#photography #videography #camera # Camera Collection — Thinking and Next Steps *Captured 2026-06-27 · Last reviewed 2026-09-13* > **Status (2026-09-13):** The C80 experiment is at its halfway mark — ~2.5 months elapsed, ~3.5 months left (ends 2026-12-28). No outings logged yet (see log below). C50 sale still open. Leica M and Q3-43 remain "marinating" open threads. ## The Collection Today Every camera has a clear one-sentence job — except one. | Camera | Role | | ----------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------- | | R5 Mk II | Stills workhorse, birding (also a fine portrait cam, rarely used) | | C80 | Serious cinema — the discipline camera | | C50 | No clean role — decided: sell | | Leica Q3 | Street / walkabout primary (28mm, Leica rendering) | | Ricoh GR3x | Pocket sidekick for days carrying the C80 — stills without competing for hands | | DJI Osmo Pocket 3 | Vlogging | | DJI Mini Pro 3 | Aerial | | R7 (Avi's) | Learning rig | ## The C50 Question The C50 doesn't have a clean role. It sits in a middle ground: - Not deliberate enough to force cinema discipline (the C80 does that better) - Not light enough to be true grab-and-go (Q3/GR3x own that) - Overlaps with R5 II for casual video Originally framed as "backup + walkabout cinema + daily carry," which is really three half-jobs. **Key insight:** The goal is to *learn cinema* — and constraint helps. A dedicated cinema body forces you to think in video: composition, movement, sequences, audio. The C80's heavier, more deliberate setup is a feature, not a bug. It puts you in filmmaker mode before you hit record. The R5 II makes it too easy to bail and grab a still. **Options to resolve:** 1. Sell/trade the C50 — let the C80 be cinema, R5 II handle incidental video 2. Keep it but with a rule: when carrying the C50, the R5 II stays home (force the constraint) 3. Give it a specific narrow role: Avi's video cam, or dedicated B-cam for multi-cam shoots only **Current plan (2026-06-28):** - **C50:** Shelf-tested. Not being used. Sell it. *(As of 2026-09-13: decision stands; confirm whether it's actually listed/sold yet.)* - **C80 experiment (6 months, ends 2026-12-28):** Commit to one intentional cinema outing per month. If by end of period you've done 3+ and want more → keep the C80 (Version A: you're becoming a filmmaker). If you haven't touched it → sell it without guilt (Version B: video lives on the R5 II and that's fine). - **R5 II:** Handles stills, birding, portraits, and incidental/travel video. The honest daily workhorse. - **The core tension:** Version B behavior (R5 II is convenient, C80 sits unused) vs. Version A aspiration (learn cinema, commit to the discipline). This experiment resolves that question with action, not more thinking. ### C80 Outing Log The experiment lives or dies on this log. One line per intentional cinema outing. 3+ by 2026-12-28 = keep (Version A). | # | Date | Location / subject | What I shot / learned | | - | ---- | ------------------ | --------------------- | | 1 | | | | | 2 | | | | | 3 | | | | **Pace check (2026-09-13):** halfway through the window, 0 logged. Need 3 outings across the remaining ~3.5 months (Sep/Oct, Nov, Dec) to hit the keep threshold. ## Open Threads (not-now, marinating) - **Leica M system curiosity.** Drawn to the *shooting experience* (manual rangefinder, slowing down) rather than specs — same "constraint as creative tool" instinct as the C80. Decided to let it marinate. Cheapest next step before buying anything: rent an M11 + 35 Summicron for a weekend and see if it clicks. Risk to watch: the pattern of gear that sits unused (C50, orphan lenses) — an M could become another shelf piece if the Q3's speed keeps winning. - **Leica Q3 43mm swap.** Open "someday, not now" question — whether 43mm matches my eye better than 28mm for light-and-shadow work. Only worth acting on if I notice I'm consistently cropping the Q3 toward 50. Not a buy-now item. - **Sirui 35mm T2.9 1.6x anamorphic.** Owned, barely used, want to learn it. First session plan: set C80 desqueeze to 1.6x, shoot wide open at T2.9 for oval bokeh, put a point light at frame edge for the streak flare, practice a slow focus pull, then desqueeze in Resolve (Inspector → Lens Correction → 1.6x). A walk with the C80 is the ideal first outing — this doubles as C80 experiment outing #1. ## The Lens Cull (Still Undone) Outstanding since mid-2024. See [[Camera Clean up]] for the original task list. **Known keepers:** - RF 24-70 (heavy use) - RF 70-200 (heavy use) - RF 100-500 (heavy use, birding) - RF 15-35mm (heavy use, wide zoom) - RF 35mm (street/cinema prime — one prime in the kit) - RF 100-400 (Avi's) - RF 24-240 (Avi's) - Sirui 35mm T2.9 1.6x Full-Frame Anamorphic **Cull candidates:** - RF 50mm — covered by the 24-70 f/2.8, no distinct role with the 35mm kept - Wider prime — redundant with RF 15-35mm - "Way too many" other lenses that never get mentioned in any trip packing list or daily carry note. **Simple decision rule:** If it hasn't been mounted in 6 months and has no sentimental value, sell it. Gear depreciates in drawers. **Quickest path forward:** Pick the 3 lenses you *know* you don't use. List them on MPB this weekend. Let momentum carry the rest. ## Related Notes - [[Make 2026 Camera Gear Decisions by April 30]] - [[Camera Clean up]] - [[Wandrd Prvke layout diagram]] - [[Canon C80 Setups]] - [[Canon C50 Setups]] - [[Leica Q3 10 Tips to Instantly Guarantee Amazing Photos]] - [[DJI Osmo Pocket V3]] - [[Canon R7 setup under 50 seconds Wildlife photography]] - [[Video]] - [[Filming]] - [[Birding]]