It’s been a year since we did our last gear update, so what better way to wrap up 2018 than a review our equipment, what’s in our essential travel bag, and what we love to pack on our trips! Read on for a behind the scenes look at our photography gear!
Photo Gear: Camera
Photo Gear: CameraOur workhorse camera remains the Canon 5D Mark IV. 2018 saw the introduction of some impressive mirrorless bodies for both Canon and Nikon, preceded earlier in the year by an update to the Sony a7 III. Mirrorless is definitely not going anywhere, but this year we decided to stay the course and continue investing in professional-grade (Canon “L”) lenses. Note that these EF mount lenses are also compatible with the new EOS R mirrorless body.
Our backup body remains the Canon 80D (cropped sensor), which with it’s articulating screen is great for secondary filming (video/vlogging) and backup B-roll. We still recommend the Canon 80D as a great introductory body for anyone looking to start. Paired with our L lenses, it is an impressive DSLR body for ~$1,000.
Photography Gear: Lenses
After investing in the 5D Mark IV last year, we turned our focus to additional lenses that fit our needs. There are a lot of factors to consider when designing your “lens kit”. The first factor to consider is focal length. Before even thinking about specifications, manufacturer, or zoom vs. prime, you need to decide what type of subject you are shooting and your “style”. Below is a comparison of a range of focal lengths from 16mm all the way to 200mm. Notice how I stay the same size but the background disappears from the entire street at 16mm to just what is directly behind me at 200mm.
We love shooting the following:
- Food Photography – 16/24/35/50mm – It is great to be able to be close to the food while being able to actually focus. For example, the 85mm can’t focus on a subject closer than a couple feet plus it wouldn’t get the entire plate in frame.
- Portrait Photography – 50/85/135/200mm – We love to capture fun moments when traveling or us in really awesome places. At these focal lengths, we can frame a shot that really focuses on the subject with a varying level of background detail and bokeh.
- Landscape Photography – 16-35mm – When trying to capture an entire landscape, being able to zoom out as far as possible to capture everything without having to stitch pictures together is really important.
- *Video – When we shoot video, we take into account all of these focal lengths because each can tell a story. Do we want all the detail that a 16mm shot can provide, or do we want to be tight to the subject with little background?
Shooting at really all of the above focal lengths, we had to decide what would work best in a variety of applications. Our blog last year went into detail regarding zoom vs. prime (fixed focal length lenses), aperture, and other specifications. This year we started off by investing in the 24-70mm (our favorite) and this is now a permanent member of our photography gear bar! This covered most of the necessary focal lengths. As we continued to travel and shoot more, we decided to go for what some photographers refer to as the “holy trinity” of L zoom lenses. We now have 16mm all the way to 200mm covered on the full-frame setup in only three lenses…and when the 70-200mm is on the 80D up to 320mm (that crop factor)!
Zoom Lenses –
- Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM Lens – This is our “run and gun” lens. If we had to only have one lens in our camera bag, it would be this one. Shooting at f/2.8, it provides a decent amount of bokeh and background blur. When we can’t bring our entire bag (like on our recent quick trip to Iceland where we only had our carry-on backpacks), this lens does most of the work. Autofocusing is quick and quiet (USM = Ultrasonic Motor AF System). Last, being a L lens, it is weather sealed and extremely durable.
- Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L III USM Lens – Also new to us this year, the 16-35mm is our favorite wide-angle zoom lens. Just like the 24-70mm and 70-200mm, the constant f/2.8 aperture is great at all focal lengths, provides for excellent light transmission (especially in low light), and delivers that nice background blur. We had the pleasure of shooting some pictures at our friend’s wedding, and this lens was amazing at capturing everyone on the dance floor up close!
- Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS III USM Lens – Just to start off, this lens is BIG! Recently released this year, it upgrades the previous version 70-200mm. Unlike the other two zooms in our bag, this one is stabilized which is extremely helpful when holding the lens by hand. There is a slightly less expensive version f/4.0. Seeing as we will be using it for portrait rather than wildlife or landscape photography, the extra stops are worth it.
Prime Lenses –
- Canon EF 50mm f/1.2L USM Lens – Also new this year is our 50mm L lens. This lens is a beast at f/1.2!
- Canon EF 35mm f/2 IS USM Lens – Although not an L lens, this lens is great for traveling as it is lightweight compared to the larger 50mm and zoom lenses. It has image stabilization which is very helpful when shooting video or handheld quick action shots.
- Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM Lens – Great for portrait photography and great bokeh/background blur. It is a great lens and although it would be nice to have the L version for the weather sealing and image stabilization, we couldn’t justify replacing this one just yet.
- Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens – At $125 (compared to 10x that for the f/1.2L), this lens still has not been beaten for value. We carry this as a backup lens all the time, especially if we can only fit one or two zoom lenses into our bag.
Do you have any #CameraGear on your Christmas list? Check out my #Amazon page for links to all the gear we use! https://t.co/tkhp8IxJrR pic.twitter.com/Oco10sQc8Z
— DIGINAUT (@digitalnaut_) December 24, 2018
Wish List Lenses – While it is easy to get GAS (“Gear Acquisition Syndrome”), it is important to remember to buy equipment that fits your needs and is worth it. Prime 24mm, 35mm, 85mm, 100mm macro, and 135mm L lenses would be great but as travel photographers we don’t always have the luxury to bring five or even two lenses. So while zoom lenses are inherently compromised compared to prime, the flexibility and range is worth it for us. We have found ourselves shooting at 24mm, 35mm, and 85mm more frequently so in the future we may be able to make the investment.
Flash Photography
After lenses, this year we decided we needed to invest seriously in lighting! Since we attend so many nighttime events, we needed a good flash setup. A good flash setup is not cheap, but can totally make the difference.
Here is what we use:
- Canon Speedlite 600EX II-RT – After a lot of research and borrowing other friends’ flashes, we learned that buying the highest output flash was the best investment. The 600EX II-RT has a wide range of settings, can act as the trigger for when you have multiple flashes, and is extremely bright.
- ProMediaGear BBX Boomerang Flash Bracket – This is a must if you are shooting with a flash! There are two main reasons that using a bracket is important. One is that moving the flash off the camera reduces the chance for redeye and allows you to better aim/diffuse the light making it more natural. Second is that after setting up the flash to the right settings to get that perfect shot, switching horizontal/vertical makes all that work irrelevant as the flash is now in a completely different position. The ProMediaGear bracket keeps the flash in the exact same spot above the camera no matter the orientation, allowing effortless switching between horizontal/vertical. The Boomerang flash bracket is lightweight/durable (made of aluminum and titanium) and ergonomic (fits extremely well when holding the camera and provides access to the battery compartment).
- Gary Fong Lightsphere – When we bring our flash in our bag, our lightsphere diffuser is a must. It provides soft omni-directional lighting that again makes the lighting more natural and less harsh.
- Batteries/Accessories – Good batteries are crucial for flash photography. Panasonic Eneloop Pro AA Rechargeable NiMH Batteries are top of the line. To be honest, we actually find ourselves running AmazonBasics AA NiMH batteries as backups. NiMH batteries provide for better storage and discharge much slower than older version rechargeable batteries. Whenever our Eneloops are empty on a shot, we have found that the AmazonBasics have a great refresh cycle in the flash (don’t leave us waiting to shoot more shots) and come at a great price. Last to mount the flash on the bracket we use a flash cord and connect it to camera’s hot shoe.
Video: Drone
For the past couple years we have used the GoPro Karma drone (check out some of our epic European Road Trip footage).
This year we decided that we needed something slightly smaller and more travel friendly. We went with the DJI Mavic Air and we absolutely love it! The drone fits in our bag easily (and can even fit in some pants pockets). We’ve been taking it everywhere with us and have gotten some amazing shots!
Camera Bag
Traveling is our favorite and as we have invested in more gear, we have been mindful to invest in protecting it. Different trips require varying levels of equipment. Our go to bag remains the Lowepro Pro Runner BP 350 AW II. Whenever we have the option to travel with at minimum a carry-on, we bring this bag as it has a variety of configurations. Last year we described how it carried both DSLR bodies, lenses, chargers, ring lights, laptops, tablets, and memory card accessories. Sometimes we remove the second DSLR and instead put the drone, GoPros, tripods, or even the massive 70-200mm lens. The key for us is the size, easily fitting under an airline or train seat or in an overhead compartment. With so much equipment (and footage when we return home), keeping our gear with us secure and protected is paramount. When we have the luxury of both taking a bag, we also bring the slightly larger Lowepro Pro Runner BP 450 AW II. This bag allows us to easily bring a complete set of equipment, lenses, computers, and accessories.
Photography Gear: Lighting / Tripods / Software / Storage / Accessories
To be honest, we haven’t really updated many of these items. Our Savage light rings are staples in our travel bags or when home/in studio. The portable light is great for food photography while the larger studio ring is great for inside shoots. Our Manfrotto tripods are fantastic and continue to travel the world with us.
Adobe (Lightroom, Photoshop, and Premiere) is our go to suite of software. We will also occasionally use Final Cut Pro X for video editing as well. We continue to use server-grade G-Technology drives in a RAID configuration to ensure that our libraries are backed up (redundant drives) with thunderbolt connections providing a fast connection to our iMac 5K. Last, be sure to check out last year’s gear update for the memory cards, card readers, remote triggers, and battery grips we use.
Photography Gear: Year In Review
As food and travel photographers, our equipment is part of everything we do. We enjoy investing in our equipment because it allows us to continue to share our adventures. We continually are learning new techniques and challenging ourselves, which provides the opportunity to create even better content. As we said last year, the photography gear doesn’t make the photographer. We recommend starting with a good camera and some utilitarian lenses that offer room to grow and learn. Then when possible, upgrade and add equipment. We hope this year’s update was helpful! To check out all this gear and more, visit our Amazon Wishlist: Amazon.com/Shop/JQLouise.
