just want a write about the importance of buying the right equipment.
Every now and then I come across a situation that requires a purchase and I have now come to conclusion do you ever buy the right thing?
Last year I bought a new compact tripod head, it has served me well but recently i have found myself wanting to make fine adjustments in very difficult situations. I would advise anyone if they are thinking of buying any photographic equipment to follow a few simple guide lines:
1) camera bag, take all your equipment to a camera shop, find a bag that fits all your equipment then buy one that is at least twice the size!
2) tripod, a good but light weight one should do, something along the lines of the new Manfrotto 190 range, the carbon fiber ones ar lighter but more expensive, the 055 tripod is taller but heavier but worth the extra weight.
3) tripod head, depending upon if your like ball heads or not i would only advise buying a 3 way geared head, allows for very minor adjustments without having to undo a lock adjuster and then get the wrong position again because the when the adjuster gets tighter it moves the position.
4) lens, ok being a slight snob Canon L series lens are worth the extra money, having bought one new one recently I have notice a slight improvement in quality, it’s ok to buy Sigma or tamron lenses if that’s all you can afford but all to often i see people with expensive cameras and cheap lenses it doesn’t work like that, good optics are a must, you would buy a cheap pair of glasses would you?
5) filters are really important, never leave home with out a good quality polarizer filter and a good set of ND grad filters, I prefer Hoya and the Lee Filter range, Trouble with Cokin grads is that you don’t get the movement to allow you to position the grad where you really want it, yeah Lee are very expensive and the filter system isn’t cheap to start but as long as you can get a filter holder system that takes 100mm wide filters your can buy the more expensive filters to fit in.
6) a cable release is a must for night time or long exposure photography, there are different types and only one will be right for you, some are very basic and some can offer all kinds of features like program long exposures, take photographs every few seconds for few hours. personally speaking if you can afford the extra money then buy the one with more features.
7) cleaning, never leave home with out a cleaning kit or at least a lenses cloth or a pen, nothing worse than getting back only to find dust mark on your images! check your sensor every time you go out and during (if you can) a good sensor cleaning kit like Delkin are very good and even though today’s digital cameras have a built sensor cleaner they still haven’t built one that gets rid of it all!
Well that wraps up for today’s little hints and tips, more on there way (soonish)
take care
