Bob Monaghan wrote:

. . . . . . .

I agree with many of Gordon's comments (and QGdB's ;-) on lenses, but will
add that you can do a lot with the "wrong" or non-ideal lens.

Just to get back into the leaf shutter and ideal compact camera discussion,
it seems that neither of us discussed the Mamiya 6 much at all. That one did
have a 150 mm lens, though I am not sure about the closest focus ability. The
collapsing front made it somewhat more compact than a Mamiya 7. Any thoughts?



...

One result of the trip was my recommendation to do short local trips with
different lenses, preferably with one lens on each walkabout, forcing you
to fully explore what each lens can do under many situations.

I usually only do that when I am testing a lens, though sometimes it is just
a good exercise. The one lens limit is fun to try sometimes, but I don't
think I could sell off many lenses and keep just one. Considering how many
lenses you have, I would be surprised if you found a way to cut down. ;-)



I think past amateurs were better aware of their lens capabilities, due to
having only a few in hand, than many of us with a dozen or more optics in
our camera kits? ;=)

I once had only two camera bodies (35 mm), each with one lens. It was
definitely a limited set-up, but I was able to accomplish a great deal.
Unfortunately, what led to more lenses was dissatisfaction with some results,
or some situations in which I would just not take a shot at all due to an
inappropriate lens. I sort of envy those few professionals that have been
able to limit themselves and their photos to mostly one lens.

Ciao!

Gordon Moat
A G Studio
http://www.allgstudio.com