Accessories

Canon M50 – The LP-E12 Battery Monster (and a Cheap Solution)

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I haven’t paid a whole lot of attention to Canon’s previous mirrorless cameras, but the M50 had enough features to get my attention so I’m continuing to evaluate it alongside the 5D Mark IV that I use on a daily basis for work. So far I’m enjoying having a second small camera in my bag that uses the same lenses as my primary camera (with an adapter), but the battery life of the M50 is quite poor. If you come from a DSLR, the decreased battery life of mirrorless cameras does take a bit of getting used to! It’s rare …

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Keep Those Feet Dry During Your Photo Road Trips

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Wintery photography road trips in the Pacific North West usually involve a lot of getting in and out of the car at various locations, and trudging through wet snowy forests. Having wet boots and cold feet sucks, so I recently purchased an awesome set of portable Travel Boot Dryers from Dry Guy that can run off the 12v power outlet in your car. This nifty product has a little fan in each heating element and it gently blows warm air through your boots or gloves as they sit in the back of the car or the passenger footwell. Given the …

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Gear Check: UniqBall iQuick Plate

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I came across this interesting ballhead accessory when I was writing a guide about L plates for Shutter Muse. Typically an L plate for a camera is a big bulky thing that wraps around the end of a camera to allow you to switch between portrait and landscape orientation very quickly. One of the disadvantages of the traditional design is that the plates can be quite heavy, so I was intrigued when I found the iQuick plate solutions that are being manufactured by UniqBall. At first glance these iQuick plates appear to be pretty typical universal Arca-Swiss plates for use …

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From My Office: The Canon Printer Without Ink Cartridges

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I’ve had this printer, the Canon G3200, for about a year now and I keep meaning to tell you guys about it. It’s part of a new line of printers from Canon called “Mega Tank”.  As you can see from the photos, it has ink tanks instead of the typical cartridges that are found in most small printers. Refilling the ink is a simple matter of buying bulk ink in a bottle and pouring it in. Even if you buy Canon ink, it’s still much cheaper than the old scenario of replacing entire cartridges, and there’s also cheaper third-party ink …

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How to Speed up the Charging of Your iPhone

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Like a good many people, I rely on my iPhone for work but I’m constantly trying to keep it charged. I have a collection of scattered chargers in my home and I usually try to add a little more juice to the phone whenever I’m near one. I would never think of using the charger that actually came with the phone, but the other day it occurred to me that this might not be a well known suggestion, so here I am today to tell you all why… The little USB charger than comes with an iPhone is the same …

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Gear Check: Really Right Stuff TFA-01 Ultra Tripod

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I just packed my bags for a trip to Ottawa and for the first time in a very long time, I’m getting on a plane without a camera bag. This trip isn’t about photography at all, it’s about celebrating the holiday season with loved ones. Whilst I’m not taking a big camera bag as I usually do, I’m still travelling with a basic photography kit in my regular Arcteryx Brize 32 daypack. I chose to take the 5D Mark IV, the Canon 11-24mm f/4 L (unboxing) and the 24-105mm f/4 L IS.  The 11-105mm range between two lenses is a …

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Gear Check: All the New Peak Design Gear!!

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Peak Design have just launched updates to their most popular products, the Slide camera straps and the Capture Clip quick release system. I was lucky enough to get sent all the new gear prior to the retail launch, so I can bring you some thoughts and of course, lots of photos. If you’d like to get a discount on all Peak Design products, we are able to offer a special deal to our readers thanks to our long time relationship with Peak Design. Just click the button to reveal it. Capture Clip V3 I’m starting with this one because it’s …

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Gear Check: Nitecore D4 Battery Charger

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Recently I was looking for a new battery charger that would handle all of the different types of rechargeable batteries I have, not including camera ones. I needed something that would handle my Ni-MH AA and AAA Eneloop batteries that I use in things like flashes and remote triggers, and also my Li-ion 18650 batteries that power my flashlights for light painting. As well as this versatility, I also wanted to be able to easily power the charger from a 12v outlet in my car or when plugged into the Goal Zero Yeti 1400 Lithium power station in my photography …

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Building a Camera Tether

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Just a quick post today! Over on Shutter Muse I wrote a detailed post about constructing a camera safety tether. It’s a handy thing to have for climbing photography, and other adventure sports work. Also a necessity with some aerial photography work. If you think it might be something that’s relevant to your own photography, head on over and check it out!

How to Mount a GoPro onto an Aquatech Underwater Housing

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I thought it might be fun to put my GoPro on my Aquatech underwater housing to record some clips to share on social media, and probably here on the blog. Initially I figured I’d probably have to MacGyver something together to mount a clamp to the top of the housing, but it tuns out that Aquatech are one step ahead of me and they actually make a specific adapter that screws to the top of the housing. At $70 it’s kind of pricey for what it is, but I also value my time and it would save me a lot …

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Shedding Pack Weight: Flexible Water Bottles

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In my quest for a lighter pack, this is easily one of the cheapest and most noticeable changes I made to my usual backpacking kit. Click through to find out why these things are so awesome!