What equipment do you use?

[stuart]

I use a Sony A700 DSLR with a 28-70mm lens as my main lens, although I also use a 105mm and 20mm lens.

[Karla]

I use a Hasselblad 500CM camera. It's all completely mechanical and feels great to use in the field. I have a problem focusing it sometimes, especially when wearing contact lenses, and scanning the transparencies can also be difficult. But when I do get sharp pictures with spot on exposure (which isn't always), it seems to just be far more pleasing to my eyes. I actually feel like I am doing photography when I use it, which is kind of silly really but I feel more part of the process. Perhaps because I have to slow down, compose and think about things more.

[Georgew1959]

I have a Canon EOS 50E for transparencies and an EOS 350D DSLR. Until recently I've mostly taken an 18-35mm lens and occasionally also a 75-300mm, but I've just bought an 18-270mm Tamron lens which should help to cut down the weight! When I'm wanting to go lightweight, I also have a Canon Sureshot.

[milfmog]

I love photography and have a bag full of Canon EOS bodies and lenses (film cameras). However, I realised some years ago that I almost never took pictures because the bag was so bulky and heavy that I could not be bothered to carry it. I fact, I had pictures from three different Christmases on the roll of film that was in the camera.

I decided to buy a digital camera and one of my primary criteria was that it should be pocketable so that I could carry it when out and about. I chose a Canon PowerShot S45 which served me brilliantly. That is now consigned to use in a housing when scuba diving in warm, colourful waters. (I don't take pictures in UK waters; I want all of my attention on the dive to deal with the conditions and, by the time I add a big enough strobe to provide the necessary light, the camera is so bulky that I find it intrusive in the dive).

For general use, I have a Canon S5-iS "prosumer" model which gives me 95% of the control I'd ever use with a DSLR, but is far more compact and portable. I keep hankering for a DSLR but know, in my heart of hearts, that I'd rarely carry or use it for all the same reasons my old film cameras fell into disuse.

I have recently added a very compact Olympus to the stable. It is small enough to fit a shirt pocket and so gets carried a lot, but is very restrictive compared to the S5-iS.

I have recently moved house and so have no broadband connection (I'm using a slow and expensive 3G dongle for this) but will have a look through my pictures to see if there is anything worth sharing here, once I have reasonable internet access again.

Have fun,


Ian.

PS I used to dream of a Hassleblad or large format Mamiya but can't justify the cost to myself, let alone to my wife... Maybe when I retire (if I can ever afford to retire) I will have more time for photography and will treat myself then. In the meantime I will just remain quietly jealous 

[jbeegoode]

I've still got a big bag of Nikormat toys that rarely were getting used. It was so serious and I need to pack and just take snap shots so often. I have been having infinitely more fun with photography again, since I found this, small light, Canon Powershot A620. It does most of what that heavy bag does, with a few switches, if I get serious, then AUto does an amazing quick job, to grab action. It is very portable when out free range and I want to to keep naked and light.

My girlfriend has more recently acquired a Nikon Coolpix P500, formerly used by a guy who used to shoot butterflies. That's been fun out and about, when mine finds its limits and something amazing deserves better care or demands a stronger zoom. It has some bulk, but is light.
Jbee

[Greenbare Woods]

I have a 10 year old Kodak digital with a fairly large lens, but not a detachable lens.  Its too big to fit into a pocket, but for its day it did fairly well because of the larger lens.   I've been looking at some of the  newer pocket cameras.  My old Kodak needs replacing.  Here is a sample photo I took yesterday.   A little zoom, hand held. 

[Davie]

I use a Nikon D300s for serious picture taking but when out and about and weight and size is an issue I carry a Lumix TZ9. It's a sturdy camera with a good zoom range range and a Leica lens up front. It's quite versatile and I've had some great results with it. The only real downside is difficulty in seeing the viewing screen in strong light and I've lost some details on some occasions. 

Davie 

[jbeegoode]

Yea, Davie. It is getting more difficult to find a reasonable camera with a viewfinder. These TV screens reflect glare, blinding me. I don't know what I'm shooting. Also, I have to hold it out, unbalancing me and making for jigglys. It is more difficult to get in tight. I can't see all the details in those little TV scenes anyway, even in review. When we were looking for a camera for my girlfriend, it was difficult to find one with a viewfinder, unless it was big dollar.

I suppose it is one of those things with marketing. A gimmick taking over. Like why are all of these hiking and sports shoes now being made with bright reflective colors? Do they really believe that we are all innate showoffs craving recognition? Do we all want to be walking billboards for their profits? When I'm out hiking naked, I'd prefer to just to blend into the woodwork. And they project on us that we are the flashers!

[Greenbare Woods]

Yea, Davie. It is getting more difficult to find a reasonable camera with a viewfinder. These TV screens reflect glare, blinding me. I don't know what I'm shooting. Also, I have to hold it out, unbalancing me and making for jigglys. It is more difficult to get in tight. I can't see all the details in those little TV scenes anyway, even in review. When we were looking for a camera for my girlfriend, it was difficult to find one with a viewfinder, unless it was big dollar.

My old Kodak has a digital view finder.  It solves many of the problems mentioned.   Its usually easier to use than the little 3 inch video screen, especially in sunshine.   None of the new pocket cameras seem to have that, at least not so I've noticed. 

And I'm questioning the need for more than 6 MB photos.  My old camera is usually set on 1.5 because the big pictures are too big for posting on-line.   Some new cameras advertise more than 20 MB.  Is that just a sales gimmick?

Bob

[Davie]

The problem with high pixel numbers is they run the risk of showing lens defects. The size of the sensor is more important. I took a shot with the Nikon as a TIFF file which was 37 Mbs, one pic about 30 old floppy disks! I do however always use the highest quality setting as I can always reduce the file size for emails etc, and do it quickly.

The average size of the files for my small Lumix is between 5 - 8 MBs the the Nikon about 4 Mbs more

Davie 

[ric]

i started with digital with a 2mp olympus must be nearly 15 years ago.... still got a4 prints of the kids on the wall that were taken with it.
most of the pics i post on naturist forums are taken with a olympus 750 uz... 4mp , tiny screen, electronic viewfinder,10x zoom and came with a remote control...cost less than a tenner on fleabay.
ive tried pocket cameras with just a 3 inch screen on the back..theyre handy to carry but the screens are  totally useless as a viewfinder in sunlight.
weve also got a fuji 9600 bridge camera, its a good camera not pocketable , but not excessivly heavy to carry on a day out with the family.  but  for serious piccy taking you cant beat a dslr, mines a pentax with the standard lens and a 300mm tele zoom., ive still got some of the old lenses from my film pentaxes as well , though the film cameras themslves are long gone.  theres just something about an optical viewfinder with manual focus and manual zoom that makes taking serious pictures as opposed to snapshots) so much more pleasurable.

if i had to cut down to one it would be between the fuji bridge and the dslr... the bridge would probably win on price if that was a factor.

[Naked_Archer]

I have a few cameras, however the one that I use mostly when I'm out on my bicycle / rambling of going for spot of free range naturism is my trusty Canon A590IS.

It's a pretty basic camera by modern standards, only 8m, however it does offer full manual mode (plus with hacked firmware, raw capture).  One of the best features of this camera, ideal for free range naturism self portraits is it's programmable self timer. You can choose any delay up to 30 seconds, and the camera can then be set to take 1 to 10 shots.  Ideal for giving you time to get into frame and pose!

My other cameras are a Pentax K100D DSLR, with a selection of lenses, Pentax 18-55mm, Tamron 70-300, Zenitar 16mm fisheye, and a sigma 10-20mm.  I mainly use this camera with tripod if I'm doing landscape photography - it's a bit of a bulk to carry, however the increase in picture quality is worth it.

This year (as a post graduation from college as a mature student gift to myself) I bought myself a nice bridge camera, a Canon SX40HS. Quite a remarkable camera, 35X stabilized optical zoom (24-840mm) Using its in built digital 2.0 teleconverter I've successfully captured photos of birds on a pond at 1680mm hand held.  Still figuring out how best to use the camera for macro.  Ideal for a "nature camera" if I'm out for a walk / birding. 

Still a bit bulky though compared to my trusty A590is.
 
Naked Archer

 

[Georgew1959]

The new Tamron lens has been a great investment - I don't bother carrying any other now, but (almost inevitably) it's led to more expense - new filters, etc. I've more or less stopped using the EOS 50 now, and just about everything is digital. Now that I've got the hang of using grad grey filters to calm the sky down and get a more balanced exposure I'm happier with the results.

I've also just bought a lighter-weight tripod for carrying into the hills. My old one was too heavy to take with me all that often and I used to rely on a camera mount on top of one of my walking poles, making it a monopod, but that's of limited use.

[skin]

I use a Canon EOS 1100D, for best, a wee Canon Power Shot, for in the pocket and my phone for when I've forgotten the others!

[Georgew1959]

I'm feeling myself pulled towards every photographic shop I pass these days, specifically towards the DSLR displays. I'm finding the half-frame metering of my EOS 350D to be limiting and I'm tempted by the full-frame Canons. Can't afford the latest 5D models but I'm looking at a 6D body. It's only a matter of time before the temptation overcomes my prudence!