Photography Gear I Took to the Iberostar Laguna Azul Resort at Varadero Beach Cuba
As I think I mentioned in a previous post, this trip to Cuba was all about rest and relaxation. However, photography does have a pretty strong hold on me so I had to bring some gear to play with while I was resting and relaxing. Small, light and portable was the order of the day…. Ok…Ok… one man’s small, light and portable is another man’s big, heavy and unwieldily. On this trip and for me, small, light and portable was the relatively new Nikon d7000 body, the also relatively new Nikon 24-120 f4, the “don’t leave home without it” Nikon 17-35 f2.8 and the Nikon 50 f1.4, all tucked neatly in a small Kata 3 in 1 bag, with one of the little Gitzo Traveller tripods and a small Gitzo ball head hidden in the carry on. I will probably do a post on each item individually at some point but for now this will just be a quick overview of this equipment on this trip.
Overall, I was really happy with the d7000 and the 24-120 for both stills and video and after having travelled with Nikon Pro cameras and lenses, it was really nice to take a small Nikon prosumer setup on this trip. I was so happy with this combination that I could have saved even more weight by leaving the 50 f1.4 and the “don’t leave home without it” 17-35 at home. I love both of those lenses, but I barely touched them during this trip, so probably didn’t really need to bring them. My little Gitzo Traveller is a different story, I was constantly using it. The longer I own that tripod, the more valuable it becomes to me, it has to be one of the best purchases I’ve ever made…
The next trip I take, I would definitely take the d7000 along with the 24-120, which may be my new “don’t leave home without it” lens. I would consider taking the Nikon 12-24 f4 instead of the 17-35 and I’m hoping Nikon comes out with a 70-200 with a fixed f4 aperture, that would be a great travel lens and then I would be set. Of course the Gitzo would already be in one ot the bags.
A friend’s shot of me on Varadero Beach, Cuba