25 Gift Ideas for 2010 – Part 2

Last week began the grand-tastic gift guide for 2010, where I shared 5 of 25 great gift ideas for the photographer in your life.  I keep the criteria simple.  First, I must either own or want it!  Second, It must be $50 or less.  To read the first five in part 1, feel free to hit the archive for it here.  Otherwise, today, we continue with Part 2:

1.  Wireless Trigger System:  Pocket Wizards, Radio Poppers and Cybersyncs are great if you’ve got the moolah, but for those on a budget, there should be some happy medium to get reasonably reliable triggers.  I had tried the Cactus triggers myself, and they were a good point of entry, but really just were too unreliable.  My buddy Kerry Garrison from Camera Dojo has researched the heck out of this and knows his stuff on lighting.  He’s put together a great kit that includes everything you need from transmitters to receivers, and PC Sync cables too, all for the budget-friendly $50 rate!  Check out his demo video here and get your photographer a set of these.  I can’t wait to get my own set!

Wireless triggers from Camera Dojo

Wireless triggers from Camera Dojo

2.  Lexar Memory:  Everyone could use an additional memory card, and with prices dropping rapidly, the 8GB UDMA CF cards are now within the budget-conscious range, so pick up a spare (or two) of these as we never have enough in our bags…this one is linked from B&H but pick your own vendor of preference as the deals are across the internet.

Lexar CF Cards

Lexar CF Cards

3.  Black Rapid RS7 – Okay, so it’s 8 bucks over the limit, but for the portability and easing of camera holding during extended sessions, the Black rapid RS 7 is a godsend.  If you don’t have one – get one, plain and simple.  Visit here to buy one today!

Black Rapid RS-7

Black Rapid RS-7

4.  Online Training – a month or two from either Kelby Training or Lynda.com is just the ticket to help the photographer in your life help themselves.  Whether it’s a refresher on Photoshop, boning up on Indesign, or even learning how to set up a WordPress blog or website, these are great resources for online training.  Monthly rates are $25 on average, and with the holidays approaching, you could easily find discount codes or bonus offers for signing up, so consider this valuable option.  It’s all part of the mentality of helping people advance in their craft through education!

Online Training

Online Training

5.  Light Stand – I have been procrastinating getting a second light stand for some time now and there is just no excuse.  The primary is an Impact stand I got from B&H and it has served me well, so I just need to add this to my own wish list, and encourage you to add one to yours (if you don’t already have enough that is…but then again, do we ever have enough lightstands – it’s a VAL you don’t have to feed or take out for beers after a shoot!)!.  Here’s my own preferred one:  10′ Impact Lightstand (Tracy, are you reading this?) I should probably note here that I am linking to the 10′ tall heavy duty one – well worth the extra investment in my opinion, but for the super budget-conscious, these can get as cheap as $20 for a light duty 6′ one!

Impact Light Stand (6' to 10')

Impact Light Stand (6' to 10')

Okay, so consider it 5.5 suggestions today.  I’m sure you have your own ideas too, so feel free to throw your own suggestions in the mix.  Remember, with two down and three to go, keep the ideas coming as I do have some room open for a few more!  Happy shooting and we’ll see you back here again tomorrow!

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