What Photography Related Item Have You Bought or Sold This Week?

[Dean Wilson]

if it's crap then I am not out much.

I did that with a B & H purchase for a Pinhole Body Cap, although it is an EF mount I decided to get the EF-RF adapter. Either with the adapter (or without...still fits) the photos lack any degree of sharpness. $29 (US): Absolutely trash.

HOWEVER, I do now have an EF-RF adapter...without any EF glass.

 

[Bryan Conner]

I picked up a a like new, used Sunwayfoto GH-Pro-II geared tripod head. So far, I really like the precision and control that it offers. Plus, it is only about 50 grams heavier than my Linhof Profi II ballhead/quick release plate combo. I will hang on to the Linhof for a while longer just to make sure the geared head and I get along ok long-term.

 

[AntonLargiader]

Some eBay items:
- A used Flex TT5 trigger. The TT5s are great bargains now for people wanting Pocketwizard compatible E-TTL triggers.
- A batteryless Vagabond Mini. Providing it works right, with a new battery will be less than 2/3 the price of new.
- Einstein E640 without bulb and dome. With them, total cost $230.

 

[BasilFawlty]

I picked up a a like new, used Sunwayfoto GH-Pro-II geared tripod head. So far, I really like the precision and control that it offers. Plus, it is only about 50 grams heavier than my Linhof Profi II ballhead/quick release plate combo. I will hang on to the Linhof for a while longer just to make sure the geared head and I get along ok long-term.

I just bought the "+" version of that gear head about two weeks ago. The only difference between the GH-Pro-II and the GH-Pro-II+ is that the "plus" version has a geared top panning head that allows an additional degree of fine adjustment. I bought mine new from Have only been out with it once, but so far I really like it over a ball head for purposes of getting accurate composition for architecture and landscapes. I actually bought it with night sky panos in mind, but have not had a chance to try it out for that yet. It seems to be very well built and I'm hoping that it holds up over time.

 

[BasilFawlty]

A couple weeks ago, as I mentioned in a reply to Bryan Conner, I bought a SunWayPhoto GH-PRO-II+ gear head. This week, (a couple of days ago), I decided it was time to get a serious tripod. (actually I decided it a long time ago, but only recently pulled the trigger). I just bought a ProMediaGear TR344LBL. It's not their beefiest tripod (that would be their 42 series), but I felt it would be perfect for my use cases. The "34" denotes it has 34mm diameter upper legs. The second ""4" denotes it has four leg sections, the first L denotes "long", being that fully extended iy is a whopping 71", and the "BL" denotes that this version ships with a leveling base. This was my no means a cheap tripod, but by signing up for their email list I was able to get 10% off, plus there was no tax charged and shipping was free.

I've heard it said many times over the years that people will spend thousands on a good camera and great lenses, but then will go cheap when buying a tripod. I'm kinda guilty of that. A few years ago, when I was really getting into digital photography in a serious way, I was buying thousands of dollars worth of camera gear (7D Mark II, 5D Mark IV and several lenses, etc). But when it came to a tripod, I ended up with a mid-sized Sirui Carbon Fiber Tripod. I felt that it was a good compromise between price, stability and portability. It wasn't what I'd call "cheap" at around $450, but most of the serious "big name" tripods were much more expensive.

It's not that the Sirui tripod is a bad tripod, but there have been many times when I really needed something a little beefier and a bit more stable and less susceptible to vibrations (like shooting on windy days, or in the middle of a stream with rushing water, etc). For those instances where I need something much lighter and compact (like hiking on long hikes) I also have a Heipi Travel Tripod that I bought during their kickstarter campaign at a deep discount. So, I'll be selling my Sirui.

 

[Chris Summers]

I got a few new toys this week but all of them were for my Canon M mirrorless system. A new shoulder/messenger bag and a set of four 72mm infrared filters for my converted M5 body.

 

[Bryan Conner]

I just bought the "+" version of that gear head about two weeks ago. The only difference between the GH-Pro-II and the GH-Pro-II+ is that the "plus" version has a geared top panning head that allows an additional degree of fine adjustment. I bought mine new from Have only been out with it once, but so far I really like it over a ball head for purposes of getting accurate composition for architecture and landscapes. I actually bought it with night sky panos in mind, but have not had a chance to try it out for that yet. It seems to be very well built and I'm hoping that it holds up over time.

I wanted to get the + version, but it was only available from a Chinese supplier, shipped from China. And I didn't want the hassle and extra cost that my local customs officials would provide. Plus, I got my non + for about 100€ less than the cost of a new one. And it really does look new, in the box with all accessories except for the arca-swiss plate which I don't need.

I do wish that it had a lever-style quick release clamp instead of the type that you twist to tighten. I will probably figure out a way to install one, but that will come later. I want to give myself a chance to get used to it the way it came from Sunwayfoto.

 

[BasilFawlty]

I wanted to get the + version, but it was only available from a Chinese supplier, shipped from China. And I didn't want the hassle and extra cost that my local customs officials would provide. Plus, I got my non + for about 100€ less than the cost of a new one. And it really does look new, in the box with all accessories except for the arca-swiss plate which I don't need.

I do wish that it had a lever-style quick release clamp instead of the type that you twist to tighten. I will probably figure out a way to install one, but that will come later. I want to give myself a chance to get used to it the way it came from Sunwayfoto.

I was lucky to find mine at a US store, Adorama, based in New York.

 

[Dwardski]

I've just bought a fairly beefy (138W) imuto power bank and a 65W Ugreen PD charger to, well, charge it. It's very early days yet, so I haven't done much with them, but I'll let you know my initial thoughts - a "mini-review", if you will - if people are interested...

 

[Chris Summers]

Used up the last of some funds I had from selling off some older gear a few months ago. I ordered a super wide angle lens for my Canon M mirrorless system, a Venus Optics Laowa 9mm f/2.8 lens in the Canon M mount. I own the Canon EF-M 11-22mm lens and use it a lot, especially with my infrared converted camera but thought the 9mm would be a nice lens for those ultra wide shots. 9mm on a crop sensor is around 14.4mm on full frame.