December 28, 2021

My current camera setup and what I would ideally use

I decided to write this article after a few people have asked me what gear I use. First I will share exactly what gear I currently use as I'm writing this. Then I will share what would be my ideal setup for field work and for photographic work.

What I use today
My camera is a Canon M50. It's far from being the best Canon camera on the market and is initially for vloggers but it's all I could afford at the time. It still does take great pictures and is small and lightweight which is something you truly appreciate when taking pictures in the field all day!
My lens is a Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro APO. It's a great and affordable macro lens. It's a manual lens though meaning that there is no autofocus and no automatic aperture on some models. I don't think the lack of autofocus is a big deal when shooting macro, especially if your camera has focus peaking. However, I do appreciate the automatic aperture on the Canon EF model of this lens.
You should know that I have to use an adapter to use this lens on my camera.
Most important though is the lighting. I don't think brand and model of flash you use matters as much as how you use it but having an external flash for controlled lighting is very important for macro, and can even be useful in broad daylight. I personally have a Godox TT685c which works great. For controlled lighting you also need a diffuser. I made my own diffuser as most people do. It took me many prototypes to construct a sturdy and efficient diffuser. I'd advise you search on internet to see the many models of DIY diffusers macro photographers use. Most of them are quite similar to one another.

What I would use solely for field work
Here I will describe what setup I would use for taking pictures of invertebrates in the field. I "built" this setup imaging I would use it in the field all day so I am prioritizing small and lightweight gear.
I would probably choose the Canon M50 Mark II for its size and weight. They are probably smaller cameras from other brands such as Olympus which are as good or better than this Canon camera but I'm not familiar to other brands so I'll stick to what I know.
For the lens I would also have to stay with Venus and choose the Laowa 65mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro APO. Alternatively, for a better camera and a smaller lens, the Canon EOS RP with the Laowa 85mm f/5.6 2x Ultra Macro APO would also make a fantastic portable setup. For the flash, I would probably go with the Canon Speedlite 270EX II or a similar flash in size. I would also build a smaller diffuser accordingly.
Obviously, for all-day field work, I'd recommend bringing extra batteries both for the camera and for the flash.

What I would use if I had a dollar for every observation I uploaded to iNaturalist
In a world where I would be rich and where my arms could carry any camera weigh for an entire day in the field, this is the kind of setup I would use.
For the camera, I would use the Canon EOS R3 and for the lens I'd have to go with the new Canon RF 100mm F2.8L Macro IS USM. For the flash I'm not sure. I'd probably go for two small flashes on brackets or for the Laowa KX800 Flexible Macro Twin Flash with yet again a DIY diffuser.

If you have a any questions or comment you can send me a DM or comment below :)

Posted on December 28, 2021 07:04 PM by martin_galli martin_galli | 1 comment | Leave a comment

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