The coolest photography gadgets you can get in 2024
Today we’ll give you our favorite photography related gadgets! We’ve picked a couple of the cool ones and picked our top picks for these categories, and as always we’d love for you to use our links to buy them to support this website.
But now let’s jump right into our list with our first category of the coolest photography gadgets in 2024!
Portable Printer
Portable printers offer the solution to a problem only a polaroid camera, or instax cameras, could solve so far: How do you print your photos directly on the spot?
Portable printers offer photographers the convenience of instantly printing their favorite photos on the go. The KODAK Step Wireless Mobile Photo Mini Color Printer and the Fujifilm Instax Mini Link 2 Smartphone Printer are our top options in this category. With the KODAK Step Wireless, users can wirelessly print vibrant 2 x 3-inch photos directly from their smartphone or tablet using the Kodak Mini Shot app. Similarly, the Fujifilm Instax Mini Link 2 allows for seamless printing from smartphones via the dedicated Instax Mini Link app, producing credit card-sized instant prints in just seconds. These compact printers are perfect companions for travelers, event-goers, and photography enthusiasts looking to preserve their memories in tangible form, anytime and anywhere. So go ahead, get one of these printers and immediately share your photography goodness with the world!
Solar Charger
We really want to love the idea of solar chargers, however the reality is that a lot of them are really not practical: The charging takes too long, cloudy skies mean no charge at all… What we found from our research and own experience is the following: Go big or don’t go at all! The most important factor is the surface area of the solar panels. If you’re just looking at a powerbank with a dinky solar panel the size of the thing itself, it probably wont charge much. But if you can fold it out to get more surface area: That’s a good sign! We really like the Hiluckey Solar Charger 25000mAh for that reason: It’s a sizeable powerbank and unfolds for a really big surface area, considering it’s small footprint. Leave it in your car, dangle the panels from your backpack and watch the charge come in. If you don’t want the powerbank included look at the BigBlue 3 USB Ports 28W Solar Charger: Bigger surface area, but also folds done to a manageable size. This device, as opposed to the Hiluckey Solar Charger 25000mAh, is a lot bigger and thus giving you a way faster charge, for example when taking a break and you just want to top off your device.
Just keep in mind that these devices still take some time to charge your device and are not magic by any means.
Portable LED Lights
If you like portrait photography or filmmaking, portable LED lights are really amazing! You don’t need to worry about cables but can still use an external light source to light your shots just the way you want them to be lit. There are tons of different size options available, we would recommend you go with a well known brand, such as Neewer, as they give you a good price-performance ratio and also the reliability you want. From there just pick the size you want, along with all the possible color options you need.
Rubber Lens Hood
A rubber lens hood? Well yes! have you ever tried to shoot through glass and didn’t want reflections in your shot? Probably. How did you manage to counter these reflections? Post production? Wrapping a towel around your lens? Something else?
A rubber lens hood, such as the Ultimate Lens Hood, makes the process so much easier! There is not much more to say than: “Just get one, and you’ll be some much more happy with your shots through glass!”
Rain Cover
Your camera may be waterproof, but our experience suggests that a rain cover gives you that extra piece of mind and an extra layer of protection for your expensive gear. I know I’m always inwardly cringing when my camera gets wet, especially when it’s really pouring down. The quick fix usually is taking my cap and placing it on the camera, but that really only works when you’re using a tripod. A much better solution is a raincover for your camera, which is compatible with all cameras: It has opentings for your hands to operate the camera and also a see-through portion so you can actually see what you are doing.
Bubble Spirit Level
If you’re talking gadgets, it’s basically a must to include a bubble spirit level for your hotshoe mount. It’s useful, of course, but most modern cameras have an internal level already built in. So why include it? Well, it would be a complete gadget list without it. We’ll also try to remember to include it into our lists for photographer presents… So yeah. Get yourself a proper bubble spirit level.
