I'm planning to return to Hà Nội as soon as Tết, or Vietnamese New Year, hiatus is over, to continue my work on my forthcoming photo book "Hầu Đồng: The Spirit Mediums of Viet Nam". I'm told the periods before and after the holidays are the best times for such ceremonies, because of devotees seeking to welcome the new year with appropriate blessings.
This time around, I will be taking two Fuji X-T1 bodies with the latest firmware 4.30 installed, and 5 lenses. A Fuji 18mm f/2, a Zeiss Touit 12mm f/2.8, a Fuji XF 56mm f/1.2, a Fujifilm XF 18-135mm f3.5-5.6, and my absolute favorite the XF 16-55mm f/2.8.
From past experience, I expect to use the XF 16-55mm f/2.8 and the Zeiss Touit 12mm f2.8 lenses for most of the time during the ceremonies. For the street work, I'll have the 12mm and the Fuji 18mm f/2 workhorse. For portraiture, I'll have the 56mm f/1.2 with its fabulous bokeh. The lens least used has always been 18-135mm, but I'll throw it in just in case I need its range.
I might add the X-Pro1 to the mix for monochrome street shooting, or I'll use my Leica M9 in monochrome mode, and bite the bullet in terms of cramming all these in my shoulder bag.
