NEW - Ken Gilbert

EDITORIAL
equivalent on my Canon) was
just the thing for subjects ranging
from a gaudy grilled squid stand to
colorfully chaotic street markets.
Vietnam? I could ramble on about
photographing this landscape of rice
paddies, war relics, and captivating
people. But the most surprising thing
I encountered—and was determined
to capture—was Ho Chi Minh City’s
traffi c. To say “swarms of motorbikes
to the infi nite power” doesn’t fully
describe this city’s transportation
system. Cars, bicycles, and old-time
cyclo (“see-klo”) peddle-taxis are
massively outnumbered by whirring,
buzzing two-wheelers that crowd the
streets and even the sidewalks in a
free-for-all of urban mobility.
How to capture it? I shot this
photo at 1/30 sec, f/22, and ISO 800.
It shows my wife, Demetria, just
seconds—and dozens of motorbikes—
behind my daughter and me crossing
a street. The shutter speed was slow
enough to blur the bikes, but fast
enough to be easily handheld. For
depth of fi eld that didn’t quit, I went
with the small aperture (which, in turn,
required the high ISO).
By John Owens
BAGGAGECheck
Thinking inside—
and outside—the
camera bag
When packing for a trip,
we all face that angel and devil on
our shoulders whispering “Travel
light!” and “Don’t forget to bring
[fi ll in the blank].” The trouble is
it’s tough to tell who’s saying what.
Take too little, and for the want
of the right gear you could miss
the images of a lifetime. Bring
too much, and you’ll be like the
Clampetts rolling into Beverly
Hills. I know, because I’ve
been at both extremes.
But on a recent trip with
my wife and daughter to
Hong Kong and Vietnam,
I was thoroughly happy
with my packing list and
what I captured.
The DSLR: a Canon EOS 40D,
a solid, familiar middleweight. Just one
body, since I didn’t expect any camerakilling
activities, nor the kind of action
that would require instant access to
both a long, fast lens and a short, fast
one. This was, after all, a vacation.
While there’s much to recommend
a wide-ranging zoom—such as an
18–200mm, the extreme Sigma
18–250mm, or the more extreme
Tamron 18–270mm—I rarely use such
a long lens. I knew from experience
that short to mid focal lengths would
serve me best.
Hong Kong is perhaps the most
concentrated ball of ambition,
commerce, crassness, and culture on
the planet. I love the place. And the
photo ops are so tightly packed that
there’s no reason to aim your camera
over there when you’ve got great
subjects right here.
That’s why in Hong Kong, most of
the time my 40D sported a Tokina 12–
24mm f/4 AT-X Pro. At 1.25 pounds,
it’s relatively heavy, but I’ve had great
success with this lens over the years,
and that 12mm (19mm full-frame
ROAD RAGE:
A slow shutter puts
fun into the serious
business of crossing
the street in Ho
Chi Minh City.
The lens: a Canon EF 28–135mm
f/3.5–5.6 IS USM. Along with the wideangle
Tokina, this glass dominated my
shooting in Vietnam.
But I’m most delighted that at the
last minute I tossed a Casio Exilim EX-
Z150, a petite compact, into my bag.
The streets converging in front of
the city’s central market surge with a
nonstop fl ood of motorbikes. Crossing
requires courage, stupidity, and a
willingness (I learned from the locals)
to neither pause nor deviate from a
steady course across the fast-moving,
potentially lethal fl ow. Just go.
I huddled my family on my leeward
side, turned on the Casio’s video
mode, and held the camera at waist
level, pointing toward the oncoming
motorbikes. As we walked, I narrated
above the din of internal combustion.
Okay, maybe you had to be there, but
to the Owens clan, this video clip is a
funny forever keepsake.
While I’m a confi rmed DSLR
shooter who tries to bring only
what’s necessary, I’m sure glad I
packed that little Casio. I just can’t
fi gure out if it was the angel or the
devil who suggested it. p
10 WWW.POPPHOTO.COM POP PHOTO MAY 2009