Mark I would assume these would also make good emegency bandages!
Mark I would assume these would also make good emegency bandages!
Emergency GG: Carrying a spare GG in the car is no biggie, but in a back-pack it becomes more problematic -- they are fragile by themselves, and padding them properly makes them big for an emergency accessory.
I carry a thin peice of acrylic plastic pre-cut the same size as my GG. I scuff one side with the "scrubbing" side of a sponge to create the etched surface for the image to form on.
Ron's excellent idea made me think of one that I learned from The Complete Walker by Collin Fletcher. When he's backwoodsing it he often doesn't want to pack a tent. BUT he always carry's a plastic sheet large enough to make a ground cover and a leanto type structure. The best part of his idea is how he fastens said structure to whatever is handy to hold it up using light line. Vis-clamps. You can get them at good camping stores. Its just a stiff wire loop in the shape of a dumbell and about 5" long. The opening at one end is about the size of a golfball and the other side about half that size. There is a narrow channel between the round openings about 1/2" wide. They come with a rubber ball that will pass through the large end with about 1/8" to spare. You put the ball about ten inches from any corner of a sheet or along any margin, give it a twist and pass it through the large hole. Turn the clip 180 degrees and attach your fastening line to the large hole end. The visqueen will slide through the narrow channel and the ball won't pass through the small hole. Wallah! You can make a visqueen sheet into any configuration tent shape immaginable. The Vis-clamp won't tear the sheet even in a high wind. This set up saved my but in the Sierras one night when an unexpected snow storm came up. I was able to get a cover up in ten minutes. (some might think you can just throw a plastic sheet over yourself and sleeping bag but this will lead to you wetting the bag with perspiration from the inside and can get you killed)
I don't want to vear this thread unto too many 'camping' type tips as the photography tips are so much better but I have just one more:
I got this from Fletcher too. He postulates the First Law of Body Thermodynamics: Give your balls some air. (strenuous hiking is so much more comfortable in loose fitting pants or shorts) For me this also means ... never jeans. They are just too stiff and heavy. I am addicted to cotton khaki pants and shorts. Plus it fits my 'old fart' image so much better.
I take a little dab of nose oil and rub it into the camera's rails for smoother operation. Ear Wax works better for screws and knobs, and the stuff I can wipe off my bald dome works better than Armour-All for the bellows.
Just keep eating chips and pizza...
Rather than the more expensive lens-wraps, I buy good, thick, extra-plush hand towels to wrap around my lenses. Used to keep them in place with rubber bands,but these days I prefer my own home-made rubber bands, made with the lightest weight bungee cord you can get in a climbing shop.
Oh, and sometimes I buy lenses on this site called "e-bay." Some of you may have heard of it...
Two Swiss Army Knives. The one with the #2 Phillips screwdriver is for the camera, while the one with the corkscrew is for me.
A plastic trash bag and a couple of those little miniature plastic bottles of peppermint schnapps (if sking)
A mess of sugar cubes and/or walnettos to bribe Milly the mule (if packing)
A second pair of socks, really lean bastruma, dental floss, a Mr. Peanut bar AND a plastic trash bag (if backpacking)
A credit card for gas, American Rejects, Stan Fortuna, Roy Allen Jr's 48 Ferlings Etudes, and Chumba Wumba CDs, and a double cappuccino (if driving on a paved road in my wife's car, which has a CD player)
A credit card for gas and a AAA auto club card and a double cappuccino (if driving on a paved road in my ex-forestry service pick up truck, which never had a CD player)
A sharp axe, a shovel and either a trucker's rope or a length of logging chain (if driving off road)
I highly recommend all this stuff
....and a roll of gaffer's tape!
"I would feel more optimistic about a bright future for man if he spent less time proving that he can outwit Nature and more time tasting her sweetness and respecting her seniority"---EB White
1.Wood Hood. I don't know if they're still made, but they fit around the the rear standard of your camera
creating about a foot long cloth "tube". By no means a replacement for a focusing cloth, but if you have fast lenses, a fresnel focusing screen, a loupe, and intend on shooting in relatively bright light, this thing makes a great alternative when weight is a consideration.
2. Self designed inkjet printed 5x7 promo cards for when people ask who you are and what you are doing and you don't want to be rude because you are in the middle of a critical space of time working.
3. New Jersey State Forest Service Ranger Repellent.
I carry rasins. I hate rasins. If I get stuck and NEED an energy food they will be there.
Truck vault. Keep your camera gear and other valuables safely locked inside your vehicle while you are sleeping or eating or hiking or whatever. It also keeps things organized in lockable shelves that you can pull out. I use a huge Truck Vault in my 4wd Suburban. A company in Washington builds them for you.
The simplest tips of all.....turn your lens so that the aperture scale is facing left or right (whichever you like best) instead of facing up, this way you wont be on your toes trying to see the aperture.
This works for up to 11x14. No need for quick release, Just tilt the tripod head plate 90 degrees and cradle the camera so you can see where the tripod screw goes in. Too many times I have seen people trying to mount an 8x10 on a head with the plate horizontal and they keep doing the tripod dance... :-)
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