03-11-2016, 01:15 PM
I took a vacation this week to do some winter hiking. Unfortunately by the end of the week it was above freezing, but at least for a few days I got to break trail over fresh snow.
I hiked for five straight days, totaling 87 miles with 27,000 vertical feet of gain. Because of how long and steep my hikes were, I went with my lightest kit possible: Fuji X-A1 + 18mm f/2.
Camera talk: No complaints about the kit. I actually love the press-on cap for the 18/2 because I can 'pop' it off when I pull the camera from the bag. The X-A1 is prone to accidentally moving the mode dial, and can only be used as a point & shoot with winter gloves. Trying to set a 10-second timer uses too-small buttons for big gloves. (Here is a big plus for actual aperture rings though! Go Fuji!) I also accidentally set a custom white balance on the first day, which I didn't notice until I was processing pics from day 2. Not sure how that happened.
All minor quibbles. No complaints about image quality, and the camera + lens weighs under 1 pound/454 grams. Since the vacation was for hiking (not photography) this was the most important factor. Battery in the Fuji was fantastic, no complaints. Kept up in the cold where my iPhone 6 died after 5 seconds.
A link or two:
27-mile hike, starting temp 3 degrees F (-16 Celcius): http://blog.seancarpenter.us/2016/03/don...ur-winter/
(Note this is the hike where I accidentally set a white balance, I haven't had time to correct the photos.)
19-mile hike, starting temp 30 degrees F (-1 C) [less on the 5,344-foot summit], high around 50 F (10 C):
http://blog.seancarpenter.us/2016/03/mar...ay-winter/
[ATTACHMENT NOT FOUND] [ATTACHMENT NOT FOUND]
I hiked for five straight days, totaling 87 miles with 27,000 vertical feet of gain. Because of how long and steep my hikes were, I went with my lightest kit possible: Fuji X-A1 + 18mm f/2.
Camera talk: No complaints about the kit. I actually love the press-on cap for the 18/2 because I can 'pop' it off when I pull the camera from the bag. The X-A1 is prone to accidentally moving the mode dial, and can only be used as a point & shoot with winter gloves. Trying to set a 10-second timer uses too-small buttons for big gloves. (Here is a big plus for actual aperture rings though! Go Fuji!) I also accidentally set a custom white balance on the first day, which I didn't notice until I was processing pics from day 2. Not sure how that happened.
All minor quibbles. No complaints about image quality, and the camera + lens weighs under 1 pound/454 grams. Since the vacation was for hiking (not photography) this was the most important factor. Battery in the Fuji was fantastic, no complaints. Kept up in the cold where my iPhone 6 died after 5 seconds.
A link or two:
27-mile hike, starting temp 3 degrees F (-16 Celcius): http://blog.seancarpenter.us/2016/03/don...ur-winter/
(Note this is the hike where I accidentally set a white balance, I haven't had time to correct the photos.)
19-mile hike, starting temp 30 degrees F (-1 C) [less on the 5,344-foot summit], high around 50 F (10 C):
http://blog.seancarpenter.us/2016/03/mar...ay-winter/
[ATTACHMENT NOT FOUND] [ATTACHMENT NOT FOUND]