I’m heading to Iceland for the first time in late May. It’s a vacation/birthday/anniversary trip with my wife, so it’s not a photo-centric trip, but I do want to document it.
The itinerary is pretty packed, and since this isn’t a dedicated photography trip, I won’t be chasing ultra low-angle compositions or long exposure setups. I will bring a tripod mainly for quick shots of us together, probably around 1–1.5 second exposures to get a bit of motion in waterfalls, all at eye level. Think more “high-quality snapshot journal” than full-on landscape work.
Since we’ll be moving around a lot, I want to keep gear to a minimum.
Right now I’ve narrowed it down to two options:
Fuji X100VI + 28mm WCL
My go-to travel and everyday camera. Small, lightweight, and perfect for street/life shooting.
Canon EOS R + 16–35mm
Bigger and heavier, but full-frame with a true wide-angle setup.
I know the Canon seems like the obvious choice for Iceland, but I’m still torn given the nature of this trip.
I've been a couple of times. And from what you describe about your goals/time constraints, you would do quite well with the Fuji setup. It is lightweight and perfect for travel.
If it were northern lights season or if you were doing intensive landscape work, I would suggest the Canon and 16-35. But that doesn't sound like the kind of trip you are taking.
Since you are used to the Fuji as a travel setup, I'd second that choice. Streamline things, take good photos, make better memories by being in the moment.
I travel with a 24-105 and a 16-35 on a full frame camer. I also had a telephoto a 100-400 with me as we visited some rookeries. Have done 3 trips. The fuji lens is the equivalent to a 35mm on a full frame camera. I believe the longer focal lengths they talk about are probably cropped. You will probably be photographing a lot of waterfalls. I'd take the canon and rent or borrow a 24-105 to take with you. It depends on where you are going in iceland and what your primary interest is.
Find a Leica Q3 28mm and sell it afterwards. I've had the X100VI a few times and I didn't find it sharp enough for landscape photos and the 28mm wide converter will degrade it further.
GRIV is a good alternative but only 24mp and it has its quirks.
In addition to the 16-35 I would suggest at least 24-105 and 70-200 equivalent lenses to capture details and in some areas where you cannot get clean wide shots. Take a tripod and ND filters for the waterfalls.
I also bring 100-500 and 500/4 or 600/4, but that's for the birds in the summer.
I was there a couple of years ago and regretted not taking a wide angle zoom with me. The perfect lens for me back then would have been a 16-35mm on my R6, but all I had was an RF 24mm f1.8 Macro.
A few things I learned on that trip to Iceland:
1. Don't change lenses outside. Lots of wind with spray mist.
2. Tropods are absolutely useless unless you are shooting the northern lights.
3. People there are mostly curt and unfriendly (very few exceptions). Good luck asking for directions. Make sure you know EXACTLY where you're going before you set foot out of your hotel room.
4. Airport staff are unwelcoming and extremely unhelpful. I went in November which was not during their main tourist season, so it's not like they were stressed out because of the crowds; there were no crowds.
5. AC on their main airline (Iceland Air) does not work well, so it was a humid, smelly 5 hour flight each way.
6. 101% a beautiful country I will never visit again because of the negative experiences I had with so many people there. There were one or two friendly people I encountered, but in general they are not welcoming to tourists.
snegron7 wrote:
I was there a couple of years ago and regretted not taking a wide angle zoom with me. The perfect lens for me back then would have been a 16-35mm on my R6, but all I had was an RF 24mm f1.8 Macro.
A few things I learned on that trip to Iceland:
1. Don't change lenses outside. Lots of wind with spray mist.
2. Tropods are absolutely useless unless you are shooting the northern lights.
3. People there are mostly curt and unfriendly (very few exceptions). Good luck asking for directions. Make sure you know EXACTLY where you're going before you set foot out of your hotel room.
4. Airport staff are unwelcoming and extremely unhelpful. I went in November which was not during their main tourist season, so it's not like they were stressed out because of the crowds; there were no crowds.
5. AC on their main airline (Iceland Air) does not work well, so it was a humid, smelly 5 hour flight each way.
6. 101% a beautiful country I will never visit again because of the negative experiences I had with so many people there. There were one or two friendly people I encountered, but in general they are not welcoming to tourists. ...Show more →
wow - you really had a bad experience - can't agree with any listed bullet point, but it was YOUR experience, I get it.
to the OP - keep it simple. If you are more comfortable with the Fuji, take it, but it's never a bad idea to have a back up camera.
A 24-105 and even 70-200 still works for a lot of landscapes, not not so much for puffins and some sea wildlife. Tripod with a camera remote shutter (in camera/app) is useful (EB-1 is right on point)
I shot a significant number of my favorites in the 70-200mm range, this was consistent across two trips. Other than the occasional stream/waterfall shot, the majority of my wide angle shots were made in Reykjavik.
I had no issues with the Saga on Icelandair. Service was good, but I don't recall particularly different from any other airline. The plane was fairly new. Airport was fine too. I don't remember the lounge but it must have been fine. Every trip will be differnt, but that is how travel goes.
Nobody should change lenses without the shutter closed and away from the wind. That's not region specific.
The OP might not take a tripod for a family trip with widely lenses, but a good tripod in the wind is better than no tripod. Modern lens/body stabilization works great on a tripod and keeps the camera within a few mm of a fixed location. Don't use some flimsy travel tripod with narrow leg angles. That's the worst.
16-35 is the perfect lens for Iceland, but for puffin and seals.
Very probably you will need a portrait lens as well, since you are traveling with your wife.
I'm still on the fence about this honestly, I was almost certain I would take the Fuji, but I think The Canon with 16-35 would cover 80% of the trip (landscapes, waterfalls, shots of me and the wife) and I could come back without regrets about missing shots, might take a 24-105 as well, for maybe backup/walk-around/reach (puffins/detailed shots).
Yes, take the 24-105. For puffins a 100-400 or 100-500 is a good option. In May they are in the nesting, activity is less than late June/early July large chicks needing more food, but they are around.
Frankly I think your better off just taking the canon with another lens. I have taken a fuji around with my a7cii before I sold it and frankly unless u want the sooc for your wife (my use case) i found myself reaching for my a7cii with a 24-70 and 70-200 more often than not.
