Blog
Blimey that's a big one - do I really need all that gear?
29/12/09
Camera bodies:
I use a Canon 5D Mk2 as my main body and a Canon 50D as my second/spare body. Natural gear lust would make me go for a second 5D or even a couple of 1Ds Mk3s if I could justify it, but to be honest the bodies I have and in particular the 5D, offer more than the resolution, ISO range, speed and overall quality that I need. I keep a battery grip on the 5D Mk2 because a) I simply use it more than the 50D, which means that the twin battery helps, and b) its useful to have the second trigger for portrait shots. Maybe I’ll get a grip for the 50D at some point but for now the weight gain this would mean (see below) is a deterrent and I simply don’t need the additional battery life in this body.
Lenses:
A Canon 24-105 f4 Zoom – ideal for probably 80% of the shooting I do during the day, a Canon 75-200 f2.8 - good for longer shots, a Canon 16-35 f2.8 for very wide angle stuff – can come in useful in some church interiors etc if the very wide view is particularly interesting.
I tend to keep a 24-105 on the 5D and a 75-200 on the 50D. The 5D’s full frame makes good use of the wide end of the 24-105 and its got really excellent high ISO noise performance so the 24-105’s f4 max aperture isn’t a problem in low light. The crop on the 50D sensor enhances the reach of the 75-200 and makes the combo a little lighter in the hand than with the 5D – not much but enough to be noticeable when it counts.
Flash:
I use 2 Canon 580EX Mk2 Speedlites. One sits permanently on the 5D and is used primarily for fill in for outdoor shots. The second is mainly for spare but sometimes gets used on the 50D/75-200 combo for longer shots if the ambient light is really grim, or as a second/fill in flash in my (bad weather) studio setup (see below). I’ve used a variety of diffusers on the 580s including a FongSphere, an Omnibounce and the bounce-card on the guns themselves, all with mixed results. I tend to stick with the Omnibounce for most stuff simply because its results are most predictable (if not necessarily the highest quality) and it’s the least obtrusive. I also use the second 580EX bounced into a small brolly on top of a monopod (un-extended) if I want high quality fill for bride & groom portraits. The latter is a fairly cumbersome setup but does give very nice results and is just about manageable with camera in one hand and monopod in the other. It’s also far more portable than an extended tripod and cheaper than an assistant.
When I started this game I conscientiously carried a full Bowens 2 light portable studio setup with 2 x 500ws monoblocks, stands, brollies and spares in order that on those occasions that the weather turned foul (come on it’s the UK) I could do group formal shots indoors. These days however I’ve become a true Strobism devotee and all I carry are the two 580EXs (which I would carry anyway) a couple of stands and a couple of brollies (one of which also has other uses outlined above). The brollies and stands are tied together with ball-bungees and can be left propped in a corner to look after themselves until needed. With better high ISO performance in modern sensors I find that I can perfectly acceptable results from the 580EXs when bounced into the brollies. This setup also has the advantage of not needing a mains supply, one of which isn’t always conveniently situated, or trailing leads, which can be a health and safety issue particularly with crowds of semi-inebriate people milling around.
To pop the flashguns I use a Canon ST-E2 remote trigger, which is perfectly reliable for the distances involved and doesn’t require a separate receiver unit plugged into the guns themselves (these are built into the 580EXs). Again, it would be nice to boast a full set of pocket wizards but I doubt they would be any more reliable in the situations I’m talking about. The ST-E2 retains all ETTL functions and allows balancing of the guns from the camera, which can be useful for composition.
I also carry a set of CTO and CTG gels of various densities in order to match dominant room lighting colour casts, which I can balance out of the whole scene afterwards if necessary. This way I can make my guns work with the room lighting rather than trying to override it and using precious power in the process. They’re nothing fancy, just some Lee samples cut to size and taped onto the guns when needed. One problem that I find arises increasingly, particularly as venues try to become more environmentally friendly, is that in order to preserve some degree of warmth in the lighting regime while providing the biggest bang for their watt, many venues have quite difficult mixes of tungsten and fluorescent lighting. This means that its quite frequently wiser to adopt a ‘put up with what you’ve got’ attitude in relation to casts as trying to gel for one cast over another and then correcting later, will often lead to problems with even more exaggerated colour issues than if left alone.
Other bits and pieces:
I’ve already mentioned the BG-E6 battery grip for the 5DMk2 – sorry but I think it was an absolute bummer that canon changed the battery design for the 5DMk2 – the gains in terms of battery management are just not worth the trouble of having to manage two different type of battery, spares and charger. I use Sandisk Extreme III 8GB CF cards, which are big enough to give me circa 300 shots in RAW from the 5DMk2 and most important they’re reliable. They’re not the fastest cards in the world but I rarely if ever shoot long bursts so they’re fine. I carry spare batteries for everything (several sets of AAs for my 580EXs) including the ST-E2. I also carry an off-camera flash lead in case the ST-E2 fails, if necessary I can use this for one ‘master’ flashgun and remote trigger the second as a slave.
Bags:
OK not the most exciting bits of gear but important nonetheless. I use a Lowpro CompuTrekker Plus AW as my main carry, with a few of the spares mentioned above and the 16-35 lens in a smaller Crumpler bag, which as I’ve said stays in the car for most gigs. The CompuTrekker carries a shed load of gear, including up to a 17” notebook if required, but gets rather heavy on the back if filled to the brim. This backpack can also be very useful as a knee rest if working low down in damper conditions – after all you don’t want to get your suit trousers dirty do you. It can also be used to stow a bottle of water and a couple of sandwiches, which can be a Godsend on an all day shoot and saves a fortune on hotel bar prices.