Jarette Howell Photography | Northeast Ohio Wedding Photographers | Modern Weddings and Portraits

Current Camera Gear I Use

Over the past few months, I’ve had quite a few people ask me what gear I shoot with. I’m sure most of you have heard the famous saying, “It’s not the camera, it’s the Photographer.” While this expression is true for the most part, equipment does play a large role in creating those “WOW images” that will help draw in potential clients to your work. Since I’m not one of those photographers who are secretive about their gear or how they achieve a certain look, I will gladly share what’s inside my camera bag, giving a short review of each product. As you can see from the images above (courtesy of The-Digital-Picture), I shoot primarily with Canon camera bodies and lenses, although I’ve found some third-party lenses to be just as adequate as their Canon counterparts for my shooting style. Alright, let’s dig in shall we?

Cameras:

{Canon EOS 5D} – This has been my workhorse camera for almost 3 1/2 years now. When I looked through that large viewfinder for the very first time, I knew that this was going to be my favorite camera. Boasting a 12.8 megapixel full-frame sensor, the 5D has more than enough resolution to make amazing prints, wedding albums, and even large posters. I have yet to encounter a project where 12.8 megapixels just wasn’t enough for the client. The three major factors that attracted me to the 5D was the purchase price, the size/weight of the camera, and the fact that it was full-frame. In fact, the 5D was the first ‘affordable’, and light-weight full frame camera to be introduced on the market. When I bought mine in January of ’07, I paid around $2k for it. I know some of you are probably thinking, “How is that affordable?!!” Well, at the time, the going price for Canon’s flagship camera, the 1Ds Mark II (which is also full frame), was going for around $7k! So you can easily see how the 5D was such a revolutionary camera for it’s time. Even though it has now been replaced by the 5D Mark II, the original 5D is still a great camera for those who are looking for a worthy upgrade to the xxD or rebel series. I still find myself in awe of the image quality and low-light capabilities of this camera.

{Canon EOS 30D} – I recently purchased this camera as a backup to my 5D. When buying a backup camera, I generally look for some similar features and functionality between the two, so that I can make changes to the settings on the fly. I’ve shot a wedding before with a 5D and a Rebel XSi, and I really couldn’t get used to the fact that the Rebel series do not have a wheel to change the aperture. Fumbling around with buttons during a wedding could mean the difference between getting the shot or not. The 30D was the perfect choice for me because it is almost a clone of the 5D when it comes to build and features. Even though it only has a 8.2 megapixel cropped sensor, it shares the same autofocus, menu, spot meter, and 2.5″ LCD screen with the 5D, making it easy to switch back and forth between the two. These can be found used for around $325 – $400 on the market, making it a great choice for those looking to buy their first DSLR and don’t want to break the bank.

Lenses:

{Canon 50mm f/1.4 USM} – I just recently acquired this little gem to replace my 50mm f/1.8 Mark I, and I have been highly impressed with it so far. Currently, this is the fastest lens in my lineup, and it allows me to get those extremely shallow DOF shots that everyone “oohs and ahhhs” over. The bokeh is also much, much smoother than that of the 50mm f/1.8 Mark I or II, making it a worthy upgrade. I think every photographer should have at least one 50mm prime lens in their bag. Now if only I could just get my hands on a 50mm f/1.2L…

{Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8} – This is the only lens in my lineup that isn’t made by Canon—and there’s a perfectly good reason for that. As of now, Canon currently only makes one lens for full-frame cameras in that focal range that has a fixed aperture of f/2.8, and that lens is the 24-70mm f/2.8L. I’ve owned this lens before, and while it is an amazing lens as far as build, AF speed, image quality, sharpness, color and contrast, the only downside is it’s selling price, which is around $1k. This is a focal length that I feel is required to have for shooting weddings and events, however, it doesn’t mesh with my normal shooting style of separating the subject from the background, so I don’t find myself gravitating toward that focal length as much. Since the Tamron can be purchased for less than half of the cost of the 24-70L, I chose to go that route and have never looked back. It is sort of a trade off because you lose about 4mm on the wide end, but then again you gain an extra 5mm on the tele side, which is nice if you are shooting portraits. I haven’t been disappointed with this lens so far, and the only way I’d get rid of it is if I chose to go the prime route and could afford the 24mm f/1.4L, 35mm f/1.4L, 50mm f/1.2L, and the 85mm f/1.2L II. Hey, a man can dream, right?

{Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L USM} – The 70-200L is my go-to lens for mostly everything I shoot. From portraits to weddings to model shoots, this lens has proven to be a very versatile asset. It is spot on as far as color, contrast, sharpness, build quality, etc., but that is to be expected from a L series lens, right? I’ll probably be upgrading to the 70-200mm f/2.8L IS sometime in the near future for image stabilization features, but for now, the non-IS version has a happy home in my bag.

Memory:

I have roughly around 24GB worth of CF memory cards in my bag. The brands I use are SanDisk and Kingston; you can’t go wrong with either of those two. I never go above 8GB in a single card. It’s just something about potentially losing 16+ GB worth of photos on a card that doesn’t set well with me…

Business Cards:

You never know when you’re going to run into a potential client, so I always make it a habit to keep cards in my bag. There have been so many times where I’ve run into people who asked me for a card, and I didn’t have any. So now I’m very paranoid about keeping some on me at all times.

Batteries:

I currently carry two BP-511A batteries per camera in my bag. The good thing about the 5D and 30D is that they both take the same type of battery, so it makes it easy if I’m running short on battery life and need to swap them out.

Rocket Blower/Lens Cloth:

Whether you are in a dirty environment and need to clean your sensor/lenses, or are just OCD (like me) about keeping your glass clean, a rocket blower is a cheap, and valuable tool to keep in your bag.

As you can see, I carry a modest amount of equipment in my bag. I use a Lowepro Slingshot 200AW, which is just barely big enough to hold everything, so I’m probably going to upgrade this very soon as well. I really love this backpack though; it allows me to take lenses in and out of it without removing it from my shoulders. The bag can “sling” from your back around to the front of your body very easily, which makes it perfect for wedding photographers, sports shooters, or photojournalists who may have to change lenses very quickly to get the shot. I hope this post answers a lot of your questions about what I shoot with, and maybe it will assist some photographers in deciding what their next purchase will be. I know a lot of you guys have questions about what I use as far as lighting, so maybe that will be the subject of a future post!