My go-to gear at the moment is a combination of a Leica Q-P and a Leica CL with 55-135 (70-200 ish equivalent) lens attached. This gives me a 2-camera setup with a good focal range and removes the need to change lenses. I could just take the 18-56 lens for my CL, but there's something rather addictive about the 28mm f/1.7 lens on the Leica Q-P that means I don't want to leave it at home. And I can crop the full frame Leica a good amount to fill the gap to the longer Leica CL zoom lens.

I'm fairly restricted about where I can go during lockdown, but as per my previous post I am very lucky to be where I am on the Isle of Skye. In my allowable exercise wanderings I can get to some beautiful little rocky bays and woodland, which I suspect is rather better than most people have on their doorstep.

Let me tell you a bit more about the Leica Q-P. I've been a bit hot and cold about it to be honest. I've previously owned a Sony RX1 which had sensational image quality, but was the usual Sony ergonomic mess to try and use. And I've had a Fuji X100F, which was nice and compact without a sticky-out lens, and delightful to use. I bought the Q-P when the Q2 came out and I got a cracking deal as a result. I'd also sold my M10 and, if you are used to Leica M ownership, you'll know what a bargain the Q-P with its 28mm Summilux lens is (an M 28-lux would cost you quite a lot more on its own). And the Q-P, with it's matt black finish, is rather special.

So why have I been hot and cold about it? I've been wavering towards the Fuji X100V. Gorgeous camera. Lovely ergonomics, Now with a cracking lens that doesn't stick out much. The lure of the new.

But....the problem is actually that I haven't been using my Q-P enough. So I decided to take it everywhere with me and it's been an excellent refresher about why the Leica Q series is just so amazing. It's lovely to use. I'd like a manual ISO dial like the M10, but aside from that, it's a very M-like experience apart from the auto focus of course. Even then, manual focus, which I've used quite frequently, is beautifully implemented.

The rewards are simply lovely pictures, even "snapshots". The pic above of me & Mrs T at a favourite snack stop is typical. An easy shot, made lovely with full frame f/1.7 goodness that comes as standard. Sure, you could get something like this with a Sony A7 and a 28 f/2 but then you'd have to put up with the Sony experience which I dislike a lot.

For more "serious" landscape photography, by which I mean using a tripod and filters and suchlike, the Q-P is very easy and simple to use. The excellent viewfinder remains brilliant even though it's been superseded., and the controls are just great. The only thing that annoys me is that mandatory long exposure noise reduction which is just barmy and Leica should enable you to turn it off.

I've also been experimenting with video - using a GoPro 8 not a Leica, and have been creating a series of simple, quiet and gentle "slow TV" videos of my photographic outings. You can see the latest here, including pictures featured in this article. The emphasis is on making it feel like you're there, rather than shouty ego-maniac presentation.

Onto the Leica CL. It is definitely not as engaging as the Q-P. It doesn't have the manual controls that I love, so it is a bit more "remote" to use. I have dials that do one thing in one mode, and do another thing in another mode. Just give me simplicity - one control, one function. But, that being said, it's still very very good.

I don't care that it has a smaller sensor, as the images it produces are very good. They are full of detail, crispness and contrast from the very high quality Leica zoom lenses. I can get my wide aperture fix from the Q-P (though I do have a CL-mount 23mm f/2 somewhere), the CL comes into its own when I need flexibility and longer reach. Being a crop sensor camera means that the lenses are smaller and lighter than their full frame counterparts, which is all good when wandering around.

Once you forgive the lack of manual controls, the dials are precise and easy to use, and the centre buttons within them are genius. It's a very nice camera to use - crisp and precise, with snappy responsiveness and speedy operation. You could get any number of crop-frame cameras that are as good or better. It's a great buyers market right now. I just so happen to like the way the CL works, it's compact, beautifully made, with great lenses.

I have a set of Lee Seven5 filters and adapters for both cameras and all the lenses. Another benefit of using small cameras is that the other accessories are small and light too. The lee filters are great quality, but I do get annoyed with the main filter mount which I believe has been replaced by a newer model so I'll have to look into getting one of those.

My entire kit (excluding the tripod) fits into a Billingham Hadley Small shoulder bag. And that includes my GoPro8 (more to come on that) with an external microphone, plus the filters, spare batteries, and a chocolate biscuit. This is ideal for my wanderings - the lighter and smaller the cameras the better in my view.

My experience with my Q-P is that, the more you use it, the better. It seems like the ideal cure for Gear Acquisition Syndrome (GAS) is simply to use the stuff you have more, and try to keep your focus on the creative side of things, and extracting the best from what you've got. I haven't "bonded" so much with the CL, but I do like it and it does a cracking job.