5 Photographer Must Haves That I Can't Live Without

I have been a photographer for a WHILE now, but this is my 7th year shooting weddings (and 3rd year being full time, yay!) Over the years I have found some amazing products that I continue to use over and over again because they are just THAT good! AND they have lasted this long so that is a huge plus! I thought it would be fun to make a blog post about a few of these items that I literally can not live without in my business, and two of them can actually be used by ANYONE! Not just photographers!

So if you ever wondered what photographers geek out about, this would be a good place for you to read! Haha! If you ARE a photographer, this is also a good place for you to be! I hope you enjoy!

1. This is something that comes with me and gets used at EVERY engagement session and EVERY wedding day. These are macro filters that go on my 50mm lens to get really close detail shots of rings and other jewelry pieces that the bride might be wearing on her wedding day! Every photographer should have a way of getting these super close detail shots of the rings! The most common way to get this close and still getting the shot to be tack sharp is to get a macro lens. The 100mm Canon macro lens is around $900 and for something that I was only going to use for 5 minutes at an engagement session and a few times on the wedding day in the morning during the getting ready portion, this wasn’t something I was willing to invest in, and I used that money towards other lenses that I would use a lot more often!

Then I came across THESE macro filters that screw right onto your lens and does the same effect! I’m sure the $900 lens has much better quality than a $14 filter but I decided to order them and give them a shot! I was blown away by the results!

In this pack there are 4 filters! ( +1 , +2 , +4 , +10 ) I am going to be honest, I don’t ever use the +1 and +2 filters because I don’t see a huge difference in them but I use the +4 and +10 every single session and wedding! Here are some images to show the differences!

They also come in a handy pouch to store them in while in your camera bag which is nice!

The image on the left is just using my 50mm lens with no filter on it. The image on the right is the +1 filter.

The image on the left is just using my 50mm lens with no filter on it. The image on the right is the +2 filter.

The image on the left is just using my 50mm lens with no filter on it. The image on the right is the +4 filter.

The image on the left is just using my 50mm lens with no filter on it. The image on the right is the +10 filter.

Seeing the non filter image next to the +10 filter shows how much of a difference it is to use a macro SOMETHING to get these ring shots!

2. This camera strap is my best friend and sidekick on wedding days. Back when I was first starting out I had one of those pretty fabric straps that would go around my neck and my camera would hang across my chest. It still was able to give me free hand access but what I didn’t like about it (besides the fact that it would make the back of my neck super sweaty- yuck!) was that every time I would bend over to fix a dress train, or pick up my camera bag, or lean over a reception table to move a centerpiece over, you better believe that camera was goin’ swingin’ ! Another big yikes.

This BlackRapid strap was the best thing that I could have ever found! It is like a cross body bag and when I’m not using my camera, I can drop it and it will hit right past my hip (and stays put)! The shoulder pad on it is super comfortable too which is a major plus! This also feels more sturdy to me than the around the neck straps I’ve had because there is a heavy duty piece that screws in to the bottom of my camera body which gives me peace of mind!

3. If you are reading this post on any type of screen (insert side smile emoji) , than even YOU need a pair of these! These blue light blocker glasses are actually probably my favorite one on this list because it was a GAME CHANGER for me! For me being someone who’s job requires about 80% of my time working behind a screen, I would get CONSTANT headaches, eye twitches, having trouble sleeping and I would have to take a lot of breaks from looking at my laptop because I just felt so bad!! When you are a wedding photographer who has THOUSANDS of images to edit ALL the time, emails to keep up with, social media to post regularly, website updating (I could literally go on and on) , it just wasn’t an option to do other things when I wasn’t working on my laptop, because everything WAS on my laptop.

These glasses popped up on an Instagram ad and after dealing with these issues for so long, I needed to try something! And let me tell yah, I NEVER again work on my computer without these. I even wear them when I’m looking at my phone for a long period of time! These things WORK and I never get any of those crazy symptoms anymore!

If you are someone who has a job that has a lot of time spent looking at a digital device, you NEED these. Save your eyes now, and your older self will thank you for it!

These are the exact pair that I have, and there are similar ones HERE and HERE !

4. This is another thing that can be used by a lot of people that aren’t photographers! When I am photographing a wedding day, I am usually on my feet anywhere from 10-14 HOURS with little to no breaks to sit down. If there are multiple locations during the day that requires driving, then I get to sit. During the reception after cake cutting happens, speeches are done, and I finish going around the room taking table shots of all of the guests, I usually have MAYBE 15 minutes to sit and eat part of the dinner before first dances start and I have to start shooting again. After first dances are over than usually that means the dance floor is open for everyone which means I am on my feet the whole time capturing dancing as well. You better believe when my time is completed, I’ve said goodbye and gave my hugs to my sweet couple and I finally get to my car, I barely pack up my bags safely before I sit and melt in my front seat for like 10 minutes before driving home. WHAT a toll it is on your feet and entire body to shoot weddings and not a lot of people realize that.

I have tried SO MANY brands and styles of shoes hoping to find a perfect pair made from heaven that doesn’t give me blisters, doesn’t make my feet sore the day of the wedding, AND my feet aren’t wanting to fall off the day AFTER the wedding. (you know, wedding hangovers are a REAL thing for photographers too, without even drinking a drop of alcohol!) After years of shooting weddings, I had to go through 2-3 pairs every year, and I would still get aches!

THENNNN I found these shoes made by a company called Rothy’s, and my entire world flipped on it’s head! This company uses repurposed water bottles to make these which is SO cool in itself! You can take the insoles out and throw it all into the washing machine too which is so great! I have worn these to every wedding since I bought them last year and I can’t recommend these enough! They are SO comfy and I can literally run a mile after a wedding day in these because they are like walking on clouds! AND! No pains in my feet and legs the next day either! I LOVE THEM! I will have to admit though, the first few weddings I wore them to kind of dug into my heels a bit and I had to put on some bandages. That just comes with needing to break them in. I know a lot of people who didn’t have any problems when they first got them, and maybe I have bulkier heels? But maybe just in case, wear a bandaid the first few times to get the material primed and worn in a bit and you’ll be good to go!

These are a bit on the pricier side for a pair of shoes BUT, after all of the pairs I’ve went through and had so many problems, I was ready to invest in a good pair. And THESE are a GREAT pair! Also, if you are someone who is constantly on their feet all day, investing in a solid pair of shoes is one of the smartest things you can do!

5. This is a fun one! (maybe not fun for an average person haha) but if you are a wedding photographer, THIS was so fun to get haha! This is called an artists portfolio bag to, I’m assuming, carry your pieces of artwork in! But what * I * use it for is to carry all of my poster boards and styling boards in!

In the morning during a wedding day I always start off by photographing the bride and grooms detail photos of the rings, jewelry, perfume, vow books, etc. and I always brought white poster boards with me so I had a flat surface to work on just in case there wasn’t anything that could work. I also use one of the boards as a huge bounce reflector to add light to the other side of the board and fill in any shadows!

A few years ago before I had this bag, I would literally be carrying in my 3 bags I need and then also lugging around 3-4 poster boards with my fabric background pieces and on a windy day- those things were flying around everywhere and I hoped no one from that wedding day saw me struggling HARD in the parking lot before I even started the day! (oh what a sight lol) NOW, I have this bag that holds everything and has a strap that I can throw over my shoulder and no more chasing after boards in hotel parking lots! LOL!

I have the 23 X 31 inch bag that fits the standard size poster board perfectly!

BONUS! (yay!)

I get SO many compliments on my MINT camera bag at shoots and weddings, and every time I share it on social media I get a ton of questions about it! This is the Jo Totes Missy Mint bag and the second I laid my eyes on this thing I HAD to have it! It’s so on brand, isn’t it?! It is SO roomy inside and the strap is so comfortable! I can fit my camera body with my 50mm lens on it, 2 other lenses, there is a side compartment that I can fit my laptop in, there are two zipper pouches on both inner sides of the bag for memory card holders, batteries, cleaning wipes, there are two big pockets on the front of the bag that I usually keep my keys, phone and chapstick and there is a small zipper pouch on the back of the bag that I keep business cards. I can fit SO MUCH in this bag! I think I bought this maybe 4 years ago and it is still in perfect condition! I don’t go anywhere without this thing and I couldn’t have found a more perfect “Megan” camera bag! Haha!