Warning: This particular blog is probably dull to all but the photo gear freaks out there.
I got two new spaceships, as my lovely Italian friend Irene would call them. I spent more money yesterday then I’ve ever spent before. As I’ve mentioned, I lost my great little Canon SD500 Digital camera. It’s been gone now for what seems like months and I’ve been missing it, especially shooting little movies with it and snaps of friends along the way. I’ve also heard about by dream camera being released, the Canon 5D. A full frame 12 MP SLR. I researched prices online at B&H Photo, and tried to figure out how much time & money it would cost me to ship them here. It would have ending up costing more (and would have been a huge customs headache) than if I just bought the stuff here, so I ended up finding the best pro camera shop in Bangkok and buying here! First of all, the Canon SD550 (IXUS 750). This this is truly a spaceship. It’s like a tiny computer with a lens and and 7.1 MP sensor. Even though I had it’s predecessor, I still needed to study the manual for over an hour and take notes. Insane. At 450.00, it’s not cheap. It can be found for under 400.00 back home. Now I can shoot videos again! Yeah!
Then there’s the dream camera. This is the camera I’ve been wanting since digital SLRs first came out: A full frame digital SLR. This is the third model released by Canon, and only the fourth one ever made by any company. Canon is definitely leading the way for digital SLRs. It’s also the first full frame SLR to be “affordable” as the others were closer to eight thousand dollars when they were first released. It’s basically a Canon 20D with a better sensor, so I am completely comfortable shooting with it. It’s also got a nice big review screen, which I am very happy about. It cost me about $3200.00. Scary. I hope it pays for itself before it’s replaced by something even better. I better get to work shooting some great photos! Anyway, that price is about 150 dollars more that if I bought it in the USA. But the owner of this great camera store in Bangkok was so nice, I told him the price differences and he helped to make it up by giving me a free memory card and some lens/body protection bags. So ultimately, I’ve only paid about 100 dollars more for everything. Not bad at all actually. I was worried about not having a USA warranty…but then I realized I won’t be in the USA very much in the next year, so it doesn’t matter! Now I have two Digital SLRs and the great little pocket camera. I am totally set!
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My Photo Gear:
Canon 20D (x1.6 CMOS sensor)
Canon 5D (Full Frame CMOS sensor)
Canon 16-35mm 2.8L
Canon 50mm 1.4L
Canon 70-200mm 2.8L IS
5 batteries
6.5 GB worth of CF cards
(Range of Lenses:16mm-320mm at f2.8, up to 448mm at f4.0)
Canon SD550
2 batteries
1.5 GB worth of SD cards
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I don’t want to tell you what all of this is worth. I don’t even want to think about it.
My 20D has the 16-35mm lens on it (making it a 24-53mm), and the 5D has the 70-200mm on it, So I have just about everything covered from 24-200 at f2.8 without having to change lenses! I also have a 1.4 50mm lens, and a 1.4x extension for the 70-200mm. This is truly a dream kit. No more switching lenses all the time!!! It’s taken me 10 years, but I am finally really happy about my photo gear. Who wouldn’t be? If I want, I can also switch the lenses, and then I have from 16-35mm and 112-320mm. So, because it’s a full frame sensor, it’s also like I got 3 new lenses! The new camera addition obviously makes my bag a little heavier, but not by much. The 5D weights just a little more the the 20D, so it’s almost nothing compared to that insanely heavy 70-200 I’m hauling around. Hopefully this will allow me to get shots much faster. The last thing I need to figure out is my camera bag. It’s a great bag, a good size, but it’s not really designed to carry cameras and lenses around. My 50mm has been damaged from hauling it around, and is in repair here in Bangkok. I am thinking about how to tweak the bag almost every day, and now I am on a quest to find some plastic inserts to give the bag some better structure and cushion. Ok, sorry to bore you with my camera gear business. I am just so excited about my new gear! First thing I need to do is INSURE it! God help me if I get it stolen.
I am really enjoying Bangkok much more this time around. I still haven’t met anyone to hang out with, which I seem to have a problem with here, but I am actually liking the city much more now. Everything I need is here, and much of what I don’t need. Tomorrow night I will head down to Koh Lak for a diving adventure in the Similan Islands! Then I come back to Bangkok once again, and fly off to Burma! Please note, I will be COMPLETELY UNAVAILABLE for the entire month I am in Burma. There is NO email that I know of.
Greg