Kicked Off Instagram AND The Gigabyte Aero 15X

Art Model, Panda ©2017 Terrell Neasley

So, Instagram didn't like my last post. My profile on there does not exist anymore. Can't access my account. Nothing. Just gone. Well, that's their game and as a private entity, they have the right to do just that. And I have every right to say Fuck'em. They have 100% lost my respect, because respect would have been, "Hey we're sorry you feel this way. What can we do to help make your Instagram experience better?" At that point, we can still talk and I get to feel like a citizen consumer of their product. And if we don't reach a conclusive mutual agreement, then OK. Part and go separate ways. No harm. No foul.

But that's not what they did. I was dictated to without the ability to question a thing or even get clarification to better understand. Shadow Banning my images isn't in their Community Guidelines either. I can't work with anybody like that and simply won't. For the future, I'll move on without Instagram in my life and I'm absolutely cool with that. I still have my goals and I will achieve them in a different manner. I'm just getting off that platform earlier than expected. This will give me time to research my options more thoroughly, so I'm good with having that bridge burned.

Moving on...

Art Model, Panda ©2017 Terrell Neasley

Yeah, so I ordered my laptop yesterday. Going with the $2300, 15.6" Gigabyte Aero 15X, with the 6-core i7-8750 processor, 16GB of RAM, half a TB of NVMe SSD, Nvidia GTX 1070 GPU, and a 1080p display. I wanted to wait another week or two for it, but inventory everywhere is low. Other versions/variations of this laptop model suddenly were not available any longer so when I saw this one with a much sooner date of arrival, I jumped. The 15X is the middle version of this model. There's a 15W for $2000 which is the one I wanted. Its the exact specs of the 15X only with a GTX 1060 graphics card. No date on when it gets in...only "soon". Then there's the 15X, but with a 4k display for $2500...mid-July expected delivery for that one. Nope...had to jump on what was available. If the 4k version was what was available, I'd have pulled the trigger on that one.

Art Model, Panda ©2017 Terrell Neasley

The MS Surface Book 2 was less power but still more money. It was a whole grand more money for a lesser processor AND lessor GPU. I didn't need the removable screen. I hated the fulcrum hinge and I just couldn't see that it was a better deal. Its hard to believe the Surface is charging a thousand dollars more...and for what? If it was worth it, I could see it. Maybe it is for you, you should check it out. I need a laptop to edit photos and videos on and I think the Gigabyte Aero 15X best suited my needs.

Now we'll see after I get my hands on it as to whether it was a good decision or not, but I feel good about it. But that won't be for a while yet. I'll definitely be doing a review on it, but I won't have it til sometime late June. Then I'll load it up with my much needed software and get to work. Adobe for sure will get loaded, but what else? I used a ton of plug-ins on my desktop and I'm not looking for the same 'ol, same ol'. Its been years and I'd love to change it up a bit. Capture One, maybe...? I love the fact that its easily upgradeble, but I'll wait til around Christmas to add another 16GB of RAM (2 slots for max 32GB) and another 2TB SSD for a total of 2.5TBs, since there's one more slot for another SSD.

And with that, Papa's gotta get a brand new bag. My current Thinktank Retrospective 30 won't hold a 15.6" laptop. So I'm going with the biggest messenger shoulder bag that gets the job done. I don't need anything that looks like I got a boat load of cameras in it, so I'm sticking with Thinktank again and getting the Urban Disguise 60 v3.0. I'll be doing a review on it as well when I pick it up at B&C Camera in Las Vegas. This along with the Sennheiser AVX and the Osmo Plus will be my main purchases for now. Waiting til the end of the year will be the Mavik Air. Gotta pace myself! The only thing that is also still questionable is the Sigma 20mm f/1.4 E-Mount for Sony lens. There is still no word yet on if it will be available and in stores during my visit back stateside.

Art Model, Panda ©2017 Terrell Neasley

My Travel Tech Gear... Mainly Sony

Anonymous Art Model, Copyright 2014 Terrell Neasley

I've often been asked lots of questions about my travels and I've run into several amateur and 2 professional photographers in these four months so far. Three or four questions just about always come up and the most persistent ones have to do with my travel photo and tech gear. So I'll take a blog post to detail what I carry and why.

BODIES

I shoot Sony and I rock with two camera bodies and currently 3 lenses. The body that is pretty much my workhorse is the Sony a6500. It does everything I need. I like the smaller body-style, yet the thing is a powerful beast of a camera. Here...click the hyperlink to check ==> THE SPECS <==. I've got images stabilization and 11 frames per second when I need it. Its weather sealed with a great 24mp sensor. I actually turn off the touch screen functions. Paired with the 16-35mm f/4, it gives me a crop sensored normal perspective zoom.

Art Model Mary, Copyright 2007 Terrell Neasley

My second body is the Sony a7R2. ( ==> THE SPECS <==) Why is this body not my primary, you ask? Its because the majority of the work I'm doing doesn't require the 42 megapixels this camera uses. I save this for the work that will capture my fine art images while the a6500 will take care of my documentary work, which is about 70% of all the shots I take. I almost upgraded this body to the a7R3, but I'm glad that I didn't. At least not yet. Tempting, for sure! But here's the deal. I don't want to upgrade until I also get two new bodies. I don't want to upgrade this camera and then have to carry another battery size. Right now, both my cameras use the same battery so I can interchange them. Upgrading to the a7R3 would mean another set of 6 batteries, minimum, plus two more chargers. Can't say that's a good fit for me at the moment.

Now if I also upgraded my a6500, (which I'm not sure I'd do), the a7III uses the same battery as the a7R3. That's plausible. But even so, I'm STILL not sold on  selling my a6500. That's how much I love this camera. So basically, I'd likely carry THREE bodies, even though that's not a goal. But here's the deal. I'm not entirely sure I'd want the a7III. Its selling like hotcakes, but I think I'd rather hold off to see what Sony does with the a7S3 which is likely due soon. That would suit me better than the a7III. So I wait and practice my patience lessons. At that point, I'll decide what to do with the a6500, especially if the a7s3 is pushing 10fps at a minimum.

Anonymous Art Model, Copyright 2010 Terrell Neasley

LENSES

As for glass, I'm primarily a prime guy. I mentioned having one zoom, the 16-35mm f/4 already. I'm not upgrading to the 2.8 version because I already get killer shots with this lens. For my purposes, the G-Master version gives me no added benefit. With that, the Sony 55mm f/1.8 is super bad for my portraiture work. The smaller size is more conducive to my travel work. I did not find the 85mm G-Master to be a better lens. The 55 is the best portrait lens I have ever owned even over my Canon 85mm 1.2.

Finally, I have Sony's 90mm f/2.8 Macro lens. There is not a better one on the market, in my opinion. Its one of the sharpest lenses made for DSLR or Mirrorless. And yes, I say that knowing that I've been quoted as saying Sharpness is over-rated. Here's the deal. I needed a macro lens and Sony made one. Its not my fault that it happens to be one of the sharpest optical instruments to ever don a camera mount. I will likely also add the Sigma 20mm f/1.4 if I can make that happen when make another trip stateside. This will be my primary astro-photography, night time, and landscape lens. So I'll have 4 lenses that I travel with. Notice, there's nothing on the super telephoto front. That means that the longest lens I'll have is the 90 on my a6500 which will make it effectively a 135mm 2.8. This is purposeful. My primary perspective is wide to normal. I don't really work in the super-tele range as much.

Art Model Katherine, Copyright 2008 Terrell Neasley

PERIPHERAL

Along with those, I pack two Sony HDR-AS100V Action Cams. I use these also for documentary purposes as well as time-lapse. These are older systems, but again...no need to upgrade. These things work great for what I need them for. I use them on a table top tripod, a clamp-style grip, and a regular-size travel tripod. Its the only other battery/charger system I have and I carry six batteries for them. My iPhone 7 Plus gets a lot of work as well, both handheld and with a cellphone holder that I can mount onto a tripod. I'm still doing snap shots and video for social media with it. I have one speedlight with me. Its a Canon 430EX II that I mount with Phottix Ares wireless transmitters.

Art Model Jacinda, Copyright 2007 Terrell Neasley

I currently have no laptop I can edit on. I have never edited on one...ever. Since this is an extended travel, I don't have the choice of waiting until I return. So...I'm wracking my brain on what to get later when I come back stateside this summer (just for a few weeks). The lead candidate is the MS Surface Book 2, (maxed out 15" version) but DAMN! I do not want to pay $3500 for that thing (and accessories). Runner up is the Gigabyte Aero 15x. A bit more reasonable, but still over the $2K I'd much rather spend. Hell, maybe even that's too much. So I'll have all that sorted out by the time I return. Maybe something else will come out that meets the spec sheet and features I'm interested in. The main thing...speed. I don't want to have to wait forever rendering videos, images, or anything. Speed, but versatility, future-proof, and battery longevity.

That's it for camera tech in my bag. Looking forward to the additional gear this summer. I'll post on the new additions and eventually post on their performance.

Art Model Covenant, Copyright 2015 Terrell Neasley