I have an interest in photography, videography, astronomy, and more . . . so I have a lot of optical stuff, including cameras, telescopes, and binoculars. I also like good sunglasses, since I want to keep my eyes functional so I can keep doing that other stuff. My optical gear is catalogued here.
Photography
Photography is one of my major hobbies. I also enjoy a little bit of videography now-and-then. I do most of my shooting on my phone now, just like everybody else, but my “serious” equipment comes out when I want the range, quality, and control that you can only get with big sensors and lenses.
Sony E System
My “primary” set of photography gear is based around the Sony E System. This system includes Sony mirrorless camera bodies with E-mount interchangeable lenses from Sony and third-party manufacturers like Samyang, Sigma, and Tamron.
Camera Bodies
- Sony Alpha 7 II digital mirrorless interchangeable-lens (full frame format)
- Sony Alpha 6600 digital mirrorless interchangeable-lens (APS-C format)
E-Mount Lenses
- Samyang MF 14mm f/2.8 Mk2
- Samyang AF 24mm f/2.8 FE
- Samyang AF 45mm f/1.8 FE
- Samyang AF 75mm f/1.8 FE
- Sony E 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 OSS (APS-C)
- Sony FE 28-70mm f/3.5-5.6 OSS
- Tamron 70-300mm f/4.5-6.3 Di III RXD
- Thingyfy Pinhole Pro S
Adapted Lenses
- JCPenney (mfg?) 135mm f/2.8 (vintage; Pentax K mount with FotodioX adapter)
- Nikon Nikkor 24mm f/2.8 (vintage; Nikon F Mount with FotodioX tilt/shift adapter)
- Nikon Micro-Nikkor 55mm f/3.5 (vintage; macro; Nikon F mount with FotodioX adapter)
- Olympus Zuiko 50mm f/1.8 (vintage; Olympus OM mount with FotodioX adapter)
- Tokina SZX Super-Tele 400mm f/8 (catadioptric; 2x extender; T-mount with adapter)
Secondary Lenses and Filters
- Cokin Nuances Clearsky Light Pollution Filter
- Farpoint Bahtinov Focusing Mask
- Schneider Kreuznach B+W 55mm Close-Up +2
- Schneider Kreuznach B+W 55mm Close-Up +4
- Schneider Kreuznach B+W 55mm Close-Up +10
- Tiffen Solar Neutral Density Filter (16-stop)
Other Cameras
- Apple iPhone 14 Pro smartphone (see Phones and Tablets)
- GoPro Hero3 White digital sport
- Ridgid Micro CA-25 digital inspection
Other Optics
Sometimes I like to look at things that are far away. That could mean something a few miles away across the water, or a galaxy a million light-years away. I also like to protect my eyes from the sun. The tools I use for those things are listed here.
Telescopes
- Telescopes
- Eyepieces
- Lenses
- Filters
- Celestron 1.25″ Neutral Density (13% transmission)
- Celestron 1.25″ UHC Light Pollution Reduction
- Celestron EclipSmart Solar Filter (front mounted)
- Farpoint Bahtinov Focusing Mask (front mounted)
- Diagonals
- Mount
- Celestron CG-2 equatorial mount and tripod
Binoculars, Etc.
- Bushnell Equinox Z 6×50 digital night vision monocular
- Bushnell PowerView 10×32 compact binocular (2x)
- Creative XP PRO digital night vision binocular
- Nikon Action Extreme 10×50 ATB binocular
Sunglasses
- Knockaround Fast Lanes (matte black frame; smoke polycarbonate lens) (3x)
- Oakley Holbrook (polished black frame; Prizm sapphire polycarbonate lens)
- Randolph Aviator (matte chrome frame; American gray glass lens)
- Ray-Ban Round (silver tone frame; silver flash glass lens)
- Ray-Ban Wayfarer Classic (gloss black frame; G-15 green glass lens)
- Revo Descend N (black frame; blue water polycarbonate lens)
- Serengeti Varese (brushed brown frame; driver’s gradient glass lens)
- Wiley X WX Valor (matte black frame; smoke gray polycarbonate lens)
History
Cameras
Dedicated cameras I’ve owned since adulthood are listed here. See also my Phones and Tablets history.
- Nikon D3100 digital single-lens reflex (APS-C format)
- AF-S DX Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR (APS-C; 27-82.5mm equivalent)
- AF-S DX Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6G VR (APS-C; 82.5-300mm equivalent)
- Nikon SB-500 AF Speedlight
- Canon PowerShot SX20 IS “prosumer” point-and-shoot
- Canon PowerShot S3 IS “prosumer” point-and-shoot
- Canon ZR40 MiniDV camcorder
Sunglasses
“Good” sunglasses I’ve owned (i.e., not including cheap convenience-store and Walmart sunglasses) are listed here.
- American Optical Original Pilot (matte chrome frame; gray glass lens)