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Slide Alder Slayer
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Slide Alder Slayer
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PostSun Feb 10, 2002 6:27 pm 
Alan Bauer, I’d like to pose one of those survivor series questions to you and other accomplished photographers in this post. If you could bring only one Point & Shoot on an extended backpacking trip, what would you consider? I have 15 years on my total hip replacement and the warranty ran out a long time ago. I have decided that weight is a deciding factor and I’m a little concerned about everything a SLR will require. Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Tom
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PostSun Feb 10, 2002 6:52 pm 
I guess it would depend on what weight you consider too heavy and whether you are willing to spend the bucks on digital. Also, there's a wide spectrum between "point and shoot" and "SLR". Being able control the shutter, aperature, etc. is critical for some shots and something I would not be willing to sacrifice. If you're interested in digital and want something lighter and pocketable with a wealth of controls, the 11 oz. canon S40 would be at the top of my list. Cost (vs. film equivalent) and the need to carry an extra battery or two would be my only reservations. http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canons40/

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Steve F.
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PostSun Feb 10, 2002 7:10 pm 
Hey Slide Alder Slayer, here are some photos taken with the 5.5 oz point and shoot mentioned earlier. I'm not shooting for publication (OK, maybe a little bit, but not chief photographer. Leave that to the Alan Bauers of this world) but still very happy with the results for most backpacking situations (all slides). sample photos from 2001

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polarbear
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PostSun Feb 10, 2002 9:15 pm 
Nice shots Steve F., what are you using to scan the slides in with?

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Steve F.
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PostSun Feb 10, 2002 9:55 pm 
Got a nifty slide scanner, used, from Mssr. Bauer (he got a really super nifty one, I'm only good for regular nifty). It's a Hewlett Packard Photosmart S20. Thanks, Alan!

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Lazyboy
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PostMon Feb 11, 2002 7:19 am 
Steve those are great shots. I never knew there was such a thing as a slide scanner. You can stick in a slide and scan them to your computer I suppose? What does one run?

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Steve
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PostMon Feb 11, 2002 7:25 am 
Although I hate the weight I take my Nikon F3 with a Sigma 28-105 UCIII (gotta try and save some weight). No one can convince me that a $150 PS has almost as good optics as a full size camera. As far as film the Fuji NPS professional 160 or Reala 100 would give excellent results and Ilford HP5+ for B&W.

Despair is only for those who see the end beyond all doubt.
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Steve F.
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PostMon Feb 11, 2002 9:45 am 
Hey other Steve, What you say is usually true. But there is a difference between the demands of a 28-105 (3.75x range) and a fixed-focal length. The optics of my P&S are as good as my SLR with OEM fixed focal length lenses. The big difference is in controlling the exposure, where it focuses, and the depth of field (the automation bugaboo). If people ask in a hiking forum about camera quality, they probably are not ultra-serious photographers. Better to move to a photography web site. However, this forum is a good place for info about light weight cameras, which are good enough for the serious hiker who is a casual photographer. One serious outdoorsman I know, who publishes images, uses a fixed-length Contax for most of his trips. When he needs more control, he brings an Olympus OM-1 with a couple lenses. The pros I've hiked with use professional slide film. One pro brought his tripod, 6x7 camera, 35mm camera, multi lenses for both, and flash on a 5 day trip. Big load but he's so incredibly strong he can carry it for long distances. So it's an individual thing depending on how serious you are about hiking, and how serious you are about photography.

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MCaver
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PostMon Feb 11, 2002 10:28 am 
I've read of several pros (John Shaw, David Muench) that also take pack animals with them for extended trips. Now that's a lot of gear! I lug about 20 pounds of camera gear (including tripod) every hike I take. Does that make me a pro? smile.gif

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Steve F.
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PostMon Feb 11, 2002 12:10 pm 
Lazyboy: yeah, the slide scanner is specially built for the porpoise. Feed in the slide, it scans it and spits it out again. Then you decide on jpeg or tiff or whatever, and save it to your computer. Probably more expensive than a digital camera, but I'm stuck in the past. Slides just look better than anything else (so far). I like blowing them up on the wall to five feet wide. If I could look at them in the Cinerama, I would! mcaver: if you carry 20 lb of gear, and sell your images, you are a pro! Regardless, photography is obviously a joy for you, or you would not carry it. It's all about enjoyment (well, it's all about suffering in the winter!). Gotta get back to sorting hundreds of slides... winter virtual re-enjoyment of summer outdoor fun.

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Lazyboy
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PostMon Feb 11, 2002 12:21 pm 
So many toys, so little money. I've hauled my SLR on difficult day trips, but my comfort is too important to me to haul a heavy camera on multi-day trips so I'm stuck with my small camera. Still I wish I had the room or strength for a better setup on the trail. I like slides too. Still fun to blow them up on the huge white wall downstairs. Wife doesn't mind much as long as I don't screw up her Survivor TV show.

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Jonathan
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PostMon Feb 11, 2002 2:15 pm 
SAS I'll try to remember to bring my Yashica T4 Super to the next Hi-Laker meeting so you can look at it. Curtis slide show night so I expect you will be there. I love my Yashica but they don't make them any more and are getting harder to find.

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Alan Bauer
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PostMon Feb 11, 2002 4:25 pm 
Slide Alder Slayer---to be honest with you I know very little about P&S cameras. Sure, I have a Pentax IQ 90 or whatever it is...have had it for 10 years as a family shot item to have around for the family albums. It's been great, but I don't think the zoom on it would offer near the quality photo as many P&S might these days. If I had to choose ONE for use as a main backpacking camera, my #1 criteria would be that I could still use it even if the batteries went dead. The P&S that I have had with me for m any years that I feel shoots very high quaility shots is the already mentioned Olympus XA series of camera. No zoom to muck with image quality, just sharp pictures. Likewise, if I am requiring that I MUST have my SLR in working order no matter what, or when I hiked multiple days, it was my Nikon FM-2 that was my best friend...and is still what goes with me as my backup SLR if I'm going to be out for more than a long day hike. I can use all my auto-everything lenses on it, and can still shoot even if no batteries are available. Awesome good 'ol manual camera!

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Malachai Constant
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PostMon Feb 11, 2002 8:35 pm 
I got a canon S300 Elph for my birthday and love it. It seems more solid than most and is tiny. It has replaced my XA for casual pics. I still have an old SLR Canon also with tele and WA which still works best. For casual use the digital is far superior as you can see it right away. biggrin.gif

"You do not laugh when you look at the mountains, or when you look at the sea." Lafcadio Hearn
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Dean
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PostSun Mar 03, 2002 8:10 am 
This is always a good topic. For years I carried a good thru the lens Minolta (with multiple lens, tripod, etc) and got great pics but as I've gotten older, my knees have requested that I cut weight everywhere I can. I now use the Canon S100 digital camera and have been more than happy with the resulting images that it gives me. It tips the scales at around 6 oz and I carry an extra battery and my 128mb flash card lasts and lasts. Since I've gotten into lightweight backpacking, I've found that certain compromises (to me) have been very acceptable and sometimes end up improving my overall outdoor experience. Slide Alder Slayer, I remember meeting you and your wife as you were leaving Lake Viviane (Enchantments) and my friend Dennis and I were heading up (circa 1999). I had made a post of my recent trip down Toketie creek on the WTA trips board and you recalled it as somehow we stumbled into that tidbit of information. Anyway, good to see your posts here and I'm glad I found where the WTA trail talk group disappeared to. I really missed that aspect of WTA's web site.

Dean - working in Utah for awhile and feeling like it is a 'paid' vacation. http://www.summitpost.org/user_page.php?user_id=1160
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