What's in my bag

A short post about my gear

What's in my bag

My photographic journey has been one of evolution. Both in terms of skill but also the kit I make use of.

Yes, I've been guilty of GAS (Gear Acquistion Syndrome) at times, but I think I've finally settled on the right gear for my requirements now.

Where did it all start

I bought my first SLR back in 2006, a Nikon d50 with the aim of trying out photography. My first wife and I had a trip planned for Rome and I figured it would be nice to try and capture something. So armed with the D50 and a couple of lenses off we went.

My first ever street photo

From there I adapted and grew as a photographer, quickly going through:

  • Nikon D70
  • Nikon D200
  • Fuji S5 Pro
  • Nikon D700
  • Fuji X-T10
  • Nikon D7200
  • Canon 70D
  • Sony A7II
  • Canon RP
  • Nikon D7200
  • Nikon D750
  • Nikon D810
  • Nikon Z6 mkII
  • Leica SL2-S

As you can see it's been a bit of a journey. In addition, I recently bought a Ricoh GRII for a carry around/travel camera. The Leica is a beast of a machine and it's not suited to been slung round this ol' neck all day long.

Lens wise, I've shot with many many over the years but my bag is currently occupied by:

  • Sigma 35mm f/2 Contemporary
  • Sigma 65mm f/2 Contemporary
  • Sigma 105mm f2.8 ART Macro

I also have the Sigmat ART 35mm f/1.2 but it's just too heavy when combined with the Leica so it's getting sold currently.

What I've been surprised about so far (bearing in mind I've used it for 1 shoot at the time of writing) is how clean the RAW files are for natural light.

This was shot with the 35mm f/1.2 using natural light. 1/60s, f/1.2, ISO 320

This is another example, the 65mm 1/250s, f/2.8 ISO 10,000.

The 65mm was an interesting proposition when I sold my Nikon gear. I could have simply bought another 50mm ART, which has been my go to portrait lens regardless of camera system I'm shooting. But I figured the extra 15mm would perhaps be a little more flattering to my subjects and edges closer to telephoto focal length. Time will tell.

So I'm very happy. A bit like an F1 driver dreams of driving for Ferrari one day, I've long desired to be a Leica owner, and now I am. I'm really looking forward to the art I'm going to be able to create with these lenses and this fabulous piece of engineering.

In the lighting bag

I predominantly make use of studios that provide lighting for most of my shoots but, as with the upcoming road trip, there are time when I need lighting gear. I've danced around this and hand a Yongnuo speedlight set up but as there wasn't a controller for Leica I was in a quandry. My options looked to be Profoto and Godox or a universal trigger set up.

Many years ago I procured a pair of Profoto Compact 600s. Sadly, at that time I knew nothing about lighting and they were wasted on me. Couldn't figure out how to get the best out of them and sodl them.

I'd carefully considered a set of B2 Airs, even getting as far as winning a reasonably priced set on eBay, only to have the sale cancelled on me by the seller as they were having issues with eBay.

So sense kicked in and I settled for a Godox set up of AD300, plus 2 AD200's along with the new X3 controller for Leica.

I already had a bunch of Bowens fit modifiers so this did make the most sense, really.

So there you have it - that's what's currently in my bag and what I shoot with!