I’m looking to expand my equipment soon, but this is what I have so far:

Camera

  • Canon EOS Rebel T1i
  •  Opteka Battery Pack Grip / Vertical Shutter

Lenses

  •  18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS
  • 50mm f/1.4 USM
  • 70-200mm f/4 L IS USM
  • 40mm f/2.8 STM

Filters

  • Infrared
  • UV
  • Polarizer

Tripod

  • Dolica 62 Inch Proline Tripod / Ball Head

Flash

  • Canon Speedlite 430EX II

Lighting

  • Ravelli ALS 10′ Air Cushioned Stand
  • Westcott 45″ Optical White / Removable Black Cover Umbrella
  • Manfrotto 026 Adapter
  • Stofen Omni-bounce OM-EW Diffuser

Literature

  • Speedliter’s Handbook by Syl Arena

 

I’m looking to upgrade to a 6D, and possibly grab the 24-70mm f/4L IS lens. The high ISO performance would be a GIGANTIC boost to what I could do, and would help me get more out of my lenses for how I use them.

I’ve invested a lot more time into this than money, honestly. But that’s just an idea of my gear.

Some of my thoughts regarding this stuff:

Canon T1i – I love this camera. The controls are right where I want them and I still find new tricks every once in a while. It’s more than capable of taking great pictures and has proven to be a sturdy, resilient, and reliable little thing. There’s lots to be said for a full frame camera, and high ISO capabilities, and a larger viewfinder, and better autofocus – but in the same way that your first car is special because it’s yours and got you from A to B, this camera is special to me.

50mm f/1.4 – May be great optically, but not mechanically. On a vacation, the autofocus jammed and I took it apart on the floor to try to bend it back in shape. I may have been a little rough with my camera bag, trying to fit everything into a car, but I don’t think I put any real stress on the lens. It will have a problem every once in a while but it just has a bit of a fragile feel to it. That said, it’s my fastest lens and I’ve taken some great pictures with it – it’s just fussy, that’s all.

70-200mm f/4L IS – Oh my god, if every L lens is as good as this then I’m going to have a financial problem. Incredibly sharp, beautifully smooth, and a wonderful piece of tech. Want a telephoto lens? Get this. It exudes quality. Just buy an extra front-pinch lens cap, cause otherwise you’ll feel like you’re scratching glass every time you put it on.

40mm f/2.8 STM – For being this cheap, it’s incredibly fun. I recently went out with just this lens, and it worked great for street shots on a crop body. The size is a great advantage – another working setup is  the 70-200 attached and this one tossed in my pocket. It’s good but not incredibly sharp, sturdy but not strong. The manual focus is a bit noisy and odd, and it looks kinda silly. But easily the best bang for your buck lens I have, and it’s very inconspicuous.