Rineal Loc: Copake NY

Dear Hoggers,
I am planning on going to Kenya in January and thinking about my kit. I have a Nikon D500, Nikon 18 - 300 and a Sigma 150 - 600 Contemporary. Considering the weight restrictions on the small planes - do I have what I will need? I do not have a second body (for the catastrophic case of a D500 breakdown). Would you recommend a second body - maybe a used D300 (something cheap) or better a P900? I have two batteries and am a bit concerned at how fast the D500 eats power, even with wifi etc turned off. I am grateful for any advice from those who have had the experience!
Thanks
Richard

imagemeister Loc: mid east Florida

Yes, you need a second camera - mine would be a Sony RX10 III or IV.

whwiden

You need a second camera. I used a Nikon B700 with an extra battery for this purpose. It did very well. I wanted RAW files. This was a good compromise in terms of size, price, weight and performance. You need to take time to learn how to use the camera

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

You could consider renting a 2nd body for this important trip. The other upside is you could avoid changing lenses in proverbially dusty locations.

ronichas Loc: Long Island

You definitely need a second body. It is so dusty you don't want to be changing lenses. a D300 would work well. Africa is an amazing place, I have been twice and I am planning on going back again next spring.
The lenses you are bringing are perfect. You have the reach for animals in the distance, and you have the 18-300 for people and animals that are closer.
Have an awesome time!

mizzee Loc: Boston,Ma

Definitely rent a second body. Borrow Lenses or LensPro to Go rent cameras. I've had great experiences with both.

PaulB Loc: Alabama

I second what mizzie, TriX, whwiden and ronichas said. Also suggest extra media cards, just in case (there aren't many drug stores out in the bush). A bean bag is helpful to keep your camera steady when shooting from a safari vehicle. I used one on both of my Africa trips to great success. Just positioned it on the open roof top of the Land Rover and set the camera on it.

Rineal Loc: Copake NY

Thank you all for these great suggestions!
Richard

Howard5252 Loc: New York / Florida (now)

Your lenses are fine. By all means, get a second body, if for no other reason than it will keep changes to a minimum (there will be dust in the air).
Bring an extra battery for each camera (if they don't use the same type), a charger, and if you are shooting RAW, several more memory cards than you think you'll need. The jeep will probably have beanbags; that should be easy enough to check. Are you going with a tour company (like Natural Habitat)?

Rineal Loc: Copake NY

Thanks -we will be going with Gamewatchers Safari.

Pkfish Loc: Wilson Wy

That’s what I would take

Laura M

I took 2 bodies, one with 200-600, one with 25-400. Lots of extra batteries, since my cameras burn thru them. Lots of memory cards. It's very dusty, so plan to not change lenses. For weight, I have Panasonic LUMIX mirrorless cameras. Have an amazing time.

whwiden

Once you settle on a camera and lens kit, you will need to consider a bag to carry it all in. There is lots of good advice here on bags and other accessories.

george19

In 2007 I was visiting the Galapagos, and quickly bonded with the only guy my age on the trip over our new Nikon D200s. He was there from Arusha Tanzania with wife and 18 year old daughter who had just graduated high school, and this was her present. Great people (they all were), but I asked this fellow what he did in Arusha. Seems as if he ran safaris.

In fact, his company was represented by the same company that ran our tour, so I had some idea of the quality. He got into the business because he just loved the animals, especially photographing them. I believe he was packing something like the 18 to 200. Mostly I was using my 24 to 85. At one point we swapped lenses, giving up my 70 to 300 so he could get a little extra reach, and I could get a little more on the low end. Since we were ashore, I’d say our experience was pretty much a wash...long lenses not very useful there, and I didn’t need much that wide.

Anyway, I’d guess if 200mm was good enough for him, you could probably do just fine. 300 if you can get it, but any longer will be difficult to manage and transport. I have a fundamental problem with high ratio zooms, especially those that cross 50mm (I’m just from that age when wide angle zooms didn’t exist), so having a second body with a different range lens attached would help, especially if trying to keep out dust.

Howard5252 Loc: New York / Florida (now)

The poster is going to Kenya; it calls for a different set of lenses than those used in the Galapagos. There will be plenty of times where the animals will be too far for a 200mm but perfect for a longer lens. I went to Kenya with two lenses ... Nikon 18~300 (used for close animals) and a Nikon 200~400 (for those farther away) I used both - a lot. The poster's lenses are just right for Kenya.