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Archive 2018 · Backpacking gear suggestions

notouching
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Backpacking gear suggestions

I spent a lot of time last year backpacking here in Washington with a Sony RX100 III, but this upcoming summer I'd like to get higher-quality pictures, all without adding too much weight.

For that reason I got a Sony A7 body (Kolari UT modified) and a Leica M adapter for it. I got a ZM Sonnar 50mm f/1.5 for it as a standard lens, but from analyzing my RX100 shots I see that I mostly used it at 24mm and 70mm ends.

Thus, I'm looking for:
- A lightweight and hopefully bright (starry sky shots) wide angle lens - anywhere from 21 to 28mm would do.
- And a lightweight 70-135mm lens.

So far I've identified a ZM Biogon 25mm 2.8 as an option - it is fairly light, 260g, but it's pricey.
Voigtlander 21mm f/4.0 is cheaper and lighter, but also a stop darker. I wonder if f/4 would be enough to create shots similar to this and this on A7?

In terms of telephoto lenses, I haven't seen any good options apart from the ZM 85mm f/4.

Suggest away!

Jan 07, 2018 at 09:22 PM

kankushok
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Backpacking gear suggestions

Welcome to FM. The first shot was taken at iso 12800 @30s. The exif doesn't give the aperture as far as I can tell. Given the long exposure and high iso, I am willing to bet the aperture was f4 or smaller, although for astrophotography any additional light will help create lower noise images. lonelyspeck has a very useful speadsheet which lists the light collecting power of a variety of lenses along with suggestions in accompanying articles: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1p8FSEIaDd45i97NXFEZf4fnVOQ3ifA43ecJcuS0nCJ0/edit#gid=2
You can go down the list until you find one that's available for e-mount, is sufficiently light to backpack with, and you are willing to pay for.

The second shot should be doable with most cameras including your current RX100iii. Keep in mind that to get these nice astroshots, you will need a solid tripod. A heavier tripod will need a heavier tripod which may matter depending on how much weight you are willing to carry. Enjoy your new camera and post some shots from your trip.

Jan 07, 2018 at 10:10 PM

notouching
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Backpacking gear suggestions

kankushok wrote:
Welcome to FM. The first shot was taken at iso 12800 @30s. The exif doesn't give the aperture as far as I can tell. Given the long exposure and high iso, I am willing to bet the aperture was f4 or smaller, although for astrophotography any additional light will help create lower noise images. lonelyspeck has a very useful speadsheet which lists the light collecting power of a variety of lenses along with suggestions in accompanying articles: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1p8FSEIaDd45i97NXFEZf4fnVOQ3ifA43ecJcuS0nCJ0/edit#gid=2
You can go down the list until you find one that's available for e-mount, is sufficiently light to backpack with, and you are...Show more →

Thank you! I'll review the spreadsheet. The first shot was taken with my Canon 6D at 2.8 with the 14mm Rokinon lens.

In regards of the tripod, I have a pretty flimsy Tamrac tent-pole-like tripod which weighs less than a pound, but is sturdy enough to support a 2-lbs camera. Using a 10s timer I haven't had issues with motion blur.

Jan 07, 2018 at 10:29 PM

kankushok
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Backpacking gear suggestions

The Rokinon seems pretty high up the list. If weight isn't an issue, you could adapt it for your a7 or get the Sony version. The skies might have been quite dark for you to get an exposure at 30s f2.8 iso 12800. I haven't done as much astrophotography as I'd like, but the more successful attempt up in Colorado I remember using iso 800, f2.8, 25s at 24mm (equiv.). Do you mind linking me to the tripod you use? I'd be interested in a super light setup to use with my mirrorless camera.

Jan 07, 2018 at 11:53 PM

freaklikeme
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Backpacking gear suggestions

The Biogon 25mm's pricey but worth it on the UT mod for land/cityscape. No idea about astro, but if my Christmas light shooting is any indication, expect a little coma at the corners and long edges wide open. It doesn't have the wide open resolution of the Leica 24's, but it catches up stopped down.

The ZM 85's not a bad choice. I'd take the Elmarit-M 90/2.8 over it, but it tends to be more pricey. Cosina makes an inexpensive screw-mount 90/3.5 that's nicely small and light.

Jan 08, 2018 at 12:46 AM

notouching
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Backpacking gear suggestions

kankushok wrote:
The Rokinon seems pretty high up the list. If weight isn't an issue, you could adapt it for your a7 or get the Sony version. The skies might have been quite dark for you to get an exposure at 30s f2.8 iso 12800. I haven't done as much astrophotography as I'd like, but the more successful attempt up in Colorado I remember using iso 800, f2.8, 25s at 24mm (equiv.). Do you mind linking me to the tripod you use? I'd be interested in a super light setup to use with my mirrorless camera.

I believe the Rokinon shot was at 2 or 3am and it was during new moon, so it was darkest possible conditions. The Rokinon's 14mm width unfortunately was too wide for my usual landscape photography and I got rid of it, it was also on the heavier side for backpacking.

The tripod is a Tamrac Zip Shot Mini - looks like it's discontinued, but can still be found on Ebay.

freaklikeme wrote:
The Biogon 25mm's pricey but worth it on the UT mod for land/cityscape. No idea about astro, but if my Christmas light shooting is any indication, expect a little coma at the corners and long edges wide open. It doesn't have the wide open resolution of the Leica 24's, but it catches up stopped down.

The ZM 85's not a bad choice. I'd take the Elmarit-M 90/2.8 over it, but it tends to be more pricey. Cosina makes an inexpensive screw-mount 90/3.5 that's nicely small and light.

Thanks for advice on the Biogon. It sounds like a great lens, and I don't expect it to be razor-sharp in the corners wide open. The lens would be used stopped down in daytime conditions 90% of the time, and only occasionally for nightscapes, likely at high ISO, so non-perfect corners would be acceptable.

Elmarit-M is a bit heavy, heavier than the ZM 85, but the CV is light at 260g, thank you for the suggestion!

Jan 08, 2018 at 01:18 AM

twoeye
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Backpacking gear suggestions

For a lightweight tele I have tried these two which are both very small and light with excellent performance and not very expensive:

The Contax G 2,8/90 is very good but with less than optimal focus-by-adapter solutions. Works Ok for landscapes though.

The Leica Tele-Elmarit-M 90mm f/2,8 is very small, corners not sharp wide open but very good stopped down a bit. (Image #2 in the linked flickr set shows the wide open corner performance, the others are stopped down)

I have not tried the ZM 85 which is possibly the best lightweight option if f/4 is sufficient.

Jan 08, 2018 at 07:27 AM

WestTexas Sky
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Backpacking gear suggestions

With an A7 and backpacking, I would look at the Sony FE 28/2. Small, cheap, fast, and pretty sharp. No need to do legacy. Good at night too.

I would say maybe skip the longer end and make do with the 50. But if you had to go longer a Olympus OM 100/2.8 or Nikon 100/2.8 E series lens would fit the bill for small, sharp and cheap.

What do you take for a tripod? If you need one a Sirui 025x or 024x would be good choices for small and light yet good for night shots.

Jan 08, 2018 at 08:51 AM

notouching
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Backpacking gear suggestions

twoeye wrote:
For a lightweight tele I have tried these two which are both very small and light with excellent performance and not very expensive:

The Contax G 2,8/90 is very good but with less than optimal focus-by-adapter solutions. Works Ok for landscapes though.

The Leica Tele-Elmarit-M 90mm f/2,8 is very small, corners not sharp wide open but very good stopped down a bit. (Image #2 in the linked flickr set shows the wide open corner performance, the others are stopped down)

I have not tried the ZM 85 which is possibly the best lightweight option if f/4 is sufficient.

Thank you for the suggestions! I will take a look at the Contax, it's attractive price-wise and has similar weight to the ZM 85/4. I'll research the focusing issues.

WestTexas Sky wrote:
With an A7 and backpacking, I would look at the Sony FE 28/2. Small, cheap, fast, and pretty sharp. No need to do legacy. Good at night too.

I would say maybe skip the longer end and make do with the 50. But if you had to go longer a Olympus OM 100/2.8 or Nikon 100/2.8 E series lens would fit the bill for small, sharp and cheap.

What do you take for a tripod? If you need one a Sirui 025x or 024x would be good choices for small and light yet good for night shots.

With the Sony FE 28/2 my concern is performance on the UT-mod camera.

Will take a look at the Olympus and Nikon lenses, thanks.

I use a Tamrac Zip Shot Mini tripod. It's flimsy, but under a pound, and does the job fine.

Jan 08, 2018 at 12:33 PM

twoeye
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Backpacking gear suggestions

notouching wrote:
Thank you for the suggestions! I will take a look at the Contax, it's attractive price-wise and has similar weight to the ZM 85/4. I'll research the focusing issues.

I have used a Kiwiphoto adapter like this, the focussing ring is narrow, close to the camera and a little stiff, ergonomically not the best solution.

Photodiox and other similar solutions are ergonomically better but larger...

Most of the time I use the Techart TA-GA3 autofocus adapter, works OK with A7RII and later(?) models, long term reliability questionable.

Jan 08, 2018 at 12:49 PM

jhinkey
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Backpacking gear suggestions

I hike a lot in the Cascades with my A7RII/RIII and here's my light weight kit:

16/3.5 AI Nikkor (fisheye) + Adapter
21/2.8 Loxia
35/2.8 Sony (not the best landscape lens, so substitute what you want)
85/4 ZM + Leitax Adapter
135/3.4 APO Telyt M + M-to-E Adapter

Jan 08, 2018 at 08:32 PM

navmannz
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Backpacking gear suggestions

jhinkey wrote:
I hike a lot in the Cascades with my A7RII/RIII and here's my light weight kit:

16/3.5 AI Nikkor (fisheye) + Adapter
21/2.8 Loxia
35/2.8 Sony (not the best landscape lens, so substitute what you want)
85/4 ZM + Leitax Adapter
135/3.4 APO Telyt M + M-to-E Adapter

I carry a similar kit doing multi-day trips in NZ back-country:

15/4.5 CV Heliar VM
21/2.8 Loxia
35/1.4 ZM Distagon with Optosigma filter
85/2.5 Loxia
180/4 CV Apo-Lanthar

I don't always carrying the first and last, with the two Loxias and my Distagon my core set, and if I'm climbing high and really want to minimise weight I'll just take the Distagon.

-John

Jan 08, 2018 at 08:46 PM

Steve Spencer
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Backpacking gear suggestions

The lightest and smallest short tele is the Leica M 90 f/4 macro, which weighs a mere 230g and is collapsible to take up hardly any space. It is not cheap (about $1,500 used if you look carefully), but it performs very well and with a Hawk's helical adapter can even get you 1:2 close ups which is nice. I think for back packing it is definitely worth considering.

Jan 09, 2018 at 08:12 AM

Duckysaysquack
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · Backpacking gear suggestions

The Batis 25mm is a great lens and probably my most used walk around lens, fast and compact and great for street photos.

If you want to go wider there is the Rokinon 14. I have that one too but had to go through 2 copies to get a flat one. Always beware of consistency with Rokinon/Samyang, lol.

Jan 09, 2018 at 03:06 PM

jhinkey
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · Backpacking gear suggestions

navmannz wrote:
I carry a similar kit doing multi-day trips in NZ back-country:

15/4.5 CV Heliar VM
21/2.8 Loxia
35/1.4 ZM Distagon with Optosigma filter
85/2.5 Loxia
180/4 CV Apo-Lanthar

I don't always carrying the first and last, with the two Loxias and my Distagon my core set, and if I'm climbing high and really want to minimise weight I'll just take the Distagon.

-John

Great minds think alike!

Jan 09, 2018 at 06:36 PM

jhinkey
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · Backpacking gear suggestions

Steve Spencer wrote:
The lightest and smallest short tele is the Leica M 90 f/4 macro, which weighs a mere 230g and is collapsible to take up hardly any space. It is not cheap (about $1,500 used if you look carefully), but it performs very well and with a Hawk's helical adapter can even get you 1:2 close ups which is nice. I think for back packing it is definitely worth considering.

I tested a copy of the 90/4 macro for landscape type stuff and came away very very impressed. Extremely sharp right from wide open over the whole frame. Was too expensive for me, but I'd certainly grab one if I found one in the $1K bargain bin

Jan 09, 2018 at 06:37 PM

grahamgibson
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · Backpacking gear suggestions

Here's a similar shot to the ones you asked about that I took with my 28/2 at ISO 1600 (2 images stitched):

Tahoe at Night by Graham Gibson, on Flickr

I have the tiny LEICA ELMAR-C 90mm f/4 which is a hair heavier than the macro at 246g, but you can probably find it for ~$200 used

Jan 09, 2018 at 07:46 PM

notouching
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p.1 #18 · p.1 #18 · Backpacking gear suggestions

Thanks everyone for suggestions. I got a pretty good deal on CV 28/2 on Ebay. I hope it'll perform well on the Kolari UT A7.

And for the short tele, I will see if I can make it work with the ZM 50mm. If I really need it, I'll try to find a good deal on a Leica Tele Elmarit-M 90 f/2.8.

Jan 15, 2018 at 11:17 PM

notouching
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p.1 #19 · p.1 #19 · Backpacking gear suggestions

Just to follow up on this thread, I put together the following kit for backpacking:
Sony A7-UT
CV 28/2
Leica Tele-Elmarit 90mm f/2.8
ZM 50mm f/1.5 Sonnar

The 50mm might stay at home for longer trips.

Mar 15, 2018 at 01:13 AM

lightskyland
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p.1 #20 · p.1 #20 · Backpacking gear suggestions

Nice choices!

Mar 15, 2018 at 07:08 AM

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