Photography Gift Ideas for Christmas

Christmas is fast approaching. A bit too fast, for me. I haven’t even started my Christmas shopping yet. And if you’re like me, you’re only just beginning to think of gift ideas. Or maybe you have a hard-to-shop-for person on your list? Don’t worry, here’s a bit of help.

I’ve put together a list of 12 great gift ideas for the photographer on your Christmas list. It doesn’t matter whether that person is a pro or just beginning, there’s something on this list for everyone.

Disclaimer: the info provided below is given purely as suggestion. I receive no sponsorship or endorsement from any of the companies listed below. These are just items that caught my eye and that I think might be great gift ideas for any photographer. These items are listed in no particular order.

On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me…..

1.  Kwik Camo Blind

Does your photographer love to photograph wildlife? Birds in the front yard? If so, I highly recommend one of these. I already own a couple of blinds, but none is as portable and lightweight as this one and so I’ll be asking Santa for one of these this year. Two places that I know of that sell this item are the Naturescapes.net store and Outdoor Photo Gear. I’ve ordered from both companies in the past and am impressed with their prices and very fast shipping. Great, hassle-free online shopping.

Outdoor Photo Gear currently sells it for $99.95. It’s also available in white for those hardcore photographers who are happy to sit out in the cold to get that great shot!

Kwik Camo Blind

Kwik Camo Blind also available for your winter photography

2. AquaTech Sensory Gloves

Now these babies look great! I’ve already snipped the fingers off a couple of pairs of gloves so that I can better operate my camera while wearing them. But this is pretty destructive. Instead, how about a pair of gloves made especially for the photographer? Warm and cozy, but with finger holes already in them. No hauling out the scissors to make your own finger holes. Waterproof and breathable. A must for anyone doing photography in winter or on cold, rainy days. Outdoor Photo Gear currently sells them for $49.95.

AquaTech Gloves

3. Apex Mini Bean Bag

 I own one of the bigger ones, but the mini is probably a better all-purpose bag. I highly recommend this item. I use it to steady my camera when I’m lying on my belly in the forest photographing spring wildflowers. It allows me to get down low, move my camera around, but also keep it steady. Also great for wildlife photography from your car window.

NatureScapes sells this for $84.95.

Apex Mini Bean Bag

4. Overboard Waterproof iPad Case

It’s not just the photographer who could use on of these. I frequently take my iPad out in the field with me, but I worry about getting it wet or banged up. One of these would be great!

Outdoor Photo Gear currently sells them for $47.95

Overboard Waterproof iPad Case

5. Visible Dust Arctic Butterfly Sensor Brush

Everybody who shoots with a dSLR needs to clean their sensor from time and time. And so another must-have a Visible Dust Arctic Butterfly 724 Super Bright Sensor Brush. It’s a fantastic product! I own an older model of this and I wouldn’t use anything else. A friend of mine killed one of his first dSLR cameras by scratching the sensor because he was using a cleaning kit that consisted of a padded bit on the end of a wooden stick. Turns out the stick can poke through if you press too hard. Ouch! With the Visible Dust sensor cleaners, no hard parts touch your sensor. It’s just a very soft bristle brush that rotates and grabs and attracts the dust and gunk off your sensor. They work really well. Highly recommended.

NatureScapes currently sells these for $120.95. They are kind of expensive, but well worth the price. And if you scratch your sensor while cleaning it, it’ll cost you far more than $120 to have your camera fixed!

Visible Dust Arctic Butterfly Sensor Cleaner

6. Alan Murphy’s new e-book, Photographer’s Guide to Attracting Birds

E-books are an excellent gift for your photographer friends and family. Personally, I think they are great value for money, e-books save trees since they aren’t printed, and these days  everyone seems to have an iPad or some sort of tablet. And you can take your books with you anywhere without weighing down your luggage. If you don’t have an iPad or other tablet, don’t worry. You don’t need one to enjoy an e-book. You can read it on your desktop or laptop computer.

Alan Murphy’s e-book, available as a downloadable pdf for $50 (U.S.).

Alan Murphy’s new e-book, Photographer’s Guide to Attracting Birds, is a superb new book, the second on the topic that Alan has written. I’m going to write a more in depth review of this book soon, but suffice it to say it’s an excellent book. For anyone wanting to learn to photograph birds and how to create set-ups in your own front yard with attractive perches, this is THE book. I find the $50 price tag a bit hefty for an e-book, but Alan’s book is not only packed with lots of important information, I figure it saves me years of inventing the wheel myself, so to speak. Alan’s years of experience in figuring out what works best for attracting birds and getting those great images is worth the money for his book. I don’t hesitate to highly recommend this one!

You can purchase Alan’s latest e-book  as well as his previously published e-book, The Guide to  Songbirds Set-up Photography, directly from his website. 

7. Memory Card

Every digital camera needs a memory card on which to capture those amazing images. As a photographer, I can never have too many of these. There are a bewildering number of sizes and brands of cards these days. But I think there are three main considerations to take on board when thinking about buying one. First, make sure you buy the correct kind of card (e.g. compact flash and SD are currently the most common ones for cameras). Different cameras accept different cards so make sure you know what kind your photographer’s camera uses. Second, there are huge memory cards these days. You can buy 64 GB cards for around $100. But is this the best purchase? I’d argue that buying two 32GB or four 16 GB cards would be better. Sure, it’s a pain to change cards in the middle of a shoot. But cards unfortunately, do fail from time to time and I’d sooner not have all my images on one card. I’d sooner have them spread out over a few cards. As we know, putting all of your eggs in one basket can be bad. So why not buy a few smaller sized cards, which spreads the risk of losing images. Third, is the photographer on your list shooting video too? If so, then you’ll want to consider buying the card with the greatest write-speed.

You can purchase memory cards from your local camera shop, online, or even from local discount stores like Walmart. Regardless of where you buy them, just  don’t buy the absolute cheapest cards on the market. Remember, these cards might be holding your honeymoon photos or those of your childs’ 1st birthday. Those are important photos so don’t trust them to a cheap card.

SD and CF cards are used in cameras. Be sure you know which one to buy for the photographer on your list.

8. Subscription to  a Photography Magazine

There are a ton of photography magazines on the market today. This is great news for the photographer, but if you want to give a subscription, which magazines should you consider? I’d suggest going to your local book store and having a look through the magazine section and picking out a magazine that you think might suit the photographer you’re buying for. Some of the popular print magazines include: Outdoor Photographer, Digital Photography Magazine, PhotoLife, Popular Photography, Nature Photographer Magazine…. The list is long. But here are a few that I really like and have no problem spending dollars on:

Nature’s Best Photography Magazine – stunning images by nature photographers from around the world. Highly recommended!

Nature’s Best Photography magazine

Photograph – a new photography e-magazine by David duChemin at Craft & Vision. Available as a single pdf download for $8 or an annual subscription. I bought the first issue a week ago and am really enjoying it. Definitely recommended.

David duChemin’s new e-magazine, Photograph

Outdoor Photography Canada – one of the few magazines I buy on a regular basis. Great info, not overly loaded with advertisements. A great read.

Outdoor Photography Canada.

9.  Support a Wildlife Conservation Organization

There are a lot of great conservation organizations out there – Nature Conservancy, World Wildlife Fund, Conservation International – just to name a few. Consider making a donation to a conservation organization in the name of your photographer friend, rather than giving them a gift directly. The Canadian Wildlife Federation is a great organization that I support. I love that you can support species conservation efforts by  ‘adopting’ an animal. You get to choose which species you’d like to ‘adopt’ (e.g. Polar Bear, Grey Wolf, Beluga Whale, and others). It costs $35.00 and that money buys you a small stuffed animal to give your photographer friend, a certificate of adoption, and an info booklet about that species. But most importantly, your dollars go towards conservation efforts for that species. I think World Wildlife Fund and other conservation organizations have this same kind of ‘adoption’ programme. Have a scroll through their websites to see what you can find.

Consider ‘adopting’ an animal and supporting species conservation.

10. A Lensbaby

This is the perfect toy for the creative photographer. I’m not even going to attempt to explain what it does or how it works. Want to see for yourself? Just visit the Lensbaby website and have a look at their gallery. But anyone who uses a Lensbaby is guaranteed to produce interesting, surreal, and creative images. I own an older Lensbaby and find it a ton of fun!  Have a look at the Lensbaby website.

The Lensbaby, a fantastic creative tool!

11. An iPad or Android App

With so many people having tablets these days, this is a fantastic gift idea. I actually bought a photography App last year that knocked my socks off! It’s Jim Brandenburg’s Chased By The Light. If you haven’t seen it, it’s a must.  I think any photographer would be happy to have this. The images are stunning and I love that the App is interactive, with info pop-ups and videos embedded throughout. Chased By The Light App is available through the iTunes Store and Amazon.com.

Jim Brandenburg’s Chased By The Light App.

Another App I just came across that looks fantastic, is Paul Nicklen’s App, Pole To Pole. I think I’m going to have to ask Santa for this one myself! Paul’s photography is stunning and he’s a really passionate conservation photographer. This App is available through the Photo Society store website. Have a look at the video trailer advertising Paul’s App. I think you’ll be buying this one….

Paul Nicklen’s App, Pole To Pole.

12. My new e-book, Flowers: fine art photography techniques and tips

Ok, so it’s Christmas and I couldn’t pass up this opportunity to tell you about my new e-book, Flowers: fine art photography techniques and tips. It’s  109 pages packed full of great info  and many example images on how to use a variety of creative techniques to make stunning fine art flower images.  It’s full of descriptions of creative techniques and approaches, as well as inspiration and encouragement. And all for only $8.95 (wait, now I’m starting to sound like a TV add for Matel….). It’s available as a pdf download from my website, 44th Parallel Photography.

Not sure how to give an e-book or an App to that photographer on your list? Purchase it online. You’ll receive a link to a pdf file that you’ll download. Once you’ve downloaded it, why not buy a 2GB USB stick and put it on that? Then you just need to put the USB stick in a nice little gift bag and voila! Christmas pressie is done. 🙂

My new e-book, a 109 page downloadable pdf, available on my 44th Parallel Photography website.

Good luck with your Christmas shopping. I hope some of these suggestions help.

Photo of the Week – For The Love Of Flowers

This week’s photo of the week from 44th Parallel Photography is about flower photography. This week I published my first e-book, a book about fine art flower photography. The process of putting together that book meant that I had to look through a lot of images. But doing so reminded me of my photographic journey. I’ve come a long way in six years. It also reminded me of my sources of inspiration. Check out my Photo of the Week to learn who my influences are for my flower photography.

Click on the thumbnail below to see the Photo of the Week.

NEW e-book for sale – Flowers: fine art photography techniques and tips

NEW e-book for sale – Flowers: fine art photography techniques and tips.

NEW e-book for sale – Flowers: fine art photography techniques and tips

I’m happy to announce that my new e-book on fine art flower photography is now for sale. You can purchase it from Photo44 Press on my website, 44th Parallel Photography.

 Flowers is a 109 page full colour e-book available as a downloadable pdf file for only $8.95 CDN.

What’s the book about?

This book is all about teaching you how to make your own beautiful fine art photos of flowers.  It will open up a whole new world of image-making to many photographers, new and advanced. You’ll learn about key aspects of making great flower images (e.g. depth of field, focus, lighting etc). But this book is about far more than just  technical aspects of producing great flower photos. It’s all about illustrating creative approaches and providing inspiration, about getting you outside your comfort zone to broaden your photography. It’s about learning new ways of seeing, developing a photographic vision, and enhancing and honing your creative skills to make stunning fine art flower images.

I love to teach and I truly believe that people learn best by doing and by seeing concrete examples. So not only have I provided detailed descriptions of techniques for you to practice and master, but I’ve also provided loads of examples of how I have used these techniques and creative approaches myself, to achieve specific results. Each image in the book has a description of how the image was made, so that you can see exactly how certain techniques and approaches yield specific results. For some images, I explain my thinking behind the image-making process and what led me to achieve the final result. Understanding why a certain approach is used is just as important as understanding  how it is used. With this book, you’ll learn both.

What’s in the book?

I cover the following topics:

• Flower portraiture

• Depth of field

• Lighting

• Selective focus

• Composition

• Indoors vs. outdoors

• Macrophotography

• Image processing

• Equipment

• And…. a large section on creative photography techniques, including multiple exposure, panning, zooming, image overlay, Lensbaby and a whole lot more!

What does the book look like?

Flowers: fine art photography techniques and tips is a 109 page full colour pdf e-book that you purchase as a downloadable file. You can view it on any device – desktop or laptop computer, iPad, Android tablet, or even your smartphone.

The book is brimming with vibrant, colour images illustrating each technique and creative approach.

Here are some sample pages….

For more page samples, click HERE.

To purchase Flowers: fine art photography techniques and tips, click HERE.

Photo of the Week – Lest We Forget

This week’s Photo of the Week is about Remembrance Day. A very important day – a day of remembrance, but ultimately a day of thanks. A day to remember, honour and thank those who gave their lives so that we can live a life so full of choices.

Sometimes, what seems like the smallest of gestures can have the greatest meaning behind it. This is what I experienced when I attend the Remembrance Day ceremony at the National War Memorial in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada a few years ago.  A tradition started spontaneously after the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was built at the front of the memorial. One person’s gesture caught on and now, each year at the end of the ceremony, people gather at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, to give their gesture of thanks.

Click on the thumbnail below to see 44th Parallel Photography’s Photo of the Week.

Donate your photography skills to your local RSPCA

I belong to the Lanark County Camera Club, here in Perth, Ontario. In the spring, one of my colleagues in the camera club was looking for volunteers to work with the local animal shelter to photograph cats and dogs for adoption. The idea was to get people with photography skills to take cute photos of the animals for the adoption website. It’s a great idea. We all know how a cute photo of a kitten can tug at the old heart strings….

That’s exactly the idea behind this volunteer photography – make images of animals needing good homes. Not just images, but GOOD images. Ones that show the animal’s personality a bit and will make you think, “Awwww…. These kinds of photos will help boost adoption rates, which is the ultimate goal.

When I signed up to do my first photo shoot last April, I thought to myself, “I’ve never really photographed pets, aside from my own cat. But how difficult can this be?” I found out pretty quickly that it’s pretty challenging. Kittens and young cats are often full of energy and trying to photograph a moving fur-ball takes skill! In fact, those photos from my first shoot were pretty lousy! But on the second and third shoots, I started to figure things out – the best aperture to use for appropriate depth of field; necessary shutter speeds to freeze the action of a fluffy kitten moving faster than the speed of sound (I wondered where that sonic boom came from); whether or not to use flash. All of this came via trial and error (more error than anything, initially).

Other challenges included photographing the cats (we don’t work much with the dogs, but that’s mainly because I’m a cat lover and know cat behaviour really well, so I’m most comfortable with them) in a room full of metal cages. Not the nicest backdrop by any means. So instead we improvise. I usually bring coloured tissue paper (or in the case of this latest shoot, Christmas wrapping paper to tape to the wall to create a nice backdrop. I also bring props – colourful bandanas, pieces of cloth, feather boas, etc. But don’t forget THE most important props – cat toys and TREATS. Yes, TREATS will be your biggest item for success. Most cats are ruled by their stomachs and are happy to pay attention to you if you have treats in your hand. Just make sure before giving treats, that the kitty is not on any special diet and not supposed to have them.

I’m very lucky to have a good friend, Donna-Marie, also a cat lover, as a partner to work with. We trade off roles as photographer and kitty wrangler. The kitty wrangler is responsible for getting the kitty into position, using the props, getting kitty’s attention, trying to get that cute, wide-eyed look, stuff like that. Trust me, it’s not an easy job. In fact, none of it is easy. I wear knee pads and my grubby clothes because I’m normally getting up and down off the floor, rolling around on the floor and assuming all kinds of contorted positions in order to get the good shots. In fact, at the end of a 3 hour shoot, I’m tired! I usually end up going home tired and sore and head straight to a glass of wine and the hot tub. But more importantly, I have a smile on my face. If you’re a cat-lover, it’s impossible not to smile. Kitty-therapy is great. In order to get good shots, you have to interact with the animal. That might mean picking the cat up and snuggling them if they like that. For cats that are more cautious or nervous, it might simply be a scratch behind the ears. The key is to take TIME with each animal. Go for quality, not quantity. Spend time with each cat. It always amazes me how a very nervous cat, initially posing with its eyes narrowed and its ears back, can 10 minutes later, be relaxed, playing with toys and purring. It’s amazing what a bit of love will do.

Once you’ve established a comfortable rapport with the animal, the key is to try to bring out it’s personality and to capture that personality in your images. It’s a lot harder than it sounds, but oh, so rewarding. I’m still learning. In fact, the photo shoot I did yesterday was the first in a few months and I realized how rusty I’d become. But it is always, always fun.

One practical piece of advice, if you have your own cat at home, it’s a good idea to change your clothes as soon as you get home. Because of the stress and often crowded conditions, many of the animals in a shelter suffer from upper respiratory infections and other contagious conditions. You don’t want to pass those on to your own pet and so it’s a good idea to change all your clothes and put them in the laundry right away. Wash your hands before your pet your cat. It might sound a bit over the top, but my furry pal Maggie-cat is 16 and a half years old; she has medical conditions and is more susceptible to contagious diseases. So I have to be ultra careful with her. But it’s better to be safe than sorry.

Our kitty photos hopefully help increase the adoption rates and that’s why we volunteer our time. We volunteer our time with the Lanark Animal Welfare Society in Smiths Falls, Ontario. They are still developing their website to use more of the photos we take, but since most things are done on a volunteer basis, it takes time.

If you’re a photography, why not consider donating one day a month to photographing pets at your local RSPCA or humane society. I honestly believe that great photos really do make a difference.

Here are a few photos from some of our shoots.

This is Lucas. Our goal is to get a good, square ‘mugshot’ of each cat as well as some showing the full body markings and especially, those cute photos showing the cat’s personality – you know, the ones that make you think, “Awwww….”

Check out the whiskers on this cute little guy.

How could you not love a face like this?

Aim for some playful shots.

Make images that highlight the animal’s strong points. This cutie has the most wonderful ear tufts and whiskers…

Not all images need to be face-on. Also, including props that add a bit of colour are great!

I use props like coloured tissue paper and coloured backgrounds to create a more pleasing backdrop.

This beautiful little girl, Patsy, was not at all happy when we first took her out of her cage. Her ears were back a bit and she just had that look of not being happy. So we gave her lots of time, reassured her, and gave her lots of love.

Ten minutes later, these were the sorts of images we were getting. Patsy had relaxed, warmed up to us, and was happy. So we were able to capture images that showed her true personality simply by being patient and connecting with her on her terms.

By the end of the photo shoot, she was Ms. Mellow. You can tell by her body posture. And she even played with some of the toys we presented to her. Seeing Patsy’s change in behaviour from nervous and untrusting to that of relaxed and trusting was worth every minute we spent with her.

This is little Ralphy. He was sick with an upper respiratory infection, but we still managed to get some cute photos of him. Soon as he had recovered, he was adopted quickly.

Sometimes the lighting conditions were terrible and other times they were nice. We just learned to make the best of it.

Sometimes the best images aren’t your best technical images or are far from the most aesthetically pleasing images. But in this case, it shows that Logan is a real people cat – he loves people and is very affectionate. Seeing this kind of behaviour can really boost adoption rates because let’s face it, everyone wants to adopt a pet that will be affectionate and that you can play with.

Especially with cats, having them look up and to the side is a very appealing pose.

This is Polar Bear. I couldn’t resist his cute little face. Even though you don’t see his face straight-on, I love this shot. It makes him look cuddly.

Sometimes, the kitty-through-the-cage-bars image can tug at the old heart strings…

A key to making cats look really appealing is to get their attention with a toy or a treat – anything to get that wide-eyed look. Those big, round eyes are very appealing, much more so than a cat that is squinting. Squinting cats tend to convey a grumpy or angry look. So get kitty’s attention and get those eyes big.

With Christmas coming up, we thought some themed images would be appropriate.

A few cat treats in the bottom of a gift bag can make it look like kitty is opening her present from Santa. 😉

I love using a very shallow depth of field to isolate just one part of the cat’s features.

Images showing behaviour – either interacting with people or with other animals – are great for showing that this particular kitty would be a good one if adopted into a home with other pets.

Sometimes, kitties are shy or frightened and won’t come out of their cubby-hole. But that’s ok. Just work with what you have. You can still get some great shots.

When we photograph kitties, it’s in a small room filled with cages. We don’t have a dedicated photography room with fancy backdrops and great lighting. Often we’re in the adoption room photographing cats while the public are visiting, looking at cats they might want to adopt. It can get crowded with several people in the room. But the key is to just do your best. Work with what you have. Sometimes the background is nothing but an ugly wall or a window. Using a shallow depth of field can shift the focus away from these features and onto the animal. Use props and portable backdrops consisting of inexpensive gift wrapping. Of course you could make stunning photos if you were in a photo studio with all strobe lights, reflectors, etc. But that’s just not our reality. You have to be willing to do your best under the circumstance. Remember, any good photos you take are better than no photos.

Another benefit of your photography, in addition to hopefully boosting adoption rates, is that the animals get to spend time with you. They need socialization with humans and most of all, they need loving. It’s hard for them to get that when they are in cages most of the time. At the facility we shoot at, the staff and volunteers work exceptionally hard and they all try to spend time with each animal each day. But they can only spend so much time each day with each animal. So any time you spend with an animal, while you photograph it, will be a big benefit to the animal. They all need love.

All images on this page are copyright Shelley L. Ball.

Photo of the Week – One Last Bloom

This week’s Photo of the Week is all about one last burst of colour from the wildflowers in my backyard. By rights, they should not be blooming now. But I planted these late and somehow, they managed to grow and bloom. It’s been a difficult, dull, grey, rainy and chilly week and these flowers were like an oasis of colour in a brown and grey desert.

Click on the thumbnail below to visit 44th Parallel Photography’s Photo of the Week.