Help!!! Trapped On An Island For 4 Months- What Camera!?!

[narsuitus]

If I were stuck on a tiny island in the middle of the Pacific for 4 months, I would take my Nikonos III underwater camera with the 35mm and 80mm lenses that can be used underwater or on the surface. Since the camera is completely manual/mechanical it does not require batteries. It is also well sealed against sand and moisture.

A polarizing filter, a graduated neutral density filter, a tabletop tripod, and a battery-free hand-held light meter are additional items that I might carry.

 

[MP Guy]

Nikon FM2 with a short zoom or 2 primes.

 

[raid]

I would take along a woman.

Raid

 

[triplefinger]

It's hard to find a 40 pound woman, much less one that fits in a backpack.

I'd take a yashica t4 and the rest in film and a change of batteries.

see attached pic.

I like the nikonos idea too

I would take along a woman.

Raid

 

[Magus]

Post deleted by posters request

 

[jaapv]

I would forget about the clothes and concentrate on what model...

 

[Nachkebia]

4 month!? common! you have to take all of em 🙂

 

[stephen_lumsden]

MF: Rolleiflex-T
or
P&S: Rollei afm35

rgds

Stephen

 

[freeranger]

Are you flying from the UK? If so, you should pack your lomo in your checked luggage.

 

[David Goldfarb]

Sounds like a great trip! I'd take what you're comfortable with. You want some sort of underwater camera for the Northwest islands, and the longest lens you have for birds, which will still not be long enough except maybe for albatrosses, which are fairly approachable.

I've been spending two months on Moloka'i, and I brought my Linhof Tech V 4x5" kit, because it's the most versatile camera I have. If I had a 40 lb. weight limit, I'd probably take my Gowland 4x5" PocketView and some lightweight lenses, and a folding medium format rangefinder for handheld shots. On the other hand, since it would be such a fantastic birding opportunity, I'd probably figure some way to get my birding kit on the plane--600/4.5, Canon F-1N, and the Gowland with two lenses for landscapes and macros.

 

[T_om]

Forget film. This is a DSLR job if ever there was one.

Especially as you mention computer and upload capacity.

If weight were paramount, I would take a Canon 5D, a 28-105 IS zoom, a 300mm fixed tele (the f-stop being adjusted to whatever your budget and size limits are) and all the 8gb CF cards I could afford.

This is not rangefinder photography. It feeds into about every weakness in the RF system while emphasizing none of the strengths except light weight.

Film is a non-starter for too many reasons to enumerate. A REALLY bad idea.

Tom

 

[ampguy]

A pentax *ist. There is no doubt that when you find the natives, they will have knowledge with K-mount lens making 😉

 

[Magus]

Post deleted by posters request

 

[shutterbug]

Keep it simple..

Keep it simple..

If trapped on an island...I would go the Magnum member Philip Jones Griffiths route, and use a single Leica camera with a 50mm lens and 10 rolls of Tri-x.
With that set up, you should be able to come off the island with enough photographs to clearly document your time spent there.

 

[Magus]

Post deleted by posters request

 

[BillBingham2]

A lot depends upon the Island. Governors Island, Staten Island, Long Island, Ireland, Cuba, Faulkland Islands, New Zealand, which one? Well, lets say the Island has less people and less facilities.

Crown Graphic with a 6x9 back and say 30 rolls of 220 Tri-X and a tripod. Digital light meter and batteries. Nikonos III with a 35/2.5, 15/4.5, 40/1.4, 105/2.5 and my Leica M6 and about 60 rolls of 36 exp. Minolta table top tripod, cable release (2 of them), GGBs (30 or so, Green Garbage Bages, contractor grade) and some duck tape.

B2 (;->