Jon Sienkiewicz

It takes a brilliant mind to invent something, but creating a product that alleviates life’s small-but-nagging annoyances takes true genius. Here are five clever products no photographer should be without.

By definition, backpacks are worn—on the back usually—although sometimes they’re just slung over one shoulder or carried by the haul handle. Right? Well, forget that thinking for a moment and let’s explore the Viato photo backpack from Belgian sport optics brand Kite Optics. You wear it, yes, but so does your tripod. Let me explain.

What I don’t know would fill a 300TB hard drive, that’s for sure. But I thought I had a pretty good handle on Exposure X4 from Alien Skin. I’ve been using Exposure in its progressive incarnations for a long time, so I was really surprised to learn that it has powers I never knew.

Photojournalist as conquering hero and Hollywood glamour photographer as sleazebag, TV and radio shows from the recent past portray cameramen as predictable-but-likable stereotypes. Thanks to YouTube and SiriusXM we can still enjoy the exploits of these 1950s photogs.