Always In My Camera Bag

There is one piece of gear that is an absolute must in my camera bag...read on to find out what it is!

A photographer's camera bag is usually filled to the brim with things. All kinds of things. Some are pretty standard in every bag like the camera body, a couple of lenses, maybe a second camera body. Others are particular to that photographer or even to that session. Poop bags for dog sessions can often surprise folks to see in a camera bag, for example. Baggies of dehydrated liver, squeakers, cans of a few coins or a little grain or gravel may all be found as well. Some are always sure to have some human snacks. Every photographer has their favorite item that they just cannot imagine being at a session without!

My must have is my collection of attention getters. I have more than just one tool for getting ears perked, heads tilted, and super expressions that really show off your favorite horse or hound personality. Not all dogs or horses will react to the same sounds and sometimes they quickly become accustomed to a noise and it no longer works. So, I have a collection. One of these items is my custom WAAG (Way Awesome Attention Getter) lanyard. It has all kinds of different noise makers and animal calls on it and the lanyard keeps them all in easy reach. But that isn't the only tool I use. I have several apps on my phone for sounds, too. These days, who doesn't have their phone within reach?? Some apps work for both dogs and horses while others are geared toward one or the other. To go along with these sounds, I also have a speaker that I can position differently to get the dog or horse looking in a different direction.

There are many tricks and tools in a photographer's toolbox for getting those great shots. Elaine Tweedy of I Got the Shot Photography discovered a cell phone photo hack that really works. Keep following the links at the end of each blog post until you get back to this one to see the different hacks and gear that pet photographers all over love!