G Brown Loc: Sunny Bognor Regis West Sussex UK

There seems to be a GAS overload going on at UHH. People asking what additional kit to buy to suit a particular vacation, rather than to achieve a particular style of subject or image. I can see few reasons for someone to have separate lenses for Alaska and Nebraska. Surely the same lens will work for a similar 'kind' of shot.
I understand why someone would want to know the setting differences between shooting black blobs on a white landscape and to give substance to a white hot pale sky over a scrub landscape...but the same lens can do both.

Everyone has an opinion about the best lens for a certain shot. Certain 'rules' preclude using a very long zoom for a macro and vice versus a 14mm will not give you a BIF unless the bird is glued to a post. But until they make a lens with heating or cooling - where you are standing surely makes no difference.(Except underwater)

Perhaps its the panic of packing their gear ready for their holiday. The dilemma of having so much kit, that it becomes 'what can I leave at home' ?

I know people who want to be thought of as being a professional and have large Samsonite cases packed with lenses. I also know of respected photographers who carry no more than a couple of lenses in their jacket pocket. Is one more limited in the kind of shots they can take ..Probably. But how often do you go 'out of your comfort zone' in WHAT you enjoy shooting.

Am I missing something - because these kind of posts seem to generate an awful lot of responses. As most kit questions do!

PixelStan77 Loc: Vermont/Chicago

Yes GAS, the good economy and NOT understanding it is the person behind the camera counts and not the lens or type of camera. My 3 cents.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

I carry two lenses at the most. An 18-200 and a 50 (sometimes).

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

During a couple of extended trips, I carried a couple of lenses for each. The first, a 43~86 and a 50~300. The second a 28~85 and an 80~200. That was it. Did I need anything more? NO. Oh yeah, the first trip used an extensive amount of film. The second not quite as much.
--Bob

orrie smith Loc: Kansas

That is why there are point and shoots and cell phone cameras. Choose the subject you wish to shoot and have a great camera and lens for that subject. Everything else is vacation photos and may be recorded easily on a point and shoot or cell phone. Just my opinion, but it lets me enjoy my vacation rather than lug it around.

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

Based on occasional topics here and many that used to be regularly presented in For Your Consideration, there seems to be a good number of members interested in the HOW.

For example, FYC's ambitious four-part series on Light last May & June received excellent participation, though maybe that was due in part to my spending a lot of time personally inviting people to stop by

Some reasons why more folks don't initiate topics on "how" or as Pixelstan suggests, discussion of why "it's the person behind the camera that counts" might be: time commitment, concerns about how to handle rude and off-topic comments, lack of confidence in ability to moderate meaningful discourse.

But, as sharpshooter said in a topic of mine in August, "the easy part of photography is tech." Read his full response here:
https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-549861-2.html#9333078

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jak86094

Just to be fair, I think a lot of the inquiries are a result of travelers who have never visited a location so they don't know whether they are going to be facing the great frontier, wildlife just outside the door or across a bay. I think folks visiting a new location for the first time really appreciate some suggestions as to what they will face at their location. I've seen numerous responses pointing out that streets are narrow and shadowed in locations being visited and that a wide angle lens will be very useful for such locations. Likewise, I visited Alaska north of the mountains and most animals were distant from our vehicle. Knowing that elk or grizzlies would most likely be 100+ yards away would be helpful. Some of this is common sense, but some is just inexperience with the camera, the location, or both, and the writers are hoping respondents can provide information that will help them be prepared for a new experience. And if you are bothered by such inquiries, don't read them.

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

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rgrenaderphoto Loc: Hollywood, CA

Yes you are missing something. Trips to Alaska, or Safaris to Africa, Europe or New York City, etc are not yearly occasions vurt possibly a once in a lifetime event. Conversely, people are concerned about not having the right gear to "get the shot." If you arrived in Denali with nothing more than a 85 mm lens, you'd get a great shot, but not the unbelievable shot you could get with a 28 mm wide angle. So they rely on those of us who have been fortunate enough to have been there with a camera and can provide helpful advice on what makes sense.

There's no "panic" at packing gear, for fear of leaving something at home, just a concern that you will not be prepared.

So, answer their questions. I was there in the beginning, getting a shot, but not the great shot that I know I could have. And, with posts and patient answers here, I've learned a lot.

bgrn Loc: Pleasant Grove UT

I would agree. From my point of view (very amatureish). I like to read posts that that ask about the situation they may be in, I am not a "world traveler", been to Alaska and Peru, the rest of my time is in the west and mainland US. I was raised in a very small rural area and mountainous areas and have some good knowledge for these types of conditions. That said when you take someone from this area and put them in a large city environment it can be somewhat daunting for some people and they would like to know what to expect and how the best way to handle it would be, ie what lens or settings for the possible changing surroundings they are not used to. on the flip side, I understand that the Elk or Bear may be at a fair distance, but someone from the larger cities may not understand the vast openness in some of these areas and would like to know a little more what to expect or what to bring for this unexpected experience. I know it is somewhat subjective when you see someones beautiful photo and see the settings that were used, the missing part sometimes is the lighting conditions that existed when it was taken so people like myself may ask some extra questions that may help them in deciding what to take with them or maybe what pc of equipment to buy next. Bottom line is I like to read both the WHAT and HOW.

safeman

I'll start out with a blanket apology for some egregious lapses of decorum on my part.

I think the issue of "how is"" really a two part issue. First there are the "How do I do X or Y. Second, the is the almost unlimited knowledge possessed by various UHHrs.

I think part of the issue is that to ask "how do I" often results in:

If you would just do a search for "X". What I read into this response, and I'm sure others do as well, is "don't bother us elite members with such trivia we have better things to do than answer silly questions."

Second thing I believe, people like me asking dumb but honest questions, have no way to evaluate the conflicting answers we sometimes get. I am getting better at that after almost a year as a Hog I am getting to know the people but I humbly admit I have no answer to this problem.

Linda, correct me if I'm wrong, you seem to be saying there should be a way for you experienced people to share your knowledge without waiting to be asked a specific question. I know there are special forums for Macro Photography, Portraits, etc. and sometimes I go there. What I would like to see is a new topic, Why. A lot of you people have so much information to impart. Maybe if you start producing kind of mini-clinics, presenting facts and experiences the rest of us can draw from you could achieve what Linda seems to be suggesting.

bgrn Loc: Pleasant Grove UT

btw, I do want to thank everyone for their comments both on here and on PM :)

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

Oopsie safeman, you are using a quote of mine that I "withdrew" long before you posted your own comments.

I removed that second entry of mine because I decided I didn't correctly interpret the intent of G Brown's opening. But, regarding your own comments, there are occasionally learn/share discussions or tutorials; it's just that they are much rarer than the gear talk.

Like you, I would also enjoy seeing more why and how. But I can attest from personal experience, being the OP of such a thread can be a harrowing time

safeman

Sorry still appeared on my computer screen. Think I'm going to quit following the forum for a while, it's getting too complex for a simple mind like mine.

MadMikeOne Loc: So. NJ Shore - a bit west of Atlantic City

And that is exactly why I post questions here on the Hog when my husband & I are planning a once in a lifetime trip. Thanks to the advice I’ve received from forum members who’ve “been there, done that”, I’ve managed to take appropriate gear to get the shots I really want. At my age, I’d venture to say that every trip will be “once in a lifetime” by virtue of the fact that we have so much on our bucket list and only started travelling extensively in recent years. I’m not going to get a do-over! Personally speaking, I don’t post travel equipment questions to “brag”, but rather to avoid not having the right gear for the particular trip.

The only “panic” I experience when packing my photo gear for a trip is worrying whether or not I’ll be able to get everything I need to fit within the restrictive carry on weight limits we tend to run into on many of our more ambitious trips - think Antarctica and 37 days on safari in the African bush followed directly by 5 weeks in Scotland (Shetlands, Orkneys, Mull, etc.). Thanks to the advice I received here, I am happy to say that I usually was able to get my shots. My thanks to every one of the Hogs who gave me excellent advice based on their own travel experiences to the locations in question.