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Trevor, There's definitely a learning curve to the Tokina lens. I find it very useful, but still have the Canon lenses as back ups. Good luck with the flash, many out there are good, new or used. Rick

Understood. I would have used the Canon lens more, but the tanks were packed in so tight, and it was quite dark, so that I didn't have much choice.

This is a review on the Canon T3 camera body. As a back up camera I bought (used, $200 US) a Canon T3. It uses the same lens that my Canon Xsi camera uses. I took it out for a test run on the closest tank to me (M48A1 Oak Orchard) and was very pleased with the results. I was thinking about a Canon Powershot, but it has fixed lens.
Years ago, I had a Pentax K1000, and in about 1983 bought a Pentax ME-Super, for lens sharing. Both worked fine for film cameras that I could afford at the time. Digital photography is a heck of a lot simpler now as you do all dark room work in the computer using programs of choice. No negatives to worry about. I just suggest keeping memory cards (full ones) as backups, plus I got a removable HD about a year ago.
Hope this information is useful to someone starting into photography. Rick

I've been using a Canon G1X with a cable remote trigger as "pole" camera since quite a while. This is a "compact" camera, with build-in lens but quite a large sensor. Bigger than the usual compacts at 530g.
Normally the lens is set to the wider focal length of 28 mm equivalent, at f/2.8 aperture. The image quality has been pretty good, still not comparable with what I get from my Canon 5D Mk III reflex.

I finally got an old Android smartphone to try remote control by wi-fi instead of cable. That means putting an Olympus EM-1 camera on the pole. This is an interchangeable, Micro 4/3 camera. The body, without lenses, weight 500g and has very effective, in-body stabilization (a crucial factor in such a case).

Initially I tried the 12-40 f/2.8 zoom (380g), the combo was too heavy and there was no benefit from having the zoom, since I can't zoom while the camera is above my head. A major factor here is that I need to keep the smartphone on my right hand, leaving only my left arm and body to hold and control the "pole".

I immediately tried a 12 mm f/2.0 fixed length lens (130g). The weight was bearable, even if I get tired much earlier compared to the G1X solution. The 12mm lens is a 24mm equivalent, so wider than the 28mm I was used too, I tried the Olympus 17mm (34mm equivalent) but that was too narrow.

The whole tests gave me a good excuse to order a Panasonic 15mm f/1.7, a 115g, 30mm equivalent that should arrive later this month. I am positive this should be the right focal length for the job.

You can see size/weight a comparison here:
camerasize.com/compact...2.412,ha,t

As usual I tried the new equipment in Full. I summarize what I learned:

- While G1X image quality was good, the EM-1 blows it out of the water

- The ability to use lenses faster than f/2.8 is nice in low light, but, as expected, you better stay in 2.8/4.0 range to avoid part of the subject being out of focus

- 24mm equivalent is a bit too short as focal length, it starts introducing perspective distortion so typical of wide-angle lenses

- Using the smartphone to control the camera is amazing! It's not just remote shutter control, it's full control of camera settings, I can change aperture, speed an ISO remotely, even better, I can select the focus point on the touch screen. This is really a huge improvement, much better than I anticipated.

- Holding the pole/camera on one arm and the smartphone on the other is more complicated, less stable and more tiring

- It takes some time to get used to the eye/arm coordination required to control the set-up

Finally, here is a sample shot:

D-944 PSZH by Massimo Foti, on Flickr

Another one:

Chenillette Renault UE by Massimo Foti, on Flickr

Massimo,
Great shots! I also checked out your flickr photos, good to see they are all coming out much better than before. Rick

Another sample:

G-13 M-78125 by Massimo Foti, on Flickr