Gear that earned its place.

Full frame in something close to a compact body. It goes in the bag without a decision being made about it, which is most of why these frames exist at all.

The walk-around. Wide enough open to separate a subject from an Atlanta street at golden hour, and light enough that carrying it is never the reason to leave it behind.

The widest thing in the bag. It shot more of the Atlanta walks than anything else, which was not the plan — 16mm turns a street you know into a street you have to stand inside of.

One lens instead of three, at the price of carrying all three at once. It comes out when the day might go anywhere and there is no time to change glass in the street.

The earliest volume here was shot entirely on a phone, which is the honest answer to what camera you should use: the one in your pocket on the day you happen to be in Chicago. Long replaced, but it made Vol. 01.

One focal length, no choice about it. Pointing a fixed wide straight up at the Loop is not a limitation so much as the only move available — so you make it the point.

What is in my pocket now. Nothing in the archive was made on it yet — the next volume will be the first.

Not mine — a friend's body, borrowed for an afternoon on the Daly City hills. A DSLR is heavier than it needs to be until the light drops, and then it is exactly as heavy as it needs to be.

Borrowed with the body it was mounted on. The cheapest lens in this archive and it made an entire afternoon of Daly City rooftops — a 50 makes you walk to the frame instead of zooming to it.

A friend's camera, borrowed for one morning on the New York Marathon course, where the only thing that matters is whether it holds focus on a runner coming straight at you.

Borrowed with the R5. A range that covers the whole width of an avenue and a face at the barrier without moving your feet — which, on a closed marathon course, you cannot do anyway.