Off to the Tour de France...

[ism123]

and was wondering what lenses I should take? I'll be in the hills and mountains for 2 days. My std kit is a 40D with a 24-70L.

Was thinking of hiring one? But which lens and where from?

Cheers

Ian

[Mr E Driver]

I would buy a 70-200 F4 @ £517 or one of the better ones if you can afford a bit more. There is one for £500 on Fleecebay

Edited by Mr E Driver on Friday 25th June 23:12

[Dogsey]

I would have thought that wide angle would be a better choice than a long tele, maybe a Sigma 10-20 or similar?

[Mr E Driver]

As he has a 24-70 I thought that would cover the wide angle......angle!?

[itsnotarace]

70-200 without a doubt

[Elderly]

I suppose it's down to what aspects of the TDF you want to photograph.
The crowd - the enormous publicity caravan (160 vehicles!)- the peloton etc etc.

If it's the riders, I would think that your biggest challenge would be to find clear vantage points
and be ready for that very short period of time when the riders speed past you
(unless they are going up hill!) and are then gone!

The above is based on what a friend who lives in France has told me; I've not seen the TDF myself ......
...... so it's a little like criticising a camera without actually having used it .

[awager]

ism123 said:

and was wondering what lenses I should take? I'll be in the hills and mountains for 2 days. My std kit is a 40D with a 24-70L.

Was thinking of hiring one? But which lens and where from?

Cheers

Ian

If you are going to be in the mountain sections then the 24-70 will do you fine for virtually everything as you are (can be) right at the roadside.
The wider end will do for shots looking down on them from above and wider shots of the peleton.
The tele end will do for getting reasonable close shots of individual riders passing by.

If I was only taking a single lens/body then my choice would be something like an 18-200 to cover everything.

Edited by awager on Monday 28th June 11:47

[CivicMan]

Unless they're going uphill, of course, they come past bloody fast - it'll surprise you. My abiding memory is of a whoosh of air, chattering of the gears and a lingering smell of Deep Heat (the French version!).

[minky monkey]

If you're thinking of hiring, use http://www.lensesforhire.co.uk/

Good firm, reliable.

[ism123]

minky monkey said:

If you're thinking of hiring, use http://www.lensesforhire.co.uk/

Good firm, reliable.

Thanks, booked a 70-200 2.8L last night, thought I'd give it a go...

[Elderly]

How did it turn out?

[ism123]

Great, really enjoyed the whole experience. Watched the finish on the 1st day and it was hard to get on the barriers as we arrrived late, so not many cyclist pics. On day 2 to Morzine Avoriaz we came down the mountain to Les Gets and this is where the cyclist pics below were taken.

All in all got some nice pics, was happy with the lens even if I am a bit of a self-taught numpty, not had chance to do much with them editing-wise as moving house and only got dongle at moment, but here are a few
















Service from Lensesforhire was superb, highly recommended.

Edited by ism123 on Sunday 8th August 22:14