What’s in your bag?
My camera bag has evolved many times over the years, but there are some things that never go away. I find its way easier to have duplicates that just live in the bag, so I don’t have to think about it – I just know that they are there and ready when I grab my bag for photo-call. Much like everything else during the tech process, anything you can do to prepare in advance and save yourself time during tech is time well spent.
The most important items I have, in addition to the actual camera & lenses I’ve selected for the shoot, include:
Digital SLR Camera with appropriate lens, camera strap, empty & formatted data card, and freshly charged battery.
Printed copy of photo-call shot order, with performers/sets/costumes/lights marked.
As the Lighting Designer, I also always have a copy of my Cue Sheet and Magic Sheet.
1 lens that is wider than I plan to need.
1 lens that is narrower than I plan to need.
Extra Lens caps for both ends of the lens.
Extra Body cap.
Battery Charger.
Extra battery (charged).
Extra Memory Cards/Chips (already properly formatted for your camera).
Lens Wipes (pre-moistened) or dry Lens Wipes & Lens Cleaning Fluid.
Small Can of Compressed Air.
Lens Cleaning Brush.
Flashlight or ‘Bite-Light’ & extra Batteries, on a lanyard.
Extra Velcro Strap for Tripod Legs.
Short length of ‘para-cord’ or similar for making custom tripod/monopod set-ups.
Sharpie and/or pen for making notes on photo-call sheet.
Some tripods have a removable mounting plate that screws into the ¼” thread receptacle on the bottom of your camera. Sometimes these have a flip-down arrangement that turns the screw into an easy-to-use wing-nut, but mine needs a nickel to tighten and loosen it, so I always keep one in the bag in case. You may also need other small hand tools for adjusting the tripod or similar, such as small screwdrivers or Allen wrenches.
If you are shooting on film, you should also note:
The Sharpie is extra important for marking your film canisters with ISO information if you are pushing the film.
I keep an extra film leader ‘retriever’ tool to rescue a roll of film that gets wound the wrong way.
Just like the cameras & lenses themselves, there are things in this list that shouldn’t ever be left in a hot car or otherwise out in the sun. Wipes & Sharpies dry out, plastics melt, and DSLR cameras, data cards & batteries get damaged. I also check the batteries in my flashlight every 6 months to make sure they haven’t burst or begin to leak, as that is prone to happen with them if not used frequently. I will usually also remove the batteries from my cameras when I know I’m storing them for more than a month or two before using them again. I put them in a Ziploc bag, and use a large rubber band to lash the bag to the camera body. If the battery leaks, at least it’s contained and won’t damage the camera.