Sony Lounge Thread MKIII (All Sony cameras welcome)

We were gone 24 days. Took two days to get to s.Dakota and by the the fires were raging up north of us.
Landscaping was fine IF I had no sky in the image The sky was just crap grey. Luckily wildlife shots were
rarely dependent on nice skies-

IMAGE LINK: https://flic.kr/p/YFRQ​eC

Ive been thinking for the past few weeks after hitting a big rut when it comes to photography. Been really busy with life, work, and everything else, and what once gave me an escape and a way to explore my creativity just isn't there anymore. I haven't had the time to sit down and go through any of my images. I sort my images my month and the last one I was able to go through was back for November 2014. To say I have a backlog of files is an understatement. Even taking a week long staycation this week and sending my girls to daycare and having two full days at home by myself, I haven't picked up the camera once. Also being in the process of trying to find a house as a first time home buyer and feeling the pressure of that isn't helping.

Most of the files I share with friends or on social media are just quick wifi transfers of jpegs, so it me wondering at times why I carry around Gear the way I do, especially when going around with two kids alone a lot, my attention is often occupied where if I'm trying to shoot, it's incredibly lazy in snapshot mode. I'm not sure if it's just me or other guys with small kids feel disconnected at times when shooting when out with the family. The story a few weeks back on fstoppers about the professional shooter who when out with her family she just uses her phone, since carrying around gear seems to divide her attention and focus from her family. I'm starting to feel that way, at least for the time being. A recent weekend trip up to Boston is a good example. Carried around my gear to the New England Aquarium and the Quincy Market. Because I was chasing after my kids, trying not to lose them, etc, I only ended up taking maybe two dozen shots in the 2 hour aquarium visit and more than half was out of focus, which isn't easy with a beast like the a9, lol. Same goes for the marketplace. A whole trip to Boston and I took less than 50 shots. At some point I started to question whether for me the effort is worth the end result. I actually ended up with more useable stuff from my iPhone than my a9 for that trip, especially impromptu video clips, those with small kids can understand that taking a phone out of a pocket is a lot easier than a camera out of a bag when it comes to kids. And the more I think about it, at least now with what I have going on, the answer is probably not. I'm leaning more towards dumping everything I have, streamlining my non essentials, and taking a nice 6 month or so break. My wife's already told me she's getting me the iPhone X next month so maybe I'll be one of those that just uses their phone for a while and reassess after I settle into my house mumps I'm fix what I need, and start the summer of 2018 with whatever is the latest and greatest then. Sorry for this long rant, but it's something I felt I had to get off my chest and the community here is the best I've been a part of.

TMaG82 wrote in post #18457681
Ive been thinking for the past few weeks after hitting a big rut when it comes to photography. Been really busy with life, work, and everything else, and what once gave me an escape and a way to explore my creativity just isn't there anymore. I haven't had the time to sit down and go through any of my images. I sort my images my month and the last one I was able to go through was back for November 2014. To say I have a backlog of files is an understatement. Even taking a week long staycation this week and sending my girls to daycare and having two full days at home by myself, I haven't picked up the camera once. Also being in the process of trying to find a house as a first time home buyer and feeling the pressure of that isn't helping.

Most of the files I share with friends or on social media are just quick wifi transfers of jpegs, so it me wondering at times why I carry around Gear the way I do, especially when going around with two kids alone a lot, my attention is often occupied where if I'm trying to shoot, it's incredibly lazy in snapshot mode. I'm not sure if it's just me or other guys with small kids feel disconnected at times when shooting when out with the family. The story a few weeks back on fstoppers about the professional shooter who when out with her family she just uses her phone, since carrying around gear seems to divide her attention and focus from her family. I'm starting to feel that way, at least for the time being. A recent weekend trip up to Boston is a good example. Carried around my gear to the New England Aquarium and the Quincy Market. Because I was chasing after my kids, trying not to lose them, etc, I only ended up taking maybe two dozen shots in the 2 hour aquarium visit and more than half was out of focus, which isn't easy with a beast like the a9, lol. Same goes for the marketplace. A whole trip to Boston and I took less than 50 shots. At some point I started to question whether for me the effort is worth the end result. I actually ended up with more useable stuff from my iPhone than my a9 for that trip, especially impromptu video clips, those with small kids can understand that taking a phone out of a pocket is a lot easier than a camera out of a bag when it comes to kids. And the more I think about it, at least now with what I have going on, the answer is probably not. I'm leaning more towards dumping everything I have, streamlining my non essentials, and taking a nice 6 month or so break. My wife's already told me she's getting me the iPhone X next month so maybe I'll be one of those that just uses their phone for a while and reassess after I settle into my house mumps I'm fix what I need, and start the summer of 2018 with whatever is the latest and greatest then. Sorry for this long rant, but it's something I felt I had to get off my chest and the community here is the best I've been a part of.

I have basically stopped carrying my kit when out with the family, unless there is something that will really warrant getting it out...just spending time with my wife and kid takes priority...it has made those times better, and when I go out without them, the gear goes and I can focus on that. Gotta find a happy balance.

Some Porsche 930 Turbo early morning light goodness...

Photo from TRhoads's gallery.
Image hosted by forum (877462)

TMaG82 wrote in post #18457681
Ive been thinking for the past few weeks after hitting a big rut when it comes to photography. Been really busy with life, work, and everything else, and what once gave me an escape and a way to explore my creativity just isn't there anymore. I haven't had the time to sit down and go through any of my images. I sort my images my month and the last one I was able to go.........

As far as being with the camera instead of family or visa versa...
What has helped me , to some extent .. one body one lens ,preferably a prime.. a 28 or 35mm equivalent, and thats it.. no second longer lens just in case , no speedlight
Keeping the setup simple helps me keep the photos simple amd more about the moment than about the photos

TMaG82 wrote in post #18457681
Ive been thinking for the past few weeks after hitting a big rut when it comes to photography. Been really busy with life, work, and everything else, and what once gave me an escape and a way to explore my creativity just isn't there anymore. I haven't had the time to sit down and go through any of my images. I sort my images my month and the last one I was able to go through was back for November 2014. To say I have a backlog of files is an understatement. Even taking a week long staycation this week and sending my girls to daycare and having two full days at home by myself, I haven't picked up the camera once. Also being in the process of trying to find a house as a first time home buyer and feeling the pressure of that isn't helping.

Most of the files I share with friends or on social media are just quick wifi transfers of jpegs, so it me wondering at times why I carry around Gear the way I do, especially when going around with two kids alone a lot, my attention is often occupied where if I'm trying to shoot, it's incredibly lazy in snapshot mode. I'm not sure if it's just me or other guys with small kids feel disconnected at times when shooting when out with the family. The story a few weeks back on fstoppers about the professional shooter who when out with her family she just uses her phone, since carrying around gear seems to divide her attention and focus from her family. I'm starting to feel that way, at least for the time being. A recent weekend trip up to Boston is a good example. Carried around my gear to the New England Aquarium and the Quincy Market. Because I was chasing after my kids, trying not to lose them, etc, I only ended up taking maybe two dozen shots in the 2 hour aquarium visit and more than half was out of focus, which isn't easy with a beast like the a9, lol. Same goes for the marketplace. A whole trip to Boston and I took less than 50 shots. At some point I started to question whether for me the effort is worth the end result. I actually ended up with more useable stuff from my iPhone than my a9 for that trip, especially impromptu video clips, those with small kids can understand that taking a phone out of a pocket is a lot easier than a camera out of a bag when it comes to kids. And the more I think about it, at least now with what I have going on, the answer is probably not. I'm leaning more towards dumping everything I have, streamlining my non essentials, and taking a nice 6 month or so break. My wife's already told me she's getting me the iPhone X next month so maybe I'll be one of those that just uses their phone for a while and reassess after I settle into my house mumps I'm fix what I need, and start the summer of 2018 with whatever is the latest and greatest then. Sorry for this long rant, but it's something I felt I had to get off my chest and the community here is the best I've been a part of.

This sounds a lot like me at the moment except I got to the point I wasn't even carrying the gear. Since getting a x100F that's changed a bit though as I take that most places and getting nice family stuff on it and it's a lot better IQ than a phone, but yeah I know where you are coming from. If I wasn't for my love of landscape photography I would probably dump everything apart from the Fuji as can't seem to find the time these days for landscapes. I'm hopeful that will change going forward though and I get back into it

TRhoads wrote in post #18457693
I have basically stopped carrying my kit when out with the family, unless there is something that will really warrant getting it out...just spending time with my wife and kid takes priority...it has made those times better, and when I go out without them, the gear goes and I can focus on that. Gotta find a happy balance.

I think that's what I need to try and find, that balance. It was easier with one, now with two kids it's more difficult. Probably more so since they're still so young (4, 2). Maybe in a few years it'll get easier. I tried leaving the gear at home unless it was for a special occasion, then I started thinking why have all this expensive gear if I never used it, hence selling off a lot of unneeded stuff. Eventually started carrying it around again because it felt wasteful leaving so much expensive stuff at home, id be running around with a 24-70 at the playground, lol. Maybe no camera for a while will be the answer.

rantercsr wrote in post #18457698
As far as being with the camera instead of family or visa versa...
What has helped me , to some extent .. one body one lens ,preferably a prime.. a 28 or 35mm equivalent, and thats it.. no second longer lens just in case , no speedlight
Keeping the setup simple helps me keep the photos simple amd more about the moment than about the photos

xpfloyd wrote in post #18457706
This sounds a lot like me at the moment except I got to the point I wasn't even carrying the gear. Since getting a x100F that's changed a bit though as I take that most places and getting nice family stuff on it and it's a lot better IQ than a phone, but yeah I know where you are coming from. If I wasn't for my love of landscape photography I would probably dump everything apart from the Fuji as can't seem to find the time these days for landscapes. I'm hopeful that will change going forward though and I get back into it

I'm starting to think it's a combination of everything, the lack of time, having the responsibility of watching two kids a lot of the time, and my upcoming home purchase which I know will take a lot of my time, energy, and let's face it, my money. If I know I won't have the time to use the gear for a while, I'm thinking it's better off having the extra money in the pocket and to help with the house costs and start over when the dust settles. I don't want a repeat of my last few vacations when I go to Disney World in December. Since I paid for the photo pass thinking of going with just the phone or maybe just my wife's Canon EOS M6 that I bought her a few months ago.

TMaG82 wrote in post #18457714
I'm starting to think it's a combination of everything, the lack of time, having the responsibility of watching two kids a lot of the time, and my upcoming home purchase which I know will take a lot of my time, energy, and let's face it, my money. If I know I won't have the time to use the gear for a while, I'm thinking it's better off having the extra money in the pocket and to help with the house costs and start over when the dust settles. I don't want a repeat of my last few vacations when I go to Disney World in December. Since I paid for the photo pass thinking of going with just the phone or maybe just my wife's Canon EOS M6 that I bought her a few months ago.

The home purchase took a while lot of wind from me, but it sells and you move on. I did nearly 100K in remodeling, was certainly stressing.

As for photography rut, happens to everyone I think. I've got 4 kids and it's pretty much a duty for me to take snapshots. Work on that backlog of you lose all motivation.

For me, reason I'm saying is a duty is because my son is like a teenager now, and I have big printed albums. He's got months of missing content because I was in a rut. They are like lost time, almost like I was neglecting him to have such long gaps. My younger girls don't have missing timelines. My parents came from a older generation of film and prints, and I do appreciate the wall of family snapshots. I don't have many prints from my phone due to low quality. Same can be said about video, but to a lesser extent. High quality video on phone is much closer to high end camera videos.

I'll chime in.....


I had big canon FF DSLR stuff for some years. Lugged camera, a few primes, and often a speedlite everywhere. Got a lot of great shots of our lifestyle. Then much of the same started happening.....We would take trips and it was like I was completely disconnected from wife and kids due to being so focused (pardon the pun) on documenting the occasion and getting the shot. Eventually my family became very annoyed with the camera pointed at them. In fact, the kids would go out of their way to sabotage the shot! Then last year I found that I just didn't want to carry the big gear any longer. It was being left behind....always. The bulk of shots last year are from the iPhone. That's when I started looking into the smallest kit I could find with excellent IQ....Enter Sony mirrorless APS-c. I sold all canon gear and picked up an a6500 and a few tiny primes. I now take this tiny rig everywhere without any issue at all. Super light and very inconspicuous. Also...and this is big...I've really scaled back my efforts to get the perfect shot. If getting the shot interferes with the experience, then I just skip it. Like Travis said....I've really been working on finding that perfect balance between being a part of what's happening but also having some fun with the camera gear. I now come home with significantly fewer shots, which makes going back through them quick and easy, but I still have some really nice stuff to reflect back on. This approach works for how I enjoy the hobby of photography which is pretty much lifestyle stuff. Obviously it wouldn't work for the fine art or serious landscape shooter.

In the end, don't stress it. It's just gear. Be happy that you and you kidos have a roof over your head, food in your bellies, and good health.

rantercsr wrote in post #18457698
As far as being with the camera instead of family or visa versa...
What has helped me , to some extent .. one body one lens ,preferably a prime.. a 28 or 35mm equivalent, and thats it.. no second longer lens just in case , no speedlight
Keeping the setup simple helps me keep the photos simple amd more about the moment than about the photos

i always have a speedlight on trips capable of hss to balance exposure on some occasions when the background is awesome and you don't want it blown out.


buy at least the Godox TT350S, it's really cute and small but powerful. it can do hss, ttl, built-in receiver and can work as a master.

TMaG82 wrote in post #18457714
I'm starting to think it's a combination of everything, the lack of time, having the responsibility of watching two kids a lot of the time, and my upcoming home purchase which I know will take a lot of my time, energy, and let's face it, my money. If I know I won't have the time to use the gear for a while, I'm thinking it's better off having the extra money in the pocket and to help with the house costs and start over when the dust settles. I don't want a repeat of my last few vacations when I go to Disney World in December. Since I paid for the photo pass thinking of going with just the phone or maybe just my wife's Canon EOS M6 that I bought her a few months ago.

Ruts happen to everyone...esp when you have a lot going on like kids. I'm going through a really bad kind of rut right now...and yeah it sucks the motivation to shoot right of you. But it's usually temporary.

In terms of balancing camera gear with kids...the key is to keep it simple and find a carrying system that works for you. I'm forcing myself to shoot right now for the reasons that Charlie described...there are always things worth documenting and even if it isn't always creatively inspiring now, you'll appreciate it later. I still have my rx1rii, but have been using the a9 with the Fe 35 1.4. it's not the smallest cam set up, but with a single lens, it's very simple....plus as we've discussed a few times, it captures things so effortlessly that it doesn't really get in the way. I'm basically living out of my peak design backpack right no so I'm lugging the a9, my laptop, and a bunch of misc stuff around with me everywhere and it works.

In terms of Disney....the photo pass photographers suck and they can't be with you everywhere. I think if you didn't bring some decent gear you'd regret it. I always gear up when I go and am always glad that I did.

Here's my album from our last trip:

focalpointsphoto.com/d​isney-2017

you know when you're in an awesome place and you regret you didn't bring your big boy camera?

that's why i gotta buy that lowepro flipside 400 AW II.

Nice images Carlo. Take advantage while the kids are still willing models. when it gets to like 12yo onwards, goodluck. lol

vinmunoz wrote in post #18457782
you know when you're in an awesome place and you regret you didn't bring your big boy camera?

that's why i gotta buy that lowepro flipside 400 AW II.

Nice images Carlo. Take advantage while the kids are still willing models. when it gets to like 12yo onwards, goodluck. lol

TY pre. My 9 yr old already doesn't want anything to do with photos, but still enjoying the two babies.

And yeah I think the key to not letting gear get in the way is a good carrying system. Something easy to carry, isn't hideous, and easy to access and out stuff away. My big boy backpack is the peak design. I have smaller bags for everyday carry type stuff.

mystik610 wrote in post #18457799
TY pre. My 9 yr old already doesn't want anything to do with photos, but still enjoying the two babies.

And yeah I think the key to not letting gear get in the way is a good carrying system. Something easy to carry, isn't hideous, and easy to access and out stuff away. My big boy backpack is the peak design. I have smaller bags for everyday carry type stuff.

my middle children are 8 and 9 and want no part of posed photos, but they are ok with candid/goofy photos, so I'm still doing those. My oldest will have a face like it's punishment, when photos of him are taken

and I agree with the backpack sentiment, that's really reserved for planned photoshoots. If I have to carry my backpack everywhere, I'de quit photography sooner than later. Hell, I'm too lazy to bring a diaper bag at this point, I'll keep a few diapers stashed in each car and just wing it with the baby. Dont even carry baby food with her out, just improvise.