ksmmike

Hello all,

My wife and I are taking a Viking River Cruise this summer. I'm trying to decide on which lenses to take. I'm taking a Nikon 16-35 F4 for sure.
I'm also going to take either a Nikon 50mm 1.8 or get a new Voigtlander (from what I've seen those lenses have great color rendition and really pop) 40mm or 58mm. One or two of those 3 lenses will come along for the trip. I have a Tamron 28-300 that I took to Ireland, but it's not sharp at either end of range. I would really only use it for the 100-225 range.

We're staying in Budapest for a few days before the river tour starts, then heading north towards Vienna and ending in Germany. I guess my question is
from anyone who might have been on that same cruise or similar, are there views where it might be worth taking my 300mm prime or leaving it home
and only use the 28-300 lens for shots in the 100-225 range where its sharp? I also have a 135mm I could take instead of the 28-300. I'd hate not to have anything over 135mm if there are views from the ship or elsewhere when the extra reach would be good. Any advice is appreciated. I know in the cities I could use the shorter lenses, I'm more concerned of what views there are from the ship.

Thanks
Mike

AzPicLady Loc: Behind the camera!

When I did trips like that I used my 70-200. Now I'd take my 75-300 so that I could get close-ups of buildings along the way from the boat.

londonfire Loc: NY to NC

I've done a few cruises along that route and I think 300mm would be a nice fit but I think the 300 prime is overkill. There's plenty of photo ops far from the riverbank. I used a Tamron 28-300 in Canon mount once and was very satisfied with the shots but I know that's apples and oranges. I've been on plenty of cruises and have seen guys struggling with tripods and Pelican cases and they seem to spend more time setting up than shooting. Going on Cunard next month and seriously thinking of taking my Pentax Q7 and 2 lenses.

warrengs

First of all- you are making a wise decision to do the rivers of Europe- After a large number of ocean cruises we put the
rivers at the top--
Personally I once upon a time carried large units with lenses but have found that a good pocket size works great because
you will go on a number of shore walks and carrying all that extra luggage around gets old-
Plus the new pocket units have a lot of capability and then hopefully you are into editing your pics in your computer which
gives a ton of alternatives-
Unless you are doing this as a business of selling the pictures this will I think be something to think about-

ksmmike

Thanks for the replies. I guess I should have added that the Nikon 300mm F4 is the latest lightweight one and I carry it around a lot. It's not something
I would keep in the camera, but I'm not taking a tripod. I did for the Tetons, but not for Europe, since I agree with tours, it's much harder to set up for shots.
I just remember a couple of years ago when we went to London and on to Ireland, I didn't use the Tamron at the 300mm range often (less than 10 shots in total)
but with a river tour there might be views off in the distance where the reach would nice. I admit I'm likely over thinking it, but I do like to be prepared.

Mike

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

From those that have gone on one, if you had one lens to take (and this is Canon), would it be a 24-105, 70-200 or 100-400? Considering one and wondering like the OP.

londonfire Loc: NY to NC

24-105, no question. I think there's far more to shoot up close than far away.

digitalhank

Taking this cruise in 23 days.

Papa j Loc: Cary NC

We went last year great trip your 28-300 nifty 50 and a wide angle are perfect beautiful photo ops. Have a great trip

Joe

petego4it Loc: NY

This is such a great cruise. We did it on Viking at Christmas time. Spring would be great too. Many varieties of shots from wide to far to close and detailed, and they vary constantly. Nikon also has a 28-300 FX sharp and great color all the way, would use 90% of the time. Consider a trade. Unless you have a porter, 300 prime too cumbersome. Could get a few wide angles for the 16 zoom too. That's the 2nd lens.

mikegreenwald Loc: Illinois

I too have taken this and other river trips. The 24-105 is all you really need foreshore trips. I recommend the 100-400 for use from the boat. If you're willing to carry three lenses, something in the mid-teen range - I used a 16mm - is useful.
I also took one trip with only the Sony R100, and I can't say the photography suffered at all. Light, easy, versatile, and made much of the trip more fun!

insman1132 Loc: Southwest Florida

I would prefer the reach of your 300mm lens. However if you are not happy with the pics when you use it, why not rent a really high quality lens with that range for the trip?

Jamackay

I have done this trip in April. The long views are spectacular and the stops along the way provide many close-up options. The Wassau valley is worth the trip. I have a Panasonic LUMIX DMC-FZ1000 and it's Leica 25-400 mm zoom is great for such things as buildings and vineyards along the route. I shoot as much video as still shots and the 4K recording capability is top notch. It has a 1 inch 20 megapixel MOS sensor and I prefer not having interchangeable lenses in order to protect the sensor. I have had mine for several years and I travel light and this camera, a little bulky compared to other cameras is worth having. I just saw a used one on Adorama for $450, quite a bargain.

StevenG Loc: Long Island, NY

My wife and I are taking the Budapest to Amsterdam Viking trip this summer. We have taken one of the Viking France cruises and a couple of Insight bus tours. I have only taken my Canon 60D and Tamron 18-270. This works fine for me. I look at these as vacations on which I will try to take some very good and memorable shots, not a photographic trip. Decide what your goal is; most importantly, enjoy!!
Steve

Beavis Loc: Tennessee

I took the same trip last year. Budapest to Passau. My advice is to leave the long lens on the boat (or even at home). With the exception of the day you visit Durnstein and Melk through the Wachau Valley, all the river travel is at night. That's a lot of weight and mass to carry that you likely will not use.
That said, enjoy yourself. It's a wonderful trip.