Cycling & photography

[Ti Designs]

I gave up photography years ago, not enough time and nothing that inspired me to continue. A few years back I saw something on a morning ride that inspired me to jump back into it. Between those two times, lots of things had changed - film had been replaced with digital sensors, and there were more options in cameras. I once found myself hanging under the BU bridge by two roped and my climbing harness, holding a Nikon F3 with a 400mm lens, also supported by ropes, shooting the crew teams at the head of the charles. Very nice equipment (that I couldn't afford), but there's no way I could ever ride with something like that. These days I don't have to. Smaller formats without the single lens reflex design (no mirror flipping up, no pentaprism for the optical view finder) mean cameras and lenses are getting smaller and lighter.

I went with the micro four thirds format because there were a number of companies making lenses for it, and older lenses were easily adapted, should I want to use them. There are plenty of other formats, but for interchangeable lens I found M43 had the most options. Oddly, one of the biggest struggles I faced was finding a bag to hold the equipment while I rode. Everything that holds a tripod either pushed my helmet over my eyes, or attached it to the side, throwing the balance way off. I suggested a lower mounting point to LowePro, and within 6 months they came out with their FlipSide series - I've worked in the bike industry for 30 years, nothing like that ever happens...

When I'm going out to shoot, I need to know I'm going somewhere to shoot. Otherwise it becomes a bike ride with a very expensive weight on my back for no reason. It also means my time table is based on when I need to get the shop, so there's a lot of leaving the house at 3am. I have this ability to take all the wrong equipment, which means any shot that's really worth getting is going to take multiple trips until I get it right - that's what I call training... I'm just starting to get to the point where my pictures make people want to get out and ride - until I tell them when I started...

The image that got me back into photography was on a cold late winter morning, just after sunrise. The fog pulls down on the fields into this dense white blanket. A deer had just crossed the road and ran into the field, then stopped and turn around to watch me. He left a deer shaped trail in the fog as he ran, we were looking at each other thru a deer shaped tunnel. It's a shot I'll never get in a million years, but there are always other things worth capturing. I once rode out to some chicken coupes before sunrise to watch the chickens get up at first light - and image I call poultry in motion. How was I to know that chickens get angry if the first human they see doesn't feed them? I split my time between running away with my camera and bike, and turning around to shoot the angry stampeding chickens.

I know we have more than a few photographers here, what's your story?

1) what format do you use? (If it's 8x10 I'll assume you're Nick Nixon)
2) what bike do you use? (I use my cross bike, but I keep thinking about a fat bike)
3) what kind of shooting do you do? Street, landscape, wildlife...
4) how far will you ride with equipment to get a shot?
5) what was the funniest blunder you've made on a photo ride? (I got to a location 30 miles out at 5:30am only to find I didn't have a memory card)
6) show us an image!!!

[veloduffer]

I don't carry a camera often when I bike, but I do scout locations when I am riding. If I do carry, it's my Nikon Coolpix A, which has the same sensor (APS-C) as a DX DSLR.

I've owned many cameras over the years, including Nikon's top models at the time. My primary camera is a Nikon Df and favorite lens is an old Nikon 35mm f/2 AF-D; small, fairly sharp and I like the field of view.

I shoot anything from street to landscape and some sports. To do landscape well and in the golden hours (dawn or right after sunset), you need a trip-pod as you can't keep it steady.

I tried mirrorless a few years ago but the autofocus was terrible for low light and moving objects. I tried using it at a wedding and got no action shots. And for all the equipment you need to carry with mirrorless, there's no difference than with a DSLR.

I would recommend a really good compact camera like a Sony RX100 or Ricoh GR ii and use a handlebar bag or frame bag, which will minimize it getting bounced around and keep it off your back.

my photos are here

[.RJ]

I've been very happy with my Fuji X-T1. Paired with an 18mm lens its not unreasonable to take with me on the bike and will fit in a small bag on the bars. Mirrorless has a ton of advantages over a DSLR right now.

[bikinchris]

I don't usually ride to take photos, but I have toured a few times with a camera. I once did 6 weeks in Europe with a handlebar bag stuffed with a Nikon D100, 12-24 and 28-200.

[Fookie]

Originally Posted by bikinchris

I don't usually ride to take photos, but I have toured a few times with a camera. I once did 6 weeks in Europe with a handlebar bag stuffed with a Nikon D100, 12-24 and 28-200.

I am the same. I love both hobbies, but separately. I went from my first camera, a Nikon 6006, to a D70, to a D7000, and finally a Df (with primes: 24mm, 50mm, and 105mm). I would love to see how you guys carry your gear if you combine the two hobbies.

[ergott]

When I'm riding the images I want to capture are almost always landscapes. Since that's the case I just use my Galaxy S6 since the results are excellent.

I'd have to bring my Canon 6D and 24mm f/1.4 lens to significantly increase the image quality.

[veloduffer]

Originally Posted by .RJ

I've been very happy with my Fuji X-T1. Paired with an 18mm lens its not unreasonable to take with me on the bike and will fit in a small bag on the bars. Mirrorless has a ton of advantages over a DSLR right now.

I think that's an overly broad statement. There are compromises in all choices, just depends on your priority. For instance, the Fuji cannot replace the DSLR for serious sports and landscape photography (i.e. for professional use). No professional sports shooter will step onto the field with a XT-1. The high mega-pixel Nikon D810 and Canon 5DS are tools that allow landscape photographers to have tools that rival medium format. Also, one may have preference for the Nikon or Canon color profile and dynamic range over the Fuji.

The mirrorless is a smaller than most DSLRs but fairly similar to the Nikon Df, especially if both are paired with pancake lenses (e.g Voightlander). The Df, though, is a full frame sensor (same as D4). Nikon and Canon have their patents for their own mirrorless. It'll be interesting to see what kind of sensor they plan to use.

That being said, the Fuji is plenty of camera for most folks and fairly affordable. But so are iPhone and Galaxy (which can be quite good).

For the most part when I ride, I don't like the lighting for shooting landscapes but it's safer to ride. On the other hand, I don't like riding (dawn, dusk) when it is optimal to shoot.

[joosttx]

Originally Posted by Ti Designs

I gave up photography years ago, not enough time and nothing that inspired me to continue. A few years back I saw something on a morning ride that inspired me to jump back into it. Between those two times, lots of things had changed - film had been replaced with digital sensors, and there were more options in cameras. I once found myself hanging under the BU bridge by two roped and my climbing harness, holding a Nikon F3 with a 400mm lens, also supported by ropes, shooting the crew teams at the head of the charles. Very nice equipment (that I couldn't afford), but there's no way I could ever ride with something like that. These days I don't have to. Smaller formats without the single lens reflex design (no mirror flipping up, no pentaprism for the optical view finder) mean cameras and lenses are getting smaller and lighter.

I went with the micro four thirds format because there were a number of companies making lenses for it, and older lenses were easily adapted, should I want to use them. There are plenty of other formats, but for interchangeable lens I found M43 had the most options. Oddly, one of the biggest struggles I faced was finding a bag to hold the equipment while I rode. Everything that holds a tripod either pushed my helmet over my eyes, or attached it to the side, throwing the balance way off. I suggested a lower mounting point to LowePro, and within 6 months they came out with their FlipSide series - I've worked in the bike industry for 30 years, nothing like that ever happens...

When I'm going out to shoot, I need to know I'm going somewhere to shoot. Otherwise it becomes a bike ride with a very expensive weight on my back for no reason. It also means my time table is based on when I need to get the shop, so there's a lot of leaving the house at 3am. I have this ability to take all the wrong equipment, which means any shot that's really worth getting is going to take multiple trips until I get it right - that's what I call training... I'm just starting to get to the point where my pictures make people want to get out and ride - until I tell them when I started...

The image that got me back into photography was on a cold late winter morning, just after sunrise. The fog pulls down on the fields into this dense white blanket. A deer had just crossed the road and ran into the field, then stopped and turn around to watch me. He left a deer shaped trail in the fog as he ran, we were looking at each other thru a deer shaped tunnel. It's a shot I'll never get in a million years, but there are always other things worth capturing. I once rode out to some chicken coupes before sunrise to watch the chickens get up at first light - and image I call poultry in motion. How was I to know that chickens get angry if the first human they see doesn't feed them? I split my time between running away with my camera and bike, and turning around to shoot the angry stampeding chickens.

I know we have more than a few photographers here, what's your story?

1) what format do you use? (If it's 8x10 I'll assume you're Nick Nixon)
2) what bike do you use? (I use my cross bike, but I keep thinking about a fat bike)
3) what kind of shooting do you do? Street, landscape, wildlife...
4) how far will you ride with equipment to get a shot?
5) what was the funniest blunder you've made on a photo ride? (I got to a location 30 miles out at 5:30am only to find I didn't have a memory card)
6) show us an image!!!

I think the most important thing is not to over think it.

[Ray]

I was pretty seriously into photography as a kid, and through high school, college, and into my mid-20s. Did tons of black and white darkroom work. Shot a lot of creative stuff, took technical classes in HS and art classes in college, but also did small time photo-journalism in high school and college. I shot with everything from SLRs to TLRs to large format to half frame fixed lens cameras in those days.

In my mid-20s, the demands of career and family sort of pushed photography (and damn near everything else) off to the side and for about 25 years I just shot family stuff with whatever point and shoot we had lying around. I transitioned into digital in my P&S phase.

Then in 2010 I got back into it prior to a big trip my wife and I did for our 25th anniversary - I wanted something nicer than a P&S for that. I got into m43 then as well, with an Olympus EP-2 and a few lenses - mix of primes and a couple of zooms. Over the next few years I got WAAAAAAY into it again, learned the wonders of digital processing (nobody can appreciate digital workflow as much as someone who spent many all-nighters in darkrooms producing one or two good prints!), and transitioned through various m43 and APS mirrorless systems. Did some semi-professional shooting and writing about photography subjects as well. But in early 2013 I got good an spoiled by full frame with a Sony RX1 and then in early 2014 I tried a Nikon DF, my first DSLR. Played around with a few different full frame cameras (DSLR and mirrorless) and middle of that year settled down with a DF and a few lenses, having sold off all of my mirrorless gear. I also have small options in the RX1 and Nikon Coolpix A, both of which are great when I want to travel really light. I'm almost totally a prime shooter, so I tend to stick to a small kit with a 20, something in the 24-35 range, something around a 50, and something either portrait length or sometimes I'll take my old Nikon 75-150 for more extensive telephoto work. But I spend the vast majority of my time at the wide end - it's how I see best. Since I got the DF almost three years ago, though, I've lost all gear lust, all GAS. It seems the sensor wars have hit a plateau where they're sooooo good in both high ISO work and dynamic range, that it's just a matter of choosing the tool that fits you best, as there is no better or worse out there much anymore. The DF is my perfect camera - most of my lenses are manual focus with just a few AF portrait length and telephoto options. Except for one little used zoom, 85mm is my shortest AF lens...

I do a lot of street photography and urban scenics - I love little more than walking around a city with a small bag of camera gear. Often one camera/lens combination is all I use all day. I've taken out small cameras on my bike from time to time, but I don't find the two activities really mix all that well, partially because I don't like riding with my really nice gear and partly because I don't want to stop riding or shooting when I'm on a roll with either activity. I've all but stopped riding these days, but I still do a fair amount of shooting. Some of my favorite stuff is still family candid portraits, which I rarely post except among friends and family on Facebook. But I still do a lot of other stuff too.

My highly unedited and disorganized flickr feed is here - pretty top-heavy with a bunch of recent sort of touristy stuff from spending the past couple of months in North Carolina, but past the first page is a lot of the kind of stuff I more commonly shoot:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/20889767@N05/

-Ray

[weisan]

Photography....Cycling.


Cycling...Photography.

Those are the two great loves in my life.

But over the last 10-15 years, photography has taken a backseat. Now, I just do it whenever I feel like it...which is happening less and less often. Hopefully, my trip next week to Big Bend National Park will revive some of the old flame.

Some of my "best" pictures over the years came during the times when I carried the least amount of equipment and I wasn't chasing the shot. Rather, I let myself go "free" and just enjoy the moment, merge into the environment, and become one....then slowly....slowly....the shot came to me, instead of me going to the shot.

[rePhil]

I lucked into a photography "career" by chance.It literally changed my life. My specialty was shooting power boats, either from a photo boat or helicopter.
I worked for an engine manufacturer and one of the perks for our customers was offering catalog quality photography. I had the good fortune to shoot and visit water all over North America.
I won't talk about the Hasselblad's or Pentax 4x5's as I rarely used them.

I was a die hard Nikon guy. I started with F2's, then 3's, then the not so wonderful F4s. I preferred the N90 until the F5 came out. That's what I was using when I stopped.
While I owned a bunch of lenses my go to lenses were 24 & 35 fixed and 35-105 & 80-200 zooms. There weren't any image stabilizing lenses those days, so I used a gyro stabilizer.
To show my age the biggest advancement for me was in the film. Everybody who was anybody shot Kodachrome 64.
I remember the Fuji rep asking me to test some Velvia 50. Holy smokes, what a game changer. I eventually settled on Provia 100. Soon after everyone shooting boats was using it.
In those days it would not be uncommon to shoot 30-35 rolls to get the one shot.

Then one day after 20 years a new paradigm arrived and it was game over.
I ended up selling all my gear and never looked back. These days I take a point & shoot on vacations and for the grandkids.
I was grateful to have had my dream job for over 20 years. It helped put 3 kids through school and food on the table. It was quite a ride.

The funniest blunder (now) was knowing I got "the shot" only to find an empty camera!

I forgot an image. Here's a candid point & shoot of my grand daughter with UCI BMX World Champ Sam Willoughby. My grand kids are racing in Daytona today and Sam was on my mind. Sadly he was badly hurt in training. He is a great guy and I hope he recovers.

[.RJ]

Originally Posted by veloduffer

I think that's an overly broad statement. There are compromises in all choices, just depends on your priority. For instance, the Fuji cannot replace the DSLR for serious sports and landscape photography (i.e. for professional use).

Yep, this is true. But, the number of people that pay their mortgage by shooting sports is comparatively very small, so that market will always be there for DSLR's. Same with commercial portrait work & work involving lighting, there's no comparison. But, for the hobbyist, I cant see any reason to go back to a DSLR. Just my opinion though.

[Ray]

Originally Posted by .RJ

Yep, this is true. But, the number of people that pay their mortgage by shooting sports is comparatively very small, so that market will always be there for DSLR's. Same with commercial portrait work & work involving lighting, there's no comparison. But, for the hobbyist, I cant see any reason to go back to a DSLR. Just my opinion though.

Mirrorless will eventually overtake DSLRs even for shooting birds and sports and other rapid-fire stuff. it's not there yet and I don't know whether we're talking three years or five or ten, but it'll happen once the processor speeds get fast enough to work out the continuous AF and viewfinder blackout times.

The reason I went from mirrorless TO a DSLR had to do with not many full frame options in mirrorless at the time. Sony was just starting out with their A7 line of full frame mirrorless and they weren't much to write home about at first. And even if you loved the cameras, the lenses weren't there for it. The Nikon DF did and does everything I want a camera to do better than any other camera I've used and I love the sensor in it. And there's so much glass available for it in every size, quality, and price point. For what I do, today's premium optically perfect, huge, AF lenses don't matter to me. I've owned a few, used several others, and they just don't help anything about the way I shoot. And with the small primes I favor, my DF kit is as small as any Fuji kit I ever had and almost as small as the m43 stuff I used to shoot with (although if size is your main criteria, you can get pretty damn tiny with m43).

The bottom line is it's getting harder and harder to find a bad camera. Cell phones are wiping out the consumer camera market so the camera makers are left trying to figure out how to make a living on enthusiasts and pros and that's not easy or getting easier. But for now, we've got an embarrassment of riches to choose from so just shoot with what you like and have fun doing it.

Just like no bike will ever make a rider more than marginally better, no camera will ever make a photographer more than marginally better. With cycling and with photography, 99.9% of it is not about the gear...

-Ray

[veloduffer]

Originally Posted by Ray

Mirrorless will eventually overtake DSLRs even for shooting birds and sports and other rapid-fire stuff. it's not there yet and I don't know whether we're talking three years or five or ten, but it'll happen once the processor speeds get fast enough to work out the continuous AF and viewfinder blackout times.

The reason I went from mirrorless TO a DSLR had to do with not many full frame options in mirrorless at the time. Sony was just starting out with their A7 line of full frame mirrorless and they weren't much to write home about at first. And even if you loved the cameras, the lenses weren't there for it. The Nikon DF did and does everything I want a camera to do better than any other camera I've used and I love the sensor in it. And there's so much glass available for it in every size, quality, and price point. For what I do, today's premium optically perfect, huge, AF lenses don't matter to me. I've owned a few, used several others, and they just don't help anything about the way I shoot. And with the small primes I favor, my DF kit is as small as any Fuji kit I ever had and almost as small as the m43 stuff I used to shoot with (although if size is your main criteria, you can get pretty damn tiny with m43).

The bottom line is it's getting harder and harder to find a bad camera. Cell phones are wiping out the consumer camera market so the camera makers are left trying to figure out how to make a living on enthusiasts and pros and that's not easy or getting easier. But for now, we've got an embarrassment of riches to choose from so just shoot with what you like and have fun doing it.

Just like no bike will ever make a rider more than marginally better, no camera will ever make a photographer more than marginally better. With cycling and with photography, 99.9% of it is not about the gear...

-Ray

+1 I went from a D800 and D3 to a Nikon Df - it is a photographer's camera. I am no longer shooting sports and needed a camera with a great low light sensor for travel. The Df has terrific dynamic range and beautiful colors straight out of the camera. I have gone mostly to prime lenses myself, and my longest zoom is 24-120/f4. So easy to carry, as I don't need a bag; just carry a 20mm or 50mm in my jacket pocket in addition to my 35mm. If I need a flash (rarely due to the D4 full-frame sensor), I carry the tiny SB-400 in my pocket too.

[Ray]

Originally Posted by veloduffer

+1 I went from a D800 and D3 to a Nikon Df - it is a photographer's camera. I am no longer shooting sports and needed a camera with a great low light sensor for travel. The Df has terrific dynamic range and beautiful colors straight out of the camera. I have gone mostly to prime lenses myself, and my longest zoom is 24-120/f4. So easy to carry, as I don't need a bag; just carry a 20mm or 50mm in my jacket pocket in addition to my 35mm. If I need a flash (rarely due to the D4 full-frame sensor), I carry the tiny SB-400 in my pocket too.

Interesting - it looks like there are three DF shooters in this small thread so far. It's kind of the Rivendell of cameras, except the Rivendell made by Giant that pisses off the other more modern Giant riders...

I generally carry a bag with my DF, but only an Ona Bowery, which is a really small bag. I figure if I can't fit it in there I don't want to carry it all day. I'll usually have the DF with a 24 or 28 mounted, and then 2-4 other small primes. At the moment I have the DF with a 24 f2.8 AIS mounted, a 35 f2.8 AI, 58 f1.4 (it's actually old enough it was called a 5.8cm - non AI but I converted it to AI), a Voigtlander 20mm f3.5, and an 85 f1.8D in the bag. And lots of times I probably would never change out the 24... My two AF zooms, which I use rarely but which are sort of indispensable, are the same 24-120 f4 you've got and a slow 70-300 VR for my rare telephoto needs. My 50 f1.8D and 85 f1.8D are my only other AF lenses...

-Ray