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Posts Tagged ‘gear’

Why Your Camera Gear Doesn’t Matter

17 Sep

graffiti wall - Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter

Many discussions in online photography groups and discussions revolve around “What’s the best camera brand?” or “What is the best lens for x?” or “Thinking about upgrading, should I pick between camera x or camera y?” and so on.

It seems that a lot of people think that there is a Holy Grail of camera gear that will solve all their problems if only they can achieve it. However they fail to understand that it isn’t the gear that matters, it’s what you do with it that counts.

Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - pink flower

So many people praise Ansel Adams or Cartier-Bresson as peers of the craft, yet those photographers were dealing with old film cameras. The camera in your cell phone is more powerful and advanced in technology by light years in comparison.

If all the photographers in history were capable of making lasting impactful images with old film camera hardware and development techniques – if you have a modern camera (of whatever brand you choose) or even just your cell phone – what is your excuse?

old cabin b/w - Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter

It isn’t about the gear. It has never been about the gear and as soon as you realize that, you will be free to create and shoot in a new and exciting way.

Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - still life image

Let’s Count the Ways That Gear Doesn’t Matter

  1. The camera doesn’t decide what brand or model you buy, or what lens you opt for. You do your own research (presumably), make your choices, place the order and pay the money. Or perhaps you were gifted with some gear or loaned it. Maybe you just have a phone with a camera. It doesn’t matter, they are all cameras with essentially the same capability to capture images.
  2. Your camera doesn’t haul itself out of bed early in the morning to get to the desired destination for a sunrise shot. It doesn’t drive for hours to get to a pretty lake, nor does it pack itself into a backpack and hike its way into the mountains to get the perfect shot – would be nice if it did though!
Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - ice and snow in the sun

This image was taken on a recent camera club trip in the mountains – roughly 4 hours drive from home. Lying full length on a snow bank to brace to get this shot, I chose to do it backlit for the desired creative outcome.

  1. The camera doesn’t decide what the composition will be, it doesn’t walk this way and that way, crouch down low, or climb up looking for a better vantage point.
  2. The camera doesn’t go without its daily latte for a year, while it saves up to go on holiday to an exotic destination so it can take lovely new photos while its there.
  3. Your camera doesn’t sit for hours on the side of a river, lake, or estuary waiting for the birds to come close enough to shoot.
  4. The lens doesn’t decide, “Hey I want to be the lens on your camera today, shoot with me all day”.

Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - rolling hills landscape

  1. Unless you are a complete beginner and shooting with everything on Auto, the camera doesn’t decide what settings it’s going to use. Nor does it decide when to click the shutter, when is exactly the right time to take the shot.
  2. The camera doesn’t say, “I don’t want to shoot macro today, instead let’s do architecture instead, I’m bored with flowers”.
  3. The camera doesn’t go, “I know it’s going to be cold and frosty tomorrow in the snow but it will be super pretty so let’s get up early to take photos before everyone walks all over it”.
Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - food photo setup

A behind the scenes shot of what it takes to stage a food photography shot – I haven’t even got the camera out yet.

There are so many decisions that you, the photographer make, that are essential to the image being created. But you could get the same shot with a Canon, or Nikon/Pentax/Sony or whatever brand you have.

For many of the shots that are taken, a recent cellphone has a pretty good camera in it and will do a good job too.

Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - flower abstract

Specifically mounted and lit against a black background, this was deliberately shot with selective focus and edited for a dark moody rich color tone.

What the Photographer Does Matters

  • You are the one saving up to go on the exciting holiday, deciding where to go, what time of year, what places to visit, what things you might want to see and photograph.
  • It’s you that decides how your image is going to be composed – portrait/landscape, close in or far away, what the subject is, what aperture or shutter speed to use for the desired creative outcome.
  • You choose your subject, you decide how the image is going to look, where you will shoot from, what height/angle, and what settings you will use.
  • You make the creative choices such as is it going to be macro, or shot with a very wide open aperture for a blurred background. Perhaps a long telephoto lens to separate the subject from the background. Maybe an ultrawide or fisheye lens for a different look, or even an old vintage lens with swirly bokeh.  You choose the gear and decide how you are going to use it at any given point in time.
  • It’s you that makes the sacrifice to get out of bed early in the morning for the sunrise shots.
  • You load up the gear, put on walking shoes, load up a drink bottle and head off into the unknown for an adventure and you earn your blisters and sore feet.
  • If you are a food photographer, you might spend hours baking in the kitchen to create tasty treats which you then spend ages styling and propping before you eventually shoot.
  • If you are a portrait photographer you might dabble in hair or makeup, and you absolutely need to have control of the light, shaping and modifying it to suit the desired outcome.
  • Maternity photographers probably have to do some hair/makeup/clothing as well as set design and lighting for newborn shots.
  • If you are a wedding photographer you probably have a bag full of tricks and emergency supplies to cope with any last minute drama or wardrobe failure, plus you have to wrangle all of the people on what is often a stressful day.
Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - frosty morning mountains

Minus 6C Hoar Frost – yeah it was pretty cold getting out of bed that morning but it was totally worth it.

There are so many creative choices that you can make – high key or low key, black and white or color, cool or warm tones, tight abstract or bigger picture, low to the ground or eye level, morning/daytime/evening light – but none of these references your gear at all. These are all things you may even decide before you even pick up the camera.

So much of what we do is visualizing the image in our heads, and putting in place the required circumstances or situations to make that image happen. You may have to save for a couple of years to afford the trip to Patagonia or Alaska. Perhaps you might chase storms for months before you get the absolute best cloud formation or lightning shot you were after.

You might get up night after night to capture an aurora or every morning for a month to get the stunning sunrise. Maybe you have to wait until the next breeding season to get the shot of the bird that only flies in once a year. Plus you have to stake out a nest, build a hide and keep it secret.

Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - cutlery still life

Sometimes Gear Does Matter

Yes, there are absolutely situations when having a specific piece of gear totally matters. It is difficult to take macro shots of things if you don’t have a macro lens, or extension tubes or similar options.

Having a longer lens makes those birding shots a lot easier as well, not only are birds skittish, they can fly away from you. Plus you should be a responsible environmentally aware photographer and stay out of their habitat and not scare them deliberately.

I don’t shoot astrophotography but am aware that there are recommended lens choices to get the best outcome for your night shots.

Sports, action, and wildlife photographers usually want a camera with a high burst rate for the action shots, fast focus action, and reasonably good high ISO for low light situations and a really long lens.

Wedding photographers need high-performance camera/lens options that are adaptable to a range of situations and can work in low light.

If you want to do soft flowing waterfalls and waves, neutral density filters, a tripod, and a remote shutter are usually requirements.

So yes, there will always be situations where you do need specialty gear, but the same rules apply. You still need to make all the creative choices and decisions. Adding that extra hardware choice into the mix just becomes part of it.

Why Your Camera Gear Doesn't Matter - flowing water frozen in the air

To get this shot I needed a 70-200mm lens mounted on a tripod and then I experimented with fast shutter speeds to get capture the motion in the water and the splashes.

Conclusion

Being there matters. Having the right light matters. Your subject choice matters. How you choose to frame up the composition matters. Your creative choices matter. Post-processing matters.

What gear you use to take the shot – doesn’t matter.

Any general camera gear can do the job for the vast majority of images taken. Does the brand matter? No.

Is it a cell phone? If you can take images you are happy with on a cell phone, then keep doing it.

Are there situations where specific lenses or gear makes a difference? Absolutely, and yes you probably will need to have what’s required to make those images.

But not everyone wants to do macro. Lots of people have no need for a tilt-shift lens for those architecture shots. 600mm lens that weighs several kilos? No thanks!

Street art in Melbourne, Australia. Some of these laneways are so hidden away only a local knows where to find them.

But even when you do get the specialty gear, there are usually multiple choices of options to purchase. But again, the brand doesn’t matter.

Even if you do have the top-end camera with the fanciest tripod, the longest lens with all the bells and whistles…unless YOU take it out and use it, it isn’t going off and having photography adventures on its own.

As the saying goes, “The best camera is the one you have with you” so work with what you have, learn to use it to the best of your ability. Experiment, be creative, try different things, push your boundaries and have fun.

My camera does landscape, nature, birds, macro, food, still life, fine art self-portraits, flowers, cats, long exposures, black and whites, high key, low key, sports, abstract, events and probably many other things I have yet to point it at.

What does matter is that you are out there, with whatever gear you have, and are using it.

Happy shooting!

The post Why Your Camera Gear Doesn’t Matter appeared first on Digital Photography School.


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Review: Grip Gear Movie Maker 2

02 Sep

Grip Gear Movie Maker 2
gripgear.com | $ 130 | Buy now

In 2018, almost every one of us has a camera that can film HD or even 4K video. Videos can be uploaded to Youtube, Vimeo, Facebook, or Instagram with the click of a few buttons. What once was reserved for filmmakers or TV productions with giant budgets now is available in everything from full-frame DSLRs to GoPros to the smartphone in your pocket.

So how do you make your videos stand out in a sea of cats flushing toilets and grandmas dancing the funky chicken? A whole accessory segment has grown to try and help you do just that. External microphones, add-on wide/tele lenses, and gyroscopic stabilizers can all polish up your footage and give your videos a far more professional feel (even if you’re just filming your kid’s piano recital). But what if you want something that will stand out even more? The Grip Gear Movie Maker might be what you are looking for.

What is it?

The Grip Gear Movie Maker is a compact (claimed to be the world’s smallest) motorized motion control slider/dolly. It’s aimed at smartphone or GoPro photographers, but has a 750g/26oz weight limit high enough for most mirrorless cameras and even a few smaller DSLRs as well.

Having a tool like a slider gives video-makers access to some of the most iconic shots in cinematography

For those not familiar, a motorized camera slider is a set of track, single in this case, frequently double in larger rigs, with a motor mount designed to allow a camera to be attached. The motor allows the camera to move along the track at very precise and consistent speeds. Having a tool like a slider gives video-makers access to some of the most iconic shots in cinematography. Tracking, dolly, and push-in shots are some of the foundations of scene building and emotional communication. Adding them to your videos will make them stand out in a way that an add-on wide angle lens never could.

In use

Setup for the Movie Maker is fairly easy. The slider track itself is a modular design that clamps together with each section of tracking being about 12in/30.5cm long. This both allows easier transport and gives you the option to purchase additional sections. The motor unit slides onto the rails and has a small ballhead with a standard tripod screw, and a spring-loaded smartphone holder is also included.

Power is supplied by an internal rechargeable battery giving a claimed run time of up to two hours. The battery’s micro-USB charging port also allows the use of a USB battery pack for far longer run times. The track has three pairs of adjustable feet that allow basic leveling on uneven ground. They also offer the ability to wrap around something like a pipe or fencepost to allow the camera to move vertically. More importantly, there are 1/4-20 and 5/8 tripod mounts on the bottom of the track.

How does it work?

While the rails and connecting/mount hardware are aluminum there is unsurprisingly a lot of plastic in the Movie Maker’s construction. You definitely don’t feel like you are holding a high end device – but at $ 130, you also aren’t paying for one either. The little ballhead is of middling quality and care needs to be taken when connecting the rails to make sure there is no gap between the sections of plastic teeth. But overall, construction is just fine for the intended purpose and price-point. The Movie Maker also breaks down into a surprisingly small package. While packing for a family vacation, I tossed everything into some extra space in my suitcase and took it along with no trouble.

Mounting is both a simple affair and a bit limiting. While the adjustable feet do allow some tolerance for uneven ground and vertical mounting, they’re also not all that large or strong so you won’t want to rely on them if you are using a camera at the top of the Movie Maker’s weight limit.

The lightest travel tripod I had in my closet held the Movie Maker quite well

Perhaps more importantly, you’ll quickly find that using the feet pretty much locks you into low angle shots. You’ll be forever dragging tables across the room or trying to set the unit up on a car hood in order to get your camera off the ground. The answer to this is going to be the tripod mount. This gives you far more options to find the optimal height and placement for your shot. And given that the whole unit doesn’t weight that much and doesn’t work with heavy DSLRs, you don’t need much of a tripod at all. The lightest travel tripod I had in my closet held the Movie Maker quite well (assuming that you aren’t filming in a windstorm).

That said, the design of the Movie Maker’s tripod mount is somewhat frustrating. In an effort to offer both 1/4 and 3/8 tripod mounting options, the mount is a 3/8 thread with a 1/4 adapter nut screwed into it. This would be fine except that for those of us using standard 1/4 tripod screws (most everyone), this means that there is very little surface area to prevent wobbles or twisting as the camera is on the far ends of the track. I ended up using gaffer tape or zip-ties occasionally to keep everything steady. A better design would have had the 1/4 screw go directly into the Movie Maker and include a 3/8 adapter for those who want one. As is, I would probably rig up a tripod plate with a 3/8 screw if I were going to be using the Movie Maker regularly.

Controls for the Movie Maker are quite simple. In fact, there are only four buttons: two that control starting/stopping/direction and two that increase/decrease the motor speed. There are nine speeds to choose from, the slowest being a VERY slow crawl and the fastest being moderately quick. There is even a handy guide printed on the track that tells you how long the motor will take to cross the whole track at each speed. I would prefer to have seen a few more speeds on the “fast” end and I’m unsure how many people will find the slowest speeds to be useful. Generally though, the speed range works just fine for most purposes.

One thing worth noting is that, unlike with higher-end sliders, there is no option to pan or tilt the camera while it is running on the track – it is locked to whatever angle you set the ballhead at. On a Hollywood production, this would be a significant limitation. But on a slider at this price-point, it can easily be forgiven.

With just a few exceptions, the footage is generally outstanding

With just a few exceptions, the footage is generally outstanding. Using the same camera, I’m not sure that you would be able to tell the difference between a shot on the Movie Maker vs one done on a slider that was three times the price. But about those “exceptions” – the first is that the camera’s microphone can pick up motor hum, especially at the faster speeds. The motor isn’t loud, but it isn’t silent either. The second is something I alluded to earlier: gaps in the plastic teeth. When assembling the rail sections, you need to make sure that there are no gaps where the plastic teeth come together. If there is a gap, you will see a noticeable bump as the motor unit tries to crawl across it.

The final exception isn’t the fault of the Movie Maker at all, but it is something that must be mentioned given that Grip Gear is positioning the Movie Maker as a tool for “mobile filmmakers”. When using a tripod, gimbal, or other external stabilizer, your camera’s internal optical image stabilization system must be turned off. If left on, it can introduce vibrations on its own just due to the way that these systems operate. The late Canon guru Chuck Westfall described the situation like this:

“The IS mechanism operates by correcting shake. When there is no shake, or when the level of shake is below the threshold of the system’s detection capability, use of the IS feature may actually *add* unwanted blur to the photograph, therefore you should shut it off in this situation. Remember that the IS lens group is normally locked into place. When the IS function is active, the IS lens group is unlocked so it can be moved by the electromagnetic coil surrounding the elements. When there’s not enough motion for the IS system to detect, the result can sometimes be a sort of electronic ‘feedback loop,’ somewhat analogous to the ringing noise of an audio feedback loop we’re all familiar with. As a result, the IS lens group might move while the lens is on a tripod, unless the IS function is switched off and the IS lens group is locked into place.”

This is bad enough for still images, but it is even more noticeable when shooting video. Most mirrorless and even many compact and action cameras offer the option to turn their OIS systems off. However, this becomes more tricky for smartphones. Some Android phones and software appear to allow the user to turn off OIS, but you will need to verify this for your own phone.

Far worse is the news for owners of iPhone models 7/8/X. As far as I have been able to tell, there is no way to disable OIS on an iPhone. This makes the Grip Gear Movie Maker somewhat frustrating for millions of phone owners. As I mention above, this isn’t Grip Gear’s fault and iPhones have the same issue with gimbals, tripods and other stabilization devices. But it’s also an important issue that can’t be ignored.

Some Extras

There are a few extras that give the Movie Maker additional functionality. The first is that the motor unit can be removed from the track and with the installation of an included mount, turns into a motorized head for panoramic images or time-lapse video. While fairly basic, this works surprisingly well.

Sadly, due to the use of the motor to drive the camera rotation, it is impossible to use the panoramic functionality and the slider at the same time. While understandable, especially at this price point, it’s kind of a bummer because timelapse slider videos can be really neat.

The second extra is something Grip Gear calls a Micro Dolly. It is essentially a small three-wheeled platform that uses the motor unit from the Movie Maker for power. It is a small unit, and the wheels are made for smooth terrain. But even so, in the right location you can get essentially endless dolly type shots.

Additionally, the two “steering” wheels can rotate allowing the Micro Dolly to run in various size circles. I could see this being useful for portrait, product or even unique timelapse videos.

What’s the bottom line?

All told, this is a clever and inexpensive kit that does what it claims to. You can get some unique video shots that are unlike what you see 500 times a day on your friends’ social media posts.

Are you going to make huge dolly shots with two feet of track or a little rolling cart on a table? No, you aren’t. This isn’t for Hollywood films, it’s for phones and GoPros. It would make a fun birthday/holiday gift for someone you know who enjoys making short videos for YouTube or Instagram. I could also see it being an easy way to add some style to videos for Kickstarter projects or Etsy sellers.

Would I put it on the top of my list of “most useful video accessories”? No, probably not. But is it in the running for “best value in a fun video accessory”? Absolutely.

What we liked:

  • Price
  • Unique shots
  • Creativity

What we didn’t:

  • Subpar tripod mount
  • Weight limits
  • Weak ball mount
  • Interaction with phone OIS systems that can’t be turned off

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Think Tank Photo and MindShift Gear merge into a single company

02 Aug

Camera bag and accessory manufacturers Think Tank Photo and MindShift Gear have officially merged to become a single company under the Think Tank Photo brand.

Formerly sister companies, founded by overlapping parties but operated as individual entities (Think Tank Photo Inc. and MindShift Gear LLC, respectively), the two companies will now operate under the same roof with combined business operations in Santa Rosa, California. Think Tank founder, president and lead designer, Doug Murdoch, will serve as Chairman of the Board and president of the combined company.

Despite the merger, MindShift will remain a distinct product line under the Think Tank brand, offering outdoor photography bags and accessories. As it has for more than 15 years, Think Tank Photo will continue to put out its diverse lineup of photography bags and accessories.

‘We celebrate a milestone today as we formally join two of the top brands in camera bags and photo accessories, Think Tank and MindShift,” said Doug Murdoch in the press release. ‘Combined under the Think Tank umbrella, and with MindShift’s powerful position in the outdoor photography market, we will draw on our decades of experience to push the boundaries of carrying solutions and enhance our reputation as the choice of working professionals.’

Starting today, MindShift Gear’s website will redirect to Think Tank Photo’s website, where you can find the MindShift product lineup.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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The Best Camera Gear for Food and Still Life Photography

04 Jul

I get a lot of questions about the gear I use in my food and still life photography, particularly from those just starting out in these genres. Buying the wrong equipment can be an expensive mistake. This is a list of the best camera gear I have found to work for me and a lot of the still life photographers that I know.

That being said, take the time to research what works for you and your budget. Also, think about your end goal. If you’re a blogger, your needs will be different than those of a photographer shooting product advertising.

still life of cake and coffee - The Best Camera Gear for Food and Still Life Photography

Cameras

First, you need to decide if you will use a camera with a cropped sensor or a full-frame camera. This will likely be determined by your budget.

A cropped sensor is cheaper for a camera manufacturer to make, which makes decent digital cameras available to a wide variety of consumers. Keep in mind that the focal length of your lenses will be different on a cropped sensor camera. For example, on a full-frame camera, a 50mm will behave like a 50mm. Put that same lens on a camera with a cropped sensor, it will behave more like an 80mm. Your shots will be nowhere near as wide.

Also, make sure that the camera you choose can shoot RAW images–not just JPEGs. If you intend to shoot professionally, file size matters. If your work is going to be printed, you need at least a 12-megapixel camera.

I shoot with a full frame Canon 5D Mark II.

As a food or still life photographer, you’ll find that you won’t need most of the bells and whistles that the modern digital cameras on the market offer. Look for the detail the camera will provide, especially if you’re shooting professionally. The camera should have several focus points and handle noise relatively well. It should also have a tethering feature. If you can afford a full-frame camera, I would invest in one right off the bat.

Lenses

Every camera manufacturer has a series of lenses for the amateur and another for the pro photographer. However, if you are a pro shooter, this doesn’t mean that you should only stick to a pro series, such as the Canon L-Series, for example. There are some good options without the hefty price tag that a pro series brings. That being said, lenses are where you should spend the majority of your budget and you should look at them as a long-term investment in your craft.

Your most pressing concerns when shopping for a lens is the sharpness, so your focus should be on prime lenses. Prime lenses are sharper than zoom lenses.

The Best Camera Gear for Food and Still Life Photography

An excellent lens to have in your kit is a 100mm macro lens. This lens is not just for macro or close up shots, although obviously, it’s great at this. By pulling further away from your set, you can get very nice portrait-style shots as well. The focal length will give you that lovely blurred background that is so coveted in food photography.

I have the consumer grade 100mm f/2.8 from Canon and it’s razor sharp. If you can only get one lens, this is the one I’d recommend.

I also recommend a zoom lens, such as a 24-70mm f/2.8 or 24-105mm f/4. I have both in Canon’s L-Series and find the 24-70mm much sharper than the 24-105mm. The 24-105mm is the kit lens when you buy a Canon 5D.
Although the 24-70mm is a zoom lens, I find it very sharp.

Lenses I use.

The 50mm can also be a useful lens, especially if you don’t have a zoom. This lens is good for overhead shots and tablescapes. For food and still life photography, 50mm is considered a wide angle lens. If you’re shooting only an item or two straight-on or at 45 degrees, you will likely have too much of the background and surface in your frame.

You will need to have large backgrounds if you use the lens this way. If you get a 24-70mm, then you can shoot your overhead shots by setting it at 50mm.

If you’re not sure which lenses you should get, try renting a couple. Check the sharpness and focal length before spending a large sum of money. Photographers have their own style and thus tend to shoot within a preferred range of focal lengths. For example, I am usually between 60-80mm on my full frame camera.

This food image was shot at 50mm (left) and another shot at 60mm (right). You can see the 50mm leaves too much negative space and the background is not big enough. These were shot with the camera in the exact same position, close to the scene, etc.

Studio Lighting and Modifiers

If you want to shoot food or still life professionally, you’ll need to master studio lighting. You can rent studio lights or buy your own. Even if don’t have your own studio, you will benefit from having your own lights if you can afford them. Many studio rental places don’t open early enough to allow you to transport and set up your camera gear before the arrival time of your client.

If you’re a blogger venturing into the world of artificial lighting, you may want to start with a continuous light, like an LED. I recommend that you do not get a set of those Lowel EGO lights that so many bloggers are crazy about. They are too bright and at the same time, don’t have enough spread.

You need to be able to work with strobes if you want to shoot professionally for clients. These are expensive lights, so try to make a good choice initially with these. Make sure they have at least 400 to 500Ws (stands for Watt-seconds, is a measurement of flash output) power and that you are able to modify the light with grids and softboxes.

An example lighting setup using a large softbox as the light modifier.

Great lights at a medium price are the Hensel Integra Pro plus 500, or my personal favorite, the Elinchrom ELC HD Pro 500w set. The Elinchrom monolights have clean and consistent light from shot to shot, and they fire fast enough to freeze motion or liquid splashes, a feature found in the high-end and pricey lighting systems.

For a cheaper system that is great to start with, check out the Bowens Gemini 500. The big benefit of using Bowens is that its S-mount is a common modifier mount, which allows you to use a variety of inexpensive modifiers with your strobes. In terms of modifiers, get at least one softbox in the largest size you can find and afford. The larger the softbox, the softer the light.

When shooting food and still life, you will also need a large diffuser to soften the light as it hits your subjects. I use a 59×79-inch diffusor placed right up against my set. This creates a large, soft light source and prevents any unwanted light from spilling onto the set.

Get a good reflector as well to bounce more light into shadowy areas when needed.

You can also use plain white boards as reflectors in tight spots. Get some clamps to hold them in place as I have done here.

Shot with a large soft light source.

Tripod

A tripod is necessary when shooting food, product, or still life images because the objective is very sharp photos. This often means shooting at lower shutter speeds, which can introduce camera shake into your images if you are hand-holding and working in natural light.

Shooting in these genres is about creating a scene, which is a process of building and assessing. You’ll find yourself constantly adjusting your set-ups, adding items or taking them away, or otherwise moving them around to get the perfect shot. This type of photography is not about catching a decisive moment, but about deliberately creating a visual story through the placement of objects. You need to compose to the camera.

Working with a tripod is also important if you are doing a series of shots and need consistency in your set-ups, or if you’re focus stacking or using scripts in Photoshop.

A tripod is essential for framing your shots.

Software

You will need a professional grade image editing software program to get the most out of your food or still life pictures. Adobe’s Lightroom can give you most of the tools you need to create awesome images at a relatively low price. It’s a powerful program that is intuitive and user-friendly. Not only does it have great editing capabilities, it also acts as an archive for all the image files you have on your hard disk.

Lightroom functions best as a global editor. It helps you make adjustments globally to the whole image. In contrast, Photoshop is a pixel editor. It helps you work with the actual pixels in a given image. There is a lot you can do in Photoshop that you can’t do in Lightroom, such as compositing (combining multiple images into one).

As a professional photographer, I do most of my editing in Lightroom. Then I take my images over to Photoshop to do what Lightroom cannot, or doesn’t do as well. Photoshop has the powerful tools that I need to give me the refined look I’m seeking.

Read my other article: How to Edit Food Photography Images Using Lightroom

The difference between the before and after images is subtle but processing your food images is important.

If you’re just starting out, Lightroom will deliver everything you need to make great pictures.

If you’re working on professional packaging design, Capture One Pro is mandatory. With this program, you can upload an overlay of the packaging artwork to determine where the elements in the image should sit on the packaging. It will make the shooting process go a lot faster and a creative director will likely expect you to work this way.

Shot and processed to be dark and moody.

Tethering

If you’re serious about food photography, you’ll need to shoot tethered.

Tethering is when you connect your camera to a computer via a USB cable so you’re able to view a larger rendition of your image in software such as Lightroom or Capture One Pro. Being able to see your images on the computer as you shoot them is hugely advantageous.

Photographing food and still lifes is a detail-oriented process. A misplaced sprig of basil can ruin your image or create hours of work for you in Photoshop. Such errors can easily be avoided when you can see your work brought to life on a much larger screen than your camera LCD can provide.

If you’re working with clients, they’ll expect you to be shooting tethered. Shooting food, in particular, is a collaborative process that often involves a creative director and a food stylist, who both play a role in the final composition of an image.

To tether to your computer, I recommend a gold-tipped USB cable called a High-Speed USB cable Type A to Mini B. The gold tips prevent them from corroding. Make sure that the cable is no more than 10-15 feet long. The longer ones tend to have problems transferring data. Always have at least a couple of them in your kit so you don’t get stuck, as things don’t always last as long as you’d hope.

Shooting tethered setup. You get to see the image on the computer screen shortly after you shoot it and it appears automatically when tethering is on.

Other Miscellaneous Items

Besides extra memory cards and batteries, there are a few other items you will need to invest in if you’re serious about food and still life photography. Here are the basics:

  • Shutter Release –  This is a device that you connect to your camera to depress the shutter. Even if you’re working on a tripod, pressing the shutter can cause a small vibration that can introduce camera shake that will make your images less than sharp.
  • Backup Drives – Always back up your work to an external drive. Preferably more than one. Hard drives fail all the time, so you need at least two if not three copies of your files, kept in separate places. You should also be backing up while you work.
  • Backgrounds – Food and still life photography require backgrounds and surfaces to enhance the subject. These can be purchased expensively online, or you can make your own. One of my favorite style of backgrounds that I use repeatedly in my work is painted canvas. You can buy a large canvas painters drop cloth at a hardware store and cut it into pieces, which you can then paint to suit your needs. You can buy paint samples at the hardware store too. These painted pieces of canvas make inexpensive backgrounds that can be rolled up and put away without taking up a lot of space.
  • A Level – Another purchase from the hardware store is a small level, the kind you use in construction or when hanging pictures. A level placed on your camera once it’s set up will show you if your camera is straight. This is very important when taking overhead shots (like the one below).

pizza margherita_darina kopcok_DPS

In Conclusion

It’s easy to go crazy with equipment. Don’t fall into the trap that you need tons of the best camera gear to shoot properly. At the same time, don’t buy the cheapest version of what you need.

Quality is important and will take you a long way in getting the best shots you can. Start out with the bare necessities and invest as your budget allows.

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Tips for Selecting What Gear to Take Along for Travel Photography

28 Apr

Travel photography is exciting. There’s always this sense of finding new and exotic places to capture. Of course, if you work hard you can find new and exotic places to photograph right near home. But there’s something about travel that truly sparks the imagination.  It’s really about capturing the look and feel of a place that isn’t your home.

Tips for Packing for Travel Photography

I used a 70-200mm lens here to compress the space between the sheep and the village beyond.

The thing is that it’s difficult to travel with camera gear, especially large DSLRs and their rather bulky lenses. Then there’s the expense. You could potentially be traveling with some very expensive equipment.

If you’re a hobbyist photographer, the loss of that gear could be devastating. I’ve known several individuals who have lost their gear while out traveling and have found that their insurance didn’t cover the whole loss. For these hobbyists, it was a blow from which they couldn’t recover.

So while travel photography with a DSLR can be exciting, it can also be stressful. That’s why every professional travel photographer will tell you all about the importance of packing wisely when traveling with your DSLR.

So without further ado let’s take a look at some helpful tips for traveling the world with your DSLR.

Be economical in choosing lenses

Weight is a factor if you don’t want to pay the fees for extra baggage. So when packing for travel photography, it’s best to economize your lenses. Instead of taking every lens you own, consider packing ones that give you a full range of focal lengths without doubling up.

If you have a 70-200mm lens why pack the 85 mm prime? Instead, a wise decision may be to take your zoom lenses. Choose a wide angle like the Canon 16-35mm. Granted the lens is heavy. The 70-200mm isn’t a lightweight either, but if you are only going to take two lenses then it’s not such a big issue.

Tips for Packing for Travel Photography - truck in a driveway

Shot with a wide angle lens. This image was taken from the rooftop of a hotel.

Choose lightweight lenses

Prime lenses aren’t a bad idea for travel either. They usually have a wider aperture which is great for low light, and if you’re visiting a dark castle somewhere in Europe that can be really useful. Primes are much lighter than their zoom counterparts, and with a little practice, you can get used to shooting with just prime lenses.

It takes a little more thought than zooming in and out but you can capture amazing images with prime lenses. If you’re going to pack a general set of lenses for travel your bag might include the following, a 24mm for wide angles, the 50mm for general shots and an 85 mm for a little more range.

Tips for Packing for Travel Photography - gnarly tree branches

I had to use a zoom lens for this shot. The tree just wasn’t accessible from up close and I wouldn’t have been able to shoot at this level if I were closer. The telephoto was essential for this shot.

Choose lenses for a purpose

The lenses you choose to take with you might also be determined by the type of photography you’re planning on doing while you’re traveling. Perhaps you’re going on safari to Kenya. If that’s the case, you’re going to be focused on capturing wildlife, so your longer telephoto lens is going to be essential, and you might choose to take something in the 100-400mm range. I would argue that adding a nice light 50mm prime to your bag might be all that you need in that situation.

I recently visited the city of Havana, Cuba. I knew I wasn’t going to be going outside of the city and that my focus was on shooting architecture and street scenes. So, in that case, I left my telephoto lenses at home. On the busy streets, it would have been difficult to pull out my 100-400mm and shoot comfortably. So I chose to pack a wide-angle lens and my nifty 50mm. That was all I needed within the cramped streets of Havana.

This is in contrast to a trip I took last month to Wales. I was going to shoot both landscapes as well as city scenes, and I was hoping to capture some images of birds as well. So I chose to pack a little more weight. I chose to leave my prime lenses at home and took three zoom lenses; the 16-35mm, the 70-200mm and the 100-400mm.

Tips for Packing for Travel Photography - garbage can in an alley with graffiti

Shot with a prime lens. Graffiti alley in Toronto is a great place to use a mid-range focal length.

Just use your phone

I know a number of travel photographers who challenge themselves to shoot just one trip a year using nothing but their phones. The results are truly beautiful and they love the ease of traveling with just a phone.

Many smartphones have fantastic cameras and can capture huge RAW images. So it’s definitely worth a try. Limit yourself to your phone and see what kinds of images you can capture.

Tips for Packing for Travel Photography - city scene

I took this shot using my phone. It’s 5000 px on the long edge, a large file. I could never have gotten this with the gear I had with me that day.

Embrace the excitement

Travel photography is exciting. Taking your camera to places that are new and different from home can truly raise adrenaline levels. It’s a lot of fun, and I highly recommend you get out there to visit other places and explore with your camera.

Embrace the challenges of packing for the trip as well. It’s part of the excitement. You’ll be challenged to shoot great images with a limited amount of gear. There’s nothing wrong with that. Take the challenge by the horns, pack wisely, and push yourself to try and capture great images of far-off places with just a few simple tools.

Tips for Packing for Travel Photography - forest shot

This would have been impossible to capture without my wide angle lens. We were just too close to the falls for anything mid-range.

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Video: Remember that your gear is more advanced than Ansel Adams’

25 Apr

“Every famous photograph was made with a camera less advanced than the one you are using now.” This paraphrased quote is the inspiration behind The Art of Photography’s latest YouTube video titled “Your camera is better than Ansel’s.” In the ten-minute video, Ted Forbes breaks down his thoughts on the idea that, instead of taking an introspective approach to our photography work, we tend to blame the gear and use that as an excuse to our shortcomings as artists.

How often do you hear the phrase “I don’t have the right lens to get the shallow depth of field I want” or “I don’t have this camera body that shoots 15 frames per second.” These laments aren’t uncommon among photographers, but according to Forbes, they miss the point.

Sure, it’s fun to gawk over the latest and greatest gear, but it’s by no means necessary in order to create fantastic artwork—this morning’s Behind the Scenes article by Michael Benanav should more than prove that point. As Forbes elaborates throughout the video, gear is little more than a tool to create the artwork we’ve envisioned in our head—a means to an end.

Forbes summarizes this concept in the video’s description:

The truth is that important work… work that matters… doesn’t have anything to do with the technology we have access to. It has everything to do with what we have to say and communicate visually. Photography is an act of speaking.

It’d be an oversight to say there’s never a time when you need new gear. After all, it’s almost impossible to properly photograph a deer a few hundred yards away without a 400mm lens. But it’s something to think about when considering new equipment. Is that new camera actually necessary to produce the results you desire? Or is the gear you’re lusting over little more than a crutch that will help you avoid addressing your lack of a vision or direction?

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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MindShift Gear releases 18L version of its popular BackLight daypack

17 Apr

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After releasing a set of weather-resistant Exposure messenger bags earlier this month, MindShift Gear is back with a new product: the BackLight 18L backpack for photographers. This new model expands MindShift’s existing BackLight rear panel access backpack lineup, offering the same convenient access in a smaller overall size.

The 18L offers the same features as the larger 26L and 36L backpacks. The bag’s exterior is made with 420D velocity nylon and high-density nylon, 320G UltraStretch mesh, 350G air mesh, YKK RC-Fuse zippers, 3-ply bonded nylon thread, and a water-repellant coating. The interior includes a 210D nylon lining, high-density closed-cell foam, hexa-mesh pockets, PE board reinforcement, and the same 3-ply thread.

One of the BackLight lineup’s biggest features is the ability to remove/replace items without taking the daypack off. Instead, the wearer, after securing the waist belt, rotates the bag to the front and uses the rear panel to access the gear inside. The bag accommodates various gear configurations, such as a pair of gripped DSLRs with attached lenses and an additional 1 – 3 zoom lenses, or a pair of gripped mirrorless cameras with attached lenses and and 3 – 5 additional lenses.

Additionally, the BackLight 18L supports up to 13-inch laptops and a 10-inch tablet, plus there are front compartments with a total 5L capacity for personal items.

Additional features include a front/side mounting system for a tripod/monopod, a pair of large water bottle pockets, lash points, daisy chain, ice axe loops, interior mesh pockets, lumbar support and an air channel. Plus, the bag is compatible with MindShift’s existing Tripod Suspension Kit, Switch Case, Filter Nest, and Filter Hive.

The BackLight 18L is available from MindShift now in Woodland Green and Charcoal colors for $ 200 USD. To learn more, head over to the MindShift Gear website.

Press Release

MindShift Gear’s BackLight 18L Outdoor Photography Daypack Offers Added Comfort and Quick Rear-Panel Access

SANTA ROSA, CALIF – MindShift Gear announces the release of an 18-liter version of its popular BackLight series, the BackLight® 18L rear-panel backpack. This smaller version offers a lightweight daypack that enables photographers to access gear without taking off the backpack. They can change lenses or just snap a quick photo simply by rotating the bag to the front while the waist belt is still secured. Rear-panel access also adds security when traveling since camera gear is protected from behind.

This back-panel access allows photographers to work out of the bag without getting the harness dirty, wet, muddy, or icy. It features dedicated compartments that fit up to a 13” laptop and a full-size tablet. As a daypack, its front pockets total 5 liters in personal gear carry for a day’s outing, such as extra layers, a light jacket, food, and more. It is available in two colors, Charcoal and Woodland Green, and meets most international and U.S. airline carry-on requirements.

This new backpack holds a variety of camera kits:

  • Two gripped DSLRs with lenses attached and one to three standard zoom lenses
  • Two gripped Mirrorless bodies with lenses attached and three to five lenses
  • Fits up to a 13” laptop and a 10” tablet
  • Fits personal gear in the 5L front compartments
  • Maximum lens size: 300mm f/2.8 or 150–600mm f/5–6.3 attached to a body

“The BackLight 18L was designed with comfort in mind,” said Doug Murdoch, MindShift’s CEO and Lead Designer. “The air channel on the rear panel was designed for maximum comfort. It features a large padded waistbelt to support heavy gear and a contoured backpanel for extra lumbar support.”

Additional Features and Benefits

  • Daisy chain, ice axe loops and additional lash points for expanding carry capacity
  • Includes tripod/monopod mounting system on front or side
  • Comfortable padded waist belt for all day comfort on the trail with webbing rail for additional MindShift accessories
  • Flap-keeper neck strap allows unencumbered access to gear
  • Two large water bottle pockets with cinch cord fit a 32oz Nalgene
  • Side compression straps with locking SR buckles for additional lash points
  • Air channel and lumbar support on rear-panel for all-day comfort
  • Ergonomic zipper pulls are easily gripped with gloves or frozen fingers
  • Highest quality YKK zippers, 420D Velocity and 420D high-density nylon for long lasting durability and strength
  • Front stuff pockets for trail essentials, e.g., headlamp, gloves, chargers
  • Adjustable dividers for large telephoto lenses, traditional photo gear, or personal items
  • Top zippered pocket for quick access essentials
  • Interior mesh pockets for storing filters, batteries, cables, etc.
  • Seam-sealed rain cover included, folds flat for use as a ground cover
  • Compatible with MindShift’s Tripod Suspension Kit, Filter Nest, Filter Hive and Switch Case

Materials

Exterior: For superior water resistance, all exterior fabric has a durable water-repellant coating, plus the underside of the fabric has a polyurethane coating. Features the highest-quality abrasion-resistant YKK® RC-Fuse zippers, 420D velocity nylon, 420D high-density nylon, 320G UltraStretch mesh, 350G airmesh, nylon webbing, 3-ply bonded nylon thread

Interior: 210D silver-toned nylon lining, hexa-mesh pockets, high-density closed-cell foam, PE board reinforcement, 3-ply bonded nylon thread

Specifications

  • Exterior Dimensions: 10.6” W x 18.5” H x 7.1” D (27 x 47 x 18 cm)
  • Interior Camera Compartment: 9.4” W x 16.7” H x 5.5” D (24 x 42.5 x 14 cm)
  • Laptop Pocket: 8.9” W x 13.8” H x 0.8”D (22.5 x 35 x 2.1 cm)
  • Tablet Pocket: 8.7” W x 10.2” H x 0.6” D (22 x 26 x 1.5 cm)
  • Total Volume: 18L
  • Weight: 3.5 lbs. (1.6 kg)

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Quick Video Review – What is the Best Camera Bag or Way to Carry Your Gear?

07 Apr

There are many ways to carry around your precious camera gear – so which is the best? Well, that is a very subjective question, that only you can answer. In this video from the Camera Store, Jordan demonstrates some of the pros and cons of the most popular options.

?

Here is a list of all the camera carrying bags, straps and other options mentioned in the video and a few extras.

List of camera straps mentioned:

  • Op/Tech Pro Loop Neoprene neck strap
  • BlackRapid Curve Strap Ultra Padded
  • Cotton Carrier Camera System
  • Lowepro S&F Technical vest system
  • Lowepro S&F Technical Belt
Video Quick Review - What is the Best Camera Bag or Way to Carry Your Gear?

Holdfast Moneymaker dual camera strap system

Photography backpacks:

  • Pro Trekker 650 AW Camera Backpack
  • Manfrotto Pro Light camera backpack RedBee-210
  • Lowepro Tahoe BP 150 backpack
  • Lowepro Slingshot Edge 250 AW
Video Quick Review - What is the Best Camera Bag or Way to Carry Your Gear?

Agua Versa 90 backpack

Other kinds of bags:

  • Domke Journalist Chronicle Shoulder Bag
  • Kelly Moore Luna fashion bag
  • Ona makes stylish designer leather bags
  • Jill-e Designs also make fashionable bags
  • Filson makes stylish unisex bags

OR read this to avoid having a bag collection in your closets like I do – 5 Camera Bag Hacks to Help You Curb the Temptation of Buying More.

Others options not mentioned:

  • Wrist straps
  • Holster systems (like the Cotton Carrier G3 Strapshot Holster)

What do you use?

So of all those options, which do you use to carry your gear? Are their other options we’ve missed? Please tell us in the comments below.

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Moment launches anamorphic lens and other gear for smartphone filmmakers

30 Mar

Many photographers consider Moment lenses to be the best quality smartphone accessory lenses out there. Now the company returns to crowdfunding platform Kickstarter with a new product line, this time for video shooters and filmmakers rather than stills photographers.

The headline product is an anamorphic add-on lens which allows you to achieve the same super-wide look and lens flare we are used to from Hollywood movies. The lens alters the field of view of the built-in camera on your iPhone, Samsung Galaxy or Google Pixel device and locks onto a specific lens case.

The lens currently works with a range of video-specific apps, including Filmic Pro, but Moment still has to update its own app in order to achieve an undistorted live preview of the footage captured with the lens.

The lens is not the only new accessory for filmmakers, however. There is also a battery case for the iPhone X which can charge via the Lighting port or Qi wireless charging and comes with a dedicated camera button. Of course it’s designed to attach Moment lenses as well.

Finally, Moment also debuted a counterweight for gimbals like the DJO Osmo Mobile 2, and a lens filter mount that can be used to attach ND and other filters to any of Moment’s lenses.

All the new items can be ‘pre-ordered’ on Kickstarter, where the campaign has quickly reached astronomical levels of funding—with 21 days to go, Moment has raised over $ 800,000 against a goal of just $ 50,000. All this funding despite each item being pretty low-cost: the filter holder is yours for a $ 29 pledge, the battery case will set you back $ 79, and the lens is priced at $ 119. Shipping is scheduled for June.

To learn more about these products or pick one up for yourself, head over to the Kickstarter page.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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What to Bring to Photograph a Wedding Besides Your Photo Gear

12 Mar

Our main job as wedding photographers is to create beautiful images for our clients. But our job is also to provide a phenomenal customer service experience from beginning to end. Throughout the last decade as a wedding photographer, I’ve developed this list of non-gear related items to bring along when you photograph a wedding.

What to Bring to Photograph a Wedding Besides Your Photo Gear

Wedding Day Essentials

The Wedding Timeline

Six weeks before the wedding, send the bride and groom a questionnaire requesting details about the timeline, addresses, wedding party, their families and vendors. Not only will this help the bride and groom think through any details they may have overlooked in their busyness, but their answers will help you foresee any timeline delays or issues.

Some important questions to ask:

  • At what address will the bride be getting ready?
  • At what address is the groom getting ready?
  • Ceremony start time and address.
  • Reception start time and address.
  • When would you like photo coverage to begin?
  • Based on the number of hours purchased, what time would you like photography coverage to end?
  • Will you be having a First Look?
  • Please provide the timeline for your wedding day, so far.
  • Are there any specific locations you have in mind for your wedding day portraits?
  • Will you be exchanging gifts with your spouse or family members?
  • What mailing address should I use for you after the wedding?
  • How many bridesmaids do you have and what are their names?
  • How many groomsmen do you have and what are their names?

What to Bring to Photograph a Wedding Besides Your Photo Gear

Family Photo List

Under no circumstance should you show up to a wedding without a list of family photos, created and approved in advance by the bride and groom. Attempting to focus the bride and groom minutes after they’ve been pronounced husband and wife, in front of a room full of family and friends eager to talk to them, is a recipe for disaster!

Having a list you can work from, and check off each grouping with a pen, will save valuable time.

What to Bring to Photograph a Wedding Besides Your Photo Gear

On the wedding questionnaire, request the following information about family:

  • Please list immediate family of the bride
  • Please list immediate family of the groom
  • Please provide a list of family photos you’d like and please note the names of each person in the grouping.
  • Are there any divorces/deaths I should be aware of so as to not embarrass anyone on either side of the family?

Review and take charge of the list

Review the information received about each immediate family before the wedding. Throughout the hours you’re photographing, you’ll meet at least 40 people by name! Don’t rely on your own memory. By having everything written down, you can check your timeline and remember the bride has two brothers named Matt and Joseph. Now, all you need to do is figure out which brother you met was Matt and which was Joseph. Magic!

Usually, the family photo list that the couple returns is perfect. I may re-arrange groupings for ease of the photo time (starting with the largest groupings first and peeling people away as needed) but very minimal change is usually required.

What to Bring to Wedding Days 7

However, sometimes the list may include large group after large group of extended family. When this situation happens, send the couple a warm and polite email confirming the list. Review the timeline and see how much time is needed capture the family photos requested.

Let the couple know you are happy to capture whatever images they would like, but you may have to steal 30 minutes from another portion of the day. When you present the options this way, many couples will choose to forego large groupings for family photos and enjoy their cocktail hour instead.

Verify Addresses and Phone Numbers

You can never be too careful when it comes to details, so leave no stone unturned. Even if the couple provided the name of the venue, request the specific address to eliminate all room for error. It’s important to have addresses for the bride’s house, groom’s house, photo locations and the reception.

Basically, anywhere you need to visit on the wedding day, have an exact location and meeting spot if the location is a park, for example.

What to Bring to Photograph a Wedding Besides Your Photo Gear

Phone numbers are a key piece of wedding day communication. Have the bride and groom’s phone numbers on file, but also request the phone numbers of the Maid of Honour and the Best Man and confirm they will have their phones with them. It’s quite common for a bride and a groom to not have their personal phones on them, and rightly so.

Have the wedding coordinator’s name and phone number printed on your timeline for easy access. It is also not a bad idea to have phone numbers of a few other key vendors. Always be more prepared than necessary.

Step up Your Experience with These Items

What to Bring to Wedding Days 8

If you only remember half of this article, stop reading now and remember the first part. But if you want to step up your “photography game” and look like a wedding day hero, keep reading. Make gathering the following items a goal for your next wedding season.

Parking Payment

Depending on your city’s parking meter structure, a credit card may be all you need — but some cities require coins. Stock your wallet with five dollars worth of coins for parking in a time crunch. Additionally, research if your city has an iPhone app for easy parking with your credit card.

Set of Umbrellas

Purchase a set of matching umbrellas in either a solid black or a clear color so they match any wedding party — your brides will be thankful. Keep the umbrellas in the trunk of your car at all times so you’re never left out in the rain.

What to Bring to Photograph a Wedding Besides Your Photo Gear

Extra Clothing

Wedding days can be long and weather can be inconsistent. Prepare for everything with a rain jacket or parka (depending on the season), sweater or cardigan for the reception (if the AC starts up) and my favorite – a change of shoes for tired feet halfway through the day.

Business Cards

Don’t be caught repeating your name to a potential customer over and over again so they can memorize it and find you on Instagram. Have business cards in your bag at all times.

Laptop and Card Reader

For slower receptions, you could download your memory cards to a laptop for immediate back-up. Also handy for downloading your second shooter’s images before driving separate ways at the end of the workday.

Water, Snacks, and Gum

Working on an empty stomach isn’t fun. Pack more snacks than you think you’ll need — you can keep some in your camera bag and the rest in the car for an emergency. Having gum or breath mints nearby is a bonus while talking with guests and, of course, a water bottle and staying hydrated is a must.

Wooden Hanger for Dress

What to Bring to Photograph a Wedding Besides Your Photo Gear

I have yet to add a wooden hanger to my wedding day list, but it’s a good idea. You’ll save 3-5 minutes at the bride’s house looking for a wooden hanger to replace the flimsy clear plastic one.

Emergency Kit

Photographer to the rescue! Pack a small bag with bobby pins, band-aids, tide-to-go, Tylenol, a sewing kit, a lint brush packs of Kleenex and anything else you think a bride or bridesmaid or family member may want at some point in the day. You’ll be the hero when the bride stains her dress and you whip out the tide-to-go or hand the mother of the bride some Tylenol.

If you photograph weddings, what else do you take along besides your photo gear? Please share in the comments below.

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