Do any looking online about photography and you are going to run into all kinds of information about the kind of gear you have to have. Welcome to my version of that. It goes something like this, what do you have? what are you willing to haul along? good, great, let’s go! Today it’s to the Church of Panaghia Kapnikarea, said to be the oldest Greek Orthodox Church in Athens:
ISO 800 10mm f/22 1/80sec
That’s the photo I took using my Canon 50D.
ISO 200 4.3mm f/2.7 1/125 sec
That’s the photo I took using my Canon PowerShot.
ISO 25 4.2mm f/22 1/337 sec
That’s the photo I took using my iPhone.
That’s right, I was willing to haul three cameras around Athens, and you bet I used all three. The Canon 50D I took with a wide-angle lens. It’s good at getting a full building shot in a city. That particular shot was taken in the RAW format which meant plenty of data for later editing. For that edit, I went with a warm vintage look in homage to the color of the stones and the age of the building.
The second photo was taken with my Canon PowerShot which is a point and shoot camera that does not have RAW capability. What it does do nicely is handle color well, even in low light situations, so I often use it when I am capturing the detail of something. In this case, it’s the radiance of that mosaic.
The third shot was taken using my iPhone. Often when I am in a new place and taking photos, I get a shot using my iPhone because I keep GPS data on and I use these types of photos later to confirm the exact location of where I was which helps with things like figuring out how to spell the name of this church.
Have you spotted the no photography sign on the church door? While I find that disappointing, I’m ok with that, so I stowed all three cameras and went inside to take a look. Sometimes just having the memory of an experience is sufficient, regardless of how many cameras you are carrying.
How do you decide what gear to haul? do you have a go-to set up for shooting in the city? Feel free to leave a comment about that or the edits I chose in the comment section below.
Cheers!
Added to Tuesday Photo Challenge, Radiant and Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge, Three.
Photography Journal Blog 
My go-to gear depends on whether I go alone or with my kids. If I go alone than EOS 70D + Sigma 17-55 f/2.8 and EOS 600D + Tamron 75 – 300 f/5.6 come along. With kids it is typically LUMIX TZ-60.
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Yes, now there’s an excellent point, what gear you choose to carry might vary based on who you have with you. That’s a nice kit combination you have.
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Wonderful post!! Thanks so much for playing along. 😀
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Thanks Cee!
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I have a Nikon DSLR, but hardly use it because it is bulky. I like my small travel camera a Lumix, but the majority of my photos are taken using my mobile. I think the best camera is just the one you have with you at the time. I love that Greek Orthodox church.
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I completely agree that the best camera is the one you have!
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There are many churches in Greece with this sign – no Photography. Usually the reason for this is that the paintings are very old and using flash will eventually ruin them. Nice post btw. Thanks for sharing. An Athenian reader. 😀
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Yes, this particular church was facing the challenge of how to stay open for people to visit without causing damage to old and beautiful interior work. Also, because it is small, there is the additional concern of not disturbing people who are there to pray. In this case, the cameras have to be put away, that way people will be able to visit years from now as well. I enjoyed my visit to your city very much.
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Good explanation of what and why!
I’m in transition. I’ve just replaced a Canon 20D with a Canon Rebel SL2. Much lighter and smaller camera that still uses my older lenses.
I have a Canon Powershot with the 50X zoom. Absolutely excellent for birds.
Last, my little purse size camera is a Panasonic Lumix which I use when most people would pull out their phone.
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Yes, since this photo was taken I had to replace my Canon 50D because it was having some sensor issues. I ended up going with the 80D. I considered switching to a Fuji, but that would have meant parting with my lenses. Also, the 80 was much less heavy than the 50, something that I really appreciate.
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I was looking at a Nikon, but stayed with Canon for the same reason you did. Apparently some of my older lenses are exceptionally good compared to newer lenses.
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Yes, lenses are one of those “non-disposable” sorts of items. Unless you drop it, it’s pretty much good forever.
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For me it depends upon activity. The iPhones take such great photos now if we are hiking or adventuring. If we are traveling I take one camera two lenses, so I can get close or back away when needed. Lovely photos .
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Yes, good point it does depend on the activity. I know there are plenty of times where I take my iPhone only, I agree they work well in a lot of situations.
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One camera (my Sony A55 (almost an antique by today’s standards!)), one macro lens (“never leave home without it”), and one 18-250 zoom lens that’s small enough to carry easily in a belt pouch. I have a wide angle lens I spent a small fortune on but hardly ever use … which probably means I should start a wide-angle-only project just for the practice.
I have an iPhone 7 but haven’t used it for photography that much. However! I just learned last week that Lightroom’s mobile app for iPhone has a built-in camera that will take higher quality RAW photos than the native camera app. Haven’t tried it yet though … maybe another project!
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I had heard about that new app. If you do end up trying it, I would be interested in reading what you end up thinking about it.
That’s too bad you don’t currently have a use for your wide angle lens. That’s an item though that will last forever and either you will get back to it eventually or you will be able to sell it, usually lenses hold their value well I think.
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