Saturday, February 7, 2015

Camera Gear Evolution

 Bikepacking and photography are pretty inextricably linked, for me.  There was this one particular bikepacking trip that inspired me to challenge myself to take better pics, and I think I took a big step forward in the right direction.  For context, I recognize that I am a serious hack, but a hack that is somewhat serious, to be fair to myself.

Over the last two genuine trips I took, these were the cams that went with me:  The full-on DSLR on the right, and the high-end point-and-shoot on the left.  A shit ton of gear, then.

I've recognized that I need to lighten things up, and I've been aware of this awesome new class of hardware that calls itself "mirrorless", but I didn't have any real motivation until Stine posted this up.

So shit, now I am motivated, to the point that I own a Sony A6000 mirrorless (center), which I have no clue how to use and which I had no business spending money on.  But as you can see, it is awesomely compact, in the sense that it may enable me to ditch the huge pile of hardware on either side, while still allowing me to retain my hack photographic sensibilities.


I'm not sure how to carry this weird-shaped contraption.  Or what it even is or does, for that matter.  Or if the mega-awesome S95 could ever actually be "eliminated", which seems like blasphemy.

Figuring this all out in early Feb seems to be right, though.  I'd like to work through some of the confusion before I have an actual need to use it.

Which is coming right up.  Say late Feb, early March.

Oh hell.  I'm screwed.

Some wildly experimental pics will obviously emerge . . .

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I feel your conundrum. On tour, video and photo equipment adds a lot of bulk to my gear list. I have forgone clothing to lighten the load for a DLSR, tripod, point and shoot, GoPro, Kodak Playsport video camera and and ATC Chameleon.

John Speare said...

sweet.

man, i'd make quick work of that odd-shaped fragile thing... week. tops.

rory said...

I got a sony QX-10 to try out, and I like it. it's a little annoying, but it's enough to expand on what my phone can do, and also auto upload images the way my phone already does. the next one I want to get it the QX-1, which is bacically the micro 4/3 one, with interchangeable lenses.

Pat S said...

AMR, you make me very happy with my decision to shun videography, based on your added gear list. I dabbled briefly, and also the compiling/editing time suck was just too much. IIRC you're recently retired and if I ever do the same (which seems unlikely, give my penchant for buying bikes and cameras), I'm all over that shit, the technology is so rad and the artform can be quite alluring.

Mr. Speare, you would indeed make quick work of it, as those of us who have spent time around you can validate. It is a blessing upon you that you have not only the introspective capability to recognize this character trait, but the comfort within your own skin to accept and leverage it to your advantage.

Rory, I was not even aware. That's badass, in a technological sense. I'm not sure I could get my arms around it for a full hug as a bikepacking solution though (which I doubt is your objective).

My whole bigass goal with this cam is high quality pics with high accessibility. And lighter weight, of course. How you pack it so that it's right there when you need it, keep it clean, protect it from impact and vibration on rough terrain, protect it from rain and sweat, etc etc. I'm wracking my brain over the solution, which is really fun. I picked up a $15 case tonight that I am going to seriously hack but which I think holds some good promise. More to come on that.

Stine said...

well done!

Michael said...

Mirrorless and 4/3's stuff is the bomb for outdoor adventuring. Love my Canon G1x and haul it around on all sorts of adventures.