Gear Geek: Sigma 10-20 Lens

My latest equipment acquisition is the Sigma 10-20 wide angle zoom lens. I got it specifically for scenic, landscape-y photos such as this shot of the Bay Bridge, taken from the ferry on my morning commute.

So far I'm really loving this lens. It's obviously not an all-around lens like a 28-135, but it beautifully handles most of the shots I like to take. At f-4.0-5.6 it is quite a light hog, and it is quite heavy, so nighttime cityscapes are going to require a tripod (and, uh, NOT being on the bouncy ferry) if I'm going for a sharp, clear image.

But overall, this is a good, solid lens that has given me a great reason to start using my DSLR again for actually taking photos, instead of as an external meter for my Yashica Mat. I can't wait to take it over to the Sutro Baths for more nighttime long exposure shots!

Bay Bridge in Late Autumn Daylight

This was one of the last chances I had to shoot 100 speed film before switching to my "winter stock" of faster film (generally ISO400), since the higher speed film requires less intense bright daylight.

But, oh my...I have a particular passion for Fuji slide film. This was shot with Provia 100 (about a couple of weeks ago) and it's pretty much straight out of the camera/scanner. The saturation of the film so beautifully captured the light amber quality of the afternoon sunlight.

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a...cloud!

Underbottom, Bay Bridge