Film rig for travel to South America

[jakeblues]

Hi guys and gals,

So I will be travelling to South America with my girlfriend in 2 weeks, and I'm torn as to which rig I should bring down. I currently have 3 (!) systems: Pentax, Minolta, and Canon. The canon is out because I just don't love the rig.

Here's my dilemma: Minolta for the great lenses, or Pentax for portability?

Note: My girlfriend will be shooting too, so we'll have 2 camera bodies with us to switch out lenses. Here's what I have to work with:

2 Minolta X-700s
MD 24mm 2.8
MD 35mm 1.8
MC 58mm 1.2
MD 85mm 1.7

Pentax ME Super
Pentax MX
SMC Pentax M 20mm 4.0
SMC Pentax M 35mm 2.0
SMC Pentax M 50mm 1.7
SMC Pentax M 50mm 1.4

Any other suggestions for gear to grab before I head out of town? Which rig would you take?

[Ricardo Miranda]

Hello!

which rig I should bring down.

Could you be so kind as to define "rig", please?

If you are asking what "gear" or "cameras and lenses" you should bring while travelling, then here is some advice:
Just bring what you are most comfortable with and know how to use with your eyes closed!
It is no use to bring a camera that you hardly know or are uncomfortable with. You already discounted your Canon, so which of the 2 systems you have, you feel more at ease, that's the one you should bring. The same for your girlfriend.
Good shooting kid!

[rthomas]

The Minolta kit looks a little more versatile than the Pentax, with the 85mm and the fast 58mm. If you think you'll need the 20mm, you could dedicate whichever Pentax is more portable to that lens, and bring it along with the complete Minolta kit.

[E. von Hoegh]

Minolta. And what he ^ said.

[ColdEye]

If both of you are gonna shoot, why not use the Pentax for the 20mm and the minolta for the 35/50 and 85mm??

[TheFlyingCamera]

I'd just stick to the Minolta kit and be done with it - as noted already, it's the more versatile of the two outfits. And a 24 is plenty wide for most situations you'll find yourself in, even if you're photographing in cathedrals. Where in South America are you going? I've been to Buenos Aires, Iguazu Falls in Argentina and Colonia, Uruguay. Even at Iguazu, you can't get a shot of the full span of the falls because it's broken up into sections, so I had no issues with having nothing wider than a 28. The people are worth investing some time photographing, so having those fast 58 and 85 lenses would be a really good idea.

[Viggi]

Aye, Minolta for the lens choice. Bring both bodies, so if one croaks you can still make use of the good range of lenses you have. While I shoot 50mm quite a bit, I actually enjoy switching between a wide and short tele a lot. You also packing a small digi for backup?

[tkamiya]

I always take backup equipment. In that sense, I'd be taking both.

[jakeblues]

Hello!

Could you be so kind as to define "rig", please?

I'd define "rig" as a camera system with lenses. So in my vocabulary, "Minolta Rig" = Minolta camera plus some lenses, and "Pentax Rig" = Pentax Camera plus some lenses.

Just bring what you are most comfortable with and know how to use with your eyes closed!

I've had each system for 2-3 years now, and I'm equally comfortable with them. Actually, the X700 and ME Super handle very similarly, as I often shoot in aperture priority with exposure compensation.

[TimmyMac]

You've got some seriously nice lenses for the Minolta system. The 24 is incredible, the 58 needs no introduction and the 85 is really nice too. I've had all of them at some point but couldn't justify keeping the 58 and 85 thanks to market prices - now I just have a 50/1.4 and 24/2.8.

Additionally, it'll be much easier if you can share lenses between you.