Photography Q&A: Real Questions. Real Answers.

Gear porn.

Q: ASSUME YOU HAD TO START YOUR GEAR LIST OVER FROM SCRATCH AND ONLY HAD A BUDGET OF ABOUT $5,000. WHAT WOULD YOUR RIG LOOK LIKE? ALSO, IF YOU WERE TOLD YOU HAD TO GIVE UP ALL YOUR GEAR EXCEPT ONE CAMERA, ONE LIGHT, AND ONE MODIFIER, WHAT WOULD THEY BE AND WHY?

A: If I had $5,000 to spend on gear to start over with:

• Used 5D Mk II as main camera. Used 5D Mk I for backup. ($2,000-ish for both)

• Used 35mm f2 and used 85mm f1.8. ($450-ish for both)

• 2 Yongnuo 560 II flashes ($150)

• 2 Pocket Wizard X triggers ($200)

• Paul C Buff Vagabond Mini battery ($250)

• Used Alien Bee 1600 ($250)

• 2 8′ light stands ($150)

• 2 60″ shoot-through umbrellas ($60)

• 4 8-GB CF cards ($100)

That’s less than $4,000. That would give me around $1,000+ ...