First, I am not a professional photographer. I love photography but unless I win the lottery I don’t see myself giving up my career for my hobby. The beauty of the digital age is you can enjoy it and produce incredible artwork without being a professional. Thus my screen name, NotAPro.

I don’t need a darkroom or special chemicals to develop my images. Just a computer. I don’t print my photos myself. I send them to photo labs like MPIX or DotPhoto or take them down the street to Costco. I really like using Costco since they have high quality machines, low prices and publish their printer profiles.

I have had many titles during my life … student, employee, fraternity brother, engineer, Lieutenant, Captain, MBA, Manager, Son, Brother … but my most important are Husband and Father.

My Photo Equipment

I tend to take my pictures as part of larger trips. Because of this I have tried to keep my photography equipment as small and light as possible. I have also tried to keep the expenses down. Sometimes my tradeoffs have worked and other times they have not.

• Canon 50D
  10D → Rebel XT → Rebel XTi → 50D: My new camera. Feel free to read my comments here.
• Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS
  I have found this to be an excellent walkaround lens although mine may need a tuneup
• Canon EF 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 DO IS
  I love the combination of size and focal length
• Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5
  An excellent wide angle lens, my newest lens and one I want to try to use more
• Canon SD850 IS
  You can’t always carry a DSLR so this is my Point & Shoot. I bought it after cracking the screen on my previous camera
• Canon 430 EX II Flash
  I wanted an additional flash that didn’t overwhelm the camera since I don’t use flash much, I have a diffuser that I almost always sue with this flash
• Really Right Stuff L-Bracket
  Looking at my pictures you will probably notice more vertical oriented images than horizontal. To support this style I purchased an L-bracket so I can get the maximum stability from my tripod.
• Manfrotto 486RC2 Ballhead
• Really Right Stuff Quick Release Plate
  When I bought an L-Bracket I needed a mount that accepted the RRS design. Instead of replacing the entire ballhead I just replaced the quick release plate. Except for some cosmetic damage this has worked out great.
• Induro C213 Tripod Legs
  I just bought this but they should be a much more stable platform when I’m willing to carry the weight
• LowePro Stealth Reporter 200 AW
  A traditional camera bag it’s just the right size for my kit. Except no place to strap the tripod
• Three Ridata Flash Cards, 2-4GB and 1-8GB
  I write my name, address and cell # on them since I lost a full card in Acadia National Park last year
• Two Sandisk Extreme IV 8GB UDMA Compact Flash Cards
  Sandisk had an excellent rebate going on and I picked up these top-of-the-line cards for mainstream prices
• Assorted Filters and Other Accessories
• Adobe Lightroom 3.2
• Adobe Photoshop CS5

• Manfrotto 719B w/Replacement Column
  I have found this is not as stable as I would like. I haven’t even tried it with the 50D. I’m thinking it would work well as a stand for my flash if I put the original column back in.