Equipment:
I am now working almost exclusively with digital cameras. My
serious digital photography started with a Nikon D100 and a Fuji S2 Pro. I now use both a Nikon D300
and a Nikon D200 which are a joy to use.
I have recently disposed of my 35mm cameras, and it was like parting
with old friends, although they hadn't been used for at least a couple of years,
I use a variety of lenses, including:
Nikon 24-85 mm
Nikon 18 - 200 mm VR*
Nikon 70 - 300 mm
Nikon 80 - 400 mm VR*
My "standard lens" seems to be the Nikon 24-85mm , which boasts an f2.8 aperture and a macro facility.
This never seems to be off my camera these days!
I also use a Manfrotto tripod that is awkward to carry, but which gives a very stable camera platform.
I have also recently purchased a Gitzo "Traveller" Tripod that is very light, made of carbon fibre, and packs easily into
a carry-on flight bag. It is very expensive, but is theonly tripod that fits my needs for foreign travel.
Although I have recently addeded VR* lenses to my camera bag, and image stablisation works well, I am still
not sure about these lenses - they enable me to work faster, but using a tripod instils a certain discipline and forces
me to concentrate more on the image I am taking.
In my images I use a variety of filters. These include:
UV filters
Circular polarisers
Gray graduates
Warm-up
Neutral Density
Even with digital photography, it is best to get the image right "in camera", rather than to rely on corrections
in Photoshop after the photograph has been taken. I use gray graduates a lot to hold back to bright skies in my images. Polarisers
I often use too to remove reflections. At other times the UV filter protects my lens.