Sound a little bit like an Agatha Christie book? Maybe you’re reminded of the Liu Cixin novel “The Three Body Problem”. Either way, I had a problem with bodies.
Wait, not that kind of body! What do you take me for??! LOL. Camera bodies. Jeesh.
I haven’t routinely carried multiple bodies with me since film days when it was more necessary than it is today. Back then I’d have a slow film and a fast film loaded, or sometimes color and black and white, even slides and print film. I wasn’t a wildlife shooter so the lens exchange itself wasn’t problematic, but it is now.
Mainly it’s working with only one body when kayaking. Well, it wasn’t the body itself that caused me agita, but the fact that I had a very long telephoto on it and so I basically stopped taking landscapes from the kayak. Bor. Ring.
Switching lenses isn’t a big deal until it is. I’ve missed wildlife shots because I had too short a lens on and so just never took the 100-400mm off for that reason. And so the only photos I’ve come away with are bird and animal pictures with the occasional flower or detail. No landscapes and no slices and the lack of those started to bother me. The Story of the Place was being whittled down.
The solution, at least near term, is to bring my 10-year-old GH3 with me. It’s a perfectly fine camera that sill works and it’s just lying around doing nothing. My first time out with both bodies wasn’t ideal since I stupidly put the 35-100mm on it instead of the 12-35mm. While I love the medium telephoto, I really needed something wider and that could focus closer. So I switched and got in nice and close to some lovely orchids –
The next time I went out I started with the 12-35mm and it worked much better. Not only was I able to take stills and video of a turtle basking in the sun, but I could get some nice landscapes and wider scenes that were not possible with either telephoto lens.
The GH3 isn’t as good ergonomically as the G9 and the viewfinder is appalling in comparison, but the images it produces are still darn good. Snappy with great colors. I even shot some video with it just to shake things up and give me different kinds of clips. It had been a while since I used it so finding certain controls and menu items was challenging, but I got it sorted and I think it’s a useful approach when in the kayak. If it shot in 4K video it would be more useful, but alas it doesn’t.
Reviewing the photos I took show that I’m rusty when it comes to landscapes on water. Those two are the only ones I like. Don’t they expand your idea of where I was? Where the turtle lives? The kind of weather and conditions? The whole glory of summer comes through by the inclusion of those landscapes. The two body approach with kayaking is going to expand the kinds of photos I can make without sacrificing the quickness I need for spontaneous wildlife shots. And it doesn’t take up much more room in my bag.
As I write there are rumors swirling about an update or replacement for the Lumix G9 that’s been my main camera for nearly 5 years. If they are true I will have found out in early September and if Panasonic hasn’t ruined it by making the ergonomics and menus unworkable, the price too high or the features too skimpy, I will order one and use both in perfect happiness.
A girl can dream.
Very nice wildlife and scenic nature photos. I was going to say you need three camera bodies: one for long range, medium/wide zoom and a macro.
I’ll need another boat to haul it in! LOL. Two should work though. Not much hurry over landscape or small scenes. It’s the wildlife that makes me rush.
Ditto. Maybe a negative TC for non distance? 😉
I think this is one of my favorite posts as both landscapes and close-ups are so beautiful. The turtle is especially enjoyable among all of the pinks and greens. Sharpness, too, and DOF make for winners all around.
Like you, I get frustrated at times with limitations of camera and lenses, and that is one reason why I have the Nikon Z 28-200 (or is it more?). It satisfies most of my needs for photography, but I will say that I am finding it heavy now that I am still in recovery from my broken arm. Oh, well!
Thanks Naomi. It’s amazing how we get so much more story with all those perspectives to choose from. I love the pink in the turtle shots, too. I think it’s water smartweed and it was just starting to fade. Pollinators love them.
I’ve thought about a lens with a wider range, but couldn’t really find one that would work well that didn’t cost the earth. Plus the glass I have is pretty high end and I didn’t want to have to get something lower quality. Sorry about your arm…hope you get more strength back in it over time.
Thanks, Kris! The Nikon Z lens I use (28-200) is actually a pretty good lens, and far lighter than some of their others. I will admit that convenience is often what I need over just about anything else. As far as the arm, slow and steady, etc. It’s getting there.