Documenting our adventures is a big priority, both for the hobby aspect of it now and the memory preservation aspect of it later.
Jenn and I bought our first camera in 2006, Canon’s first digital SLR, the RebelXT. It was advanced technology at the time, and I thought to myself, “There’s no way I’ll ever learn how to use all of these features.” With time, reading, lots of practice, and big travel ambitions, we eventually outgrew the RebelXT and I was ready to take a step forward with my photography.
The Canon 70D was next up and it was been a great upgrade. Lens upgrades were slower, though. I enjoyed the 28mm prime before the motor quit, and the low-end 50mm prime was fun (I didn’t worry too much about the possibility of breaking it). 
When we added the 10-22mm I started having a *lot* of fun. While some may not be into wide angles, and the distortion that sometimes comes with the territory, I really like wide angles. Sometime not too long after adding that wide angle, we took on a Rokinon Fisheye. This certainly is a gimmick lens, but it’s a fun gimmick lens.
Our plan, though, for adding an L-series or a really big telephoto, a really good pieces of glass, was to wait until Alaska, where closing the distance between a grizzly and us would be at a premium.
That plan changed when we made Tetons, Yellowstone & Glacier our 2016 trip. We couldn’t go to these amazing places, see the amazing wildlife these parks have to offer, and work to make these amazing memories for our family and not document it in the way that we felt we really ought. Accordingly, we added the 24-105mm L and the Sigma 150-600mm Sport to the line-up, and then the 5d MarkIII for an extra body. With this collection, I felt like I was ready for all that nature could throw at us. (And nature proved to throw a ton at us in the Galápagos!)
And adding an extra body has proven nice given that Jenn and I can now shoot together on hikes and explorations. Additionally, she took the 70D body & 24-105mm L lens to Thailand while I was able to shoot the Great Blue Heron w/ the Sunfish (below) over the same time while at home. Also, our kids enjoy taking photos from time to time, and whether they’re using our Nikon CoolPix, the GoPro Hero4 or one of the Canon bodies, it’s neat to see what they come up with.
As practice for the western national parks, I took lots of hikes and photos of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park along with some of the Summit MetroParks, and we took the lenses with us to the Caribbean. We’ll see where this all takes us. At the very least, the kids will leave home with a priceless library of photobooks to remind them of their family adventures.
(As a further aside, one of these days I’ll list the pros and cons between the 70d & 5d MarkIII, because while the big-shot photography gurus will have you believe they’re in completely different classes, don’t be fooled into thinking that the former is inferior to the latter simply because of cost when it comes to documenting vacation and travel memories.)
Prior to our Death Valley date trip of 2018 I upgraded my fisheye capability and moved to the Canon 8-15mm L. I love the autofocus that the Rokinon lacked. It’s certainly not a use-with-every-shot lens, but it takes some cool photos.
And it’s a great selfie lens for unique solo & family shots.
Most photographers aren’t real keen on overusing the fisheye, or using it as a primary, carrying around lens. But I can access photos of most locations that are pretty standard. And I can take the standard photos myself. What aren’t plentiful are the unique views that a fisheye provides, and I’ve found it to be a pretty good artistic lens. You’ll see more of it on this site than others.
After driving the 70d into the ground with thousands of photos, wide temperature swings, and just a ton of miles over the years, it finally bit the dust while Jenn was using it in Redwood National Park. Bummer. We both loved that camera. The ease of use, the intuitiveness of the software, the versatility of lenses it could take, the WiFi capability. So we upgraded to the 80d. It has most of the good features we enjoyed about the 70d (except I’m not a fan of how the user is to change the focal point… the 70d had it way better). All in all, I’m a fan of the 80d, and it’ll make a nice companion to the 5Diii.
Star trails and night photos have become an interest over the years. A good intervalometer and a tripod can get you some neat photos, and The Photographer’s Ephemeris has all of the data relating to moon & sun position, sunrise/set, moonrise/set, galaxy rise/set and all of the twilight times in one place. To take your landscape & night photos up a notch, get this app.
With all of this hiking, interest in night photo, and need for sturdiness with heavy lens/body combinations, I needed a tough tripod that could handle the weight, but also could fold down and not be too heavy on my back. The MeFOTO A0350 has been a nice addition. It’s not the most convenient in all areas, but it’s been a great compromise in my key areas of need, and it’s been fun for stars, waterfalls and those times when a low ISO is worth the time to get set up.
January, 2022… It’s been a while since I’ve revisited this page and shared some of my updates. There are two new items worth sharing, one is for any photographer, no matter their budget, and the other is totally for the photographer who has seemingly exhausted all things and is still looking to expand into a new area.
Platypod. Just a couple of paragraphs above I mentioned the difficulty of finding something sturdy for the camera body/lens combination yet light enough to carry on hikes. Enter Platypod. Click the link, get one for yourself, thank me later.
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The second thing to share at this time is the addition of tilt-shift capability to my arsenal. The learning curve is steep, but I think it’s paying off already with some unique shots.
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