{"id":15262,"date":"2020-12-06T09:40:53","date_gmt":"2020-12-06T17:40:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/randyw.camiwp.com\/?p=15262"},"modified":"2026-09-29T14:30:55","modified_gmt":"2026-09-29T22:30:55","slug":"15262","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/randywells.com\/blog\/15262\/","title":{"rendered":""},"content":{"rendered":"

PHOTOGRAPHY EQUIPMENT<\/strong> <\/p>\n

As a full-time pro for over 30 years, the gear I take on assignment depends on what is needed. Contrary to what it might look like, I prefer to work with the minimum amount of equipment. <\/p>\n

Being familiar with the gear is most important to me. To that end, I’ve always carried some form of Canon or Leica in my kit. With their cameras and lenses, I don’t have to think. I just do. When Leica discontinued their 35mm SLR film-based system, I switched to autofocus Canon EOS 35mm SLRs. <\/p>\n

Around the same time, I also switched from Kodachrome 25 to Fujichrome Velvia 50 slide film. When digital camera image quality evolved to a more than satisfactory level, I transitioned to Canon’s full-frame digital camera bodies and their latest lenses for my editorial and commercial work. I’ve stayed with Canon’s latest offerings since then for my professional assignments. <\/p>\n

My Basic Automotive Photography Kit For Commercial\/Editorial Stills and Video: <\/strong><\/p>\n

Canon R5 mirrorless bodies (2) with spare batteries and memory cards
\nCanon 16-35mm f\/4 IS EF L lens
\nCanon EF 24mm f\/1.4 L II lens
\nCanon 35mm f\/2 IS EF lens
\nCanon 24-105mm f\/4 IS RF L lens
\nCanon 50mm f1.2 EF L lens
\nCanon 70-200mm f\/4 IS EF L II lens
\nCanon 500mm f\/4 IS L EF lens
\nCanon 1.4X II Extender, 12mm ext tube
\nAdapters to use Leica R, Nikon AI and Voightlander lenses
\nRemote releases, ND and polarizing filters
\nLeica Q with 28mm f1.7 Aspherical lens
\nSamsung Galaxy camera phone with DJI Osmo Mobile 6 and mount <\/p>\n

Kit for Studio, Portrait and Art Work – Stills and Video: <\/p>\n

Leica SL3P body with adapters (on wait list)
\nVoightlander Nokton 21mm f1.4 lens
\nLeica R 35mm f2 V.II lens
\nLeica M 35mm f1.4 V.I lens
\nVoightlander Nokton 40mm f1.4 lens
\nLeica R 50mm f2 lens
\nLeica R 60mm f2.8 lens
\nLeica R 80mm f1.4 lens
\nLeica R 180mm f3.4 Apo lens
\nAdapters to use Leica R, Nikon AI and Voightlander lenses<\/p>\n

Leica Q with 28mm f1.7 lens
\nLeica M analog and digital bodies with a dozen M lens options<\/p>\n

Carry On Bags – for selected items from kits above:
\nLowe-Pro backpack in Pelican carry on case
\nLeica table tripod, ball head and mount
\nWalkie talkies, Marine radio
\nSmall carry on bag with change of clothes, sunglasses, hat, dopp kit, and
\nMacBook Pro M2 with card readers and Samsung Drive <\/p>\n

Checked bag #1: <\/strong><\/p>\n

Either:
\nProfoto B1 portable lighting lit with modifiers, grids, stand, sand bag, batteries, charger
\nDJI Phantom 4 Drone with batteries, charger or
\nDJI Ronin Stabilizer x 2 with monitor, handle rig and roller <\/p>\n

Large Pelican Case
\nSmall Gitzo tripod
\nCable lock
\nCar rigs and harness
\nClothes<\/p>\n

Checked bags #2 and #3<\/strong><\/p>\n

Includes what’s not in checked bag #1 from above and
\nMore clothes if over a couple of days
\nLarge Pelican case
\nCanon 5D Mk III camera with 17-35 Canon EF lens for car mount
\nReflectors
\nNumerous GoPros and mounts
\nTascam and cell phone audio recorders
\nCamera car mounts, monopod<\/p>\n

Additional for long road trip: <\/strong><\/p>\n

More Pelican cases and cable locks
\nA variety of Gitzo tripods
\nApple boxes
\nGyrostabilizer
\nPortable studio
\nTribal Rug
\nPorsche Cayenne equipped for car to car photography and cinematography <\/p>\n

Notes:
\nFor flash, the Profoto portable lighting system has proven reliable for studio shots and moving subjects outdoors. All flashes can fail, just like memory cards and external hard drives, so I also carry two, plus a spare flash tube. The lighting kit also includes C-stands, reflectors, gels and a variety of modifiers and soft boxes. A GoDox light is added as needed.<\/p>\n

Spare lenses for the crew include a set of Nikkor AI lenses 20mm f4, 28mm f2, 35mm f2, 50mm f1.4, 105mm f2.5 adapted. I rent Red, Arri Mini and medium format digital as needed. <\/p>\n

Photography equipment is simply a tool. Seeing and having something to say are MUCH\u00a0more important. That said, I look for gear that is of the highest quality, easy to use, and has characterful rendering. For analog film, I use a Hasselblad 500C, Canon EOS-1V, Nikon F, Leica M3, and Leica M6. <\/p>\n

I always shoot in RAW on two cards in each camera. After the shoot, one set of shot cards stays in a secure holder inside a zippered vest pocket on my person. As soon as I return to my hotel, the RAW files are backed up on my computer, Dropbox, and at least one hard drive. All drives are kept in different locations, or one is FedExed home. I love what I do, but I’ve also learned not to assume anything. <\/p>\n

P.S. My kit for vacationing and personal work is a digital camera, usually the Leica Q with its 28mm f\/1.7 Aspherical lens and an Leica M9 with a 50mm f\/2 Summicron. This is for pure seeing, shooting slowly and deliberately. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> <\/p>\n

(Last updated September 2026) <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

PHOTOGRAPHY EQUIPMENT As a full-time pro for over 30 years, the gear I take on assignment depends on what is needed. Contrary to what it might look like, I prefer to work with the minimum amount of equipment. Being familiar with the gear is most important to me. To that end, I’ve always carried some … Continue reading “”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"spay_email":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/randywells.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15262"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/randywells.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/randywells.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/randywells.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/randywells.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15262"}],"version-history":[{"count":419,"href":"https:\/\/randywells.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15262\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30282,"href":"https:\/\/randywells.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15262\/revisions\/30282"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/randywells.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15262"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/randywells.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15262"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/randywells.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15262"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}