Need camera zoom lens info

[flamedic]

I have a 70-200 zoom lens. Will this be enough to photograph wildlife on the shore or the whales from the ship? This is my my cruise and I am new to photography. Thanks.:)

[jtl513]

I have a 70-200 zoom lens. Will this be enough to photograph wildlife on the shore or the whales from the ship? This is my my cruise and I am new to photography. Thanks.:)

 

That depends entirely on how close the ship and the animals are to the shoreline at the time! And how big the animals are! :D If you're trying to snap a bear along the Alaska Inside Passage, 200 mm is plenty, but if you're trying to picture a small animal from two miles off shore forget it!

 

I suggest you (a) take the camera out and do a lot of experimentation before you go cruising, and (b) if it's a digital camera, shoot everything at the maximum resolution for possible later enlargement and cropping.

[cigarman]

JTL gave you some good advice, and I second your taking a lot of pictures before you go.

I will add...depending on the camera lens configuration you are using a very long shot with a 200 mm lens will enhance any vibrations that you will impart to the camera. IE shaking, wind, even breathing and of course shutter release. In this case look into a small light tripod or unipod that you can bring along with you. Do not listen to those that will say, Just lean on the railing. If someone else leans on it you will get bad results.If you are usisng a film camera then the film will have an outcome as well, pick wisely. I am sure that wherever you live there is a good camera shop/dealer, NOT walmart, that can give you some hands on advice. Have a good trip.

[noblepa]

You don't say what kind of camera you are using, which makes a difference. Most digitial SLR's have sensors that are about 2/3 the area of a 35mm frame. Therefore, a 200mm lens on a DSLR is the equivalent of approximately a 300mm lens on a film SLR.

 

That said, 200mm is not that powerful. If I've done the math correctly, the angle of view (for 35mm) is 5.1 degrees. The width of the field at 10 meters is about .2 meters; at 100 meters distance, the width is 18 meters. At 100 feet, it covers about 18 feet.

 

The rule of thumb for hand-holding any lens on a 35mm camera is to set the shutter speed to the reciprocal of the lens length, or faster. That means for a 50mm lens, don't hand hold it for a shutter speed longer than 1/50 second. For a 200mm lens, don't hand hold for longer than 1/200 second. Since most cameras go from 1/125 to 1/250, use 1/250.

 

For a DSLR, multiply the angle and width of field by 2/3. I'm not sure how the hand-holding ROT is affected.

 

If your camera is one of the more popular brands, like Pentax, Nikon or Canon, you can pick up a 2x teleconverter for $10-20 (on ebay), for a non-autofocus model. AF models are very expensive. Most AF cameras can be used in manual focus mode.

 

Paul Noble

[flamedic]

Thank you for the info. :) I have a Canon Rebel XTi, dslr. I have a tripod, but I don't think I can get in my luggage unless it will fit in the garment bag. I will be flying in from Florida.

[jmelnick]

Forget about using a tripod on the ship. There's 2 issues: 1. Not enough room on the decks. There might be on a balcony. 2. Vibrations from the ship will transmit throught the tripod to the camera - not a good thing.

I'm probably going to be getting a monopod for my Alaska cruise in May. Mostly for land excursions. I might use it onboard if I can figure out an easy way to dampen the vibrations.

As far as a lens, you might want to consider getting something like the Sigma 170 - 500 zoom. It's not the sharpest lens in the world, but its very usable.

[OldCodger73]

I have a 70-200 zoom lens. Will this be enough to photograph wildlife on the shore or the whales from the ship? This is my my cruise and I am new to photography. Thanks.:)

 

The Canon XTi has a 1.6 crop factor, so your 200mm end becomes the equivalent of a 320mm in 35mm terms. Using the reciprocal rule a minimum shooting speed would be 1/320. You can always push the ISO to get higher speeds. Many people have steady hands and can shoot much slower than that, YMMV.

 

The advice to get a lot of experience with the lens is right on, as is using the camera's highest resolution. That will give you an idea if 200mm is going to have the reach you need. Personally I had the Canon 70-200 f/4L and found it lacking for the reach I wanted, sold it and bought the 100-400L.

 

Cheap 2X teleconverters usually degrade the image.

 

I'd also forget the tripod.

 

Here's an old thread from the Alaska board that will tell you way more than you'll ever want to know. Much of it deals with P&S cameras, but there are some posts that ask the same 200mm question.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=283967

[mike35]

Thank you for the info. :) I have a Canon Rebel XTi, dslr. I have a tripod, but I don't think I can get in my luggage unless it will fit in the garment bag. I will be flying in from Florida.

 

I have the same camera, which I love! I purchased Canon's 70-300 mm telephoto with image stabilization. While pricey, I've captured fabulous shots at 300 mm (Alaska, Blue Angels show, Asia, etc), hand-holding the camera with image stabilization enabled. You have a great camera body; I think it's false economy to scrimp on your telephoto, IMHO.

 

Mike