Last Updated on 07/03/2011 by Julius Motal
Going away this summer for a little while? Depending on where you’re going or what you’re shooting, there are specific little items that can make taking photos much simpler for you. Whether you’re traveling to the tropical climates, the frigid cold, perusing another suburb, or venturing in the big city, you’ll encounter slight problems. Here are a couple of items to help make taking pictures easier for you.
Graduated Neutral Density Filter
Do you love taking photos of landscapes? If you do, then there is a big chance that you’ll be shooting into the sun often; so spring for a graduated Neutral Density filter. These filters recover details in the sky to get more from your image and capture that dreamy scenic view worth remembering.
A great idea is to use them on photo shoots with off-camera flashes. Consider these options from Hoya and Tiffen, which suit the needs of different photographers and videographers.
ExpoImaging ExpoDisk
Reviewed previously, the ExpoDisk is the most portable solution to better white balancing. When out on vacation, you often tend to shoot more photos than you realize. If you don’t want to spend more time editing, consider using the ExpoDisk to ensure that the color balance is perfect the first time around.
So if you can do it all in post then what’s the point? Well, you can’t always do it all in post. Sometimes getting the most life-like colors need to be done with lots of tweaks to the color levels and color/temperature balances. A great example is photographing a street with many colored lights or a concert. Manually white balancing beforehand can make that process just a little bit easier. Otherwise, prepare to spend a while on your photos.
Benro Travel Angel Tripod
Like doing long exposures or timelapses? Then you know that one essential item is a tripod. The Benro Travel Angel was rated as a “quality tripod that is sturdy, compact and reasonably priced” according to our review. Mike says that while it isn’t the most portable design, it is still damned good for a tripod.
If you want something more portable then consider a Gorillapod or the Vanguard Nivelo for mirrorless cameras.
An Affordable New Lens
Sometimes what you need is a new lens for your camera, like the new Nikon 50mm F1.8 G. New lenses open our eyes up to different perspectives and make us think differently about our images. While you’re traveling though, you’ll want to keep it light.
Consider our list of the best budget lenses. If you’re looking to step up, consider our Nikon lens guide and our Canon lens guide.
Lens Guard
Lose your lens cap or your lens hood? Or are you just freakishly in love with your lenses? If you are, the Lens Guards are something that you may want to take a look it if you’ve never heard of them. With a tough rubberized exterior and a soft and squishy interior, these guards will fit around the front or back of your lens and provide some of the best protection I’ve ever seen to your precious glass. They come with braided cords for you to tie them to your camera’s strap or to one another.
When placed in your camera bag, the guards will ensure that your lenses don’t move and are fully protected. I had a camera bag fall off a seat once and the lenses were protected because I had the Lens Guards on.
What a relief that was.
Black Rapid R-Strap
Fast access + security + comfort = a photographer’s dream in their camera strap. The Black Rapid RS-7 (reviewed here) is a strap used by many professional photographers and travelers. Whether you’ve got a heavy telephoto zoom lens or a light camera, an R-strap’s design lets the photographer have convenience and a shoulder that won’t hurt at the end of the day.
Think Tank Retrospective Series Camera Bags
Think Tank camera bags are amongst the favorites of the Phoblographer’s staff. We’re fans of the Retrospective 5 and 30. The reason why we’re such fanboys is because Think Tank bags are comfortable, can hold lots of gear, are weatherproofed, and they’re also not all designed to look like camera bags: so we can always be the stealthy ninja photographers that we are.
Lens Pen and Arctic Butterfly
The reason why we’re bundling these items together is because they go hand in hand. The Lens Pen is a small item that can keep dust and smudges off of your lens and parts of your camera. However, the Arctic Butterfly is one of my favorite items for cleaning the sensor inside. And trust me, you’ll never know when you’ll need them. My sensors get dirtier than I often think.
Also, be sure to bring along a microfiber cloth for general cleaning.
Kiwi Choice U-Powered Solar Charger
If you need to charge your batteries in a hurry, consider the Kiwi Choice U-Powered Solar Charger. The last thing you want to happen during a trip is have your batteries die on you. Though making sure that they’re charged and ready to go in the first place is always a good practice, we’re only human and tend to forget.
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