Just curious what camera gear do you guys use?

i'm currently using rz67 pro ii w/110 2.8, going to purchase 50mm and ae prism soon, this is a beast, best to hold it to show off your client, but a disaster to take it with you on location out in the woods...

At the studio i'm assisting they have some nice strobes & camera I can use as well...

before i was using an kiev 88cm w/80mm and 30mm fisheye, it was a blast to use and it really bought me in to medium format. but American Airline broke my enitre set which broke my heart...

35mm I've used fm2, fe2, f3hp, fm3a, n80, n90s, f100 and f5, f5's exposure meter is perfect and it's consruction is tough. I have to say... digital canon d10, nikon d100, d1x, non of the digital is perfect, both have their limitations.

medium format I've used hasselblad 500cw at the studio, they are compact and the lens is tack sharp

large format only cambo 4x5, tried with different lens, slow to setup and work with, did one work for school's president's office, they liked it though I think I did a horrible job...

I think a reliable equipment actually are very important, at least to me. Last time I was shotting a wedding and my N90s failed to perform and I was in middle of the very important scene can't do nothing but to use my backup digital and the the groom seems pissed...

Shoot with a Mamiya RZ67. Digital Polaroid with Nikon D100. Light with Alienbees. I use Kodak Ektachrome 100G slide film. Scan with Nikon Coolscan 8000. Out put digital files for printing with westcoastimaging.com

or u can use 20D canon for backup
1Ds-Mark II + T/shift lens (can create 4x5's perspective blur effect)

but the rz67 is the best for portrait i think.

you own the rz 67? how do u like it so far?

quote:

Originally posted by Philip Kwok:
[qb]
you own the rz 67? how do u like it so far? [/qb]

I wouldn't work with anything less.

canon 20d | canon elan 7n | ef-s 18-55mm | ef 50mm f1.8 | ef 85mm f1.8 | ef 70-200 f4 L

Id own more lenses, but its all Ive been able to afford up till now. Id like to own a 1d MKII next semester since Ive been shooting so much basketball. The 20d is good, but Im mooching all it can give me in the minidome here. Digital has advanced heavily since the d1x/d100 and 10d models. I shoot a lot of sports/journalism stuff though and being able to use iso 1600 and get clean prints has become a useful thing for indoor NCAA events where I dont have a strobe option. In the studio I would own a 1D over the 1d MkII for the full frame sensor.

i hear because of the digital age,
medium format is getting defeated by high end digital 35mm SLR...

i know u still need 120 / 4x5 for bill board size images....of course....

is that ture?

quote:

Originally posted by Philip Kwok:
[qb] i hear because of the digital age,
medium format is getting defeated by high end digital 35mm SLR...

i know u still need 120 / 4x5 for bill board size images....of course....

is that ture? [/qb]

Let me say it like this. We use a 6.1 MP Nikon D100 simly as a digital polaroid and proofer. The quality is horrendous and looks horrible at 8x10 and I'm sure would look even worse at the full bleed 11x14 and above that I print things at.

Perhaps I'm a sucker for quality but Digi 35mm SLR's don't even come close to a scanned 6x7 slide. I've said it before. I shoot with slides and scan them because I can't afford the up front cost of a $30,000 MF digital back. Otherwise I would go completely digital and practically I already am. As soon as my slides are scanned they go into storage, forever.

quote:

Originally posted by Matthew Rader:
[qb] [QUOTE]Originally posted by Philip Kwok:
[qb] i hear because of the digital age,
medium format is getting defeated by high end digital 35mm SLR...


Perhaps I'm a sucker for quality but Digi 35mm SLR's don't even come close to a scanned 6x7 slide. I've said it before. I shoot with slides and scan them because I can't afford the up front cost of a $30,000 MF digital back. Otherwise I would go completely digital and practically I already am. As soon as my slides are scanned they go into storage, forever. [/qb]

I completely agree with you.

I shoot only film and chromes and then scan them. The quality is far superior to that of digital in its current state, not to mention it's much less expensive.

I shoot many different formats, all film:

Large Format: Cambo 4x5

Medium format: Hasselblad 500CM, Holga (and for fun: Kiev 6C)

35mm: Canon EOS Rebel 2000, Minolta X-370N, Ricoh AUTO TLS EE

[/QB]

quote:

Originally posted by Matthew Rader:
Let me say it like this. We use a 6.1 MP Nikon D100 simly as a digital polaroid and proofer. The quality is horrendous and looks horrible at 8x10 and I'm sure would look even worse at the full bleed 11x14 and above that I print things at.

Perhaps I'm a sucker for quality but Digi 35mm SLR's don't even come close to a scanned 6x7 slide. I've said it before. I shoot with slides and scan them because I can't afford the up front cost of a $30,000 MF digital back. Otherwise I would go completely digital and practically I already am. As soon as my slides are scanned they go into storage, forever. [/QB]

One other thing about 35mm DSLRs: They are not yet as good as film at capturing high-key (light color or little information) areas.
I did numerous film/digital comparisons last year on the Canon EOS 1-D and the Digital Rebel, and neither of them came close to film quality. I'm sure the technology will be there soon (and for the record, I didn't test the 16MP cameras), but'til then, I'm sticking to film.

quote:

Originally posted by Teresa Franks:
[qb] [/qb]

quote:

Originally posted by Matthew Rader:
Let me say it like this. We use a 6.1 MP Nikon D100 simly as a digital polaroid and proofer. The quality is horrendous and looks horrible at 8x10 and I'm sure would look even worse at the full bleed 11x14 and above that I print things at.

Perhaps I'm a sucker for quality but Digi 35mm SLR's don't even come close to a scanned 6x7 slide. I've said it before. I shoot with slides and scan them because I can't afford the up front cost of a $30,000 MF digital back. Otherwise I would go completely digital and practically I already am. As soon as my slides are scanned they go into storage, forever. [/QB]

One other thing about 35mm DSLRs: They are not yet as good as film at capturing high-key (light color or little information) areas.
I did numerous film/digital comparisons last year on the Canon EOS 1-D and the Digital Rebel, and neither of them came close to film quality. I'm sure the technology will be there soon (and for the record, I didn't test the 16MP cameras), but'til then, I'm sticking to film. [/QB]

It's all digital in the end. My negs/slides are scanned and then thrown in a box. Its digital but not completely. If you handed me a 22mp Aptus Back I would gladly digitize my entire workflow. However right now $30k up front isn't exactly a plausible reality.

Right now, I shoot Mamiya 645 1000s w. 80mm and a Canon A2 for film. I also use a Digital Rebel w/ a 420EX for weddings, and when my boss is feeling generous, his 20D with a 550EX flash. I shoot film for the personal stuff though.

J

http://www.sjharmon.com
http://www.fencepost-fireflies.com

TERESA AND ALL :
I AM IN THE BUSINESS FOR 10 YEARS, I SHOOT FASHION AND STILLS. 3 YEARS AGO I DID THE JUMP: WENT DIGITAL STARTING WITH A DCS 760 ON A F5 BODY. RECENTLY I GOT THE 1Ds MARK II.....FULLY DEATAILS IN THE WHITES, NO NOISE IN THE BLACKS I LOVE IT, ITS SO RELIABLE. BELIEVE ME I WAS A NON DIGITAL GUY UNTIL I GOT THIS CAMERA, ITS AS GOOD AS A SCANED 6X7.

quote:

Originally posted by pmerchan:
[qb] ITS AS GOOD AS A SCANED 6X7. [/qb]

I disagree completely. 35mm digital can't hold a candle to a medium format capture. Perhaps for some the quality is "good enough" but its not even close in my opinion.

If the upfront cost wasn't so high I'd be shooting digital but at this point film and scanning is perfect. Its all digital in the end.

MATHEW RADER:

I RESPECT VERY MUCH YOUR OPINION, I WISH YOU COULD SEE A FASHION SHOOT I DID. TODAY ME AND MY CLIENT WERE AT THE PRINTING HOUSE TO CHECK HOW THE MAGAZINE WAS BEEN PRINT.....EVERYBODY WAS AMAZED OF THE QUALITY. (WE HAD A FILM SHOOT FROM A DIFFERENT PHOTOGRAPHER IN THE SAME MAGAZINE TO COMPARE)