Pete is from toowoomba QLD, shoots a fair bit for the mag and also kills it with wedding photography.
Check out more of his photos here and read on to learn more about his setup.
First up, list the gear you have…
Canon 5Dmk2 SLR
Canon 50mm f/1.8
Canon 24-70mm f/2.8L
Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II
Tokina 10-17mm f/3.5–4.5 DX Fisheye
Vivitar 285HV Flash (x2)
Canon 580EX II Speedlight (x1)
Pocket Wizard Plus Transmitter / Receivers (x3)
Sekonic L-358 Lightmeter with Pocket Wizard chip
Various Lightstands, Manfrotto Tripod, Tamrac Expedition 8 Backpack, Shares in Energizer batteries and assorted Apple products. Also have a separate kit for my portrait & studio gear.
Rechargeable batteries or just replace them?
Always been a fan of the rechargeable AA’s for my flashes because I feel that I get more than my money’s worth out of them each time. They usually last me about 2 years before they get a bit haggard and lose their life.
What goes missing the most from your bag?
Cleaning cloths or power cords are usually the main candidates for staying at home instead of being in my bag. I once went to get my power cords out that belonged to my portable strobes for a wedding I was shooting at and the sickening feeling of realising that they weren’t there was pretty brutal haha. I was just lucky I had my Vivitars!
What lens do you use the most and why?
70-200mm is by far the most satisfying lens to use that I own. Prior to owning this, I’d have said the 50mm, but the 70-200mm just amazes me each time I inspect the photos for sharpness and colour. Plus it gets plenty of street cred…
What program do you use for editing the photos after you have uploaded them?
For single photographs, I tend to use Photoshop CS4 and just tweak my exposure and saturation in the RAW Editor that’s built in. I’m not a big fan of editing to be honest, but when shooting raw files it is often necessary to tweak the settings to get the most out of the photo. I just tell myself it is the digital equivalent of a dark room. For big batches of photos however, Adobe Lightroom is nothing short of amazing.
Is your gear insured?
Yeah, it’s just one of those things for peace of mind. I joke around a lot and call my bag my retirement fund, so there’s no way I’m risking losing that. It’s not so much the money value though, it’s more the fact I’ve worked hard to build up my bag bit by bit and it holds a lot of sentimental value to me.
Black and white or colour?
I often try to make my photos work first in colour, but sometimes will resort to black & white to save the day. Some photos just work in black & white though, and bring out so much more character and feeling.
How many flashes have you broken?
Thankfully none yet due to BMX accidents but I have had two fall over and get partly damaged.
Favourite websites and or mags out there that motivate you to go out and shoot photos?
I read Monster Children Magazine all the time for inspiration and ideas. It’s just a great blend of lifestyle and photography with some badass stories attached.
As far as websites go, I keep up to date with Flickr. I have met some awesome photographers on there (including FP contributors) that just blow me away each time with what they produce. It’s great too, because most times you can view the exif data to see what settings and equipment was used to achieve the shots.
Best advice you can give someone starting out…
Don’t be shy of other photographers just because they’ve been shooting longer than you or have more expensive equipment. I often got intimidated when starting out which is probably a natural thing for a lot of beginners, but there’s no need to be. Ask photographers questions and observe little tricks they use to overcome certain hurdles. Chances are that they’ll be stoked to offer you a little insight and help you on your way.
