Are you bringing too much gear to a photo shoot?

If you're anything like me, you probably are...

If I had a mantra, it would probably be "better safe than sorry". It's pretty sound advice for pretty much any occasion.  However, I find myself using it as an excuse for bringing WAY too much gear to photo shoots that in no way require that much gear.  

My first ever payed gig as a photographer was a photo booth for a St. Patrick's day party here in Nashville. Needless to say, I had no idea what I was doing and I certainly didn't know what gear I should bring.  So, I did what any inexperienced, panicked photographer would do... I bought a bunch of stuff on Amazon.com and brought it all!

On the day of the event I made 5 trips to and from my car, bringing in all of the gear into the venue.  I only ended up using about 1/5th of it which would have saved me 4 trips and about an hour being double parked.  

Over the years I have learned how valuable preparing for a shoot is.  Even though I prepare for every shoot to the best of my ability, I still find myself bringing gear that I never end up using.  This is probably due to the fact that I have been caught in situations where I found myself saying "I really wish I had brought (random piece of gear) because it would really help in this situation, even though I was positive I didn't need it".  Take it from me, that is a horrible feeling.  

Here are a few reasons why you should think about what you're bringing and why you should probably leave most of it at home...

Too much gear...

• Slows down the shoot...

• Photo shoots are time sensitive.  I bill my clients based on full and half day rates, so any time spent fiddling with gear is eating into the time they are paying for pictures to be taken.

• Can be intimidating...

• Many of the clients I work with are not professional models and they'r not used to  having tons of gear in front of them.  Keeping the gear you use to a minimum will ease your clients mind and they will be able to give you a better performance.

• Can look unprofessional...

• The more gear you have, the more opportunity there is for something to go wrong.  The last thing you want to do while you're on a shoot is be troubleshooting your gear. That being said, you need to know your gear inside and out so if something does go wrong you know how to fix it. 
• Pro Tip: Always check the batteries first!

• Is a pain in the (you know what) to carry around...

• What does an assistant and a trip to the doctor have in common?.. That's right, they both cost money! I would rather spend money on an assistant than on the chiropractor any day. At the same time your assistant probably doesn't want to lug around every piece of gear you own and if you make them, they probably won't be your assistant for long.  Save everyone the (literal) pain of carrying too much and rid your bag unneeded gear.

Here is what I typically bring with me on a simple portrait shoot (as pictured above).

• Camera body
• 85mm lens
• 50mm lens
• Extra Batteries
• Speedlight (multiple if the shoot requires it)
• Flash triggers
• Flash diffusion
• Light stand
• Tripod
• 5-in-1 reflector
• Clamp
• Sand bag
• Camranger (optional)
• Memory cards (not pictured)

Do yourself a favor and don't make the same mistakes I have.  Use this blog as a resource to jump ahead of the curve and stand apart from all of the other creative people out there.  

As always, if you have any questions please feel free to leave a comment below.  Also be sure to follow @ReadylightMedia on Instagram and Twitter and enter your email at the top of the page to receive updates, discounts and giveaways.  

Cheers,
Jeff