The following outlines the main equipment I use when photographing equine shows and events. The wide range zoom lenses are particularly suited to capturing the action that is an integral part of the carriage driving marathon - in particular the timed obstacle driving challenges. During the brief time the outfit is in the obstacle, there is no time to change cameras, let alone lenses. One must be able to follow and fill the frame with the competitor at all times in the obstacle to get the best shots. A broad zoom capability effectively overcomes many issues created by the continually varying photographer to subject distance.
CAMERAS
DIGITAL
Main: Pentax K7
- 14.6 megapixels
- "Shake Reduction" system
- Dust free image capture
- Enhanced dynamic range mode
- 77 segment metering system
- HD movie capture
- 3" LCD screen with wide viewing angle
- Electronic level function
- Lens correction function
- Embedded copyright function
Backup:
Pentax K20D, Pentax K10D, Pentax *ist D
----
_____________________________________________________________
FILM
Main: Pentax
Z-1P 
Backup:
Pentax SF-Xn, Pentax SF-1
_____________________________________________________________
LENSES
Sigma DC 18-50 F3.5-5.6
_____________________________________________________________
Pentax DA 18-250 F3.5-6.3
IF 
_____________________________________________________________
Tamron 28-300
F3.5-6.3 
_____________________________________________________________
Sigma
50-500 F4.5-6.3
_____________________________________________________________
Sigma
70-200 F2.8
_____________________________________________________________
Pentax 77 Ltd
F1.8
IF 
_____________________________________________________________
Tokina
80-400 F4.5-5.6 
_____________________________________________________________
DIGITAL IMAGE STORAGE
Main: Hyperdrive Colorspace O 320GB
COLORSPACE O is the latest model of Hyperdrive products that feature the world’s fastest and most advanced hard drive based memory card backup system that can backup, playback and recover photos from a memory card. It features a 3.2” QVGA LCD color screen with a screen orientation sensor. An ultra long lasting battery allows more than 120GB of backups on a single battery charge.
Backup: Phototainer
40GB
Phototainer is a portable digital storage device, capable of storing and displaying digital images, playing MP-3 music files and showing movies with sound. Images can be displayed on the internal 3.5" LCD screen or on an external TV monitor.
_____________________________________________________________