Confessions of a Superzoom Snob

I’d never really considered getting a superzoom before. These things are notorious for having bad optics and nothing says ‘amateur’ more than having one of these mounted on your DSLR.

A couple of weeks ago, I borrowed a friend’s copy of the Nikkor 18-200 and did some casual tests. The Nikon 18-200mm VR is not the sharpest piece of glass out there. It was the least sharp out of the three zooms tested at the same focal lengths (tested: Nikkor 18-200, Nikkor 80-400, Sigma 50-150mm at 100mm f/5.6 and 150mm f/5.6). In addition, it has some other unpleasant characteristics: barrel/pincushion distortions, zoom creep, and some light fall off the extremes when shot wide open.

Why do I want one then? Well, for the following reasons:

Lightweight
While the 18-200mm is does not go wide enough for me to consider it as a ‘one lens’ solution, it is light enough that if I replace my Sigma 50-150mm, I’ll save about 200g (about a half pound). On a long trek or hike, like my upcoming Annapurna Circuit, that’s worth it. For this trek, I’ll also replace my normal wide-angle lens, the 12-24mm with the 10.5mm fisheye, saving me another half pound.

Flexibility
This is more than just the convenience of not having to change lenses. In travel photography, I don’t usually get to control my subjects or environment. My role is that of an observer and it means I have to work quickly to get shots as events unfold. There is usually no chance for a retake. Having the right lens on your camera at the right time could mean getting the shot or no shot. The Nikkor 18-200mm offers a wide range of focal lengths with acceptable quality*.

Weatherproofing
My D300 died on me during a trip down a river 2 weeks ago. It was protected in a Stormcase and it never got wet. There were 3 other SLRs on that trip, all Nikon: a D200, a D70 and a D40x. All of them were stored in soft drybags and they all survived the trip. Two were fitted with 18-200mm lenses and the older D70 was fitted with an 18-70mm lens. While the jury is still out on why my D300 failed, I suspect that reducing lens changes improves the camera’s weatherproofing, be it moisture or dust.

Pairs up well with the D300
With the low noise characteristics of the D300, I’m less afraid to bump up the ISO to accommodate the slow maximum aperture of the 18-200mm. Also, on my D300, the balance is perfect!

*Acceptable Quality: How good is this lens? I can put up with the lens’s other faults, but sharpness is important to me and I’m hoping that it will be sharp enough for a magazine double-page spread (11x22”).

Incidentally, from my lens testing, the Sigma was the sharpest, but required the large lens hood in place for best results. The Nikkor 18-200mm has surprisingly good contrast qualities, and in testing without hoods, it outperformed the Sigma in the contrast department. The moral of the story is: always use the lens hood.

Descent of the Pahang River

The Pahang River is Malaysia’s longest river. It measures 459 km from its source, near Gunung Tahan, to the sea. We began our trip at Kuala Tahan, and paddled a distance of 339 km to reach the South China Sea seven days later.

The river itself is not spectacular, but visiting the villages and hospitable people along the way made this trip worthwhile.

With a large group, such as ours, certain safety conditions and logistics requirements had to be met. We had a safety crew on the water with us in two boats: a safety boat up front and a supply boat bringing up the rear. On land, a truck, carrying additional supplies, would meet up with us each evening. It was the logistics that would end up giving us the biggest headaches. Roads would be washed out causing delays and difficulties for the land crew. The safety boat crew would be stretched to their limits, as the group could be spread out over a distance of 10 km or more during the course of each day.

In theory, a small group of 4 people on 2 kayaks could do this trip without additional support. One of the problems is the lack of information available for a kayak descent of the river. In practice, this turned out to be pretty straightforward. Google Earth maps make river navigation easy. Villages are marked out on the map and, although the riverbanks are high, each village has a jetty where you can take out the kayaks at the end of each paddling day. The villagers are curious and hospitable and it should be no problem finding a place to buy food or even stay for the night. Still, you should be prepared to camp out and cook for yourself. Having someone along who can speak Malay is essential.

Add a sarong to the equipment list. None of us had brought one along, but almost all of us had bought one by the end of the trip. Use it for a quick change into something dry, wearing around camp and as a blanket at night. Other essentials for the trip are St. Luke’s Prickly Heat Powder (useful to help ward off fungus) and standard mosquito coils.

Photos from Top:
Morning Paddle 1. Taken by Aloysius Wee with a Sea & Sea DX-1G, 1/130 f/7.9 ISO 100;
Paddling Down The Pahang River I. Taken with a Sea & Sea DX-1G, wide-angle adapter, tripod mounted to kayak and camera on interval timer. 1/1000 f/3.2 ISO 100;
Morning Paddle 2. Sea & Sea DX-1G, 1/640 f/8.1 ISO 100;
Drifting... Sea & Sea DX-1G, 1/270 f/4.6 ISO 100

Nikon D300: Not Tough Enough

I’ve just returned from a successful descent of the Pahang River in Malaysia from Taman Negara to the Sea. We covered a distance of 339km in seven days.

On the third day of our expedition, my D300 died. It was about 10am. We had hauled our kayaks up a steep riverbank the previous evening. Space was tight and I snapped on my 10.5mm as we prepared to launch our kayaks. The shot above was the only one taken that morning just before my D300 fizzled and died. I turned it off and on and the top LCD briefly came to life, and then went blank. Uh oh.

As the official expedition photographer, I was mortified and embarrassed. Of all the SLRs carried by members, mine was the newest, the toughest and best protected from the elements in my watertight, crushproof, shockproof Stormcase. The other SLRs carried were a D200, D70 and a D40x: and they all survived the trip stuffed into drybags. I think what made a difference was that none of the others changed lenses, which may have helped resist the high humidity conditions along the river.

I must say that my faith in the weatherproofing, ruggedness and durability of the D300 has been shaken. Anyway, my D300 is going back to Nikon with my report and we’ll see what they have to say.

And Here We Go…

Well, I’ll be leaving tomorrow for a kayaking trip down the Pahang River in Malaysia. The photo above shows the group hard at work during the last meeting before the trip.

I’ll be bringing my Nikon D300, SB600 strobe, 10.5mm fisheye, 12-24mm, 50-150mm and a small tripod. In addition, my Sea & Sea DX-1G (aka Ricoh GX100 in an underwater housing) will come along for the wet shots.

This is going to be an exciting test for my photographic equipment. Kayaking down a river in a humid equatorial rainforest will be enough of a test, but the forecast for the next few days is for rain, rain, rain. Which means we’ll be wet, wet, wet.

I’m sure I’ll have lots to report when I get back in a week or so. Until then, take care.

Photo: Nikon D300, SB600, 12-24mm@12mm 1/8 f/4 ISO1600

VO2 Max Me

VO2 Max testing is available in Singapore at the Changi Sports Medicine Centre. At the end of the test, a doctor will sit down with you to validate the findings (or give you his input) to give you your optimum training zones.

From now until the end of May, they are having a special on it. About SGD$82, I think. The regular price is SGD$120. Give your training a boost and call them to make an appointment.

Photo:
VO2 Max Me Up! Taken by Laura Koh with a Canon Ixus 850 IS.