Ten camera bag essentials for location shoots

Just in time for winter (?) is our list of camera bag necessities that will help keep you keep your cool when you’re out shooting on location.

Location shooting can mean taking pictures at an event, a store, someone else’s house, or even in the great outdoors. When you’re on location – you’re away from home, and when packing a camera bag for a location shoot, you need to think ahead a little. You know enough to pack your camera body (or bodies) and lens (or lenses), maybe a few spare batteries and your flash, but what else should you bring? It willl depend, of course, on what you’re going to shoot – but here are some considerations for important camera bag essentials.

1) Mini Tripod

A micro tripod like the Ambico Mini Tripod (www.minitripods.com) or the Gorillapod (www.joby.com) don’t take up too much space and can come in really handy. The Gorillapod is particularly handy since it’s strong but also has the added benefit of being flexible – it can easily be attached to stuff like branches, fence posts, etc.

2) Lens Cleaners

Aside from the obligatory microfibre lens cloth and solution, the Lenspen (www.lenspen.com) is a pretty cool addition to your kit. One side is a soft brush for getting dust off the lens, the other side has a rubber “foot” that will remove grit from corners or smudges from glass. A dust blower would also be a good idea to keep on hand.

3) Multitool

You never know when you’re going to need to cut some wire, or grip something, or tighten a screw… and there are likely a dozen other scenarios that would require a good multitool. Don’t skimp. Make sure it has everything you want, and then stick it in your bag forever.

4) Silica Gel Packets

Those small silica gel packets that come with just about everything? They’re used in packaging because they help keep stuff dry. The silica beads inside the packet are excellent absorbers of moisture (humidity) and some even have fungicide. Cameras hate moisture and fungi. Throw a few of these packets inside your camera bag to help keep it dry and mould free.

5) Plastic Rain Poncho

Here’s a smart idea, grab one of those plastic rain ponchos and throw it in your bag (first-aid-product.com). They pack up as small as a satchet of cup-a-soup, and in an unscheduled downpour, they will help keep you, or your camera gear, or both – quite dry. Make sure to pack some rubber bands as well. These are handy to keep stuff attached to your camera or flash, but also can tighten areas of your poncho or rain gear.

6) Mini reflectors, snoots, shades.

When shooting with flash, you often find yourself looking for a way to bounce the flash or control it, but maybe you didn’t bring your larger (more cumbersome) gear to do so. There are small and flexible snoots and reflectors that you can easily fit into a good sized camera bag which will be indispensable when it comes to lighting.

7) Plastic bag(s)

Regular plastic bags are handy for all sorts of stuff. They’ll keep a camera dry, they’ll keep your feet dry, and they’ll carry stuff. A couple of plastic grocery bags can be rolled up to the size of a golfball and wrapped with rubber bands, so they won’t take up much room. In a pinch, you can even use them as spreads for gear.

8) Filters

Circular Polarizing filters are very handy for outdoor shooting. I rarely shoot outdoors without one, because they help bring out detail in clouds, in foliage, and they blue the sky up. Neutral Density filters are great for simply cutting down the amount of light when you have too much, and come in a few “grades” of density. UV or Skylight filters will help protect your lens against inclement conditions should you need it.

9) Remote shutter release

When you’re shooting on location, there are a lot of times when you may want to remotely trigger the shutter. A remote shutter release usually isn’t too big (some are even the size of keychain fobs) and when combined with a tripod, you’ve got a rig that can shoot at truly long shutter speeds without worrying about camera shake.

10) Extra memory card(s)

Nobody ever believes their memory card will quit, but it can – and it’s not as rare as you may believe. Try to always keep a second card handy, if for no other reason than for the extra storage.