I   started out using  Minolta,  but  quickly  changed  to  Canon once I  realized I   needed  some  proper  equipment. I  have not  been dissappointed with  their  stuff. What  do  I  use?  Well, I  first  bought a  20D which  I  still use occasionally. A lot  of the pictures on the site  have been made with this  camera. It  has done well, although in the ever-changing market  of camera`s it`s already  outdated.  Last  year I  upgraded    to   a EOS 1D MII  Same  amount  of  pixels,  but  10 times the quality! Cropping  , handling  of high ISO,  noise , it`s all  better. This  camera still  holds it  own  even despite the  introduction of the 1D mark III  which  seems to have an endless list of problems. I like  the 1DII  for  being quick to focus, the main shortcoming is the limited ISO range. However you  can pick them up  fairly cheaply on ebay. I  am very  interested in the canon 50D as it  produces large files and has an excellent iso range but  I think I will have to wait  a little  before buying  any  more gear...If I  would  start al over  again, I  would be tempted to  get a Nikon. Their  newer camera`s specifications are mouth  watering. Don`t  know about  their lenses though.

My  main lens  is  a 500mm f4 IS which I  use  with a 1.4 and sometimes 2.0 convertor,  but  I  also  use  a  300 f4 at  times - especially  when on holiday as its  a bit easier to  carry  around  at take into the plane etc.  The  500mm lens  would  be  useless  if  I  hadn`t  had  a Wimberley head and  a sturdy tripod.

My  latest lens is an 70-200 f2.8 USM IS which  is great  for the  larger  stuff: elephants  and all.

I  do   quite a bit of  editing  to   get  the  picture I  want. I   use Capture one,  Adobe Editor  and  NeatImage. 

Most  importantly, I managed to  convince my  wife I  really  needed  all this   stuff to keep me happy. It  beats  going  to the pub...