Hi Lynn first, check your camera if you can recharge the battery via a usb cable as many "bigger" cameras you can not do it, you need an external 110 volt charger or a 12 volt to 110 volt invertor charger , so this will exclude any solar panels! Regarding how many cards, its be said that you might not be taking a great amount of photos so I think you should plan for max of 200 per day. I shoot raw and jpg and never fill my 32gb card on vacation (African wilderness safaris) per day and I have 2 cards per camera. I do take along 3 sets of 32gb cards with me on a four day trip into the bush without downloading them onto my laptop that stays in the camp. I only review my images once I've shot them just to make sure that the lighting and focusing were ok otherwise I never review them at night to save battery power. I do take with me 2 extra batteries, one for each camera. Don't take the laptop with you, leave it at home you don't need it! Go as light as possible as there are little packing space on a canoe and its going to be wet. Waterproof bags are a must plus a cloth to wipe splash water from your gear. Enjoy the trip.
Mira, you mentioned that you are not seasoned photographer and that you are retired who wants to travel and get into photography. Well, I will start off with a basic lens like a 16-35mm and 24-240mm with polarized filters and take it from there. Photography is a damn expensive hobby but your interests will guide you regarding what lenses to buy later on. Oh, and a lightweight tripod also very handy.
Chris T So, tell me ... between the two K-3s ... which do you like the best?
Well, do like both K3's. The only sad thing is that the K3ii does not have onbboard flash or fill in. Don't need the GPS but its handy for star nights which I haven't use yet!
My first 35mm camera was a Soligor with a Pentax screw. Was the only camera I could afford just after high school. Got it on a Saturday morning and that afternoon a friend had VIP passes to the airport where the Concord landed and we could walk through it and take photos! Unfortunately I made a major stuff up in my lab while developing the film and have no photos!
During my Military time as a photographer I used an old Nikon F. Hated the bulky camera and had problems with the light meter! While in the Military saw an ad for Pentax MX and managed to get myself a seat on a military plain and flew from Windhoek to Johannesburg and bought the camera! Loved that camera, small and light and had it for years never gave me any problems. Later while in the UK bought a Pentax Z50 which also was a bliss.
Then a sport documentary producer asked me to travel with him into Africa and take photos and to publish them on the internet when we had internet connection. It was at the time digital started to make its appearances and I bought a Fudji FinePix, 2 megapixels. Very impressed with the camera and did its job!
In the meantime I inherited my Dad’s Pentax Spotmatic and did a lot of newspaper work and weddings. Then my career moved into Television and I became a video editor but still wanted to do photography and to develope my own film and print but did not had the free time for it!
When Pentax eventually launched its first digital camera I was not impressed but when the K10 came out I bought one and was very happy until it was stolen. I replaced it with the Pentax K20 and had two bodies, very useful when shooting wildlife in the African bush. Never gave me problems but I battled with flash photography, tried the TTL modes but prefer manual! Again a body was stolen and I replaced it with Pentax K3 as it was launched in South Africa. Love it and decided to add the K3ii as it was on special recently. Now that I became a member of the retirement group I will have more time to sit at waterholes waiting for the bush to become alive and to be captured on digital.
Question: But what is professional level photography.
Very difficult to answer, so let me try. Professional in the sentence can mean; skillful, slick, sharp, finished, polished or a product of high quality that stands above the rest.
Level: matched, aligned to certain set of standards set by competition rules or accepted by the viewer or buyer.
Professional photographer is a person engaged or qualified in a profession or occupation and can specialize in either specific subject or various subjects. You get portrait photographers that does mainly studio work although he/she might have officially trained as a photographer at an institution, he/she might not have an eye for wildlife photography, action sport, motor sport, water sport, nature and I can go on!
A professional photographer is a person who makes a living from taking photos, this does not only mean taking the photo but also develop (today Photoshop) and present it. A lot goes on behind the lens, planning, research, marketing and meetings. Many photographers today are also active in providing lectures or writing books or contribute to websites. It’s an occupation in the world of art.
An Amateur photographer can shoot high quality photos that meets all the criteria that make his/her photo look professional. For this person it’s a hobby and he/she might meet all the qualities of a professional but does not do it as an occupation. This person has an active interest in the art, study it, read about it and follow courses.
The biggest headache for professionals is the wedding industry! I’ve seen some really awful work of pros (plus amazing work as well) and some great work of amateurs also some real awful work. It all boils down to the available budgets of the client and the region photographers operates like Hollywood versus small fishing village.
What bugs me the most is the term Professional Camera Equipment! My local portrait photographer retired a few years ago and I asked him about PCE and he said that it was important the strobes he used was of good quality that constantly can deliver the required light or strobes that he wants, a sturdy camera body and fast lenses! He mainly experimented with various film types and darkroom chemicals.
At one stage of my life I’ve been a Military photographer. My occupation was a services man with the task to take photos. I had to take: close-ups of various subjects, portraits, landscapes and action. No fancy studio lights, only reflectors and portable camera strobes. I also had to man the darkroom. Most of my images were not “competition” quality but many of them were published either in internal or public and international newspapers and magazines.
After my military period I was a newspaper photographer, it was my profession or occupation. I had to take various types of photographs and in my free time experimented with some art photography. Stock standard film camera bodies but with fast lenses. Then I left the newspaper and pursue a career in television as a video editor also another controversial industry; professional versus semi-pro versus amateur and freelance.
At the end of the day the end product must be accepted by the viewer and buyer and if you as a photographer want to make a living out of this art, you have to constant deliver. And my eyes there is no professional camera, it’s all about the person that can use and understand his/her tools. Lenses are more important!
I can start a photography business in Southern Africa: clients hire camera bodies and lenses and they supply the cards. After their safari, return equipment and fly home with their cards without any problem!
All cheap flights from South Africa goes mainly via Dubai to the USA or UK and that's a big problem regarding camera and lenses! South Africa's airports are renowned for theft from checked-in luggage and to add a 2nd pelican lockable case for your equipment is going to be expensive! When visit say the USA or the UK you would likely want to use your DSLR and maybe two or three lenses and not a point-and-shoot camera, given that some are great! This goes for those who want to visit Southern Africa by using cheap flights. Flights too Southern Africa might not be a problem but its the return journey! In South Africa its possible to hire a camera body and lenses, available close to two major airports, not so in Botswana or in Namibia. This regulation is going to hurt our traveling industry especially the safari business! Can the securities at airports not design a device that can scan for explosives in carry-on luggage as this might be the reason for the ban? If explosives are hidden in camera equipment and manage to get the green light as checked-in luggage surely a carry-on cellphone can also trigger it!?
Regarding airline rules: best to contact them a few days before departure as rules can change daily and not rely on forums for updates! My two penny worth!
Hi all photographers, I'm a hobbyist love the outdoors of Southern Africa and live in South Africa. Very much a Pentax fan for many years!