More touring

[mattb]

When it's good I have to get after it! I got a call last night from a friend who wanted to ski this peak called Augusta near Crested Butte. I just happened to be off work today so we had a great dawn patrol tour for some corn snow.

We started in the dark after a 7 Mile snowmobile ride to where the climb starts.

IMGP2343.jpg by MattB.net, on Flickr

Our objective is the snowy peak to the left of the rocky one.

IMGP2361.jpg by MattB.net, on Flickr


IMGP2368.jpg by MattB.net, on Flickr

The views were pretty nice

IMGP2369.jpg by MattB.net, on Flickr


IMGP2382.jpg by MattB.net, on Flickr

The final approach was a ridge top boot pack

IMGP2403.jpg by MattB.net, on Flickr

That's Mt. Crested Butte in the upper left of the frame

IMGP2410.jpg by MattB.net, on Flickr

We had to hang out on the summit for a while to let the snow warm and soften up a little

IMGP2416.jpg by MattB.net, on Flickr

Then it was time to ski

IMGP2433.jpg by MattB.net, on Flickr

It was fun!

IMGP2442.jpg by MattB.net, on Flickr

I carried my K-5 and 2 small primes, a 15mm f/4 and a 40mm f/2.8. It was a nice small kit but still capable of some good images.

[Photo-John]

Best ski photos yet from you, Matt! I love this batch! You gotta suck it up and start carrying a telephoto lens, too. It will slow you down a little. But ultimately, I don't think it will affect you as much as you think. And the photos will be worth it. I almost only use telephotos for ski shots. And I wanna see more actual ski photos from your tours!

[mattb]

Thanks John! What tele do you carry? A 50-200 or something like that? I have a 55-300 4.5-5.8 that is not too big or heavy. Not fast but there's usually plenty of light. My fast tele zoom is a 28-75.
Not sure how many more tours I'll do this season but hopefully at least one or two more. I need to train for a bike race coming up too...

[Photo-John]

Thanks John! What tele do you carry? A 50-200 or something like that? I have a 55-300 4.5-5.8 that is not too big or heavy. Not fast but there's usually plenty of light. My fast tele zoom is a 28-75.
Not sure how many more tours I'll do this season but hopefully at least one or two more. I need to train for a bike race coming up too...

It depends on the camera. For APS-C sensor cameras I really like the 18-200mm zooms. I own the Canon (working on a review). It's an f/3.5-5.6 variable aperture lens but for outdoor shooting I don't think the fast aperture matters as much as with portraits. And you're right - for most ski photography, light is not a problem. On the other hand, if I am shooting something important (getting paid), I will man up and pack the 70-200mm f/2.8. But the 18-200mm is a great lens to carry all the time. If you're interested in what it can do, here's a gallery of my Canon 18-200mm photos. It's actually my most-used lens: Canon EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS | photos from the PhotographyREVIEW.com Gallery

I've also used the original Nikon 18-200mm VR and I think the Canon and Nikon are pretty comparable. Sigma also makes an OS 18-200mm that looks really good. It might even be better than the Nikon and Canon lenses. And next time I review a Sony NEX camera, I want to do it with their 18-200mm zoom. I love that zoom range for APS-C sensor cameras.

[mattb]

Thanks for the info. The next lens I'm likely to buy is a Pentax 18-135 3.5-5.6 which is weather sealed like my K-5 body for a good weather resistant kit. Not as long, but I'm hoping it will make a good enough all-arounder when conditions are such that I don't want to change lenses.

[Photo-John]

Thanks for the info. The next lens I'm likely to buy is a Pentax 18-135 3.5-5.6 which is weather sealed like my K-5 body for a good weather resistant kit. Not as long, but I'm hoping it will make a good enough all-arounder when conditions are such that I don't want to change lenses.

For what its worth, I think weather-sealing is overrated. I have my gear out in all kinds of weather and I don't own one weather-sealed lens. On the other hand, it can't hurt and I think the 18-135mm will be a very good all-purpose lens

[jacobovs]

Nice shots! I miss skiing this year. Tahoe just started getting snow. I've skied a total of 4 hours this year. Can't wait to get out again.

[mattb]

Nice shots! I miss skiing this year. Tahoe just started getting snow. I've skied a total of 4 hours this year. Can't wait to get out again.

Thanks! We've had a pretty lean year here in the Central Rockies too. I was still mountain biking at 7700 Ft. in mid-January which is definitely not normal! My friend (in the photos) went back a week later and got powder up there, so I was kicking myself that I couldn't make the second trip. Hopefully I can get a few more days in before it's all done but I have to train for a bike race in May so my focus needs to turn to cycling soon.

Hopefully next year will be more like last year for us!

[jacobovs]

Thanks! We've had a pretty lean year here in the Central Rockies too. I was still mountain biking at 7700 Ft. in mid-January which is definitely not normal! My friend (in the photos) went back a week later and got powder up there, so I was kicking myself that I couldn't make the second trip. Hopefully I can get a few more days in before it's all done but I have to train for a bike race in May so my focus needs to turn to cycling soon.

Hopefully next year will be more like last year for us!

I hope so. I'm 51 and have been skiing since I was a small kid. This is the first year I ever bought a season's pass.:mad2: