I love big gear

[hambergler]

I disagree. DSLR is for the time where taking photos is the primary reason you are out. In these instances I will be traveling with a few lenses/flash and maybe a tripod.

Something like a Fuji X-E1 or a Leica where you want an awesome camera but want to enjoy yourself and taking photos is not the primary reason you are there. In these situations i'll carry maybe one extra lens.

RX100 or Fuji X20 for discreet portable.

 

[kubelik]

I'm sorry but this is just too stupid, and I couldn't disagree more. Your logic is almost the exact same logic that some people use when they want to buy a big car, just because they are "way manlier" than small cars.

It's plain dumbness, and I do hope you are joking. ;D

Anyway.. It is all about the IQ! The day when someone makes a small P&S-sized full frame body, with awesome IQ, dynamic range, clean high and low ISO, and decent AF, I will be the first photog to drop my big ass gear and go light weight! ..And I am pretty sure that many thousands will follow. At least all who mostly shoot static subjects and landscapes.

Why on earth would I want to go hiking or traveling with a bag full of bricks, if I don't have to?

it's not dumbness, because what you're talking about is completely wishful thinking. what P&S camera do you own that gives you the same "awesome IQ, dynamic range, clean high and low ISO, and decent AF" as a XD-level camera and L-lens?

sure, if you could fit everything that goes into a 5DIII, with the exact same level of performance in all ways (not just IQ, but also AF, ease of handling, etc.) ... then sure, why wouldn't we all save ourselves a few pounds. the reality is, that camera doesn't exist. not even the Sony RX-1 qualifies. there are plenty of instances when I'm on vacation that a 35mm f/2 lens would absolutely not be acceptable for what I am shooting.

I believe the OP was being a little tongue-in-cheek about the manliness thing, his real point was he enjoys the flexibility of having all of his gear available to him to use. as a generalist, I couldn't agree more. one moment I am shooting a landscape with GND filters on a tripod, the next moment I may want to be shooting a bird with a telephoto and extender. to do that, you have to walk softly and carry a big bag.

 

[crasher8]

While you beat your chest about your 1Dx and your 100-400 push pull, Ansel and I will be pushing and pulling our view cameras and wooden tripods up to Half Dome.

 

[kubelik]

While you beat your chest about your 1Dx and your 100-400 push pull, Ansel and I will be pushing and pulling our view cameras and wooden tripods up to Half Dome.

nice. the more behind-the-scenes stuff I read, the more impressed I am by the number of people out there still shooting large format. seriously, the past two months I keep coming across photos that I'm like, that's a great photo, I wonder what it was shot with, and then the answer is some kind of large format.

 

[AprilForever]

I... Like... Big... Gear and I cannot lie!

 

[Harry Muff]

I've been thinking about getting a proper rucksack camera bag for a while now. I've had a Billingham 335 for about 17 years now but I don't use it as it is too conspicuous to carry around.


For this reason, I've been using an old sports rucksack with a sweater in it for padding. It's not ideal, but at least it doesn't advertise its contents.


The Lowepro bags seem the least like they advertise what's in the bag, but is there anything that really doesn't look like a camera bag at all out there?

 

[RustyTheGeek]

I've been thinking about getting a proper rucksack camera bag for a while now. I've had a Billingham 335 for about 17 years now but I don't use it as it is too conspicuous to carry around.


For this reason, I've been using an old sports rucksack with a sweater in it for padding. It's not ideal, but at least it doesn't advertise its contents.


The Lowepro bags seem the least like they advertise what's in the bag, but is there anything that really doesn't look like a camera bag at all out there?

Totally agree. Packing thousands of dollars worth of heavy camera gear in a dedicated photo backpack only seems to accomplish two things...

- Advertise a lot of expensive camera gear is here
- Guarantee that you'll be doing nothing other than shooting pictures since there is no room for anything else

I typically use normal daypacks or backpacks and put the camera gear in individual protection, whatever that might be. Lens cases, fleece jackets, clothes for the hike, whatever. I need a backpack that is a backpack, not a lens case with straps. I'm almost always doing more on the trip than just taking pictures and I hate advertising that I'm carrying even more equipment as expensive as the camera I have in my hand.

 

[RMC33]

I honestly have started to love gripped bodies (big I guess). Balances out a heavy lens very well and makes it much easier to shoot handheld or even on a monopod. The weight of having to ski, trek or whatnot with it sucks but worth it in the end when you get the shot.

 

[Rienzphotoz]

I find Canon SLRs too light for my manly build, so I like to tape concrete slabs to them to make them heavier and bulkier. Oh, and I've glued broken glass to the hand grip too, because if you're not bleeding, you're not a real photographer.

;D

What FunPhotons said makes sense.
In India many women labourors carry concrete slabs to earn their daily bread and Eunuchs walk on broken glass, bleeding through their feet, to pay respect to their diety ... so I do not believe taping concrete slabs and gluing broken glass can be listed under "real photographer" category ;D

 

[cervantes]

As a counterpoint to the posts on here complaining about the size of a DSLR, I'm here to say I like it that way! I spend the weekend with a...

So where are the pics? :

 

[docholliday]

After years of traveling around the world on vacation carrying a Hasselblad (503 & 203) with a 110FE and 50CF/FLE, it's nothing to carry around a 1Ds3 with 21/2.8ZE - feels like half the weight. Well, that and before the Hasselblad stuff, I traveled with an RB67...

 

[epsiloneri]

Pansies ;D The LSST camera will be the largest digital camera ever constructed, measuring roughly 5' x 10'

And that doesn't even include the front lens: the 8.4 meter diameter mirror and the building to support it! http://www.lsst.org

 

[Nishi Drew]

I was all for big heavy gear especially for how grip-able and balanced to the lenses the camera bodies are + of course the IQ and dof/perspective control that bigger stuff provides.

But what's this, the OM-1 with the extra grips are perfect, fits my hand nicely and with how lightweight the lenses are I can carry more gear. I just need to keep on convincing myself that I 'need' an FF sensor when IQ, DR, ISO for photo and video of them mFT cams are getting so much better and super fast AF and weather sealing and the swivel screen...

 

[dr croubie]

Reminds me of when I went on a 5-day Scout Hike when i was 14 or so. They always recommend you carry 20% of your body weight or so, that that should have been 15kg at the time. Not only did I not have the lightest tent and sleeping bag, my bag was 23kg because I deemed that I couldn't live without a home-made sound system strapped to my backpack, powered by a few 6V lantern batteries, a whole heap of cassettes to listen to, plus a bottle of vodka and 2L of Coke to mix it with. With all that booze i never noticed the extra weight...

Anyway, the one lens that I haven't been hiking with yet is my big boy and my Hasselbladski...

 

[docholliday]

I caved and hiked for years with about 45-65lbs of gear on my back (of course, in a real backpack). So, to add a bit more weight to my camera gear isn't really noticable - it's still lighter than what I used to carry!

Of course, my 4x5 outfit wasn't exactly the lightest either. Even with CF tripods and everything else toned down, the camera, holders and lenses still makes my 1Ds3 feel like a feather.

Then again, you could always try carrying this for Hasselblad (yeah, that's a 203FE/205FCC at the end of it):

 

[insanitybeard]

Personally I wouldn't want a smaller body than the 7D I own. I like the solid feel of the 7D in my hands, I have used my partner's 400D on occaision and dislike the smaller viewfinder, the more cramped controls and the less solid feel in the hand, as well as the control layout. For me it just isn't as nice to use. So for this reason, whilst having lighter and smaller kit is not to be ignored, especially when you have other equally or more important things to carry, there is a limit to how small and light you can get things whilst maintaining full usability! And as has been said before, a compact (eg, mirrorless) body may be all well and good but place a big-ish tele lens on that body and the balance just isn't the same, the grip isn't as good, and for action subjects, BIF etc that can be a big issue!

 

[FunPhotons]

he enjoys the flexibility of having all of his gear available to him to use. as a generalist, I couldn't agree more. one moment I am shooting a landscape with GND filters on a tripod, the next moment I may want to be shooting a bird with a telephoto and extender. to do that, you have to walk softly and carry a big bag.

Yup. The serious part of my point is that I've got a couple smaller cameras, among them a S100 and a Fuji X100, that I got for just the reason of having a small side camera. The S100 gets some shots because during the working day it really is the only camera I can have with me. But, the poor quality of the shots compared to the DSLR is a bugger. The Fuji gets better shots, but the features - focus, speed, and shooting accuracy sucks. Again I find myself wanting the DSLR.

Will we ever have a camera that is as good as a DSLR in a tiny package? Possible, but I doubt it for a couple of reasons. One is the physics, a small camera simply won't be able to achieve the capabilities (speed, features, noise, IQ etc) of a DSLR. As small cameras advance so do the DSLR's. That will leave me wanting to use the DSLR.

Two, manufacturers want to place products such that there is a high end market and a middle end. Will somebody come out with a P&S body that has the capabilities of a Canon DSLR, with its full range of lenses, flashes, filters, etc etc? Possible but not probable.

Finally - more serious part here - I like my equipment. I like messing with it, taking care of it, and most of all using it. I would be lonely if I just had a little itty-bitty Leica and one lens, I'd feel like a puny girly man.

 

[zim]

.... 2L of Coke to mix it with.....

Now that's girly! ;D

 

[FatDaddyJones]

Bigger is better when it's bigger for a reason. Big DSLRs are generally better cameras than little point and shoot cameras. One of my favorite things about the 7D and the 5D Mark III is the ergonomics - they just feels good in my hands. They fit. They're well balanced. I've got a small shoulder bag that I can throw my camera and lens into when I don't need all the gear, but if I know I'm gonna use it, or there's even a chance I might need it, I take it all. Isn't that what photography's all about. What's the use of having it if you don't take it with you and use it?

The people who say that "good things come in small packages" are trying to sell you something. I like my camera gear like I like my women - Big, Fat, and in the sack.

 

[crasher8]

In class today we were discussing pinholes and Holgas when the guy sitting in front of me whips out 100-400 Push Pull. I think I drooled on my desk. Not that there's anything wrong with that…him whipping out his push pull