The latest gear thread....

[satans worm]

I know 'gear doesnt maketh the photographer' and all that, but i still get excited about new photographic hardware (?) that comes out, from tripods/ filters to lens and cameras, so i thought id start a thread ...

And my first entry has to be, anyone else excited about the new Fuji GFX100S??

I know its pricey, very pricey, but at the sometime for what it is, its kinda cheap too.

As a (mainly) landscape hobbyist , this ticks every single box (apart from price, but even then, its significantly less than the 10k the GFX100 is) that i could wish for.

To make it slightly more accessible to canon shooters (and it may be available for other camera manufacturers as well) metabones have brought out a converter to fit the EF lens range, although the converter itself is also pricey.. (common theme)

Will i get one? maybe, obviously cannot run it past the wife, that would be pointless and quite possibly painful, even in mentioning.

But they say God moves in mysterious ways, and he has a plan for us all(not sure who 'they are' but.. ) so i read that as he gave humans 2 kidneys. and effectively invented Ebay....

Any new gear your excited about that coming out?

[Lynchie999]

Yeh, apart from waiting for the latest Money Tree invention... the A1 has some features (apart from FPS or MPX) that would be truly useful to me and that I find annoying on the older cameras ... Continuous AF tracking @ F22 for a start ...

and as for the Fuji, who doesn't want a MF camera that is lightweight and small ...

[Simpo Two]

Lynchie999 said:

and as for the Fuji, who doesn't want a MF camera that is lightweight and small ...

Nice idea, not very different in size from my D500. But I really don't need or want 102Mp files, and battery life is poor.

[toohuge]

I am not overly excited about any of the new gear that has come out....

I'll place my flame coat on... but honestly, since (in Nikon's case) the D3S or the 1DIII (in Canon's), there's very little, high iso aside, that you'd gain from a lot of the new technologies. I am of the opinion, that if you've successfully been shooting with equipment of that era, there's more technique than technology in capturing the right shot.

I shoot portraits and sport - more the latter and.... for my uses, the eye-af is a cool feature, but I managed just fine before. The newer, faster cameras? 12fps is ample... the downside to super fast cameras and high-res images is the time consumed in your workflow trawling through all those images. A Nikon D5 is a simply sensational tool to work with, three stand out features, practically limitless buffer, superb high-iso performance and a battery that can easily shoot a whole sporting event in one.

I'd be interested to see the new pro mirrorless bodies once released. If the AF system for wildlife is better than the 1DXIII, with a battery that delivers thousands of shots I'd consider investing.

[Simpo Two]

toohuge said:

1DXIII...

I make that a Canon 1Mk513 in Roman

[satans worm]

toohuge said:

I'd be interested to see the new pro mirrorless bodies once released. If the AF system for wildlife is better than the 1DXIII, with a battery that delivers thousands of shots I'd consider investing.

Sony released the A1 this week as well, i think you may fund that of interest, although another wallet busting price

I think one of the things that is great about photography is the varied spectrum of interest in the hobby.

From those who only deal with large format film to the techno files requiring the latest thing, no one is wrong, everyone can enjoy the niche they occupy

[sticks090460]

toohuge said:

I'd be interested to see the new pro mirrorless bodies once released. If the AF system for wildlife is better than the 1DXIII, with a battery that delivers thousands of shots I'd consider investing.

The focussing system on the R5/R6 pisses on any DSLR. Eye AF, points cover over 95% of the visible frame, focuses down to -6EV. Thousands of shots? Buy a couple of batteries, which cost peanuts compared to the bodies and lenses. And yes, I do have one, and I have ditched my DSLR..

[toohuge]

I find it odd how many people on the internet can, aggressively, suggest my camera choices with little to no thought about how I use a camera.

Let’s address your points 1 by 1. Currently, on a D5 I have very few af issues. With the correct technique, a D3s or 1d mkiii can be sufficient. For what I shot - I’m more than capable of achieving what I need to. 95% coverage of the sensor is impressive, no arguments, but for my usage, irrelevant. I do not need to focus on the extremities of the frame, if I did, I would’ve found my DSLR inadequate.
Eye AF - I really like eye af and I am the first to admit that for portrait shooting it’s sensational. It makes my work easier, more accurate and ultimately faster. That’s a pro for mirrorless.

Focusing down to -6 ev, yep that’s a good thing too. The D5 is excellent in low light - but can hunt too at times - that’s life - so any improvement in that is welcome.

Just buy some batteries - let’s consider the real world complications of this. It’s not a price issue, and for arguments sake we’ll use the cipa rating for each of the listed cameras.
The D5 is rated at 3780 the canon r5, in battery saving mode 490.... I’d require nearly 8 batteries for the equivalent life. That may not be an issue for many, but a large sporting / charity event with setup, main event and ceremonies will easily see north of 4000 shots. I don’t have the Lcd screen on my dslr as I don’t chimp, therefore 1 battery will see me through the day. If I shot mirrorless, with these numbers I’d need possibly 6-8 batteries. I’d then have to keep track of what’s charged / not charged throughout the day. Then at the end of the day, how do I charge all 8 for the next day? Given i can see the canon charger has 1 slot, some after market options have 2. Minimum I’d need 4 chargers - or have to change batteries over ever 2.5 hours - that’s not too convenient if the event finishes in the evening and next day starts early around 8ish. For comparison, the standard pro dslr chargers have 2 slots - that’s close to 8000 shots in 2.5 hours of charge.

I can and do see the advantages of mirrorless cameras - but some of the features are not relevant to me whatsoever - I am not the typical shooter, I’m the first to admit that. However, there’s a lot of guys that shoot in similar volume (or more) to me and the battery issue is a huge consideration.

[Simpo Two]

toohuge said:

I find it odd how many people on the internet can, aggressively, suggest my camera choices with little to no thought about how I use a camera.

The trouble with such threads is that some respondents just say their kit pisses over yours.

[StevieBee]

toohuge said:

I find it odd how many people on the internet can, aggressively, suggest my camera choices with little to no thought about how I use a camera.

Odder still is how revealing your choice of editing software evokes the same reaction from many that would apply if you revealed yourself as a terrorist.

Adobe users lives Matter!

By far, by several orders of magnitude, the strangest bunch are the Drone Flyer groups.

I got a Mavic last year for work and thought It would be useful to join a couple of groups on Facebook. My word this is a pond of strange people. On chap posted a video asking for constructive criticism. It was an OK film but spoilt by him and his mate gurning at the drone before it set off. I suggested that cutting that but out follows the convention that operator shouldn't really be seen in the film. He then asked me what gave me the right to determine convention... and it went very rapidly downhill from there!

[codenamecueball]

toohuge said:

I am not overly excited about any of the new gear that has come out....

I'll place my flame coat on... but honestly, since (in Nikon's case) the D3S or the 1DIII (in Canon's), there's very little, high iso aside, that you'd gain from a lot of the new technologies. I am of the opinion, that if you've successfully been shooting with equipment of that era, there's more technique than technology in capturing the right shot.

I shoot portraits and sport - more the latter and.... for my uses, the eye-af is a cool feature, but I managed just fine before. The newer, faster cameras? 12fps is ample... the downside to super fast cameras and high-res images is the time consumed in your workflow trawling through all those images. A Nikon D5 is a simply sensational tool to work with, three stand out features, practically limitless buffer, superb high-iso performance and a battery that can easily shoot a whole sporting event in one.

I'd be interested to see the new pro mirrorless bodies once released. If the AF system for wildlife is better than the 1DXIII, with a battery that delivers thousands of shots I'd consider investing.

I personally disagree, but I shoot a lot off stuff requiring accurate AF and sometimes difficult lighting conditions where very good ISO and RAW performance can come in handy. The 1DX3 I used as a loan was a very capable machine compared to my 1DX2 but the R5 will probably be what I buy next - the 28-70 f/2 + the nearly silent shutter looks like an incredible piece of kit for shooting theatre/film work.

[codenamecueball]

StevieBee said:

I got a Mavic last year for work and thought It would be useful to join a couple of groups on Facebook. My word this is a pond of strange people. On chap posted a video asking for constructive criticism. It was an OK film but spoilt by him and his mate gurning at the drone before it set off. I suggested that cutting that but out follows the convention that operator shouldn't really be seen in the film. He then asked me what gave me the right to determine convention... and it went very rapidly downhill from there!

People don't post in Facebook groups looking for constructive criticism, even if their post says that.

[toohuge]

codenamecueball said:

I personally disagree, but I shoot a lot off stuff requiring accurate AF and sometimes difficult lighting conditions where very good ISO and RAW performance can come in handy. The 1DX3 I used as a loan was a very capable machine compared to my 1DX2 but the R5 will probably be what I buy next - the 28-70 f/2 + the nearly silent shutter looks like an incredible piece of kit for shooting theatre/film work.

I think for theatre work a mirrorless is ideal, with the silent shutter. And that super fast zoom is mind blowing on Canon - really cool stuff!

[codenamecueball]

toohuge said:

I think for theatre work a mirrorless is ideal, with the silent shutter. And that super fast zoom is mind blowing on Canon - really cool stuff!

I've got a lot of looks for firing off the 1D at full chat in the back of a theatre, but the images ended up on a three page feature in Fest magazine, so that got rid of any embarrassment I felt!

Mirrorless certainly feels like the future but the idea of using two bodies with different controls/menus etc side by side is still a bit too uncomfortable for me to fully commit. That and COVID slowing work isn't helping!

[Simpo Two]

codenamecueball said:

toohuge said:

I think for theatre work a mirrorless is ideal, with the silent shutter. And that super fast zoom is mind blowing on Canon - really cool stuff!

I've got a lot of looks for firing off the 1D at full chat in the back of a theatre, but the images ended up on a three page feature in Fest magazine, so that got rid of any embarrassment I felt!

Being the 'honorary tog' for a couple of amdram companies I photograph the dress rehearsal - it looks the same as the actual performance and the auditorium is almost empty so I can move around to get the best angles. If the actors are talking or singing, as they usually are, they'll never hear the shutter.

[toohuge]

Both good points. I've only shot one concert - I'd like to do more - but this was a classical music concert! The shutter was a little loud! Any my buddy almost fell asleep, for us, not that exciting. That said, I'd love to shoot something like Glastonbury, I don't think shutter noise would be too much of an issue there!

[satans worm]

For those using film and needing a spot meter, reveni launching this, looks superb, and given my bad eye sight ,especially when its agetting a little dark, this might be just the thing....

https://www.reveni-labs.com

Its via kick starter, 225CAD

[Simpo Two]

satans worm said:

For those using film and needing a spot meter, reveni launching this, looks superb, and given my bad eye sight ,especially when its agetting a little dark, this might be just the thing....

https://www.reveni-labs.com

Its via kick starter, 225CAD

Remarkable! But if you're uing film shouldn't you be using a selenium jobbie that looks like it's fallen off the Russian space programme?

[Whoozit]

codenamecueball said:

toohuge said:

I think for theatre work a mirrorless is ideal, with the silent shutter. And that super fast zoom is mind blowing on Canon - really cool stuff!

I've got a lot of looks for firing off the 1D at full chat in the back of a theatre, but the images ended up on a three page feature in Fest magazine, so that got rid of any embarrassment I felt!

Mirrorless certainly feels like the future but the idea of using two bodies with different controls/menus etc side by side is still a bit too uncomfortable for me to fully commit. That and COVID slowing work isn't helping!

I've managed to shoot with a DSLR in Abbey Road during takes, just timing it for when the musicians stopped. A mirrorless would have allowed me to carry on without being thrown out.

[StevieBee]

toohuge said:

Both good points. I've only shot one concert - I'd like to do more - but this was a classical music concert! The shutter was a little loud! Any my buddy almost fell asleep, for us, not that exciting. That said, I'd love to shoot something like Glastonbury, I don't think shutter noise would be too much of an issue there!

I've done a few festivals. It's good fun - particularly if you have accreditation. But from a photographic perspective can be surprisingly restrictive. Normal rules are that all the snappers are hemmed in the pit for one or two songs and you're out. So everyone gets the same shots. Settings are a case of running through all of them (sort of) in the hope that one of them will yield something good. The challenge of all this makes it worthwhile though!