Photography Wishlist for Bloggers

Photos are important! They document the most important moments of our lives and if you’re a blogger they illustrate the story that you’re trying to tell your readers. But getting a photo to look just as you want can be quite another story altogether. The right equipment is vital to producing the best result. Unfortunately the ‘right’ equipment doesn’t always come cheap, so today I’m posting up my basic photography wishlist for bloggers looking to improve their photographic skills.

1. First on the list has to be the all-important camera! Don’t make the mistake of jumping the gun and investing in a DSLR unless you have some idea of how to control it manually. Mirrorless cameras often produce fabulous results. Consider video quality too if you don’t want to carry a separate camcorder. A good all-rounder for all skill levels would be something like the Panasonic Lumix GH4 4K camera, it’s even sealed against water and dust (yey for those used to the British weather!)Lumix4K

2. Get ye a decent camera phone! Trust me when I tell you that this is an important step. No matter how often you take your camera with you there’ll always be that perfect moment/picture that gets missed if you don’t have a viable alternative at your disposal. As most of us carry our phones at all times it makes sense to pick a model with a decent camera. Earlier this year Tech-Advisor did a great run down of the best models currently available, so pick one that meets all your phone needs.iphone6

3. Software! We all love producing amazing photos but sometimes it just doesn’t happen. Maybe the sun disappeared just as you pressed the shutter button, perhaps artificial lighting or flash washed out all the colour. Whatever your photographic ailment the right software can help. Start out by using a free software such as PicMonkey and see just what an improvement you can make. The skies the limit in terms of what you can achieve (and the money you can spend!) so make sure you trial any paid software before committing. Adobe offers trials on some of their most popular photo editing software and they are definitely worth a play with.picmonkey

4. A fast SD card. If you want to take a quick succession of pics or even a video then you need to invest in some decent SD cards. Consider both speed class and transfer rate. This is one area were skimping on a cheaper card will cost you in the longer term. Take a look at Alphr.com for a more thorough explanation.SDcard

5. Accessories!!! Have some fun with your new kit and invest in some fun and functional new accessories like a fabulous new camera bag or phone case.camerabag

Fun with the PhotoBox app #shop!

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #CollectiveBias 

PhotoBox App

PhotoBox App

I love taking photos of my adventures with my family, often returning home with hundreds of lovely memories to look through on the computer. Digital cameras and quickly advancing technology mean that photography is no longer the preserve of the professional. Amateurs can also indulge their hobby while creating some lasting mementoes. However the act of uploading, cropping, printing etc. is often lengthy and somewhat boring. I would much rather just grab my iPad and click through an app. With this in mind I spent the weekend testing out the PhotoBox app downloaded for free from the Apple app store.

Photobox Sign in

PhotoBox Sign in

Having used PhotoBox on the computer some years ago I did manage to sign into my account to view past orders and any uploaded images. IMG_8485I wanted to print this lovely photo of my son taken a few weekends ago. From the beginning I found the app really easy to navigate.

Photobox Products

PhotoBox Products

The app offers a wide selection of product types and gifts as well as the more standard prints, I can imagine its popularity will increase near Christmas time.

Canvas Lite

Canvas Lite

I chose to order a Canvas Lite which is PhotoBox’s cheapest canvas option. The size I picked was 30.5cm X 20.3cm and cost just £10 (before P&P).

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I pressed ‘Customise’ to choose my image and check the orientation and quality of my picture. There is also the option to wrap the image completely around the edges of the canvas. I chose the normal wrap option as the app indicated that the bottom of my son’s shoes were too low down for a full wrap, plus the unhappy smiley face suggested the quality would have been reduced.

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Ordering was a doddle, I simply selected my payment method and off whooshed my order.

Photobox Checkout

PhotoBox Checkout

The canvas arrived really quickly. It appears to be very good quality and not lacking anything considering this was the ‘Lite’ option.  However some kind of miscommunication occurred between the app and the printing process. It had converted my image to landscape and caused bad stretching and an image that I couldn’t display.

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It was a shame that no quality control checks picked up on this mistake. However when I contacted PhotoBox they were very apologetic and immediately reordered the canvas for free in the correct portrait mode. Their technicians are going to look into the issue so hopefully it shouldn’t happen again. For this reason I can’t fault their customer service, they provided a polite and speedy fix to the problem and I wouldn’t hesitate to order from them again.

I also wouldn’t hesitate to use the app again. The process was so quick and simple it’s almost too easy, I may end up with walls completely covered!!