sabesh

I rarely need to "Bokeh out" backgrounds while on vacation, hence I leave my primes behind. However, I love shooting in low light, handheld. And I like taking foodie shots :) Hence, this is my new travel kit:

- Sony A7S (very good IQ at up to ISO 12,800)

- Sony FE Image stabilized F4 zooms (16-35, 24-70, 70-200)

- Panasonic GM5 + Leica Summilux 15/1.7 (tiny setup for food shots and for times when I don't want to carry anything on my myself - fits in my shorts pocket)

I used to carry a lot of gear like yourself, now I only take the gear which I use a lot. Hence, less indecisiveness as to what to take along, a much lighter load to carry and can fit the entire kit inside cruise ship safes.

Sent using my Samsung Galaxy Note 4

Glad you enjoyed. The food is always topnotch in BW - with a corresponding price-point.

 

As to the 'ambience' - 'granddaughter or hooker' replaces 'headset or headcase' as our people-watching game of choice when we walk through the doors of this or the handful of other 'places to be seen at' restos in town;-)

Lol. BTW, Miku was spectacular! I've never had Fusion sushi that good before. And, first time trying out Aburi-style Sushi. I'm happy to hear that they'd be opening up a joint in the Toronto area, where I live. Some pics:

Blue Water was pretty good. Not too snooty. Lots of high end working ladies were about the restaurant, adding to the ambiance :) The mains were very good.

More.

Some of my favourites.

Actually Blue Water is snootier IMO - I obviously gave the wrong impression of what Tojo finds offensive. Snotty punks burning daddy's credit cards, loud braggarts whose conversations can be heard by the whole restaurant - these are the sort whose uppance might come. Simply follow Wheaton's Law and you won't have a problem...

Oh, gotcha. Anyways, I looked into Blue Water since you mentioned it, and I've decided to pass up Tojo. Blue Water's sable fish fish looks delicious! I'll get my Sushi fix at Miku for lunch (I'm there for only one lunch and one dinner).

Sent from my SM-N910W8 using Tapatalk

If you're willing to go a bit out of the city core for Japanese restaurant, I quite like Kishimoto on Commercial Drive and Zipang Provisions on Main Street. They both have interesting menus and unique dishes. They're neighbourhood-style places, so no snooty-ness factor!

 

Kishimoto doesn't take reservations, so go early when they open or be prepared to wait. Commercial Drive has some interesting shops for browsing, so shouldn't be too hard to pass the time. Beautiful, inventive dishes.

Thx much! I'll keep these in mind. I've made reservations for Blue Water Cafe and Miku thus far. The Sable fish dish @ Blue Water looks delicious, hah.

If you're talking sheer quality, rather than price, the phrase 'hell to the no' springs to mind. Tojos is THE old-school sushi destination in the city - heck, in western Canada. The only place you'll find any significant opinion about the sushi being better is at Blue water's Raw Bar, and it's stylistically very different. Tojos is rarely mentioned because it ain't cheap, unless someone specifies they're looking for top-end food and have a high budget there's not much point mentioning it.

 

Word of warning if you do go to Tojos - if you sit at the bar (for Omakase) you will very likely be fed by the man himself and he sometimes forms quick and firm opinions about his customers. There's nothing sweeter than watching as a douchey customer gets treated like crap by the man himself - outright refusal of service is not unheard of, crappy portions and 'running out' of nicer cuts that suddenly reappear when asked about by a nicer customer more common. Be polite!!!

Thanks for the info. I'll skip Tojo as I don't want to be harassed when I ask for a fork, lol (never could master chopsticks). Is Blue water less snooty? Thx.

Sent from my SM-N910W8 using Tapatalk

I think you are well covered. I'd venture to guess that you will be using the A7s with 16-35 most often.

If you don't dread the idea of a little weight, and you do decide you want some wildlfie, I'd consider skipping the 16-70, and put the 70-200/4 on the A6000, for equivalent of 105-300. Should make it an excellent wildlife camera. And I often find I can live without the mid-range focal lengths, the "boring" focal lengths, lol.

One other option I love, if you have an A-mount converter, is the Minolta 200/2.8 prime. Very light-weight considering the focal length and aperture. AMAZING optical quality. On your A7s, it makes a nice long portrait lens. On the A6000, turns into a sports/wildlife lens.

I am indeed weight conscious :) Thanks for the info though, I'll look into that lens for non-vacation projects. Although I'm serious about photography, I've now reached a point where comfort and enjoyment of the moment comes first, when vacationing.

Sent from my SM-N910W8 using Tapatalk

"Necessary" depends on the shots you want to capture. Personally, aside from sports and wildlife, I never find anything longer than around 100mm to be "necessary." Sometimes I shoot portraits at 150-200mm, but I could certainly live with 100mm for even those.

Personally I would have thought 105mm too long for most occasions and not long enough if you specifically want to do wildlife. If it's a zoom with a 105mm equivalent top end then that's a different matter. I did a fortnight in Alaska with a fixed 35mm FF equivalent lens and 99% of the time it was perfect. Just the odd portrait and wildlife shot where something longer would have been helpful. There is always cropping though.

I want to shoot landscapes and a few tourist attractions. I plan to travel with 2 small bodies with image stabilized zooms. Sony A6000 + 16-70/4 (APS-C, 24-105 equivalent) and Sony A7S + 16-35/4 (full frame). I'm guessing that this should do the trick. I'll also be taking a fast aperture prime for occasional portraits. The entire kit fits in a small shoulder bag.

Sent from my SM-N910W8 using Tapatalk

I usually take a couple of Sony's for general shooting (A6000 & A7S) and a little Panasonic GM5 for food pics. I leave my DSLR behind - Too heavy to lug around while trying to enjoy vacation.

Sent from my SM-N910W8 using Tapatalk

Is anything longer than 105mm (full frame) necessary for an Alaskan cruise? Not really interested in wildlife. However, I do plan on visiting the Mendenhall glacier in Juneau and take the White Pass / Yukon route rail ride in Skagway. Thx.

Sent from my SM-N910W8 using Tapatalk

Woops, my bad. I didn't realize that this thread was a year old, hah. Anyways, I'll be visiting Vancouver shortly, and was researching good places to eat.

I see that Tojo wasn't mentioned. Is Miku a better option than Tojo?

Sent from my SM-N910W8 using Tapatalk

Banana Leaf - scrumptious Malaysian cuisine.

Sent from my SM-N910W8 using Tapatalk

Cruise - March 2014 by sabesh, on Flickr

Cruise: Miami & Bahamas by sabesh, on Flickr

Caribbean Princess by sabesh, on Flickr

Sorry, I am a professional photog who wants to go very light for lenses while travelling (I shoot daily and this is my vacation so I like dont want to be tied to all the gear I carry daily (Canon Mark IV, 70D, 7D, 60D, 300 2.8, 70-200 2.8, 18-135 3.5-5.6IS, 28-105 3.5-4.5, 24-70 2.8, 16-35 2.8, 14 2.8, 1.4x tc, 2x 580EXii, pocket wizards plus all the video microphones etc). I want to shoot scenic pix of the surroundings in many of the ports (not necessarily ship to shore) but am trying to figure out if I can get away with going light on lenses - I dont feel like juggling all my gear. Just trying to figure out if I need my 70-200 or if I can get away with something like a 18-135 instead. If I was going to Alaska, I would go long, but given that it is likely mostly architecture and street scenes, thinking I dont require long. I am just not sure about access/proximity and if I really need the full range. Its my vacation. I am really looking forward to shooting on the cruise but just dont feel like hauling it all so trying to hedge my bets by picking a lens or lenses which will work. Thought I would throw it out there to see what peoples favourite lenses were in Italy.

Take the FF camera and just two lenses: 24-70 and 16-35. Constant F2.8 is a boon for onboard shots (indoors and sunsets). 16-35 is a must if you plan to visit Rome: The architecture requires something wider than a 24mm FF FOV to capture non-"tilting" images of the Pantheon, for example.

16-35 will also be handy for indoor shots like these:

Cruise - March 2014 by sabesh, on Flickr

Cruise - March 2014 by sabesh, on Flickr

Great photos. It appears in the photo of the sea walk that people can see you on your balcony and possibly into your cabin. Is this correct ?

Thx! Yes, they can see the balcony. But the interiors are not too visible.

Beautiful pictures. Thanks for sharing. One week from now we'll be about to board her and see all the loveliness in person :D

Thx! I wish you a wonderful trip!

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 3.

I'd like to join the chorus of people thanking you for these great evocative photos! Is there a review to follow?

 

Great shots.

 

Norris

Hi Norris, no plans. Unfortunately, my cruise review skills have yet to catch up with my amateur photography skills :(

Thanks.

Love the pictures. We were on that cruise with you.

That was a great cruise! It's the first time I've been entirely happy with cruise ship food. Exploring the ship was so much fun. Thx.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 3.

I take a small kit with two mirrorless cameras (very light):

Timbuk2 Informant Camera Sling bag (small) - Fits in everything below + water bottle, filters and sunglasses in a tiny package.

Fujifilm X100s - It's leaf shutter & built-in ND filter are great for daylight & sunset flash fills with HSS (High Speed Sync).

Sony A6000 - 24MP (for cropping in post, if needed), very good high ISO performance, easy to operate.

Sony Zeiss 16-70mm / F4.0 lens - Standard zoom for bulk of the shots. Optical image stabilization.

Sony 10-18mm / F4.0 lens - Great for interiors and vistas. Optical image stabilization. Takes filters.

Microsoft Surface Pro 2 / 256GB - This has 8GB of RAM. Light and compact for Photoshop work on the go.

This is the best travel setup for me. My Canon 5D Mark III and lenses stay home.

@ Royal Princess. Click the pictures for a larger view. Cheers.

Cruise - March 2014 by sabesh, on Flickr

Cruise - March 2014 by sabesh, on Flickr

Cruise - March 2014 by sabesh, on Flickr

What camera did you use?

Fujifilm X100s and Sony NEX-6 (with Zeiss 16-70mm & Sony 10-18mm lenses). Cheers.

Lovely photos. You must have been taking them in the middle of the night to get spaces with no people! What's the photo right after the one of your cabin -- is that Club Six ?

Thx! The ones of the Piazza area were taken at about 6am on the one day we decided to try out breakfast in the dining room (as opposed to the buffet). Other shots were taken during the day (I'm very patient: I frame my shot, pre-focus and wait for that time-sliver when no one's in the frame, lol).

I totally forget the name of the club :( I know that it's right next to a smoking room that had some PCs).

Cruise - March 2014 by sabesh, on Flickr

Cruise - March 2014 by sabesh, on Flickr

Cruise - March 2014 by sabesh, on Flickr

Cruise - March 2014 by sabesh, on Flickr

Cruise - March 2014 by sabesh, on Flickr

Cruise - March 2014 by sabesh, on Flickr

Cruise - March 2014 by sabesh, on Flickr

Cruise - March 2014 by sabesh, on Flickr

Cruise - March 2014 by sabesh, on Flickr