LWW Loc: Banana Republic of America

Much talk goes around about a one lens walk around rig.

Although I do have one with a NIKKOR 18-200, any 11:1 zoom has compromises. This setup is fine for snapshots, zoos and the like ... but when I do more serious work, here is my walk around ‘HUMAN CAMERA BAG’ setup.

First off, use a DOMKE PHOTOGS VEST for warmer weather and their jacket for cooler weather. With plenty of large pockets and awesome weight distribution these allow easy carrying of multiple primes.

DSLR - NIKON D7200 with MB-D15 grip. Easy vertical shots, plenty of battery power and light enough all things considered.

TELEPHOTO - NIKKOR 180 AF-D 2.8. Fast, razor sharp, very light for a 270 FF equivalent. Great for indoor and outdoor sports and adequate for birding and most wildlife.

MEDIUM TELEPHOTO - NIKKOR 85 AF-D 2.8D. Same as the 180 other than shorter, so birding is mostly out.

SHORT TELEPHOTO: NIKKOR 50 1.8 AFD. Toted for the odd portrait. Great museum lens.

‘NORMAL’ LENS: NIKKOR 35 1.8 AFS.

LANDSCAPE: NIKKOR 10-20 AFP. I know it’s a zoom but it’s tiny, light, sharp and quite versatile.

EXTRAS: A few CPLs, occasionally NIKON 10X50 binoculars.

OPTIONAL: A NIKKOR 28-105 AFD MICRO in place of the 50 if I anticipate some closeup opportunities.

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5 lenses :-(

LWW Loc: Banana Republic of America

Yeppers, and less total weight than my 80-200 AFD all by itself and distributed weight is much better. :-)

Every lens is as fast other than the 10-20 where speed is much less important. Three are over a full stop faster. :-)

All are much shorter in physical length making them easier to maneuver with. :-)

The 80-200 is a more desirable lens for some things, such as auto racing or very fast moving outdoor sports.

For planned shots the prime setup forces it to the bench.

IMHO primes rule the day when time allows for lens changing. The end quality is just better.

Ourspolair

Nice setup - I carry 4 in a shoulder bag, one on the camera. Not sure that I could adapt to a vest...

Thomas902 Loc: Washington DC

"...IMHO primes rule the day when time allows for lens changing. The end quality is just better..."
LWW somewhere along my journey I was a "Prime Snob" that was until I entered the commercial wedding arena... Where I learned the brutal truth about theory verses practice...

"In theory there is no difference between theory and practice, however in practice there certainly is"

Bottom Line? Either you are a pixel peeping enthusiast or a professional commercial photographer... Which translates to an accountant driven photographic practice.

btw since you purport to have (or have used) the following Nikon cameras: F * F2 * F3 circa 1980 and F4s (circa 1988) then you should be keenly aware of the outstanding optic performance of the AI-s 80-200mm f/4 which at 810 grams is nearly identical in weight to the amazing and legendarily AF 180mm f/2.8D... If you have time to change lenses you should have time to manual focus... I have and shoot the AI-s 80-200mm f/4 which is indeed razor sharp throughout it's entire zoom range... Albeit I would never consider it a lens for events, only studio usage...

LWW how much of your revenue stream is generated from your photography work? What is the URL of your commercial web site? While primes have there place in commercial architectural photography etc. they are decidedly not the choice of those who actually have to pay the bills with a camera... a.k.a. location portraiture and wedding photographers...

All the best on your journey LWW

LWW Loc: Banana Republic of America

They are weather dependent.

The jacket is well vented with a mesh back, but much past 80 and it can get rough.

Over a flannel shirt it’s good to about 40 for me. The sweet spot is 55-75 with a t shirt and 40-55 with a long sleeve shirt.

For colder weather, the DOMKE jacket, which has to have been patterned after a US MILITARY M65 field coat, is good down to zero if dressed well underneath.

It has even more pocket area and a rainhood ... photo gloves are a must though in very cold and a mask or hat helps also.

I have three DOMKE bags and they are my hot and dry as well as travel/storage go to units.

I started with the bests because I hate having to rest a bag on wet ground, I never had a problem from it but I never felt comfortable about it either.

LWW Loc: Banana Republic of America

I have done some pro work for local papers and such as a free lance thing.

I have sold some prints but revenue from photography is a small slice of my personal income.

I have done two weddings ages ago, and will never do another. You have more patience than I if you do many.

As to being a pixel peeper, I’m not but I get your point.

I have been blessed with very good eyesight, at 64 I can get by with nothing but readers. I do wear scrip trifocals, but the distance is just clear glass ... Plano I think they call it ... wit a readers strength at the bottom. The middle strength is because I’m an avid billiards player and the strength is set for about 4 ft out.

Anyway, I digress as I often do and in primes there is just a pop that isn’t quite there in zooms to my eye.

Thanks for the comments and stay healthy.

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I’ve seen the 80-200/2.8 afd on the shelf. Never hefted it cuz my eyes told me not to bother. So yes, I see what you mean.

Nevertheless ... 5 lenses. Hard for me to imagine any 5 lenses that can’t be further culled down to 3, especially when overall weight matters.

Just my approach. Hits me oddly that you go with 5, but that’s just my approach and your approach side by side.

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In a lifetime of earning a fine living in photography I have NEVER had a commercial or personal website for my work. If it has become a necessity then I’m happy to be done with that game.

Though I’ve always paid the bills via photography, it was often easier to have two bodies both with primes vs a monster zoom lens. A zoom is mainly the no brainer choice when the camera is mounted to an elaborate flash rig, but thankfully an f/4.0 zoom is plenty fast with flash so I’ve never had to haul one of those huge fast zooms around. I see that you also favor the f/4.0 version.

Bottom line is that your wedding work, which is common to many others, is not THE sole standard of comparison. To the wannabes that career is “The Pro”, but to some on a different path you’d be just another “Wedding Hack”. Not that either of these broad descriptions applies accurately to most individuals, but just observing that you often post such experience and methods as if it’s the general norm in photo careers ... when acoarst it is only a parochial subset.

Whatever your career experience, or mine, it has little connection to someone’s personal “walk about” preferences. Over time, my very fascinating walk about gear was almost never similar to my workday gear.

Spirit Vision Photography Loc: Behind a Camera.

3 rolls of B/W film and one Nikon 35 f/2 Nikon Prime.

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Used to have a very similar approach ... except that I’d have felt uneasy with only three rolls of film !

LWW Loc: Banana Republic of America

There isn’t a one size fits all, I agree.

I hate to be without a lens I need however, and any one of them doesn’t make a lot of difference. But, sometimes I leave the 50 and 10-20 at home and take a 16 ROKINON MF.

Sometimes I take a NIKKOR 135 2.8 MF And leave the 35 and 50 at home.

I’ve been blessed with good genes and at 64 and am 5-11 200 and get around very well.

That being said, those 5 seem to be the ones I most often use, and I don’t use all of them every time out.

An old adage is that I’d rather have it and not use it than need it and not have it.

Some

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I hear ya.

Sometimes my walk about trio or duo is “well balanced” for general use, such as 24/50/105 or 35/85. But sometimes I put odd constraints on my walk about kit, like last week’s fisheye/135 duo. Walk about gear is personal and subject to whims.

FWIW I never actually engage in walk about “image hunting safaris”. I should probably call my casual outfits “grab and go” rather than “walk about”.

LWW Loc: Banana Republic of America

An F4s with an 80-200 2.8 AFD weighs in at about seven pounds if I remember right.

I used to pack it around with an old NIKON VESTRAP which distributed the weight decently with its built in strap ... but Im no longer 180 lbs so it doesn't fit.

Spirit Vision Photography Loc: Behind a Camera.

I very recently acquired my first Digital camera (Nikon D750), and I find the Nikon 24-120 f/4 VR to be more than adequate to cover all of my shooting needs. 👍