Kevin’s Photo Studio

For the person who is just getting into digital photography deciding what equipment to buy can be a very intimidating process. Many thousands of dollars are likely to be spent in the process. It would sure be nice if you were able to buy the best equipment for your needs the first time. But how do you know what’s best. You don’t. All you can do is research, ask questions, and finally make a decision. I get a lot of questions from friends and strangers about what equipment should be purchased for specific needs. I try to help people out on various forums as I can. Since I’ve written many posts and many emails and had many discussions on this topic, I thought: maybe it’s time to write it all down in one place. This is a summary of the equipment that currently makes up my photographic toolkit. For each item in my toolkit I’ll try to explain why I do (or don’t) like it. Hopefully someone will find the information useful and be one step closer to buying the right (or not buying the wrong) piece of equipment for their toolkit.

It might help up front to know what kind of photography I practice. Most of my photography income come from weddings and portraits. I also really enjoy landscape and nature photography, but do not generate significant income from it. Since people are willing to pay me for my services it’s very important to me (and presumably to the client as well) that I use top quality equipment that I can count on for reliability. This facet has been a critical part of many of my purchase decisions.

Cameras

• Canon EOS 1D MkII (reviews: dpreview, luminous landscape)
• Canon 10D (reviews: dpreview, luminous landscape)

  While the 10D currently serves as my backup camera body. I do not really want to depend on it if push comes to shove. The UI between the 10D and the 1 series bodies is so different that when I pick up the 10D I have to think about and remember how to use it. It’s also not the fastest camera on the market. I am waiting with baited breath for Canon’s announcement for the next generation 1Ds Mk II.

  Lenses

  • Primes
    • Canon 50mm f/1.4
    • Canon 100mm f/2.8 Macro
  • Zooms
    • Canon 17-40mm f/4.0 L
    • Canon 24-70mm f/2.8 L
    • Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS
  • Teleconverters
    • Kenko 1.4x. I purchased this back when I had my D30. My reasoning being that the Kenko TC was 1/3 the price of the Canon and, although the Kenko was softer, the softness was primarily at the edges and so wouldn’t really affect the quality of my images. Now that I’ve moved from a 1.6x 3.2MP camera to a 1.3x 8.2MP camera, the softness has become more evident in my images. I’ll probably sell this TC and buy the Canon.
  • Extension Tubes
    • Kenko 12mm, 20mm, and 36mm Tubes. These don’t get a lot of use anymore. I still occaisionally use them with my 50mm prime, but the 100mm macro handles 95% of the macro work that I do. These are not an essential part of my kit.

  Flash Units & Accessories

  • Canon 550EX. A great flash. An essential part of the kit. This is my main camera flash unit. It serves me very well. I used to use recharable batteries with it, but this flash chews throught NiMH batteries like mad so I’ve reverted to using alkalines when I’m not using the Quantum Turbo 2×2 battery pack. This flash unit has since been replaced by the new 580EX, but I have not upgraded mine.
  • Canon 420EX (2). I purchased these to use as a kind of portable studio lighting setup. They work well enough for this, but now that I have the White Lighting studio strobes, these don’t much use. I will keep one as a backup flash, but the other will probably be sold.
  • Canon MR14EX Macro Ring Light. This is Canon’s less expensive ringlight. I use it for macro work with my 100mm macro lens as well as for some portrait work (as a fill flash) with the same lens. In fact, the 100mm lens is the only lens that it mounts too (that I own). It definitely comes in handy for lighting close up subjects, but the light produced doesn’t always look completely natural. The MR14 also acts as a wireless E-TTL master to control my 550 and 420 flash units remotely. This product does not seem to be in production any longer.
  • Canon Off Camera Shoe Cord 2 – This cord connects the camera hot shoe to the canon flash heads when mounted on the Stroboframe Pro-T flash bracket. It is essential for operation, works well, and, as far as I know, the only product available for this purpose.  It preserves all of the advacned camera/flash functions and communications.
  • Stroboframe Pro-T Flash Bracket. Right now this is my only flash bracket. It works well enough but I ’ve never been thrilled with it. I use it regularly when shooting weddings. I guess my main complaint it that it just doesn’t feel very solid and I can’t get my 550EX flash perfectly aligned with the camera when in portrait mode. I’ve got my eyes on a Really Right Stuff rotating flash bracket.
  • Wimberley F-2 Macro Bracket. I use this bracket for macro work primarily for outdoor macro photogrsphy. It works well and is very configurable. It uses acra-swiss style clamp to mount to a acra-swiss style plate on the camera. It works very well on cameras with L-brackets.

    Memory Cards

    • Sandisk Ultra II 4Gb Compact Flash (2). Good, high quality, high capacity, fast CF cards. Each one hold between 400 and 450 RAW captures from the 1D Mk II.
    • Ridata 1Gb Pro 66x SD Flash (2). Inexpensive but functional.
    • ATP 1Gb SD Flash (2). Inexpensive but functional.
    • Gepe Card Safe Extreme. The best memory card case I’ve ever owned. It’s built tough. It floats. It’s waterproof. It will hold four CF cards and 4 SD cards (perfect for Canon 1D Mk II owners).  Fully stocked with 4GB CF and 2GB SD cards you can have 24GB of very well protected storage at your displosal. It’s about the size of an iPod.

    Misc Accessories

    • Kirk Enterprises BL Mark 2 L-bracket. Once you use an L-bracket it’s very hard to go back to a camera without one. It’s the first accessory that I order for a new camera. The L-bracket allows a camera to be mounted in portrait mode and still sit on top of the tripod head. Doing this greatly enhances the usability of ball heads for portrait work. The camera no longer hangs off the side of the ballhead creating a bouncy side-heavy system. Also available from RSS. The L-Bracket also serves as a handly place to mount my macro flash bracket.
    • Sekonic L-558R Dual Master Light Meter
    • Canon Timer Remote Control TC-80N3 (with 30′ extension cable) (review: luminous landscape)
    • PocketWizard MultiMax Transceiver.
    • PocketWizard Plus Receiver (3)
    • Quantum Turbo 2×2 Battery Pack
    • Op/Tech USA Pro Straps. I have one of these straps for each body and for my Quantum Turbo 2×2 Battery pack. They are great. Can’t recommend them enough.

    Tripods Legs & Heads

    • Gitzo 2228 Explorer Carbon Fiber Tripod Legs (review: luminous landscape) This model has been replaced with the newer 2258 model. This is my favorite tripod to date. Extremely stiff in structure and flexible in use. These legs weigh in a 4.2 lbs so they aren’t the lightest legs on the market., but they are a joy to use. This is my primary tripod for weddings and in the studio.
    • Bogen Tripod Legs Model 3205 Black. This was my first real tripod. It’s big, heavy, but functional. Not nearly as stiff as the Gizto and maybe twice as heavy. I bought it years ago when forking out for the Gitzo was a bit too painful.  Now it serves as a backup tripod.
    • Acratech Ultimate Ballhead (reviews: luminous landscape, bayimages.net) Currently my primary head for all uses. This is a great head for hiking but I’m thinking about a heavier duty head like the RSS BH-55 for studio and wedding work.
    • Bogen Ballhead 3038. Like the Bogen leg set that I have, this is a heavy ball head that just doesn’t quite have the quality and finesse of the RSS, AcraSwiss, or Kirk ballheads. The motion of the ball is not very smooth and the tension adjustment just makes it worse. It wasn’t very expensive and it’s performance reflects that. It currently serves on the bogen legs as my backup tripod. This head has an integrated Bogen hexagonal quick release mounts. In order to use it I need to mount an acra-swiss clamp to the hex plate. Not very elegant but will work in a pinch.
    • Gitzo 1560 Monopod. This is a light duty monopod. It’s handy to have around when a tripod is too much. It works, but is a bit overwhelmed by the mass of the 1D series cameras with L-class lenses attached. The pod arrive with an incredibly small ball head on it. I removed it and put on an arca-swiss style quick release clamp that allows me to easily switch the camera from landscape to portrait mode using the L-bracket on the camera. One nice thing is that the mounting post is a reversable 1/4"/3/8" stud, I would like to replace this with a beefier carbon fiber Gitzo monopod.

    Studio Lights & Accessories

    • White Lightning X1600 (3) (review: shutterbug)
    • White Lightning 13′ Air Cushioned Light Stands (3)
    • White Lightning Backlight Stand
    • Back light deflector
    • 48" White/Silver Bounce Umbrellas (2)
    • 60" White Shoot Through Umbrellas (2)
    • Botero 8′x16′ Black Collapsible Background
    • Botero 8′x16′ White Collapsible Background
    • Botero 5′x7′ Light/Dark Gray Collapsible Background
    • Phototek Digital Lighthouse (24"x24"x36") Lighting Tent. Works well. I’ve used it for several small product photos.

    Camera Bags & Packs

    Every photographer spends years searching for the perfect camera bag (or bags). It is a fruitless quest. I’m no different. I have many bags that I like and some that I don’t. I’ll never stop looking at new bags as they come out because there might be something better in the future. Having said that. I’m pretty happy with my current flock of bags.

    • LowePro DryZone 200 & Dana Design Far Flung. Paul Caldwell came up with this combination. It works very well. I also use both packs independently. The DryZone has become my favorite backpack for extended travel where my PorterCase isn’t practical. It’s also very handy to have around the Pacific Northwest given the length the rainy season here.
    • PorterCase Divider Case. This is my very favorite travel case. It has been around the world several times and has always performed flawlessly. This case is designed so that it doubles as a luggage dolly (with a 250 lb capacity!). I load it full of camera gear and then use it to haul all my other bags as well through airports and train stations. When I’m traveling with my wife, she throws her bags on there too. It is carry on legal and does an excellent job of protecting the gear. This is an essential part of my travel kit.
    • LowePro Rover AW II. A friend of mine gave me this bag because it was too small for his rather tall torso. It has quickly become my favorite day pack when I don’t want to carry too much camera gear but still need to carry non-camera gear. It’s small and light but still has a nice tripod holding system. It will hold my 1D Mk II and three lenses, day hiking supplies (food, clothing) and the tripod. I highly recommend it as long as you have a normal sized torso.
    • Tamrac 614 "Super" Pro 14. This is a big camera bag. When fully loaded I think it weighs in at about 50 lbs. It holds a ton of stuff. This is where I keep most of my gear when not traveling or hiking. I haul this bag to weddings and locations shoots. It sits nicely on top of the PorterCase when in dolly mode. The only drawback (and it not really the fault of the bag) is that my 17" laptop won’t fit in the laptop compartment. A 17" Apple Powerbook might fit, but mine has about 1" bezels around the screen that make it just a bit too big to fit in. The width is OK but the height is not. Any normal sized laptop will fit without a problem.
    • LowePro Street & Field Deluxe Waistbelt. This is my main rig at weddings. It’s very comfortable and configurable. I carry the Quantum Turbo 2×2 battery, water, memory cards, and a lens pocket that will hold my 70-200/2.8 (as well as the 24-70/2.8 when the 70-200 is mounted.)

    Panorama Mounts

    Doing panoramas is more of a hobby than a business for me. I haven’t invested much in the panorama head department. Good solid pano heads that will work with big DSLRs are very expensive. Most of my pano experience has been with my 10D. I’d like to get a pano head that will work with the 1D series cameras, maybe the RSS "Ultimate Pro" Omni-Pivot Package (at $800, ouch!).

    • Homemade Rig. I built a homemade sphereical panorama head using 3/4" baltic birch plywood. It works great. However it is big and bulky. Not something that one would want to travel with. It’s also built specifically for one camera body (the 10D without battery grip) and one lens (the 24-70/2.8). It did prove the point that I could build a functional pano head for about $20.
    • Nodal Ninja. This product became available shortly after I built my homemade rig. I picked one up early one for a good price and have used it for some big panoramas. It works well, but it is sized for smaller DSLRS and digicams. I cannot use my 1D Mk 2 with it. They have several new product available now.

      If you have feedback, suggestions, or any questions about any of my gear let me know in the comments.

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