I am a Canon Guy! I bought my first SLR in 1980 - a Canon A1 - and have been shooting Canon ever since. That camera is still going strong today, though it doesn't see much action since I went digital a few years ago. I now shoot a Canon EOS Rebel T3i and love it. I do have my eye on the Canon 5D Mark IV or one of the new mirrorless systems.
Cameras
Canon
My main camera is a Canon EOS Rebel T3i. I started my digital age with the Canon PowerShot S3 IS and that was good for a few years but I really missed the flexibility of a good SLR.
Nikon
I was given a Nikon D60 by a co-worker to use as a backup and second camera. I only have one lens, 18mm-55mm.
Lenses
Prime
My prime lenses are from my film days. I purchased an adapter that allows me to use these lenses on my T3i and it works great. The downside is that everything is manual - focus, exposure, etc.... - so you lose a bit of the metadata and it can be difficult focusing without the old split-screen. I have two Canon prime lenses - a 50mm f/1.8 and an 85mm f/1.2L. I absolutely love the 85mm lens. If I were only allowed to have one lens, it would be the 85mm f/1.2L. I am hoping to someday get the newest model but....
I used to have quite a selection of third-party lenses in my film days but sold most of them years ago. I kept two - a Kiron 28mm f/2 and a Sigma 400mm f/5.6. I have never used the 28mm in my digital work but have often used the 400mm. I bought the lens back around 1985 and will continue to use it for as long as I can carry it (or can buy a new 400+ telephoto.)
Zoom
I have two Canon EF-S zoom lenses, the 18mm-135mm and the 55mm-250mm. Since the T3i is an ASP-C with a factor of .6, these lenses give me a range of about 28mm to 400mm and have served me rather well. They both feature image stabilization - one of the greatest inventions ever. I recently received an older Canon EF 75-300mm from a friend.
I also have my old Canon 80mm-200mm f/4L with macro. The macro is 1:4, not true macro but good enough for most of my work. The "L"-series lenses are incredible and I will continue to use this lens for certain jobs.
I also have my old Canon 80mm-200mm f/4L with macro. The macro is 1:4, not true macro but good enough for most of my work. The "L"-series lenses are incredible and I will continue to use this lens for certain jobs.
As mentioned above, I have a Nikon 18mm-55mm zoom for the D60. This is the only Nikon lens I have. It works quite well and has done a good job for me when I needed it.
Tripods/Monopods
I just got a MeFOTO RoadTrip in green. What a wonderful tripod! It comes equipped with a ballhead and comes with a carry case. One of the best features is that you can easily convert one of the legs into a monopod!
I have a Cullman Travel Kit that I bought back in the 80's but much of it just sits in a bag anymore. I have the ballhead sitting on my Bogen monopod - another relic from the 80's. This set-up is somewhat permanently attached to my Sigma 400mm but that may change now that I have the MeFOTO tripod.
I have a Cullman Travel Kit that I bought back in the 80's but much of it just sits in a bag anymore. I have the ballhead sitting on my Bogen monopod - another relic from the 80's. This set-up is somewhat permanently attached to my Sigma 400mm but that may change now that I have the MeFOTO tripod.
Bags/Backpacks
Until recently my go-to travel bag was a Tamrac 3537 shoulder bag that I have had for about six years. It is a nice bag, holds my T3i, a couple lenses, video camera and binoculars in the main compartment. There is a zipper compartment in the cover and then a zipper pocket in front. You can hold quite a bit of stuff in the zipper pockets. This bag has been replaced by Tamrac 3535 Express 5 Camera Bag.
I moved from the 3537 to a Tamrac Hoodoo 20 Camera Backpack that holds everything the 3537 did and then some. The pack is nice for the casual user or a short hike but I found it lacking in some critical areas. I now use a Kelty Redwing 32 hiking backpack with an
Ape Case Cubeze QB39 Flexible Storage Cube. I am still moving things around and trying to find the best way to use it but love it so far.
I also have a Billingham 555 shoulder bag that I use to store much of my gear. It is quite large, and heavy, so I don't often use it in the field.
I moved from the 3537 to a Tamrac Hoodoo 20 Camera Backpack that holds everything the 3537 did and then some. The pack is nice for the casual user or a short hike but I found it lacking in some critical areas. I now use a Kelty Redwing 32 hiking backpack with an
Ape Case Cubeze QB39 Flexible Storage Cube. I am still moving things around and trying to find the best way to use it but love it so far.
I also have a Billingham 555 shoulder bag that I use to store much of my gear. It is quite large, and heavy, so I don't often use it in the field.
Filters & Accessories
Filters
I started using Formatt-Hitech neutral density (ND) filters and love the freedom they give me to experiment with long exposures. I have the 85mm holder along with a set of solid and soft graduated filters ranging from 1 to 4 stops. Their performance, on a whole, is good but I find there is too much color cast for my liking when shooting long exposures. I am looking to upgrade and also purchase a filter or two in the 10 to 15 stop range.
I also have a couple screw-on ICE filters - a 10-stop ND and a 5-stop ND/Polarizer. They work quite well and I haven't had any issue with color cast. The ICE filters are inexpensive and, so far, I cannot complain. I do think they may not be quite a strong as advertised - I have combined them for mid-day long exposures and feel it may be closer to 13 or 14 stops instead of 15.
Accessories
The Canon RS-60 E3 Remote Switch is great for working with the camera on the tripod, especially when the camera is down low. You can also use it to keep the shutter open for very long exposures using "bulb". It is a great tool.