Hello, my name is Bill and I'm addicted to photo gizmos. Well, not just photo gizmos but gizmos in general. Things that make life and photography more convenient and easier to deal with. Maybe it's a genetic thing, maybe it's a Guy thing, and maybe it's just me. I just know I like gadgets and gizmos.
We've all got them...that gizmo hanging out in the deep dark recesses of your camera bag. Maybe it's an inflatable reflector or mini-softbox for your flash. It might be some sort of filter that will make your images amazing with no extra work on your part..or at least that's what the ad said. Regardless, we've all got gadgets and gizmos we use or intended to use in our photography and some are much more valuable than others.
I have some that never leave the house and some that are buried in one of the many camera bags I have hanging around my office.(If someone finds the "perfect" camera bag, let me know) But there are 5 gizmos/accessories that I absolutely refuse to leave the house without, all depicted in the photo above. Here's the lowdown on my favorite gizmos.
1. Field tool kit. Assorted jewelers screwdrivers, metric allen wrenches, and a multi-tool. I've used the multi-tool for everything from bending the barbs on fishing lures to installing a belt on a 97 Nissan Pickup. These tools live in a ditty bag in an outside pocket of my photo backpack. Just don't forget and try to get them through security at an airport. I've had to mail them to myself a couple of times.
2. Bubble level. A couple of years ago I noticed that a lot of my images had to be rotated a little bit in post processing. I shoot everything on a tripod so it had to be an issue with my eyes. The bubble level lives on the hot shoe of my camera body and this one has bubbles for 3 axis use. No more downhill horizons.
3. Really Right Stuff L-bracket. This is by far one of the most treasured photo gizmos. It allows me to quickly switch from horizontal to vertical and keep the center of the lens on axis without having to flop the tripod head over on it's side. Last time I upgraded my camera body I had to wait about a week for the new L-bracket to arrive. Shooting without it was like working with only 1 hand. You can have my L-bracket when you pry it out of my cold dead hands!
4. Laptop screen angle gauge. Ever been on a shooting trip, edit some images on a laptop and post them somewhere only to discover they're much too dark or light when viewed on your main computer at home? All because the screen on your laptop was a bit off the proper angle. Grrrrrrrrr...well this little device is the cure. Simply velcro it to the side of your laptop screen and tilt the screen till the pointer lines up with the mark. It works no matter what the height of your computer. If you continue to post ugly images you can't blame it on the laptop any more. PS: I've only been using this a couple of days and the difference is remarkable. We're all searching for repeatable processing and this let's me do it with a laptop.
5. Headlamp. My new passion is night sky shooting. I'm working hard to learn the techniques to produce terrific images showing the Milky Way. This thing is great for helping illuminate things when you're shooting in the dark. Every try to achieve critical focus in the dark? How bout setting exposure dials on your camera by touch? Not much fun in either case. I have a couple of different headlamps and one of them has both a white light and red light setting on it. The red light supposedly doesn't destroy your night vision.
So there you have it, the 5 gizmos I won't leave home without. They all live in my camera backpack except the laptop angle gauge which resides (go figure) in my computer case. I know there are a lot of other things you need to have on any photo trip but not having any one of these makes photo life almost unbearable for me.
How bout you? What are your favorite gizmos? Leave a comment and we'll see what comes along.
