small. The CV 25/4 is tiny, slow for indoors, by very sharp and nearly without any distortion. The 50mm/1.5 is fast and is great for portraits in any light.

A Summilux would indeed be nice, but my little Canon 35 will have to do for now.

I think the OP's minimalist kit is good, though I would add an Olympus XA to give me a 35 focal length, back- up, and a pocket stealth camera.

[kzphoto]

The Zeiss compact lenses might be a great fit? They're light and the image quality is near perfect.

My kit:
Zeiss ZM Biogon-C 21 f/4.5
Konica Hexanon 50 f/2.4 Collapsible
Konica Hexanon 90 f/2.8 (ideally replaced with a 90 macro elmar, in the future.)

Bright daylight glass, for when you're travelling. I suppose you could drop in a fast 50 or 35 instead of the collapsible hex, but the image quality is *stellar*.

[P.KC]

Hasselblad Superwide, small light meter, 20 rolls of portra 400. Oh wait, this sounds like what I just did take to sante fe...

[David Hughes]

The old Leica CL with its 40 and 90mm was a nice travel kit and the Minolta version (CLE) with the additional 28mm was even nicer. The problem being that the CLE is all electronic and, like a lot of them, makes us all worry about it failing for good. But the 28 and 90 would be a perfect pair.

Cheapskates or those of you worried about walking about with hundreds if not thousands of pounds worth of equipment might like to think about two or three charity shops finds that are ideal for travel and cheaper than the film or a coffee.

I'd nominate the Pentax ESPIO 928M or the Nikon Zoom Lite 90S. Both punched well above their weight and had impressive lenses. The Pentax being best at 28 - 90mm as against the Nikon's 38-90.

OK it's OT but I saw the Pentax for £2 yesterday in a charity shop and it raised a lot of pleasant memories of carefree photography on holiday. Also cameras and bags with the red dot on them sometimes attract a lot of attention. Not all of it might be friendly, although I've been lucky so far.

Regards, David

[Fraser]

M9+28 Summicron+90 Summicron+GOOD INSURANCE!

[alan davus]

Mechanical M body (one only) and two lenses. Definitely a 50 and then a debate between a 28 or a 35 with the 35 getting the nod more often or not. Yes GOOD INSURANCE!!! I destroyed my M6ttl crossing a flooded creek whilst hiking in New Zealand last summer. I thought "she'll be right" my travel policy covers photographic gear up to $4000. But when I made a claim they pointed out in the fine print cameras are depreciated 20% a year to a max 80% of their original value. Grrrrr!!!!!

[kemal_mumcu]

Originally Posted by back alley

based on the one camera one lens kit you are talking about it seems that you want a really simple combo to shoot with...that is fine as long as you don't get bored/frustrated with it as you're talking about months of traveling. that's more of a personality thing than a gear thing.

my personality would prefer to haul around the rd1 with all 6 tiny lenses plus the x100 in my 5xc bag. it would all fit. it would be heavier than i might prefer and the bag is just a touch too big to really 'enjoy' carrying it for all that time.
but i would prefer to bitch about it and suffer than not have a lens that i could have used but left at home.

I think it does come down to personality. Your little tiny lenses are indeed small and they don't weigh much or take much space.

Potentially I'd take a small ultra wide with me.

My thinking was to fit everything (including clothes/personals) into a small shoulder bag that weighed less than 10 lbs. This way one could wander the streets all day, travel spontaneously and explore without having to have a behemoth outfit "back at the hotel". I was thinking of how I could have the lightest outfit possible. Instead of bringing along travel guides, could one have them saved onto a little portable smart phone instead? If one were shooting digital could one use internet cafes and a site like Drop Box to safely stow image files without having to carry tons of back-up drives and memory cards? Just pondering out loud.

I've been working with my M2/50 Sonnar most of the summer and I haven't gotten bored with it yet... but that's my personality.

Great ideas and cautions mentioned in this thread so far by the way.

[corot]

If you allow one digital interloper, what about

M mechanical
Sony NEX
CV 21/4
50 anything fast

Now there are four nicely spaced focal lengths (21, 32, 50, 75). If any one item was lost or damaged I could happily exist with the other three.

[Juan Valdenebro]

Originally Posted by akiralx

I am going to Europe next month for 5 weeks (UK and Finland mainly) and am taking:

M9 + 35 f/1.4 ASPH
M7 0.85 + 90 Summarit
24 Elmar f/3.8
CV 15 f/4.5

Great gear: so versatile and light!


Cheers,

Juan

[rodt16s]

I always make sure I have a handful of ziplock bags stuffed somewhere close by, like the ones they make you use to carry liquids when flying..

[illuminati_02]

M2 w/ 21 SA
M7 .85 w/ 35 'lux pre-asph and 75 'lux

I don't have a 75 'lux, so I have to pack either the '50 lux or 90 'cron.

Minimalist travel kit, I would be happy with the M7 and 35 'lux.
In the past my go to kit was a CLE & 40.

[semordnilap]

For me it's m8 with 15, 28, 50... If it was film or m9 I'd go 21, 35, 75/90. And i'd definitely bring a small p&s for little movies and snapshots.

Have fun!

[maddoc]

Originally Posted by Doug

M8 + 25 + 50 is my first thought, and it might survive further consideration too. That's what I took to Hawaii a couple years ago, very useful combo. Last month though it was 28 Summicron + 50 Sonnar as I figured (rightly!) I'd need the speed in Las Vegas.

I was in L.V. for a business trip last autumn and brought my M7 + 28mm AVENON (tiny) and the 50 Sonnar (S-mount with Amedeo adapter), that kit was perfect.

[roboflick]

World Traveler Kit:
Small Photo bag
M6ttl
35 summicron
50 summicron
velvia 100 5 rolls
Tri X 1 roll
The discipline to plan shots carefully and not buy anymore film.
My Leica m3 which was my grandmother's and which I could not bear losing would stay home

Nik