What’s in my camera bag: tips for beginners… from a beginner

If you are following this blog you know that my adventure with photography started only a couple of weeks before my adventure with blogging… not long ago as I write this post. Since then I read and learned a lot of theory stuff, went to “YouTube academy of photography”, listened to a lot of fact-based opinions and laughed at a lot of opinion-based drivel. I’m a person that finds learning something new deeply entertaining and I have to say that with photography the process has been particularly interesting. Despite not being anywhere near the end of the road, I’m very pleased of the fact that some positive results are already showing; a few people following this blog and also my Instagram are never shy to let me know of their appreciation for my work and that… really feels good. A few days ago, also one of the most important people in my life sent me a text to let me know of her appreciation for my pictures and she actually asked me if I took any classes which I took as a further compliment. Now, this post is not about how good I’m at taking pictures (that will require an entire new website!! …just kidding!!) but it is my two cents piece of advice about photography from a beginner’s prospective, the things that worked for me and the things that failed miserably. Let’s go through my photography bag…

The obvious first piece is the camera, in my case a Canon M50. I’m very pleased with it being my first serious camera and despite not being anywhere near the top end it can do a lot of cool stuff. It took me a while to pick it amongst a huge selection of brands, specs, types, etc. and if you are at the same stage where is was, believe me, I know how confusing it is. “YouTube College of Photography” and the Internet offer a lot of reviews and unboxing videos to go through and despite some of them being quite informative, in some cases, they leave you with more questions than you had before. As a beginner to a beginner my recommendation to you is: be the one that sets the priorities. My “must-have” list was quite basic: must not cost a fortune (even if at one point I was very tempted by some high-end models), must have at least 20 mega-pixels (because it is a middle of the way amount of tiny dots), must have interchangeable lenses (no point & shoot stuff), must have good video capability. The second question only you can answer is: what do I want to do with it? The more you are clear about the answer to this question the more you are likely to be happy about the camera you will buy. My answer was: I want to learn and practice photography and I want to make videos and maybe vlogs.

No matter what you will do with your camera, I recommend that, especially at the biginning, you don’t get bogged down by the latest technoligies out there. Manufacturers are coming up with great innovations and new models, you will see cameras with mirrors vs mirrorless cameras, full-frame vs crop-sensors, cameras with in-body stabiliser vs brands offering stabilisation within the lenses, cameras with fixed screen and cameras with flipping screen… My tip is to commit to a system. For example Nikon is ahead of Canon because they offer in-body stabilisation but they are slightly beyond on lens technology (despite having some of the best “old generation” lenses) but at the same time Canon is committing, based on their R and RP range, to make new generation lenses that provide, in combination with the newest camera bodies, an equal stabilisation performance as Nikon. I went for Canon because, even if some of the new players such as Sony really stepped up their game in recent years, I believe their long term technology strategy is better and more modular. Some brands or advertisers will try to convince you that you need the latest tech but, no matter how cool that might sound, believe me… you really don’t. All you need is a camera body with the options list that covers your primary needs and that won’t leave you any excuse if your pics don’t come out exactly as you expect at first.

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Now lenses. Going back to my point about choosing a system and modularity, I picked the lenses I currently own based on the same concept, making sure that even if I change camera in the future I can still use them. Lenses are expensive, especially the good ones. Both Nikon and Canon offer different levels ranging from pro-level lenses to amateur to beginner, main differences being the quality and the materials used to build the lens’s body and the “the amount of glass” in it and the consequent quality of the image. Stabilisation devices, focal length and f-stops make a difference as well. I came to the conclusion that a middle range camera body (as i have) that has all the functions I’m more interested in, is good enough for a beginner and that it is worth investing in higher spec lenses instead if you have the extra budget. In reality you don’t need an huge amount of lenses. I have 5 for now but I honestly think I over-did. I have a 15/45mm that came with the camera (so called “stock lens”) which is sometimes useful but I tend to ignore its existence mainly because in my view is a middle of the road size and also because of the high f-stops. The second one, and one of my favourites, is the 22mm f/2 prime lens from the EF-M series; I highly recommend this size because of the wide range of applications ranging from landscape to portrait and offering great flexibility because of the reduced size which makes it a perfect travel lens. This is my first must-have lens together with the 50mm prime lens. I have a f1.8/22 and despite not being the fastest around (f1.4 is the next step up) it is one of my favourites. Many will agree that if they could only pick one lens they would choose the 50mm and in my limited experience I would agree because it is a focus length that offers a lot of application flexibility and it is extremely usable. It is great for street photography, landscapes and portrait plus, with its compact size, it is easy to carry around which makes it ideal for travel; in my view a must have! Now the big one, the 70/200. As many zoom lenses of a certain size it is big and it is heavy but, between me and you, who cares when you see what it can do! I have the classic Canon 70-200mm f4.0 not stabilised. At low shutter speeds is not easy to handle and it really takes getting used to it but once you do, what a satisfaction and what results! The f4.0 is certainly not the f2.8 but at half the money (which is already more than the cost of the camera in my case!) it is a lens that gives back. The main reason for my positive view of it is that at 70mm focal length it still is a great lens for the outdoor and landscape and, stretching it, can also be used for portraits but then, at 200mm zoom, it is great for sport events, wild life and landscape. Also consider that I’m talking from the prospective of somebody that has a 1.6 crop-sensor therefore 70mm are really more like 110mm and the 200mm are more like over 300mm of focal length. That is not really a problem in most of the cases but what it means is that, compared to having a full-frame, I have to take a couple of steps back from the subject. Last but not least I have a 10-18mm f4.5. Together with the 15-45mm I mentioned at the beginning this is the lens why I said I think I over did it. This lens, regardless of my crop-sensor “penalty”, is already classed as ultra-wide lens or fisheye lens. In my case we are not talking about a fast lens but it captures beautiful images and creates very artistic distortions that make it ideal for artistic photography, landscape and sports. I bought mine for a very good price and I enjoy it. One of the things that bothers me (and that you should be wary of) is that it is the lower Canon range and it has a plastic body and mount flange. So far so good but I’m not convinced that the metal mount on the camera against the plastic mount flange of the lens gives the longest durability; I’ll enjoy till it lasts and then eventually buy a higher spec one when this one is no longer good to use.

Before I move onto other devices I have in my camera bag a special mention goes to accessories. The first one that I need to mention are filters. I’m still experimenting and learning but what I can say without a doubt is that, depending on the kind of filter you choose, they will help protect the lens, enhance colours/contrast and add impact to your photos. At the moment I’m particularly amazed by polarising filters. I went for screw-on filters which are a middle-of-the-way investment between gel filters and the more expensive drop-in filters. The advantages of the screw-on filters is that they work on almost any lens but bear in mind that this is not a one-size-fits-it-all solution; you fill need a set of filters for every lens diameter you have. Check the Hoya site for more info (I’m not sponsored by Hoya, I just use and like their product). Another accessory that I strongly recommend are extra batteries. The first day out with my M50 I was quite disappointed for the short battery life. After getting over it and did a bit of research. It turns out that the majority of mirrorless cameras out there have a shorter battery life that standard DSLRs. I guess one of the reasons is that manufacturers are betting on the light weight proposition and on the reduced size proposition and something has got to give. When buying a new camera check the battery life and for anything below 350 shots get a spare battery or, I’m quite sure, you will regret it. Another item I deem fundamental is a tripod or two. Yes, it is bulky, it takes space and a good one costs a pretty penny but it one of those items I would regret not having. From night shots to beautiful long exposure shots it is essential. Personally I went for a full size tripod and also for a gorilla-pod which is extremely useful when on the move. Last but not least I suggest bags or even better hard cases. Batteries, cables, chargers, SD cards, card readers are better organised in bags or hard cases and this suggestion will be especially useful when travelling.

This is pretty much the list of my essentials, next time I will dive in the other less essential pieces of gear that I find particularly useful. Take good care and subscribe or follow me on Instagram to stay up to date with my next post.