Rmccully

This may have been addressed before, but I am going to raise it because I value your opinions. We will be going on a Mediterranean cruise this summer. We will be in Europe for three weeks. I have a Z6ii and a D7500. I am going back and forth about the camera gear to take. I am leaning toward the Z6ii and Z24-70 f2.8. I think it will be a good walkabout lens. I also have the DX 16-80, 70-300, 70-200 as well as wide angle and prime lenses. I could bring the D7500 and the 70-300, but I hesitate to go walking around with both cameras and lenses as it is a lot to carry around. I have been looking at the evaluations of the 28-300 lens, but the reviews are mixed. From your experience, do you think the 24-70mm lens will cover most situations or have you used the 28-300mm lens and what is your assessment about it. Thank you so much!

billmck Loc: Central KY

The Z6ii seems attractive to me because of its lighter weight. I use a D7100 with a Tamron 18-400, so I find I almost always have about any needed focal length, but in looking at my pictures taken on a Mediterranean cruise in 2018 I find that almost all of them were taken at 60mm or less.

Bill

ELNikkor

The 16-80 on the D7500 will be light and cover most of your needs. If I had the Z6II, I would bring that with the new Z 24-120 f4 S lens. 70mm is just too short for a walk-about lens for me, (not to mention the extra weight and expense, all for just one f-stop) and I rarely if ever, need faster than f4. If I do need an extra f-stop, I just bring up the ISO, shoot RAW and adjust in post.

dennis2146 Loc: Eastern Idaho

I have been on a Med cruise and also toured parts of Europe. In all cases I took my Nikon D800 with the 24-85 lens. That was it. It did an admirable job in every circumstance and next time I go I will most likely do something similar. I never had to change lenses, never wanted for more (or less). I have done the route where I carried a camera bag with two bodies and at least three lenses. Never again. The 24-85 or your 24-70 or 16-80 would do a great job.

Have a great time.

Dennis

larryepage Loc: North Texas area

I've done two very different cruises. Bahamas and Alaska. Both times, there was very little beyond what I would call "snapshot interest" from the ship, with the sole exception of the time in Glacier Bay. The ships are big and have limited maneuverability, and one of the captains main jobs is to stay a safe distance away from anything else. You will recall a stark reminder of what can happen from a few years ago in the Mediterranean.

If I were going on a cruise tomorrow, I'd take my D500 and my 24-120mm f/4 zoom and a battery charger. (For years I lived almost exclusively with a 17-55mm f/2.8 DX lens.) Id expect that you'd do nicely with your 16-80.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

My dear wife has taken me on about a dozen cruises over a long marriage. Add to that a couple independent land trips. Larger cameras are a pain. There is no safe place to put them in your room. They are awkward every time you stop in a café or restaurant. They are heavy. People with them on cruise ship excursions can be irritating when their photography slows them, and the rest of the group, down. Perhaps the biggest issue is the people you want in your tourist pictures don't like "professional" looking cameras pointed at them. To the locals, your DSLR makes you the ugly tourist.

My very best travel photos have been captured with a Sony RX100 and a Panasonic LX100. Their size lends to greater creativity, productivity and a more enjoyable travel experience.

RightOnPhotography Loc: Quebec,QC

I was touring Europe for 30 days back in 2018. I had with me Pentax K-1 (full-frame body) and two Pentax lenses - 28-105 and 20-35. This combination was perfect, I didn't miss anything. Three years ago I switched to Nikon and when I go to Europe next year (providing that Covid is under control), I will take my Z7 with Z 24-200 and Z 20mm f1.8 (for night shots). Z 24-200 is light and sharp - perfect for travel photography. I also have Z 24-70 f4 and I used it on Z6 along with AF-P 70-300 (FF version) when we went on Hawaii to Tahiti cruise in 2020. It was a great combination, but if I had Z 24-200 back then, I wouldn't have to switch lenses. Z 24-200 is as good IQ-wise as Z 24-70 f4 but is more versatile.

Ltgk20 Loc: Salisbury, NC

I've done a fair number of cruises and I like the Z6ii and 24-70f2.8. I used that lens and a 35 or 55 f1.8 prime (for indoors mostly).

DWU2 Loc: Phoenix Arizona area

Just take the 24-70 and enjoy the moment.

Chicago312 Loc: Western suburb, Chicago

I would take the z6ii and the 24-70; the D7500 and 16-80 would be a good alternative, but I personally prefer FF cameras. The z6ii will have better low light capability for hand-held situations, and it has IBIS. One camera, one lens and enjoy your trip.

camerapapi Loc: Miami, Fl.

You know, each one of us has a different opinion and yours could be different too as you analyze your choices. I have gone with my Olympus EM-10 Mk II in cruises using the Zuiko 12-40 f2.8 Pro (full frame equivalent would be 24-80 mm) and although I have also carried the 40-150 kit lens the 12-40 has been what I have used and all I have needed. Agree with others that the 24-70 or the 16-80 could be all you need.

ClarkJohnson Loc: Fort Myers, FL and Cohasset, MA

I’d go along with RightOnPhotography. The Z 24-200 gives me most of the focal range I would need, with the exception of something wide and fast if you are going to be looking at interiors (churches, etc.).

Mcwane Loc: Southwestern Virginia

I am drinking coffee and getting ready to leave Virginia to drive to South Carolina for a cruise tomorrow. I try to cruise as often as I can. I am taking my Canon RP with a RF 24-240 f/4 lens for landscape shots from the ship. I am Taking my Canon G5X for walk around shots. The G5X is small and looks like a tourist camera but gives me some great shots. People seem to not mind being in the shot with a small camera. I did the same thing last cruise and the cruise before that. Have a great time.

kybob Loc: Versailles, Kentucky

I have taken many cruises and normally would carry a camera with a 24-70 f2.8 on the body and found it covered anything I needed for the cruise you are going on. Through the years it has been the either the D7200 or D850 with that lens combo I would carry but as I got older was a struggle to carry. I started using the Nikon Z cameras and Z lenses because of the lighter weight and super sharpness of the lenses. I have the Z6II and the Z24-70 f/2.8 which would stay on my camera from the time I clean it and the sensor at my house before the trip, this is the combo I would carry and use for this trip. I have all the same lenses you have and find the other lenses a little soft and not as sharp as the native Z glass but I am picky about that. The F2.8 lenses with the Z6II is great for those interior shots of churches, around the ship, etc. were you can crank up the ISO and for this camera is were it stands out as the best. Me being paranoid always take a second camera and lens just in case, 99% of the time they never leave the case and cabin but for the time disaster struck I was glad I had a spare back in the room to use for the rest of the trip. And yes the camera and lens was insured against all perils, another must thing to have on a trip to the Med. plus back up every night, I use 2 SSD drives and copy photos to both at the same and if you can use a different memory card each day in the camera. The ships have safes, the used cards and 2 SSD drives go in there each night, then when traveling back home my wife will carry one SSD drive I will carry the other in my pocket and the cards will go in the inside zipper pocket of my carry on. Have a great trip.

Red6

My wife and I love to cruise and have done quite a few. First two cruises I carried a Nikon D7000 with several lenses. Carrying all that around, getting on and off airplanes, excursion buses, taxis, etc was a huge inconvenience. Switched to a Sony RX100M3, backed up with our iphones, no regrets. Light, easy to pack, easy to carry and they give us all the great images we desire. I also found that when unencumbered with all that gear, I actually saw and enjoyed more of the cruises and the places visited.

Pack light, travel easy and enjoy the trip.