October is Coming, Get Your Gear Out

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Rainy , cloudy, windy weather is fast approaching or already has reached us and it's time to pull out all of our photography gear to make sure everything gets its once a year review. The first thing I do is line it all up and make cleaning a priority. Sure we all wipe our lenses and clean our cameras off when we finish an assignment or even a simple shoot, but what I'm referring to is a full force cleaning on all parts to include the sensor, the filters if you still use them, the camera bodies and your lenses, the focus rings, the tripod base, the lens caps, everything you normally clean but not a quick wipe. You should have a sensor cleaning kit, if not look into one, I still like the Copper Hill products for basic sensor cleaning, about $30. Then it helps to keep a Giottos Rocket Blower in your bag, about $40. You can buy a number of different kits or single pieces but I stay with the simple kit and blower, but if you like here's a buying guide from Tech Trader showing 6 different products.

And remember if you haven't taken the time to do the cleaning of your camera's sensor lately, a photo like the one above is not likely to let you find the spots which form, but a clear shot of a light background or a sky zoomed to 100-200 times will allow you to see them. In fact before cleaning the Copper Hill kit will send you full instructions on how to set up your procedure to get super clear images. And don't forget to double check all of your lenses for a proper cleaning, just make sure you have the right cleaning materials on hand. I like to clean when there is no one else moving about raising the tiniest of dust particles, which we can't see, but we know are there, so I choose early mornings or times when no one else is around to get this done.

Next, the other reason I line up all my gear is to review my needs for the equipment I currently own. I recently found that one lens I have I rarely use and considered replacing it with another, but when I really thought about it, the Canon 85mm 1.8, I just couldn't get rid of it. I have used it on indoor sports as well as portraits and simply can't get better bokeh from such a reasonably priced lens. So I'll keep it. But you may find that you have a lens you haven't used all year and are now doing photography that doesn't require a lens just sitting around. A good opportunity to sell it and buy the one you've been wanting, so the replacement cost will be much less.

You may find you have all sorts of equipment you thought you'd use and haven't, and this is the best way to review and replace according to your current needs. Find a time and a place, I like clearing the dining table and laying it all out, then prioritizing by camera bodies, lenses, travel and camera bags, tripods, monopods, flash strobes, remote devices, flash cards, cables, light stands, and on and on. This is the only really effective way I can rid myself of gear I simply don't use anymore.

 Best of luck and do some research online to find what you are going to replace your gear with. Here's a place I do a lot of my research at The DigitalPicture . I think you'll appreciate the full professional reviews of a lot of photo equipment in an unbiased manner.

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