Jon Sienkiewicz Blog

How to become a better photographer: A quick tutorial for beginners, and an "Okay, I already do that…" checklist for intermediate amateurs. Advanced hobbyists, you may want to read this, too, just to see if I covered the highpoints.

You know better than to carry a camera in your trouser pocket, but who wants to look like they’re wearing a goofy fanny pack? Manfrotto offers what is arguably the best compact camera belt pouch ever made. Best looking, too. Want to know why I think so?

IIf you’ve ever wrapped your mirrorless or mid-size DSLR in a baby blanket (or stack of microfiber towels) before snugging it away in your backpack, the Miggo Strap & Wrap is for you. It’s a comfortable camera strap that can convert into a cool case on command.

Camera straps have evolved over the last 50 years from pencil-thin leather strips secured by gaudy stud-like rivets to inch-wide fiber belts that brazenly scream out the name of the camera brand they’re attached to. Oh, I’m not objecting to the flexible billboards that camera makers laughingly call straps and deliver with digital SLRs, but I personally prefer something a bit more civilized—and less ostentatious—especially when it’s going to be hanging around my neck.

My best friend’s daughter just left to study design in Europe and was given the standard litany of safety precautions by her parents. One city she’s visiting is notorious for street thieves—pickpockets and their ilk—so she was advised to be extra vigilant. I won’t name the city for fear of maligning it as a risky place for tourists, but I will divulge that citizens there eat more pasta per capita than anywhere else in the world. Lots more.

It’s not very often that a photo bag or backpack can be fully understood from images alone. The new collection of high quality, military-style camera bags, pouches and backpacks from Able Archer needs very little explanation. One look tells you that they’re durable, functional and great looking.

What’s in a name? Would a luxury leather camera bag by any other name not feel as lavish? If it’s beautifully styled and meticulously manufactured, does anyone really care what it’s called?