If Julie Andrews has raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens, then photographers have universal lens caps, portable pods, and memory card organizers as some of their favorite things. An interesting component of 2020 was having more time to find products that make life easier. Here are some of our photographers’ favorite things for 2021!
A few of our favorite things
Zookbinders asked a bunch of our photographers what products they love, aside from their favorite camera bodies and lenses. We hope you enjoy taking a look at some new gear and possible solutions for your studio!
Organizing card solutions at home or on-the-go:
A memory card holder that can hold multiple types of cards and is also water-resistant and shockproof is essential. This travel-friendly memory card storage case was on multiple must-have lists for photographers.
Peyronet Photography raves about the Pelican memory card case. It gives her studio the extra sense of security that the cards will stay protected.
Making on-location shoots easier
Location shoots can have challenges, such as unpredictable lighting, weather, parking, and which bathroom they can change into a second outfit in. These favorite things will definitely be on any photographer’s must-have list for any shoot in the great outdoors!
Lights
In addition, a fix to unpredictable lighting is to make it predictable! Chris & Cami Photography make this possible with the Photographer’s Ephemeris app. “This app is invaluable for calculating sunset times and light direction in order to help with planning the optimum time for photoshoots,” stated Chris.
To really capture that light and make it do what you want, a pocket reflector is a great tool!
If you want to add in some fun “artificial” light to play with, Portraits Couture swears by this LED camera video light. It’s fun to add colored light, plus the white light can have adjusted color temperatures which is fantastic in any environment.
Camera
Another challenge is finding an effective way to organize your gear into a bag that not only can fit it all – but can keep it safe during transport. Jake Cohen Photography strongly recommends the Thule backpack for holding all his gear, on top of his laptop, hard drive, and other essentials when he travels.
Once the backpack or camera bag is off, is it possible to keep your back in good shape while carrying heavy lenses and camera bodies? Sure, with the Pro Speed Belt. According to Chris & Cami Photography, this belt has absolutely saved their backs from having major issues from years of lugging around heavy equipment.
Another way to keep your camera bodies organized, safe, and easily accessible while shooting on-the-go is something that Nick Frontiero Productions swear by – the HoldFast Money Maker. “I can’t imagine shooting a wedding without it. I love having the cameras right at my hips, hands-free, which makes it so easy to catch candid moments as they occur. The added safety feature has saved each of my camera bodies multiple times from crashing to the ground,” Frontiero explains.
Another favorite among photographers is The HoldFast Gear Sightseer backpack. Ross the Brotographer describes it as, “my favorite backpack ever. Scratch that, it’s my favorite bag in general…ever.”
Pro Photographer Nick Frontiero purchased the Money Maker about 2-3 years ago, almost immediately experiencing tremendous results because of it. “There’s no other strap set up I would ever consider. I knew the moment I put the Money Maker on that it was a game-changer.”
Action
An innovative solution to outfit changes is a portable pod! It’s easy and offers privacy anywhere – this is a must for longer on-location shoots.
Staying coordinated with your second shooters, assistants, or even other vendors can be difficult during an event. Peyronet Photography highly recommends two-way radios! Not only do you feel like the secret service, but it keeps everything more organized.
Cameras, lenses, and flashes – oh my!
For the most part, many photographers didn’t have the extra cash flow for new camera bodies and lenses in 2020. However, we did find some great products to keep the gear you do have in great shape!
There is nothing that strikes fear faster than not being able to find a lens cap. With a universal lens cap, you won’t have to worry about this any longer! It’s also waterproof, works as a front or rear lens cap, and is shock absorbent.
Before you put the lens caps on your lenses, don’t forget to rid them of dirt and debris safely with a lens air blaster! Another innovative tool is the LensPen which contains everything you need to keep your camera lenses, viewfinders, and filters clean.
LensPen is a compact, easy-to-use lens cleaning system that employs a revolutionary non-liquid compound that will not spill or dry out. This has become a new photographer favorite!
If you have the extra cash to buy a camera, J&A Photography says their must-have is the eye-tracking focus system on mirrorless cameras.
Behind the Scenes
It’s not just what you need behind the camera that can help make your shoot go smoother. What could you use to make culling, editing, designing, and ordering easier? We have some ideas!
For instance, Jake Cohen Photography swears by the “Smal” presets and “Archipelago” presets in Adobe Lightroom. Lightroom and Photoshop presets can definitely save you time and give your images nice consistency. The presets can be found here: Archipelago preset and Small preset
The use of Photoshop and Lightroom presets has made the workflow for Jake Cohen Photography easier and more efficient.
For designing, you can use Adobe Photoshop, or software like Fundy. Maureen T Miller Photography loves Fundy for its wall feature for wall prints and frames. She simply asks her client to send her an image of the wall they would like their portrait on with a piece of paper taped to it – and then she can show them the beautiful reality of what the portrait would look like!
If you’re not sure where to start with album design, make it really easy on yourself and have Zookbinders help you with album design! Read more about how here
Dollface Studio finds PixieSet to be an amazing tool when it comes to sharing, delivering, proofing, and selling online. Zenfolio offers similar features, as well as hosting, and comes highly recommended by Chris & Cami Photography. Both sites offer invaluable help for photographers who want an easy way to share and sell images. They also have options for downloading and storage.
Whether you found some new products for the studio or on-the-go, we hope this helped. Please feel free to let us know your own photographers’ favorite things for 2021!
* Zookbinders is not affiliated with any of the products listed above that are not under the Zookbinders brand. We do have a partnership where photographers can upload to our ordering system via Zenfolio.
