Best photography purchases of 2016
The lists of best photography purchases from previous years received a lot of interest and comments. The somewhat amusing thing looking back at those lists, is that I have since sold some of the equipment – I either upgraded, side-graded … or changed direction. Such is the fluid nature of photography technology, and also running a photography business. Things change. Similarly, this year, there were several pieces of photo gear that I bought that I hope will make a difference. Well, better than just “hope”, I plan on them making a difference.
This past year, I was more careful about what I bought – there were far fewer frivolous items. A useful measure is to weigh whether a piece of photo gear will at least bring its own value in new business, or alternately, make your life and work that much easier. There has to be a benefit that is tangible.
For example, in the photo above you can see the massive boom arm in the left-hand side of the frame. This mighty boom arm by Redwing (RD-1201) (affiliate) is one of those things which make it easier to adjust the height of the light with one hand while shooting. When I first put it up in the studio, it seemed so huge that I thought this might have been a bad idea – it takes a lot of space! But when I started using it, I realized that it actually makes my life easier. Will it directly earn me more money? Nope. But it will make working in the studio that much easier. And it looks impressive!
Here then is my list of my best photography purchases of 2016, along with the reasons why I think they were good decisions. I also add a few items that I found to be underwhelming. That said, there weren’t anything that I bought that was a bad purchase. One grows wiser over time.
Add yours to the list of Best / Worst Photo related purchases, by posting in the comments section. What photo gear did you acquire which you believe will make a difference to your photography and your business in the upcoming years?
Let’s hear from you:
Let us know what photo-related goodies you bought this year which you loved, and those you didn’t love as much. Which of them do you think will make a difference to your photography and your business.
To make it interesting, there were two books available as prizes. (Or could be swapped out out for my book, On-Camera Flash (revised edition). Winners were chosen by random number generator, and announced here. (comment #52)
Even though the contest is closed by now, you are more than welcome to still add your comments.
Photographing Headshots
Photographing Headshots, by Gary Hughes. Headshot photography is surprisingly nuanced, and the author carefully steps you through the lighting techniques that you would need, whether on location or in the studio.
Much of what would elevate your headshot photography, is in how to pose your subject. The author covers topics such as shoulder alignment and tilt. Posing the hands. But he goes further than just lighting and posing techniques. Post-processing is also covered in topics such as Retouching the eyes, and retouching specular highlights.
If you are curious about the premise of this book, you can order it through Amazon USA or Amazon UK.
My best photography purchases for 2016
Nikon D5
I skipped the Nikon D4s, having decided to keep my D4 bodies as my workhorses for a few more years. It’s that ROI thing that makes expensive cameras … well, expensive. Then the Nikon D5 (B&H / Amazon) was released earlier in 2016, and there were sufficiently big enough improvements over the D4 to make the D5 worth closer attention. The auto-focusing is magical – fast and accurate. Unreal.
Then, the Nikon D5 high ISO noise performance is also a big step up from the D4 (which was already a great camera when it came to high-ISO noise. Many small improvements that add up to make the D5 a really impressive camera. Now, if only I could justify the cost of a 2nd body.
Two articles on Tangents which specifically feature the abilities of the Nikon D5
- Romantic wedding portraits with incandescent light – I’m now even more confidently shooting portraits in low light at high ISO settings, knowing that digital noise isn’t an issue even with enlargement.
- Tips on concert photography – The D5 easily handling focusing when the light constantly changes from low light to contrasty light.
Nikon SB-5000 Speedlite
Regardless of that, the SB-5000 is a superb flash. By now, the overheating problem that plagued the SB-900, is not an issue anymore. The SB-5000 vents heat efficiently, allowing you to fire up to 100 consecutive full power flashes without a problem.
The controls for changing FEC in TTL, or power level in manual, is easier and more intuitive than the SB-900 / SB-910, by having this accessible with the rocker switch instead of a separate button.
With the WR-R10 Wireless Remote Controller, you can control and fire the flash remotely from the camera, without needing a second SB-5000 on the camera. I really like this flash, but wish there had been backwards compatibility though.
Litepanels Astra EP 1×1 Bi-Color LED Panel
Two Litepanels Astra EP 1×1 Bi-Color LED Panels (B&H / Amazon) where the continuous lights that I decided on. Being able to change the WB of these Litepanels Astra LED lights, made them more versatile than the Westcott Spiderlites, which have now been relegated to just studio use. The Spiderlites are also much more bulky in comparison.
For more about how I use these lights during shoots:
The Eyelead SCK-1 sensor gel stick
Where previously I felt like I was just moving crud around on the sensor with the swab, this device – the Eyelead SCK-1 sensor gel stick (Amazon) – picked up every single spot that I could see with the magnifying loupe. This single device helped restore my confidence in the footage I was shooting.
- More info on cleaning your camera sensor.
Time-lapse rig: Stage One dolly
I wanted / needed a portable rig to shoot cinematic time-lapse sequences. When the camera moves during the exposures, you get a more dynamic video as the end result, as the camera sweeps along.
The Dynamic Perception Stage One Dolly Motion Controller (affiliate), breaks down into 20″ segments – short enough to fit into a backpack … or an airplane flight. This is as portable as a full system gets, making it a very flexible option to shoot cinematic time-lapse clips anywhere.
DJI Osmo
There is a smartphone holder to turn your phone into a WiFi-connected on-board monitor to check your video output while you shoot. The Wi-Fi features a range of up to 85′, so you can operate the camera and gimbal remotely as well.
Photo related stuff that left me indifferent, or under-whelmed
I bought a bunch of 6Tb hard drives so I could increase the capacity on my Drobo. A necessary expense, but not an exciting one.
I bought a Fuji X-E2 to have it converted for infra-red B&W photography. One problem, the lens I had for this, the Fuji 18mm, generated a bad hot-spot in the middle. There are lists of lenses which are problematic in this regard – causing a central hot-spot in images, because of internal reflections in the lens. Unfortunately, the Fuji 18mm lens wasn’t listed as a problem lens for infra-red photography. I had to replace it with the Fuji 14mm f/2.8 lens, which turned out just fine. No hot-spot. Still, it was a detour to get there.
Your turn!
Let us know what photo-related goodies you bought this year which you loved, and those you didn’t.
Related articles
- Other best photography purchases, listed by year
- Gear list – Starting out with off-camera flash
My two best purchases for 2016 were the Profoto B2 location kit (thanks for the pre-purchase advice Neil) and a Fuji X-T1 to lighten my load when travelling.
Mine have been the Canon 5D Mark 4 (I’m impressed with the improved AF) and a Manfrotto lumi-muse LED light. I’ve used the lumi-muse far more than I expected to.
I also purchased the Eyelead SCK-1 sensor stick. I was a little apprehension about destroying my sensor but it works great.
I bought a Phottix Striplight, 4xYN622C trancievers, 1x YN622-TX transmitter, YN-685C flash with 2,4ghz radio and a Cerberus Multimount.
The 622-tranceivers do not let you adjust every flash I have power via radio, just a select few. That’s why I now, if I want to dedicate to the 622 system, have to buy new flashes that support the flash power adjustments via radio. Other than that, I’m happy.
Bought a new D4s for 3499€(store dumping stock).
And last week the Nikon 58mm(loving the way it renders a scene)
My favorites of 2016 were that I purchased a couple of B1’s and a Westcott Eyelighter. But I must say my favorite was changing from a pc to a new iMac 27 it’s really help my workflow.
I purchased an Olympus OMD EM -5 mkii this year. Really liking the mirrorless format.
No bad purchases this year.
Canon 6D
Canon 580ex ii (second-hand)
Canon 70-200 F4 IS (second-hand)
Canon 100mm f2.8 macro (second-hand)
Canon 14-70mm f4 (second-hand)
Rogue flash gels
Smart move. Saved a bundled yet you picked up some great gear! I love the 70-200mm F4 IS — the focus is fast and accurate and it weighs much less than the 2.8!
My two faves for the year are the Nikon 85 f1.4 and a Godox wistro ii with XT1 transmitter/receiver. Oh love my qbox 22″ modifier. I also got a wall mounted boom for my studio space. I guess that’s 5 faves, not two. Haha.
D5 and B1, small names with big results
Sony A7RII, Sony Zeiss 35mm 1.4Z and Sony Zeiss 135mm f1.8 ZA have been my best purchases for the year. You could say switching from Canon to Sony was my best decision.
Canon crop shooter here, my best purchase was the Sigma 30mm f/1.4. Simply outstanding lens and unlike the first version of this lens is equally happy on a full frame sensor too. It is ridiculously sharp and a relative bargain price. I’ve used it for everything from landscapes to portraits with outstanding results.
Second this recommendation. This lens is stellar.
Photo Mechanic is the best thing to ever happen to my workflow. I work in situations where my turnaround time needs to be as close to “instant” as possible. Lightroom does a lot of things well, but speed is not one of them. PM, on the other hand, is built for it; importing and culling takes a fraction of the time. I recommend it to anyone who works with large volumes of images … it will easily pay for itself with the time you save.
I bought the Nikon D750. A awesome camera and two go to lenses, Nikkor 24-120mm F4, and Nikkor 28-300mm. Loving every moment with these combinations.
Bolt VB-22 bare-bulb strobe (secondhand to boot). This simple addition let me expand my outdoor shooting boundaries.
Paul C. Buff Digibees, with daylight balanced modeling lights. I sold more stuff than I purchased this year.
My cheap manual-focus Samyang 12mm fisheye has made some of the most popular photos I’ve done this year. I shoot bands in bars, and nobody likes normal nearly as much as they like weird. The Samyang/Rokinon/Bowen 12mm has some sort of different technology that doesn’t distort as much as a normal fisheye, it’s sharp as hell and opens up to f/2.8. The manual focus can usually be overcome by setting it to infinity–at 12 mm, anything over 6 feet is in focus. Yeah, I got some new cameras and expensive Canon lenses this year, but for pure band-for-the-buck, nothing’s made a difference like the cheap fisheye.
Profoto B1, Profoto OCF Beauty Dish 2′ and the Westcott Rapid Box OCTA XL. All terrific on location.
Without a doubt, my purchase of the Phottix Mitros+ for my Sony A7ii. The switch to TTL from manual is so convenient with bounce flash. I haven’t even bought the Odin yet, and it’s still been a huge upgrade.
I will have to trot out an encore mention for this. I think last year I put down the best purchase was a Spider camera holster ($135) to hold the camera on my hip rather than my shoulder and neck. Wow oh wow, best $135 I ever spent. It’s fantastic, especially if you have two cameras going. If you have two going you can use a double holster or have one on holster and one on traditional strap. My neck is so happy and it’s also functionally way better because it stays in place and doesn’t swing around all over the place. But, then I was coming home from NYC one day in the fall and I accidentally left my holster on the train. Huge bummer. I called Amtrak and they looked but it was gone. I bought a new one. Happy days are here again.
I just ordered this, after using a black rapid double strap my back needs a break. cant wait to use it
You’re gonna LOVE it!!!
Jennifer, I just ordered one. Is the waiststrap adjustable? I’m wondering if it will be to big.
Hi Tracey, yes, the waist strap is adjustable. However, if you are very thin it might still be big. I have it as tight as it can go and while I’m thin there are plenty of people thinner than I. For them, I don’t think they could use this belt. Hopefully Spider will make a smaller version for petite photographers.
Best purchase (gift really) were the Peak Design Clutch camera hand strap and the Induro Arca-Swiss ballhead. The Clutch hand strap allows me to walk around with my camera for short periods of time without a neck strap getting in the way and with security in case my grip slips. The clutch has an arca-swiss plate, so by upgrading my Manfrotto trip to the Induro ball head, I can quickly mount the camera on the tripod without having to remove the Clutch hand strap. The Induro has a built-in bubble level and you can easily rotate the entire head for panoramas without unlocking the ball head part. You can also adjust the resistance so that if you loosen the ball head, it won’t immediately flop down and either pinch you or damage your camera.
Fuji XPro2, Cactus V6MkII Transceiver and 2Cactus flashguns. All totally brilliant for very different reasons but I think the all time best kit purchase of the year was a Phottix 16inch mini boom arm. Made my life so much easier, worth every penny.
The Flashpoint (also available under other monikers) Xplor600 TTL battery powered studio light. 1/3 the cost of the profoto, common bowens speedring mount. Lots of wins for the $$$.
Westcott eyelighter, Sony A7RM2, Zeiss 85mm f1.8
My best purchase was a Godox AD600. I couldn’t purchase a Profoto strobe, so this will have to do. It does feature TTL and 600 w/s of output, so it will serve me well on location. The ability to change power settings from the camera makes me happy, too.
Hmmm… tough one – would have to say 14×60 strip box [thanks Neil!], sigma 50mm1.4 Art, and Canon 85mm f/1.2.-
(there were more)
The Godox/Flashpoint v860ii li-ion flashes and trigger are amazing; Ended up getting 3 of them. Also for the money the really cheap ($30) GoPro clones are quite good; can put them in risky spots without feeling too bad if it gets destroyed.
I went out and bought my first non-Canon lens this year, the Sigma 150-600mm Contemporary. I am a lover of birds and have always wanted to get myself up close to them when taking pictures. This lens, though not fast (f/5.6-6.3), delivers just want I want. The image stablisation works like a dream and the images are sharp as. Though it is yet to earn me money (I can’t really use it for portraiture – though sport might be the go) it has introduced me to a couple of new national parks in Sydney and a plethora of new species including birds, bats and my first snake. Love it!
Have been stalking for over a year, found and bought used: Nikon 70-200mm 2.8 and 14-24mm 2.8. Both are in great condition and both were at a price that was sweet. Will get more use out of the 70-200. The 14-24 fills the spot my DX 10-14mm held until I went off to FX. It will pay for itself in time. Not as fast as the 70-200, but it will.
Tamron 24-70 mm f2.8 with vibration control. Great for event work.
My best purchase was my Nikon D500. Superb APS-C camera. It’s like a mini machine gun. Image quality is incredible.
This year was simple upgrades. Phottix Varos Pro M Umbrella holders, best design and construction I have found. $39 ebay speedlight beauty dish, great portability and wind resistance and has been a lot of fun. SSD drive in my laptop has been a life saver.
My best purchases of 2016 are Canon 1DX mk2…..amazing camera, 5D Mk4…great camera but eats batteries and a Canon 16-35mm f2.8 Mk3. Happy Christmas everyone !
My best purchase this year were the Sirui tripod and head (T1005x & K10).
I went for maximum portability, the legs fold to 13.4″ and weight 2.2 pounds, knowing that would probably not be an optimal solution in less than ideal conditions: wind or heavy/long lenses.
It far exceeded my expectations, and I ended up using my old Manfrotto 055 only when I need two rigs simultaneously (star trails and milky way).
Both the legs and the head are extremely well machined and offer great stability and smoothness of movements without the bulk and weight of bigger rigs.
Mine is the Vinta camera bag. Looks sharp, super lightweight and holds a ton of gear, including up to a 15″ laptop.
Phase One Capture One software — still learning, but right off the bat it does a much nicer of getting good skin tones out of Nikon 810 raw files than does Photoshop/Lightroom.
I really like the boom arm that you are using for your main light in the studio. What type of stand do you have that attached to? Brand and model? I imagine it requires a pretty heavy duty stand to hold up that arm.
Great article! Always enjoying hearing about the equipment that works well for you — and what doesn’t. Thanks for sharing your insights and experience.
Here’s to 2017, filled with more adventures (and maybe – okay PROBABLY – more equipment)!!!
Just recently bought the new Canon Speedlite 430EX III-RT.
Now I get to control my light off camera first time ever, on a bargain price (via local store -100€ discount).
Westcott 26″ Rapidbox with a 40 degree egg crate grid – using the diffuser with the grid crates a very unique look for portraits – very directional yet soft light.
Neil, thanks for all the wonderful blogs throughout the year!
Top of the list has to be a second 5D3, shooting with two bodies is so much quicker than changing lenses!
Lowepro x300 roller case – carrying things to a wedding is so much easier now!
Canon 28 1.8, cheapest wide prime I could find, loving it! So light too!
Since I bought my Profoto D1 in 2015, this year I got only a few things, like a 7′ parabolic (silver) umbrella kit, and also, the Spider Holster ($135), and I am loving it! Have to confess, I got confused and first ordered the $125 Spider Holster, but I decided to keep it anyway. I’d love to be able to upgrade my second camera, maybe this year.
Nikon 24m TSE. Have been thinking about a tilt shift lens for years, for landscape and urban buildings. Finally took the plunge (it is expensive). I love it. Hugely useful for a range of landscape work. Wonderful quality, especially at the corners, which can be a weak point in wide angles. Plus it’s quite funky and unusual to look at and can be a conversation starter.
My next bank buster is likely to be the 135 DC. But it may be a few years before I can stretch to it.
PS. I love that your list above is you being careful about what you buy. I know, busy working professional and all that. But it’s an impressive haul all the same.
Mine was the Canon 85 1.8 portrait lens I use mostly for available light shots of the wedding cakes.
Best one was Fuji Xt2. The next 5DII. light and I can get rid of an old brick :)
Profoto B1 kit and canon 200mm f2.0. LOTS of money but boy the two have helped me move my photography to the next level!!!!
The Pentax K-1 was my best purchase for 2016. It’s an amazingly good camera with great features, dynamic range and resolution. I love using it!
Best: Canon 5D Mark IV what a camera!!
Tamron wide angle Lenses 15-30 mm
Worst: Lowe Pro whistler Bag 450, to tight , can’t fit Lenses with lenswood.
Does a printer count? I bought an epson P800 and it is marvelous. I’m not sure how I will feel after I buy replacement ink cargridges, but it produces great images on a whole range of paper and sizes. There’s probably as much to learn about paper and printing as just about any other photo related topic.
Best: Black foamy thing :) In the past I have worked exclusively with available light. I’m working on learning how to add and modify light.
Worst: 50mm f1.7 – should have just gone with the f1.4 right off.
Oct. 23, 2016 NYC Photo walk Class with Neil
Rekindled my passion for photography
Thank you again for the kind feedback!
The two numbers that came up, were:
#19 – Matt Molton, and
#37 – Ron Hiner.
(I will let Matt have first choice of the prize.)
Thank you to everyone who had participated. Best of everything in the new year!
[edited to add:
When I ran the number generator, I went with the post count at the top, which includes the .1 and .2 comments. So the generator ran with 55 numbers instead of 51. Still, a non-existent number didn’t come up, so I am keeping it to this. ]