Downsizing My Equipment For 2011

Anyone who knows me knows how I like to spend! It seems like I have every photography gadget and gizmo out there! Over the past couple months I have been considering downsizing and going with the "less-is-more" approach to my photography. I know that the internet and forums make it real easy to want to buy everything that is out there but trust me! You only need a couple things to be able to take amazing photos. The rest is up to you to make your images sing!




I haven't made any drastic decisions yet but have been really considering selling my Alienbees studio strobes, Hasselblad medium format camera, gizmos and even a couple lenses (email me if interested).

I think my 2011 setup will simply be the following:
• Nikon D700 DSLR + Nikon MB-D10 Battery Grip
• Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 Lens for wide angle shots
• Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8 Lens (my all around lens)
• Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8 VR Lens (for telephoto and portraits)
• Nikon 50mm f/1.4G Lens (shallow DOF portrait lens)
• Two Nikon SB-900 Speedlights (high speed sync is my friend)
• Two RadioPopper PX Units (high speed sync is my friend)

It all fits in my bag, it is all nice and versatile and it simply works! I rarely do studio stuff anymore and don't feel like carting around all my studio strobes and ac power packs when doing shoots. It takes longer to setup and I feel that it can be overkill. I can pull off almost anything and everything with the gear listed above and don't have to worry about carting more stuff along.

You may be asking why I am cutting back...
Good question, see over the years I have fallen into the black hole of marketing and felt that I needed anything and everything that is out there. If it's new then it has to be the best... Well, a lot of that junk accumulated over time and I had too much stuff. There was no way I could use it all at a photo shoot. So I am going back to my roots and am minimizing my lenses and what I take with me to my photo shoots. Less is more...
Thanks!
~Mike