Favourite camera related purchase of 2018?
Most of the camera sites are doing their favourite cameras and lenses released this year but instead I was wondering what people's favourite camera related purchase was, regardless of when it actually came out.For me it's the five year old Sony RX1R Mk1 which I picked up second hand from a local dealer (who crucially offers a warranty) when checking up their A7R2 prices.I've always liked the look of the RX1 and had previously considered buying one but decided it was too big for what I wanted as it's that awkward position where it's too large for a pocket but not as good as bigger cameras which need a bag anyway.In some ways it's worse now because it's up against the A7 series cameras which offer an EVF, onboard IS, changeable lenses, much better video, wifi/NFC (a fantastic feature I find really useful on the RX100m4) plus I'm admittedly a bit of a zoom person so a fixed 35mm which isn't wide angle nor a 50mm seemed awkward.
Even when I started using the camera I wasn't keen on it as the small size makes it feel like it's an RX100 with a hefty lens but has no IS and no zoom, even though I technically understand it's a full frame camera it seems wrong that it can take proper shallow depth of field shots plus has great DR and high ISO.Crucially it's *just* small enough to fit in my bike backpack so I've been able to take it out mountain biking with me and the shots at night are incredible compared to other compacts and mobile phones.Yes, my D750 could probably beat it but while I have tried to take that beast cycling with me that's meant leaving all my tools at home which is a little risky.The only difficulty has been resisting an RX1RII particularly for the wifi which is what I really miss but aside from not being able to justify the cost, I don't think I'd risk carrying it with me on the bike as it would be far too expensive to break it.
There's always people asking for advice here and what makes it so difficult is there is no one answer, it's what I find difficult myself is that I try to be so cautious with new camera gear now as so much of it doesn't really work out but then you never know when something unexpected does work out well. Edit: Misread op. So, Tamron 24-70 G2 tops my list, once I finally sorted out the front focus. Sharp, quick and absolutely brilliant for the gigs I use it for. Really is a quality lens.
Accessory wise:
To be honest I've not bought that much this year, couple new speedlites, and a few softbox options for them, which have been great.
Early this year though, I think, I picked up the Manfrotto Manhattan Mover 50 backpack. I'd been looking for a bag to replace my Lowepro, and this is perfect. Fits the D750 with 24-70, room for a couple more lenses and, crucially, fits my Tamron 150-600. Acres of space, nice bit of storage at the top too, rear opening which is great when switching lenses on damp ground, and looks great too. I bought a camera earlier in the year that auto transfers 2mp jpegs to my phone for "young" people to send to Facebook/Instagram/interwebz, you get the drift. Thought I'd never use that feature but have enjoyed it so much (I'm not young though) D850, unbelievable camera. The D750 was a tough act to follow but the D850 tops it in just about every department, colour rendition, AF, Build, VF, sharpness, detail etc. Plus it's probably never going to be topped as it's part of a dying breed. I'd like one but I know that I'm not at a level in either abilities or don't have the lenses to match that it would in any way improve my photos. But when did that ever stop a camera nerd buying a camera data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7 Never stopped me data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7 ...the bit about ability?data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7 Toss up between -
Paracord wrist strap - I tend to carry my camera in my hand rather than hung around my neck so having one of these provides a bit of a safety blanket
https://www.amazon.co.uk/MoKo-Universal-Paracord-PACK-Comfortable-Black-Army-Green/dp/B07GD8HH98/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1545247919&sr=1-1-spons&keywords=camera paracord&psc=1
and
Sigma 100-400 OS Contemporary - bought for my trip to India earlier in the year - replaces a Canon EF 70-200 F4 IS L plus 1.4x extender and I think it has it beaten all ends up as the Sigma is sharpest wide open, a tad longer and is very easy to handle i.e. small. What you loose in max aperture you gain everywhere else. Helped me get this shot data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7
Sigma 100-400mm 5-6.3 DG HSM OS Contemporary | Sigma Corporation of America
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IMG_3898a by A H, on Flickr Sometimes it's not all about the photo quality, I was backing up Mum's laptop recently and came across her Zi6 photos which was from a Kodak Zi6.This was a very basic photo/video device, very cheaply made, very poor screen and not very good image quality particularly compared to the Canon compacts the school used as my Mum was a teacher.However they ended up buying multiple Zi6's as they went down really well, they were very basic with only a few buttons but it made them very easy to use, they were durable, waterproof and they had a built in USB connection.Teachers found them easier to use and the young pupils were allowed to use them as much as they wanted due to their durability and how easily they could then work with their photos and videos.
I think you're right on both counts and when I was toying with the idea of an A7III earlier in the year I was giving serious thought for the D850 instead for those reasons. I’ve been collecting second hand lenses this year, hard to choose between 400 2.8 and 200 2.0. Both perfect for what I love to shoot - sports and events in low light.
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