What do you shoot with? A typical topic for photographers. So I decided to do a little write-up of the gear that I use for my photos, along with hiking and camping trips. I'll do my best to add changes and keep this up to date as things change.
Photography Gear
Canon R6 - Brand new to me as of November 19, 2021. I'm still learning my way around the mirrorless system, and trying to get familiar with shooting with this camera.
Canon 5D Mark III - Now my secondary body. I loved this camera for many years, and shot a wide array of subjects with it over the years. I've had no real qualms with owning the Mark III, and never saw a need to upgrade to the Mark IV. But then the EOS R6 came along...
Canon Rebel XS - Little more than a sentimental memento for me now. This was the DSLR body that got me really started with photography. It was great for a beginner, like myself, to practice and learn manual settings with, but doesn't quite cut the dijon as a primary body for me anymore.
Canon RF 24-105MM f/4L IS USM - Picked up this lens in a bundle deal with my new R6 body. So far it's a great "walk around" lens, with the versatile focal range. Focuses much better with the R6 than my older EF systems.
Canon RF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM - Coming soon. It hurt to order this, considering the price point, but I can't wait to try it out for portraits, sports, and weddings.
Canon RF 50mm f/1.8 STM - The cheapest lens in my bag. You really can't go wrong with this nifty fifty. Getting a lens this fast for under $200 is a no-brainer.
Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM - One of my cheaper lenses, but is a real contender for one of my favorites. Great sharpness, lightweight, and great depth of field. It's one of my go-tos for portraits and automotive shoots.
Canon EF 24-70mm f/4L IS USM - A decent "walk around" lens, given the range of focal lengths. This lens is usually in my bag for long hikes, as it helps to keep the weight of multiple lenses down. It also has a nifty macro mode.
Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM - Goes toe-to-toe with the 85mm as my favorite to shoot with. This lens does everything I need it to do in real estate or landscape scenarios, and I have no real need to pay the extra price tag for the f/2.8.
Canon EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III - This will be the next upgrade I make to my kit. I've had some great times and captured some decent wildlife images with this cheap telephoto, but have found it very limiting as of late. Image stabilization and a bit more reach will be factors for my next telephoto purchase.
Canon 5D Mark III - Now my secondary body. I loved this camera for many years, and shot a wide array of subjects with it over the years. I've had no real qualms with owning the Mark III, and never saw a need to upgrade to the Mark IV. But then the EOS R6 came along...
Canon Rebel XS - Little more than a sentimental memento for me now. This was the DSLR body that got me really started with photography. It was great for a beginner, like myself, to practice and learn manual settings with, but doesn't quite cut the dijon as a primary body for me anymore.
Canon RF 24-105MM f/4L IS USM - Picked up this lens in a bundle deal with my new R6 body. So far it's a great "walk around" lens, with the versatile focal range. Focuses much better with the R6 than my older EF systems.
Canon RF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM - Coming soon. It hurt to order this, considering the price point, but I can't wait to try it out for portraits, sports, and weddings.
Canon RF 50mm f/1.8 STM - The cheapest lens in my bag. You really can't go wrong with this nifty fifty. Getting a lens this fast for under $200 is a no-brainer.
Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM - One of my cheaper lenses, but is a real contender for one of my favorites. Great sharpness, lightweight, and great depth of field. It's one of my go-tos for portraits and automotive shoots.
Canon EF 24-70mm f/4L IS USM - A decent "walk around" lens, given the range of focal lengths. This lens is usually in my bag for long hikes, as it helps to keep the weight of multiple lenses down. It also has a nifty macro mode.
Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM - Goes toe-to-toe with the 85mm as my favorite to shoot with. This lens does everything I need it to do in real estate or landscape scenarios, and I have no real need to pay the extra price tag for the f/2.8.
Canon EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III - This will be the next upgrade I make to my kit. I've had some great times and captured some decent wildlife images with this cheap telephoto, but have found it very limiting as of late. Image stabilization and a bit more reach will be factors for my next telephoto purchase.
MeFOTO RoadTrip Aluminum Tripod - I have accumulated quite a stash of tripods, but this one is, simply put, the best. The ball head is so smooth and easy to adjust, it's sturdy and compact, and weighs just about 3.6 lbs.
Joby Gorillapod - I haven't spent nearly enough time with this tripod to provide a honest opinion yet. It's very compact and light, however. It will certainly accompany me on some trips in the future.
Hoya 77mm NDx400 HMC Filter - I will have more to say about this 9-stop neutral density filter in the very near future. I'm real excited to get it out and play with some longer daylight exposures.
B+W 77mm Kaesemann Circular Polarizer Filter - Fantastic filter to help reduce glare and haze, while bringing out some vibrant colors.
Tiffen 77mm UV Protector Filter - Great little piece of mind to protect your very expensive glass. They're cheap (in comparison to glass). Use them.
Joby Gorillapod - I haven't spent nearly enough time with this tripod to provide a honest opinion yet. It's very compact and light, however. It will certainly accompany me on some trips in the future.
Hoya 77mm NDx400 HMC Filter - I will have more to say about this 9-stop neutral density filter in the very near future. I'm real excited to get it out and play with some longer daylight exposures.
B+W 77mm Kaesemann Circular Polarizer Filter - Fantastic filter to help reduce glare and haze, while bringing out some vibrant colors.
Tiffen 77mm UV Protector Filter - Great little piece of mind to protect your very expensive glass. They're cheap (in comparison to glass). Use them.
Post Processing
BenQ 27" 16:9 4K UHD IPS Monitor - Highly, highly recommended. Great price, great color, and great clarity/definition for editing large files.
WD My Book 3TB External Hard Drive - Backup and extra storage space is a must for any photographer.
Adobe Lightroom - 90% of my editing is done with Lightroom. $10 a month for the Creative Cloud service has been a very worthwhile investment.
Adobe Photoshop - I'm sure most are familiar with Photoshop. I use it for the final 10% of my editing process. It's a far more powerful tool than I ever truly need in my processing.
Luminar AI - Definitely not the workhorse in my workflow. It's very clunky and buggy, but offers some great editing features. Performance upgrades are needed before I'd recommend.
Canon PIXMA PRO-100 - I'm going to be working on producing my own prints soon, and was given this as a gift. So more information will be coming when I get it up and running.
Mpix & BayPhoto - These are my typical print shops of choice. My choice usually depends on the size and dimensions of the print I need, or who is running the better special at the time. Both shops do great work, so I would recommend giving either a shot.
WD My Book 3TB External Hard Drive - Backup and extra storage space is a must for any photographer.
Adobe Lightroom - 90% of my editing is done with Lightroom. $10 a month for the Creative Cloud service has been a very worthwhile investment.
Adobe Photoshop - I'm sure most are familiar with Photoshop. I use it for the final 10% of my editing process. It's a far more powerful tool than I ever truly need in my processing.
Luminar AI - Definitely not the workhorse in my workflow. It's very clunky and buggy, but offers some great editing features. Performance upgrades are needed before I'd recommend.
Canon PIXMA PRO-100 - I'm going to be working on producing my own prints soon, and was given this as a gift. So more information will be coming when I get it up and running.
Mpix & BayPhoto - These are my typical print shops of choice. My choice usually depends on the size and dimensions of the print I need, or who is running the better special at the time. Both shops do great work, so I would recommend giving either a shot.
Camping & Hiking
f-stop Loka UL - A pricey, but fantastic hiking backpack. f-stop offer a variety of insert sizes for their bags to hold different amounts of camera gear. It's a lightweight pack with plenty of space for day or overnight hikes.
Tamrac Apache 4 - This has been my daily roaming shoulder bag for several years now. It holds my 5DIII with a lens attached, plus 2 additional lenses. With plenty of room for filters, batteries, and maybe a snack or two. It's a great bag and has held up well. Though, if you're going to be walking for an extended period with it, I may recommend you save your shoulders and get a backpack instead.
Marmot Trestles 0° Sleeping Bag - Graded out for -2.4°F, this bag will keep you nice and toasty on chilly mountain nights. It's comfortable and cozy, so it gets a thumbs up from me.
REI Passage 2 Tent - Very spacious 2-person option. Having a door on each side is a nice luxury, and at under 5 lbs, it's nice for short overnight hikes.
Tamrac Apache 4 - This has been my daily roaming shoulder bag for several years now. It holds my 5DIII with a lens attached, plus 2 additional lenses. With plenty of room for filters, batteries, and maybe a snack or two. It's a great bag and has held up well. Though, if you're going to be walking for an extended period with it, I may recommend you save your shoulders and get a backpack instead.
Marmot Trestles 0° Sleeping Bag - Graded out for -2.4°F, this bag will keep you nice and toasty on chilly mountain nights. It's comfortable and cozy, so it gets a thumbs up from me.
REI Passage 2 Tent - Very spacious 2-person option. Having a door on each side is a nice luxury, and at under 5 lbs, it's nice for short overnight hikes.