Viera Wetlands in Melbourne FL. Garorland in Kissimmee during Feb-April.
In this event, I'd ask to see the park superintendent. You may have been misinformed or common sense might prevail. If not, a letter to your congressman might help. And to the previous responder, let's leave the politics out of the hedgehog. We shoot photographs, not politicians.
Huge Target - Yes. Easy to follow - At a distance. Boring? If you were a pilot, things like that will give you goose bumps every time..... I'd rather watch this than sit out in the cold waiting for that birds to do their ting (and I have, many a time...)
shoot in burst mode. (continuous, 4-10 shots/sec)
I wrote software using Visual Basic under MS-DOS 3.0 back in the dark ages. It is still running today (with some minor adaptations) under Windows 10. It doesn't have to be the latest and greatest to do the job.
Just like old photographers....
Light pollution is your biggest enemy. You want to be very dark, late PM or early AM if possible depending on time of new moon. Best time would be 12 AM-4AM if possible. Use The Photographer's Ephemeris (TPE) to determine best times. Location should be as dark as possible- no lights around. Two places in North Georgia I can attest to: Wayah Bald Tower (west of Franklin NC - google if for directions. elevation 5400') and Cowee Mounain Overlook on Blue Ridge Parkway (mile marker 431 - elevation 5950'). Both are accessible by auto although Wayah is an interesting drive through the woods. Everybody posting before gave you the camera settings already. ISO 2500-3500, time 14-25 seconds, wide open aperature (f 1.4-2.8). The wider the aperature, the longer the time and the better the result. Only thing left is to pray for good weather. Spent Sept 2nd (last new moon) at Wayah Bald and got nothing but clouds!! Very frustrating.....
Sounds like someone was definitely out of control there - you. I wonder what your reaction would have been if the perp was 35 years old, 6"4 and weighed 255 pounds. There are some lessons to be learned here: (1) Don't put magnetic stickers on your brand new expensive vehicle. They might scratch that expensive paint (2) In this day and age, don't put stickers about the president on your vehicle (whether you agree with him or not - you're going to piss off a significant portion of the population with unknown results (3) be careful who you yell at when you're out of control - that 66 year old 155 pound "weakling" might just reach out and kick your ass (4) if you are really offended, grab your cell phone and call a cop - let him sort it out. You won't spend your evening defending your sorry butt to your fellow photographers.
Too much driving time to do your subjects justice. Monument Valley requires a Navajo guide to get inside the park unless you want to limit your opportunities to the 22 mile drive that takes you into the park. Entrance fee to get in, but you really have to stay in the park (Gouldings or The View). Phillips Photography (
www.monumentvalley.com) can get you where you want at a reasonable cost. I took the same type of trip you took three years ago: Phoenix to Sedona(2 days);Sedona to Pace(1 day); Pace to Monument Valley (4 days); Back to Phoenix. I should have doubled the time and spent more time at each stop. There's lots to see and you can't drive up to most of the places you want to go. Horseshoe bend is a tough 3/4 mile hike and can be very crowded. Make a reservation for Antelope Canyon photo tours. Lower is tougher than Upper. Here mid day can give you the best light you want. I went early AM tour because I had to drive from Pace to Monument Valley (3-4 hours). There is SO much to see, I will go back and do it again. So much to see, try to find a local guide to help you find the best spots.
I have been to two of his all day classes in Atlanta. While you may know all of what he teaches, you will pick up points and viewpoints on the art of photography and how to apply it to different situations. $99? I've been on five day photo safaris that weren't as good. Go. Buy the book. Kelby also provides training (on the internet) for $199/year. Lots of courses covering all facets of photography. Every class you can go to whether it's Kelby or camera clubs are worthwhile unless you are Moose Peterson.
Phillips Photography Tours. Max of four per truck, sunrise and sunset times, 4 hours per tour. Tell them where you want to go and they will get you there.
Depends on what you want to shoot. Tigers in the jungle? Take it. Temples, Street Shots, Landscapes. Leave it home. Take a 1.4 or 2.0 Teleconverter. Thta with your 24-210 would extend it to 290 or 420. Don't forget your tripod, even though if you are on a tour, it may be hard to use. Enjoy your trip.
If you are taking a tour up to Denali, your tour will schedule for you. Take the train up to Denali - You can take photos from the train (special platforms on each car). There are several things to do in Denali - (1) Visit Jeff King's Dog Sled Training Center. (2) Take a jeep tour. You will go with a guide in one of the jeeps and it's better than the bus tour. Also more expensive! (3) Take an airplane or helo tour. Expensive but worth it. You can drive up to Denali from Anchorage as well. Check out all of the info on tripadvisor.com.
If you are not going on a tour, get your hotel reservations now.
We did a seven day cruise on a small ship - Admiralty Dream. There were 60 passengers, 27 crew. Based out of Sitka sailing the inside passage. Plenty of opportunity for photography, sailed during the night, sightseeing during the day. Food was excellent but not opulent like the larger cruise ships. Saw glaciers (up close), lots of wildlife. One afternoon in Juneau (plenty of time to see Mendenhall Glacier, shop or whatever). Eagles galore, whales by the ton. The difference between the big ships and the small ships is the announcements like "Whales on the port side" (big ships), "Whales on the port side, lets go see them" (small ships).
Downside: Cost ($4,500+), Small cabins.
Would I do it again? Absolutely.
I have several Minolta lenses used with an old SRT-101. I bought an adapter. The lenses do produce good results, but.. They are built like tanks! Very heavy with fixed focal lengths. (200 mm, 50 mm, 18 mm). The 50mm and 18mm are good for macro use but the weight of the 200mm and the ease of my 100-400mm makes it an unused lens.
Good news- The adapter cost $35.00. Bought it through B&H