Battleangel | Personal

Following my recent acquisition of the Canon 40D I realized that there are quite a few accessories that one will need to make the most of a DSLR. Especially when aiming for high quality macro shots.

Firstly I needed another, bigger compact flash card. Not as big as I would have liked perhaps. But I reckon I wont be doing very many RAW shots so I’m sure I’ll be fine. I found some interesting figures for different memory card speeds on the 40D but none of it really convinced me to shell out for the latest 300x cards.

I have a tripod on order so I can’t really say much about it yet. In the end I went for the Manfrotto 055XPROB and the 488RC2 head. I also got a cheap but padded bag just in case I don’t find a good backpack that will let me strap the tripod. The 055XPROB was more money than I would have liked, but I really had no choice. Sweeping the second hand markets turned up nothing, save for a few people who wanted to sell Gitzo Explorers (G2220), but a quick search revealed serious problems with this particular model. It’s all very remarkable coming from a supposed premium brand. Also, buying Gitzo would pretty much guarantee that I wouldn’t be able to afford replacement parts

Furthermore, with regard to macro photography, I picked up a remote shutter, Phottix TR-90. Seems to work perfectly, even if it feels a little crummy. In particular, the shutter button is mushy and doesn’t have the tactile half-press feel of the shutter on your camera. Other than that, it does the same thing as Canon’s timer remote, which is by all accounts three times as expensive. The remote has backlighting and it can be set to a maximum of 399 shots, or unlimited if that is your preference. It’s a very useful thing to have around, not just for eliminating camera shake but also to create time-lapse and other useful applications.

Unnecessary perhaps, but I also got one of those hand straps, not the one from Canon (since it doesn’t mount without the battery grip on) but a cheap knockoff from JJC (HS-A). It seems OK if a little small and flimsy perhaps. But I guess it can’t be too big either or it will get in the way and be difficult to wriggle out of. Overall it seems good, but I guess I was expecting miracles for offloading the weight of the camera. It’s a bit like having a waist strap on a cheap backpack then I guess. Also, if you got long fingers, the strap could force your palm closer to the camera and you may overshoot the AF-ON and AE-LOCK with your thumb. Or maybe I just need to get better acquainted with the strap. And as with all straps, including Canon’s own neck strap, it would be nice if it had some sort of quick release for getting rid of the damn thing even if it isn’t half as annoying as the damn neck strap permanently attached just in case you will need it.

As for cleaning the camera sensor I got a rocket air blower. For lenses I have two different high quality cloths that I think will do the job nicely.

For the future I’m considering, amongst other things, a macro rail of some sort, a light tent with lights, a GGS screen protector, a portable gray card, a 430EXII flash with Lumiquest softbox, off-camera cord as well as a camera bag. All of these items, save for gray card and GGS, are somewhat problematic. A flash is a bit of an investment, as is a macro rail and camera bag. And I don’t know if the softbox technique will be all the effective, compared to a specialized twin flash setup or elaborate bracket configuration with more than one flash unit, but it’s a start.

A macro rail from Velbon or Manfrotto is about $100 or so, and though I have found a cheap alternative as low as $60, there is the issue of quality across this price range. Whether the rail will allow stable adjustment even in awkward angles or upside down if necessary. And whether it will be any good beyond 2:1 magnification or so. I mean hey, for that price it should bloody well work for a MP-E 65. Obviously I can’t buy a rail from RRS, Kirk etc since that would probably cost me more than the tripod and ball head put together.

And as for the bag I really hate proprietary camera bags. My opinion is this. Either it will have to some sort of slingshot that allows fast access without taking the off bag and yet is possible to carry for hours at a time. Or it will have to be a normal hiking backpack with some sort of insert to accommodate a camera and lenses in an orderly fashion. I did consider camera backpack like the Lowepro Mini Trekker but that is just backwards. You wont be able to access your camera quickly and just like most slingshots it doesn’t have extra space for even a bottle of water. So obviously it would be pretty stupid to bring your entire camera equipment if you’re going to starve to death anyway. LOL. As for slingshot bags I did look at the specs for the KATA 214 but considering that KATA is an Israeli company that at least until recently manufactured its products in Israel as well, and brags about its origins with and links to Israel’s military, murder and state terrorism so I think I’ll pass on that.