Best photography purchases of 2020
What a strange, strange year this has been. Hopefully things will turn around next year with the development of vaccines. Life will return to some semblance of normalcy soon. This year was most certainly different because all of us have had to cut corners and budget real tightly. With “stay at home” orders, and events & weddings being shut down, most photographers were hit pretty hard. That of course is context to this regular year-end reflection as we discuss what photo gear bought in 2020 to augment our photography hobby or career. So that most certainly will add an interesting twist to this year’s edition of best photography purchases.
My wildest decision came towards the end of the year – to move into a larger, better studio space. As I mentioned in that linked article where I announced it: I’m looking forward to what this next adventure might hold for me. It was both exciting and scary, especially in “these trying times”, signing the lease on a new, larger (more expensive) studio space. I have been weighing the pros and cons of this decision for a few months now, and it (mostly) makes sense. Still, I am both elated and scared.
We would all love to hear what you have been up to, and what astute and interesting choices you’ve made this year.
Let’s hear from you:
Stacey Nolan with comment #7 was picked via a random number generator. Stacey has opted for the tutoring session. Thank you everyone who participated.
To make it interesting, there is a really nice book prize at stake, to be given to to a winning comment picked via random number generator. The winner will be announced on January 1st. Fancy that!
As an alternate prize, I am offering an hour-long online tutoring session session via Zoom or Skype. Should you win, you are also welcome to gift the session (or book) to a photographer friend instead.
- More details about Online Tutoring sessions.
- More info about other Photography workshops that I offer.
The Successful Professional Photographer
The Successful Professional Photographer, by Roberto Valenzuela, is subtitled “How to Stand Out, Get Hired, and Make Real Money as a Portrait or Wedding Photographer.”
All of these topics are of concern to us as professional photographers. How to make it work. This richly informative book offers clear advice, and I would highly recommend it.
If you are interested in the premise of this book, you can order it through Amazon USA or Amazon UK.
My best photography purchases for 2020
Live-streaming gear
Along with pretty much the rest of the world this year, there was a sudden shift to acquire live-streaming gear. So instead of the usual camera and lens purchases, many of us bought gadgetry that would allow us to do live-streaming. This is going to be a permanent shift in the photography field. That much I believe is true.
Specifically to deliver a workshop series for Unique Photo on the topic of Flash Photography, I bought various accessories and cables, piece by piece, to build up a system where I could steam from 3 cameras. To make it work, I had to source two Elgato CamLink 4 adapters (B&H / Amazon) … but since everyone and their auntie was suddenly into Livestreaming, I had to go to eBay where I bought two of them at 3x the regular price. Grrrr. But I needed them. I hate price gougers though. Right now, the better option would be something like the ATEM Mini Pro ISO livestream switcher (B&H / Amazon).
To make live-streaming from my studio more viable, I bought a new maxed-out MacBook Pro 16″ to replace an under-powered MacBook Air.
I still have to figure out whether Livestreaming services are something I want to offer on a professional level, or whether it would be worth the investment, time and risk.
Sony FE 90mm f/2.8 Macro G OSS lens
Shooting macro with a mirrorless camera is just much easier compared to with a DSLR — you have the flip-out screen on the back for angles which would normally break your back, stooping lower to get a look through the viewfinder. Yes, I know modern DSLRs have Live Preview output, but not with the focusing capabilities of comparable mirrorless cameras. It is just easier.
Do you want to hear a sad story about that macro lens though? I totaled it in the studio. I didn’t properly fasten the Arca-Swiss tripod clamp, and the camera fell off the tripod. The lens snapped in half. Want to see a grown man cry?
Insurance did cover all of it, except the $500 deductible, but the entire experience was a huge dent in my confidence for a while. Especially in the middle of this year when income is slow – that deductible hurt.
So yes, in effect I bought that lens twice. Ouch!
Sony Planar FE 50mm f/1.4 ZA lens
I tried and then bought the Sony Planar FE 50mm f/1.4 ZA (B&H / Amazon) – this lens also falls in the crazy-sharp category. When you hold it in your hand, you get a sense of the manufacturing quality of this lens – it just feels solid. The aperture clicks are smooth (or can be de-clicked like most of the upper-end Sony lenses.) And it is sharp. Have I mentioned that? With that I have started to force myself to use this focal length more at weddings and events.
Profoto Spot Small
You can focus the light, and get a really tight beam of light on your subject. You can also add a gobo to control the spill of light even more.
My motivation in getting this device, is that it would allow me a unique look for headshots and portraits that aren’t easily attained otherwise.
Like any other hard light source, you have to be very specific in how you position your subject in relation to the light.
Here are a few examples of images that I created in the studio with the Profoto Spot Small:
Olight Flashlight & Harold Ross light modifiers
With light painting you can accentuate certain parts of your subject, and you can leave certain parts in shadow, creating mystery.
What better time to play with this than during a stay-at-home order where you can’t really go out. Time to hone the photography craft.
One of the photographers who excels at this, and have several tutorials up, is Harold Ross:
I bought some of his modifiers that help control the light from a small flashlight. In the end, I didn’t get to play with this as much as I had intended, but I am still intent on exploring this avenue.
The saxophone is my much neglected tenor sax, that I painted with light as a test. This final image used 12 exposures, layered and blended and messed with until I was somewhat satisfied with it. I’m not really a fan of time spent in Photoshop, but it was satisfying to reveal the subtleties with different masked layers, using the Erase Tool.
This particular Olight flashlight has been discontinued, but I sourced one via eBay, since it perfectly fits these light modifiers.

Other purchases I am very happy with
- Sony Tough SD cards (B&H / Amazon)
After having an SD card starting to disintegrate, I decided it was time to get every one of my main cameras loaded with these bad boys. They are physically tougher and much less likely to break from being handled. Of course I shoot RAW+RAW with dual-card cameras, but still paranoid about data loss.
- Sigma MC-11 (B&H / Amazon)
I haven’t had any consistent luck adapting my G-series Nikon lenses to Sony. And I sometimes need specific optics like tilt-shift lenses. The simplest option here was to get the Sigma MC-11 adapter, and use Canon lenses. Somehow this works seamlessly while the other adapters for Nikon struggle.
- CamRanger 2
It is essential to shoot tethered to a computer or mobile device like an iPad when you do headshots. I’m still using Nikon Camera Control 2 software when doing headshot photography, using either the Nikon D5 or D810. It works beautifully. But I frequently now shoot with Sony as well in the studio, and I needed a setup that worked with the Sony.
- Portrait Pro skin retouching software
This software is just phenomenal in how easy it is to do certain retouching sequences on portraits.
Your turn!
That’s it for me. Now it’s your turn. 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? Post your replies in the comments.
Related articles
- Other best photography purchases, listed by year
I purchased one thing that was going to help me with a monthly event where there was a “Meet and Greet” with the Headliner/Celebrity; Flashpoint 360 Streaklight with battery pack.
Well, events, you know how THOSE went after February …. I got to use this rig ONCE. Hopefully events will slowly come back, and I can reestablish myself in my new location (Myrtle Beach).
With events non-existent, to branch out a bit, I investigated getting into Real Estate Photography. To do this, I made two purchases:
1) Sigma ART 12-24 mm F4.0. Really nice lens that I purchased from a Canadian camera store in “Open Box” condition.
2) Manfrotto MHXORO-3WG Geared Tripod Head.
I have been practicing around the house and at a family member’s condo, and will start peddling my wares after the New Year.
That was it really, with the exception of a couple of modifiers I bought to use in food photography.
The first big purchase was a new computer to replace my 10 year old HP windows machine which frustrated me to death during the first 10 days of lock down. I just could not do what I wanted to do in photoshop any longer.
The came a new fancy monitor, since my husband broke mine while “helping” me.
I would love to know more about tethering to an iPad, since a laptop is not currently in the budget. Do you write about that on the blog?
Topaz labs had a Black Friday sale bundle that included Gigapixel AI, Sharpen AI, JPEG to RAW AI, Mask AI, Adjust AI, DeNoise AI, Topaz Studio 2 for $199.00.
I learned about the software during a weekly Zoom meeting. I like the versatility of the software that can be used as a plug-in or stand alone.
I bought a pair of Flashpoint Xplor AD600 flash units. They use Bowens mount rings and have 2 different wireless triggers to choose from. I got the TTL trigger by mistake and then bought the manual unit for $25. I love the flash units. The triggers should be better and should be full manual by default with TTL and HSS as an option. They work consistently but there is a learning curve. Personally, as a working pro I think all of us use manual 99% of the time so TTL is just silly IMO. And yes I know, lots of people will disagree with me. Using cable free powerful strobes on location is a nice change for me and I like the results thus far. I would recommend the Flashpoint gear as an affordable alternative to ProFoto and other gear.
Made two contrary purchases this year, since I have thoughts about going lighter. The first was an IRIX 150mm 2.8 macro lens. I already have a Tamron 90mm 2.8 macro, but I ‘ve wanted to go longer with macro for a long time. The IRIX seems more than twice as heavy and is bulkier. Since it’s also manual focus it’s a bit awkward. Tripod use is almost a must. It has some nice image characteristics but I’m not sure if it was worth it.
The second was a Pentax FA 150-450 4.5-5.6. This is a HEAVY lens. I may have to buy a sturdier tripod (I have an aluminum SLIK that sags a bit under the weight.) I bought it to capture eagles that were flying around all June, upstate. Delivery was delayed a month – eagles gone. I did get one or two shots. Much better than my Pentax DA 55-300. I have a 1.4 extender but it’s not the Pentax so it turns the big lens to manual. The Pentax 1.4x is $400. Have to decide if it’s worth it for AF.
So that’s been my year in gear. I’m still using my Pentax K-5 since the newer models seem to have minor drawbacks that I would find annoying.
As your your video gear, you could do Zoom classes!
Holy moly…where do I begin?
It feels that I had a subconscious premonition about the year to come…
Most of what I bought was for my real estate business…which exploded mid-May:
Ricoh Theta Z1 + 3Pod 4-section monopod w/feet for Matterport tours and panoramic imaging
Nikon Z6 w/14-30mm-f/4, Lilliput 7″ external monitor, DJI Ronin-S gimbal, pan-head tripod, video slider, 3 1″ sq LED video lights with softboxes, 3 3″x1′ LED video lights with barn doors(z6 primarily used for real estate and “talking head” video)
DJI Phantom 4 Pro v2 (real estate, architecture, construction, roofing duties)
Olympus voice recorder for personal notes and to record sessions. I found out the hard way I needed one of these (besides my smartphone voice recorder app)
THIS thing is cool: https://www.adorama.com/ltkpa.html
It’s hand-machined from a single billet of aluminum, has a traditional spigot top and female threads to fit most painter’s poles.
I use a Wooster 8′-16′ extendable painter’s pole and drop an Interfit S1 (poor man’s ProFoto B1 ?) on it. Retracted, it can handle a Westcott 7′ umbrella. Extended, it can handle the Interfit answer to the ProFoto Magnum or a 28″ collapsible beauty dish.
The Theta Z1 and Phantom 4 have pretty much paid for themselves… the z6 is still working on it ?
Oh…and while these are not necessarily “camera gear”, I created a Real Estate “grab bag” to take on RE shoots:
– LED lightbulbs (6)
– Toilet paper (ya never know!)
– Telescoping/angled Swiffer
– Shoe booties
– Black, grey, and white door stops
– Blue and red whips and tie-backs
– Sticky Tack (mounting putty) & black, white, grey gaffer tape
– Ridgid 18v job site blower (comes in handy to clear leaves from driveways and JUNK from rooms not “photo ready” ?)
(drone comes in handy to clear away outside debris, too…LOL)
And yes…all in 2020… ugh…
Being quarantined, my backyard continued to be my training ground. My daily practice sessions included birds, blooms, and insects. The Nikkor 105mm f/2.8G had been on my list for a while. I decided this was the best time to put it to the test. It was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. Then for Christmas, my husband surprised me with the one that would complete “The holy trinity” the Nikkor 14-24 f/2.8G. I had rented it so knew it’s power, but I’d forgotten how heavy it was. I debated whether I wanted to keep it or return it for something lighter. After some back and forth, I decided to keep it. Since my husband had given it to me prior to Christmas, I got to test her out around town. I am pleased that I made the decision to hold on to this sweet lens. Both of these lenses will help me in the upcoming year since I will be shooting two weddings. The rest of my money was spent on online tutorials. Since I had lots of time on my hands, I made it a goal to learn Lightroom/Photoshop. It is already beginning to pay off as I hone my editing and composite skills. Happy new year!
As I venture into this photography world and begin to play with my first strobes, I’ve really enjoyed my Flashpoint lights. I used them for my first outdoor shoots in the summer, and just had my first couple studio shoots recently and they performed well for me. Looking forward to many years of learning and experimenting with lighting!
You are very brave Neil !
I would’ve waited before signing that lease, in fact in 18 months time you would be signing for a reduced rate in a ghost town with empty city offices. Covid-19 has sped up the transformation, so much so that Teleworking is the new normalcy, the game has changed for office workers; vaccine or no vaccine.
I knew during lock down there was an opportunity and fun to experiment with a 4 speedlite setup using a mannequin in my garden. It was fun configuring the different ratios and I kept notes in a journal of all my findings. I think I can use this outdoor studio setup for sure for outdoor portraiture and fashion modelling. It is mobile, easy to setup and carry around to locations.
My best purchase without a doubt is the Fujifim X mirrorless system, it is so light compared to carrying a Nikon D4s with all those heavy lenses you carry around all day taken portraits, no wonder my wrists and arms were sore – it felt a gym barbell workout. I decided to buy to the Zeiss 135mm F2 , the 35mm F2 and 50mm F1.4 — all manual lenses attached to an F mount adapter. Manual focus is so easy with Fujifilm. What can I say the image quality is sensational that I am considering not using RAW anymore, but the high quality jpegs.
Impressive.
I love this Fujifilm X system and I think I will branch out and do documentary — in the moment street photography for personal projects.
Have a safe and happy seasons festivities
Two great purchases this year – with or without the Zombie Apocalypse!
First: FINALLY getting to TTL Flash, with a Godox speedlite. May seem minor but was a quantum leap for me in understanding manual flash (just deconstructing was more help than experimenting) and provided ease for situations in which I can use it. Use it with a collection of Yongnuo speedlites and can actually control them all with triggers stacked on top of one another. It looks kooky but it works.
Second: A terrific win on ebay for a Tamron 70-200mm 2.8 lens. Could not be happier – paid half of what a new one (or Canon brand) would cost – and it’s pristine. Another great leap for my photography even while I was also reduced to available subjects in the yard. (All credit for ebay bidding and winning goes to my wife).
So 2020 was really good to me – I still have my job and I’m still shooting!
Well like most of us I lost most of my work, 48 or so jobs that were booked and certainly many more that would have eventuated. But, things have slowly started to return.
Anyway in spite of this I decided to double-down and move to mirrorless. Keeping my D5s for sentimental reasons I purchased 2 Nikon Z6IIs, the 85 1.8 S and the 70-200 S lenses. I’ve already got the first Z6 and the 25-70 2.8S.
My reasons were mostly physical. After years of using gripped-body cameras my elbows were starting to give me issues, and I would feel like I’d been through the wars after a long event shoot. Also I like the autofocus, lens calibration and silent shooting capabilities of the Z system. Plus the new models have 2 slots which just puts me at ease on a job.
The Achilles heel of the mirrorless system is battery life though, and I miss the thousands of shots I get from the D5s on a charge, and I do hope that down the track they can address this through firmware or even higher-capacity batteries, in the meantime I’ll carry a bagful of the new C-series batteries.
That was my best purchase, I believe we’ll be back shooting full-time again and I wish all my fellow photographers prosperity in 2021.
2020 was a strange year – I sold my complete equipment (a canon 5dmk 3 with 4 good lenses and a olympus em1mk2 with 3 prime lenses, my speedlightes – nearly everything). My goal was the new canon eos r6 with the rf 24-100 mm f4. The camera is my dream camera and is able to work perfect in my studio and go travelling with me. It is so good, to have only one system. This camera has such an amazing autofocus, the pictures so crystal clear – I am flashed! In december I bought the macro lens rf 85mm f2 – a very good choice. Next year a good tele-lens and a wide angle will follow. But I wait for the new canon lens road map – there are so many good lenses in the pipe….
I purchased a speedlight, trigger and umbrella. Practicing off camera flash. I love your classes on Craftsy.
I picked up a new MacPro trash can. My original ‘Pro was purchased right after they came out and had been stellar all these years. It fit very well with my processing needs. So once I saw a deal for a factory sealed 6 core that had a late version of the OS installed for a very good price, I bought it. Basically it cost me $800 after what I made selling my original ‘Pro. I call it a best purchase because I got a brand new machine for the heart of my business for very little money. Besides that, I bought nothing else this year.
I have never been able to buy a camera body at the start of it’s cycle. I was fortunate to get a Canon R5. Just around the house snapping the dogs it seems quite amazing. Hoping the future shows my purchase wise.
Purchased a DJI Ronin S gimbal for walkthrough videos (real estate). Video is a beast and something I’ve resisted but like anything else once you start experimenting you get better day by day.
I invested in a few nice pieces of gear, as well as education/coaching!
Found a mint pre-owned Sony Zeiss 50mm 1.4 on Fred Miranda and finally went for it! It was the one missing piece in my bag, so happy birthday to me.
Around the beginning of May I took a 4 day course from Erika and Lanny of Two Mann, which was just about as incredible as one would expect, despite being a simplified version of their in person workshop.
During the summer I invested in a pro course bundle which included a few I had my eye on for a while. One of them is a certification from Equally Wed Pro, which explained in depth about how to be a better LGBTQ+ ally, form relationships with the community and start to book more LGBTQ+ clients. Priceless!!!
Snagged an awesome BH deal around Black Friday on Godox lighting and *finally* got my hands on two AD600 Pro Witstro and an AD200Pro for around $2000. Hella happy!!
A new, more comfortable office chair because my 3 year old one had started squeaking and leaking hydraulic oil all over my floor… ?????
Last, but certainly not least, I invested in a mentorship program to finally get my ish together from A to Z and jump back on track, business wise – “Booked Solid” from Ben Hartley.
And hey – it may not be for photography related, but it’s keeping me fed and alive!! – a new kitchen range + microwave just got delivered, haha! Bad timing for it to go poof right before the holidays, so it really does say everything about the cluster that 2020 was… all the way up to the end!
PS: I love that you’re giving away Roberto’s book, I have all of his other ones. So this one will complete my collection nicely ?
Once the pandemic hit and there was no where to go- learning macro seemed like a good idea. I bought a Tokina 100mm macro lens to start – and did not love the manual only focus and then bought the Nikon 60mm micro lens (from Neil as a matter of fact ) that I have been very happy with. Looking forward to getting some snowflake and frost shots this winter.
My second purchase was the Nikon z6ii as my new ‘first’ and my z6 is now my second camera. Looking forward to the return of events so I can put them to work to earn their keep.
Ricoh Theta SC2 for 360 real estate tours – gets me 90% of the quality, for 27% of the cost of the Z1 (admittedly higher quality, but unnecessary for MLS or other online viewing).
As usual, very useful info. I was looking for a batch retouching software today and the portrait pro looks amazing! The virtual equipment for teaching on line like the El Gato CamLink 4 hooked up to my Olympus OMD Mark ii, the Rode Wireless Go microphone, and ScreenFlow software for editing have been easy to learn and work great.
After years of buying most equipment that I wanted this year was different. I didn’t have too many needs that made me want anything in particular. Last year my most important piece of gear was the Profoto a1x. For the longest time I didn’t buy a small light source for my Sony cameras. I used Yongnuos but those didn’t work with any remote system. So I was stuck either using my larger B1 and/or optical Slave Mode on the Yongnuos with it. The A1 finally made me able to bring a light just in case, for example around sunset when the b1 was overkill. This year the most important purchase was actually different backgrounds (mostly art paper with patterns) and props (like plates, cups etc.) to dabble in food photography at my studio. That will be my escape route in 2021 if weddings are still not happening. I also recently bought a Profoto b10 to be more versatile in studio and on Location but I can‘t say how much that will change my setup yet. Missing a large light source I got a 7 feet umbrella with diffuser as well as a 4×6 feet sunbounce reflector with that. Hopefully that together will make my food photo appear more natural than the smaller light sources I mostly worked with.
I was fortunate enough to be able to make a couple of worthwhile purchases in 2020: a Godox AD300 pro with its AD-S65W softbox and a Kasey Painter Pole Adapter meant being able to begin exploring portraiture using a balance of off-camera strobe and available light in a way that I hadn’t previously. And, an inexpensive pack of black craft foam and some felt let me make myself a pair of your remarkable “black foamy thing” flags for use with my on-camera speedlights. I’m really happy with the results at both ends of the spectrum (Instagram @nuJB).
Early this past summer I figured I would jump on the mirrorless bandwagon and purchase a Nikon Z7 with an FTZ adapter. Well that didn’t work out, and I tried to like the new format, just couldn’t get comfortable with the body size, and specifically I wasn’t happy with the images- maybe I didn’t give it enough time (shot only one outdoor headshot session) and a few landscape shots at my summer place. I was frustrated, so after 30 days I called B&H and requested an exchange, no issue, easily exchanged for D850! Best decision for me, after two months of shooting I’m extremely happy with the results.
I’m most likely going to purchase a mirrorless camera in the future- would rather stay with Nikon (been shooting since the film days with an F2), but I’ll give it time for the software engineers to perfect the code.
Now for that perfect portrait lens… 85 or 105?
I’ve not had the opportunity to do as much photography as usual this year, but I have been able to shop around and make some upgrades to my kit, in preparation for what will hopefully be a better year next year. My purchases this year were:
1. Panasonic Leica 25mm 1.4 m43 lens as a replacement to my Panasonic 20mm 1.8. It’s sharper and focuses quicker than the 20mm it replaces.
2. Upgraded my Olympus EM1.1 with an Olympus EM1.2 as I couldn’t resist the deal. This was at the start of the year before Olympus announced that it would be selling its camera division. Let’s see how this turns out, but it’s a lovely camera in the meantime.
3. Replaced my ageing 2008 Mac Pro with a slightly less older 2010 Mac Pro for photo editing.
4. Upgraded from DXO PhotoLab 3 to DXO PhotoLab 4.
Of these, the EM1.2 has made the most difference to my photography, due to its extra resolution (20MP), better dynamic range and better focusing. After that, the 2010 Mac Pro, as it’s still a great budget workstation for photo editing, and is very capable with an up-to-date graphics card.
Hello everybody,
I bought two Sigma lens for my Sony a6000, one of them is 16mm F1,4 and the other is 30mm F1,4. I also bought an Godox trigger (X2T -S).
But tehe nost important was the time when I discovered this site and articles series related to “black foamie thing”.
Thank you, Neil!
It has to be your off camera flash course. On way to becoming a pro in using ocf.
Canon 200 2.0L
it has set me apart in a BIG way . . .
Stacey Nola with comment #7 wins the prize — and she picked a tutoring session with me.
Thank you everyone who participated. Here’s to a splendiferous 2021 for all of us. See you around.