To carry two bodies on vacation or not?

shaylou

shaylou

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Shayne
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Hi everyone,

I am planning to go back to Bangkok in a couple of months for vacation. I will spend a week or so there just to shoot. The main place I want to shoot at is China town. I shot there the last time I was there but only for one evening and I didn't even begin to cover it all. I love street photography and this is like a candy store for me. The last time I was there I went with my usual setup, 5DIII with 70-200II and a back up 24-70II. The problem was I needed the wide lens at times but didn't really have the time or place to change the lens. That leads to my dilemma, I have two bodies and even a two camera belt if I wanted to wear it but I just don't know if I can be safe having two camera in plain site. I have a sling strap that has a metal band within it so that it can not be cut. I was thinking I would carry the second body on the sling strap but place it into a small bag so no one could take the lens when I was not looking. I really want to be able to reach for a wide lens setup when I need one but i'm just not sure if this is too much risk and a bad idea. What do you guys think?

Here is one of my shots from the last trip.
https://flic.kr/p/hHDNWo

:canon::exit:
 
Take a large sensor compact as a backup. With either fixed or interchangeable lenses. Doesn't matter. But you can take it places where a big heavy camera is a liability. People behave differently. And it slips in a pocket at any sign of trouble.
 
simonblue said:
I used to plan my holiday around taking photos,it's my way of relaxing :)
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I used to do that (though I'd bring a plethora of lenses, but with only 1 body) but that soon annoyed the g/f! I'm travelling later this year (cant wait!) and I've restricted myself to only 3 lenses... Heck, if my dslr went down I'd probably just buy a decent compact whilst I was out there!
 
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shaylou said:
Hi everyone,

I am planning to go back to Bangkok in a couple of months for vacation. I will spend a week or so there just to shoot. The main place I want to shoot at is China town. I shot there the last time I was there but only for one evening and I didn't even begin to cover it all. I love street photography and this is like a candy store for me. The last time I was there I went with my usual setup, 5DIII with 70-200II and a back up 24-70II. The problem was I needed the wide lens at times but didn't really have the time or place to change the lens. That leads to my dilemma, I have two bodies and even a two camera belt if I wanted to wear it but I just don't know if I can be safe having two camera in plain site. I have a sling strap that has a metal band within it so that it can not be cut. I was thinking I would carry the second body on the sling strap but place it into a small bag so no one could take the lens when I was not looking. I really want to be able to reach for a wide lens setup when I need one but i'm just not sure if this is too much risk and a bad idea. What do you guys think?

Here is one of my shots from the last trip.
https://flic.kr/p/hHDNWo

:canon::exit:
Click to expand...
My travel set up is my 6d, 24-105 f/4, 14mm f/2.8 and a 35mm f/2. Covers everything I need and is a surprisingly light setup. Personally, I think 2 bodies would be a bit extreme!
 
You guys are overlooking the fact that I said this is a trip specifically for taking pictures. My only intention is to photograph the city streets. I have done this enough to know that I need both a wide and a long lens to not miss opportunities. I was just worried that I might be making myself a target. I was hoping that one of you have been in this situation and had some good advise.
 
Blank_Canvas said:
I would take just the one body and a simple compact zoom in your pocket. You're on holiday don't over do it.
Click to expand...

I am going to just take pictures. I will be on holiday for 3 weeks and have set aside this one week to do nothing but capture the streets of Bangkok. So holiday is not relevant here for that week. The other two weeks will be relaxing.
 
shaylou said:
You guys are overlooking the fact that I said this is a trip specifically for taking pictures. My only intention is to photograph the city streets. I have done this enough to know that I need both a wide and a long lens to not miss opportunities. I was just worried that I might be making myself a target. I was hoping that one of you have been in this situation and had some good advise.
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Well, you did ask for opinions?

For city / street photography, personally, I wouldn't want a long lens. I've always found the long end of the 24-105 long enough even on full frame. Personally I shoot wide in cities so I don't have this conundrum so I guess only you can decide if the two body set up is worth the weight and risk?

For Bangkok I'd probably only risk getting out my old Fuji s3500 ;)
 
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dslr on sling strap, then a compact on a neck strap

i use my sigma dp's and a77 like that. if your doing street do it proper, buy a leica ;)
 
The 70-200 with a petal hood makes a good heavy defence weapon :eek:
 
To give an answer to your specific question, I think that if carrying around the bulk and weight of two bodies and two fast lenses in the heat of Bangkok for a week, is a sacrifice you're prepared to make to get the pictures you want, then go for it.

Why not take both bodies and try using them both for the day, and if it doesn't work, then leave one in the hotel for the rest of the week?
 
shaylou said:
I am going to just take pictures. I will be on holiday for 3 weeks and have set aside this one week to do nothing but capture the streets of Bangkok. So holiday is not relevant here for that week. The other two weeks will be relaxing.
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Ok your there to capture street photography I get it. It doesn't change my advice though I would just take the the one body and a compact zoom.
 
I used to take my DSLR on holiday. Now I have children, I just take a MFT body and a couple of lenses. It's a relief if I'm honest.
 
jonneymendoza said:
It is
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How have you concluded that?

It's a full frame mirror-less system, one of the smallest but not a 'compact'.

Yes it's (slightly) smaller and lighter than a DSLR but not by much. Then of course, put an f/2.8 zoom on it...
 
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I'm always a bit wary of having expensive gear on show but obviously you are taking this seriously...I'd always take 2 bodies on an important shoot, but perhaps leave one in the hotel as a back up in case of theft etc. (and of course download all my daily images every night, but I'm sure I don't need to tell you that!!)

My answer is if it's a questionable area, I use a Canon M series, it's pretty discreet and reasonably priced, but of course has it's limitations......but two DSLRs?....hmm, I'd worry about that, bit of an invitation.....best of luck!!...but I agree, BKK is a most photogenic city.
 
I'd spend a few days in the UK lugging 2 heavy bodies and lenses all day and if you are OK with that then hopefully you will be ok on holiday. Most theft is opportunist rather than violent, so just make sure you keep an eye on all your gear at all times! I'm happy to have moved from DSLR to a more compact camera system and would never now go back to lugging even one dslr.
 
2 bodies will make your experience a lot smoother. No / little lens changes will keep sensor clean in dusty streets and will speed up shooting. Obviously you have some dual harness to make the most them both...

UaeExile said:
A 70-200 for street photography? :eek:
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They are brilliant. They are best on 1D body and can be used as a makeshift last resort weapon

odd jim said:
On holiday?
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A better phrase would be "working / photographic trip" or "expedition"... You certainly want to make sure you get this right doing the tax return.

odd jim said:
How have you concluded that?

It's a full frame mirror-less system, one of the smallest but not a 'compact'.

Yes it's (slightly) smaller and lighter than a DSLR but not by much. Then of course, put an f/2.8 zoom on it...
Click to expand...

it is stupidly tiny so how is not compact? The dictionary tells me the words are synonymous :p
 
odd jim said:
How have you concluded that?

It's a full frame mirror-less system, one of the smallest but not a 'compact'.

Yes it's (slightly) smaller and lighter than a DSLR but not by much. Then of course, put an f/2.8 zoom on it...
Click to expand...

Not by much?

5D on the far left, A7 next to it and you can see that the A7 is considerably smaller than a 5D.





To say an A7 is slightly smaller than a DSLR is like saying a Mini is slightly smaller than a Mondeo. I do agree that an A7 is not a compact though :D

The excellent FE 55mm f1.8 is about the size of the manual lens and adapter pictured attached in those shots.
 
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Bangkok is a very safe city. Having said that carrying two expensive cameras and lenses at the same time will make you stand out from the crowd and could give you problems in any city anywhere.
 
Jackwow said:
Bangkok is a very safe city. Having said that carrying two expensive cameras and lenses at the same time will make you stand out from the crowd and could give you problems in any city anywhere.
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Yup to the safety but I suppose you could find trouble if you went looking for it. I saw lots of people there carrying DSLR's and big white lenses and I can't say that I saw anyone taking too much of an interest in them.

Personally I'd start from thinking about the final viewing and work back from that and for me personally a CSC is enough and when I head off to Thailand in the summer it'll be with my GX7 (or maybe my A7...) and possibly my LX5 too but I can see the attraction of DSLR's but I personally wouldn't take two, I'd take one with a standard prime and a smaller camera for zoom and/or width.
 
daugirdas said:
2 bodies will make your experience a lot smoother. No / little lens changes will keep sensor clean in dusty streets and will speed up shooting. Obviously you have some dual harness to make the most them both...



They are brilliant. They are best on 1D body and can be used as a makeshift last resort weapon



A better phrase would be "working / photographic trip" or "expedition"... You certainly want to make sure you get this right doing the tax return.



it is stupidly tiny so how is not compact? The dictionary tells me the words are synonymous :p
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Ok I think we are talking semantics here, I was referring to the term "compact camera" in the typic sense, not the literal definition of the word. Ie, Nikon Coolpix, Canon Powershot etc. And as I said, put big lens on it and you loose those benefits.
 
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daugirdas said:
They are brilliant. They are best on 1D body and can be used as a makeshift last resort weapon
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No doubt about it being brilliant, but I can't think of a worse lens to take for street photography. That's just my preference and they way I shoot though.

The 70-200 makes everything look pretty, but mostly tells you nothing about where you are in the world and keeps too much distance between you and the subject. For me street is about getting in close, talking to people and having an experience. Maybe even sharing my pictures with them.

Two bodies swinging about your body with big zooms attached is about as far away from my street photography experience as you can get :D

I was going to make a joke about looking like an American tourist, but meant no offence whatsoever to Shayne :p
 
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woof woof said:
Not by much?

5D on the far left, A7 next to it and you can see that the A7 is considerably smaller than a 5D.





To say an A7 is slightly smaller than a DSLR is like saying a Mini is slightly smaller than a Mondeo. I do agree that an A7 is not a compact though :D

The excellent FE 55mm f1.8 is about the size of the manual lens and adapter pictured attached in those shots.
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Ok, I'm comparing it to the 6d which is smaller than the 5d and 200g lighter;

6d = 5.7 x 4.4 x 2.8 in.
A7 = 5.0 x 3.7 x 1.9 in.

(The 6d is noticeably smaller and lighter than my 50d) but now I agree, slightly is probably the wrong term but compared to a 6d there's not a huge difference in size.

But it's definitely not "a compact".
 
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jonneymendoza said:
well said! the a7 series bodies are compact!
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Ok, you called it the "best compact" now you're simply saying "it's compact".

That's two different things!

I agree with a small lens its compact.
 
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odd jim said:
Ok, I'm comparing it to the 6d which is smaller than the 5d and 200g lighter;

6d = 5.7 x 4.4 x 2.8 in.
A7 = 5.0 x 3.7 x 1.9 in.

(The 6d is noticeably smaller and lighter than my 50d) but now I agree, slightly is probably the wrong term but compared to a 6d there's not a huge difference in size.

But it's definitely not "a compact".
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50% smaller is quite a bit smaller!
Advantages of the Sony A7

size.gif

Significantly smaller
127x94x48 mm vs 145x111x71 mm
help_14.gif

Around 50% smaller
 
boliston said:
50% smaller is quite a bit smaller!
Advantages of the Sony A7

size.gif

Significantly smaller
127x94x48 mm vs 145x111x71 mm
help_14.gif

Around 50% smaller
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50% smaller than what? I'm not sure what your figures relate to? Can't see the Gifs?

Edit I assume the 6d?

The maths don't work, that's not 50% smaller? 50% smaller than a 6d would be 72.5 x 55.5 x 35.5 unless I'm mistaken, it's nowhere near that!

Just by glancing at the actual figures you can see there isn't much in it? It's a lot thinner and significantly lighter (less inside of course) but it's actual profile difference isn't huge. My point was isn't not a "compact camera" in that it's not a slip in your pocket camera.

I agree it is smaller though!
 
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Told u that the a7 is compact! Can't see a better camera then that at the price point. It's a justified tool to use as a second body!
 
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