Everything on this page are products I’ve tested myself in the field. I am recommending them specifically to my visitors here on the web and to my students who are very interested in finding the best tools for the job. If you are interested in night/astro photography, this is a great place to get some product ideas and useful tools. Be prepared with the right tools for the job and you will get the photos you have always wanted!
This is a simple, inexpensive 100-lumen flashlight.
I like it because it’s small, light and can easily be aimed and diffused with something as simple as a tissue. It’s always handy and uses a inexpensive AAA battery.
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Amazingly, this small 25 lumen flashlight provides a lot of light when you are standing in pitch darkness.
I use this to highlight areas that I can walk around and behind. When your ISO is 3,200 or above, it takes just a few seconds to open up areas that are very dark in the scene.
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When light painting in the dark, I use this flashlight to spot paint or edge paint a different color than while.
The brightest of the colors is white, it’s max is 200 lumens, and the colors; red, green and blue are lower in power. A simple paper snoot makes spot painting very easy.
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By far, this is the best flashlight in my camera bag. It’s waterproof, damage proof and virtually indestructible, it uses CR123A batteries which deliver high power for a long time.
When you want to light something at a distance you will need something like this. One of the reasons it’s so valuable is that it has a “precision reflector” which means less scatter.
Be sure to get the belt holster for this one, it makes it very handy either on your belt or on your camera bag strap.
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Possibly the lowest cost flashlight in my collection, but still packs a value punch as a zoomable, adjustable brightness flashlight that can operate with 3 regular AAA batteries or one rechargeable 18650 battery which are also long lasting.
This particular model works well with a small toilet paper tube to focus on small areas more precisely.
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A perfect addition to your field kit, a small pack of colored gels. for about 7 bucks you can always have these available.
They are only 1.8″ x 3″ and the pack comes with 35 different shades and colors, making this an inexpensive, useful addition.
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This is a USB powered lens warmer.
Important: Your lens will accumulate water droplets on the front element or internally when you are outside waiting for star trails to complete or shooting the night sky in general. I ruined an evening of Aurora Borealis images because I DID NOT have this.
It’s USB powered and you can get a very small USB battery to tape to your tripod leg and power this thing for the entire evening. Don’t skimp and go without this. The other alternative is to tape chemical hand warmers to your lens, which I don’t like at all because it doesn’t support the whole lens.
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I don’t know about you, but I get tired standing around outdoors, at night waiting for my 3 hour star trails sequence to complete.
This is my easy, inexpensive solution that’s both easy to carry, light weight and inexpensive. Also, it’s the right height for an adult! And, it’s just 2 pounds!
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I’ve tried a lot of different solutions to cover my camera when it starts to rain, and other than a cheap hotel shower cap, this solution works the best and is also one of the least expensive.
Another tip I have about rain is to make sure you have several microfiber cloths with you, so you can wipe the front UV filter as rain droplets accumulate.
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Extras that just might save you ass in a tough situation!
The first one is a small, light, inexpensive multi-tip pocket screwdriver. I use this more times than I wish I needed to, but it sure comes in handy when you do. for less than 7 bucks, you can feel secure knowing that you are prepared.
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Another “extra” that might become the most important tool to have with you at night.
You’ve just set up and your tripod leg is getting loose, you are shooting multi-minute exposures and the last thing you need is a loose tripod leg or a loose L-Bracket for your camera. You better have an Allen Wrench with you or you are going wish you did.
This is a pretty complete nine-key folding Allen Wrench set that is compact and lost cost. Stick this in your camera bag and remember you did. It will come it handy!
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Below are items I use for Infrared Photography
Why would you want an infrared filter to begin with?
Only for one reason. Because you want to shoot infrared photographs. You can use these filters with a standard camera but the exposure times will be much longer. A better way would be to take an older camera and send it off to a company that converts your camera to be IR spectrum sensitive only.
There are a few companies that do these specialized conversions are LifePixel and SpencersCameraRepair which I have used both of them to convert my own camera.
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