Present for Advanced Photographer

Mister Burns

I have no clue about Photography but I need to buy a gift for a fairly advanced amateur photographer.

What is out there in the €100-€200 range that people would suggest?

flyingsnail

Before anyone could suggest anything, I think it would be better if we knew what sort of things they have already and what type of photography they like.

jpb1974

Any general idea what they might not already have?

It's a good budget for things like tripods, bags etc. but you'd have to be a tad more specific and give us a few clues.

syklops

Get an amazon voucher. That way he/she can get what they want. Don't go spending money on an advanced piece of equipment that might be wrong or not what they were looking for. Even if you know exactly what sort of photography they are into and exact model of camera and what lenses they already have, you have no way of knowing what they want next.

magicbastarder

or else go into a camera shop and buy something with the arrangement that they can bring the item back in for a refund; it works like a voucher, but it's a nicer present to get.

syklops

magicbastarder wrote: »

or else go into a camera shop and buy something with the arrangement that they can bring the item back in for a refund; it works like a voucher, but it's a nicer present to get.

Im not trying to be difficult, but what if said camera shop has nothing the gift receiver wants?

Nerro

syklops wrote: »

Im not trying to be difficult, but what if said camera shop has nothing the gift receiver wants?

Than it means you are looking at a wrong gift any photographer no matter how advanced always going to want to upgrade something. That applies to any hobi you are in.

syklops

Nerro wrote: »

Than it means you are looking at a wrong gift

Not sure what you mean.

any photographer no matter how advanced always going to want to upgrade something. That applies to any hobi you are in.

Of course. Same as any hobby. However, I asked the question what if the camera shop in question has nothing the photographer wants?

magicbastarder

what if amazon has nothing the photographer wants?

Nerro

Sorry what I meant was that if a photography shop had NOTHING that he wants you probably buying a wrong present for him.of course I don't know which shop we are talking about but still if a shop doesn't have it in stock they can order it for him...

Alltherage

To echo the above it's difficult to recommend gear without knowing what's there and what kind of photography s/he is into.

Best bet probably lies in most used accessories.

I don't know too many photographers that couldn't find a home for additional camera batteries or memory cards. (Same brand that they're already using and either get an upgrade or more of the same.)
Perhaps an external hard drive or two for file storage and backup.
A camera strap or bag,
I'm quite looking forward to Greg Heislers new book so perhaps a photography book or two.

Try to check if there's a present shaped gap in their armoury before making any decisions. Buying somebody their 15th memory card may not be as memorable as you might want, equally buying somebody a camera strap if they always shoot from a tripod could end up being the photographers equivalent of a bad Christmas Jumper.

luisspellcast

like someone said before, Amazon voucher -- there is no such thing as "amazon doesn't have what i want" anymore

also, he can always put some money on top of it and get what he really wants -- when i recently bought my 910 it felt really light on my pocket

ScumLord

What about just giving him the money? It's like a voucher that works everywhere, not just on one website.

I just think vouchers are an awful waste.

pixbyjohn

You have 8 people's replies above but I would suggest you ask the photographer what she/he would like and tell her/him the budget. Surest way of getting what they want and you will both be happy.

Mister Burns

Sorry for tardy reply but work got crazy so just saw all these reponses now. Thank you all for your help it's definitely made me think a voucher is the best bet as I haven't a clue of his brand of choice etc.

Alltherage

To add weight to Scumlords argument if it's an amazon.co.uk voucher then it'll be limited to .co.uk and prices on photography hardware can vary quite considerably across the various stores.

Button_y

It really depends on what gear they have already. Do you know what camera etc?

How about a camera strap like the rapid ones or a battery grip if they don't have one. If they don't have a 50mm lens then that would be fab present. I could always find something to spend an amazon voucher on. You can't go wrong with it

jpb1974

Yeah, a black rapid camera strap would be a good 'un.

I have one, but if I didn't and someone gave me one I'd be happy. I do like it quite a lot.

bumper234

May be a bit cheap but nice novelty gifts i found for a photographer friend

lens shot glasses

http://www.iwantoneofthose.com/gift-party/lens-shot-glass/10767943.html

Lens travel mug

http://www.iwantoneofthose.com/gift-home-office/camera-lens-cup/10380179.html

magicbastarder

ScumLord wrote: »

What about just giving him the money?

not quite the same, getting money as a present. people like to think some thought has gone into it.

dinneenp

Slightly differnet but how about a 'voucher' for a day away photographing?
If ye have kids I presume he or she doesn't get out as often as they'd like to photographing.
Give them a 'voucher' for a full day to themselves photogrpahing.
If ye live near Dublin/a city make them breakfast in bed, tell them they can head off any spend the full day photographing whatever they want. Tell them to have lunch out, have a pint or two when they're finished and you'll pick them up in the evening.

Or if you live near an airport get them a day flight to somewhere nearby (Liverpool etc.) so they can photograph somewhere new. Maybe even thrown in an overnight stay, budget depending....

Or, as a small gift buy them the boards annual photobook....

If you know that they like sports contact a club and ask if you can get a press pass for photography (Connacht rugby accommodate me, Munster won't (too big to allow 'that kind of request')
If you want to buy physical stuff maybe a magazine subscription (cheaper in store, delivery to ireland from Europe is expensive), or a good ND filter if he likes long exposure.
How about a slingshot strap? I got one last Xmas and love it.

Good luck.

ScumLord

Alltherage wrote: »

To add weight to Scumlords argument if it's an amazon.co.uk voucher then it'll be limited to .co.uk and prices on photography hardware can vary quite considerably across the various stores.

There are a good few shops on amazon that won't ship to Ireland either because of that dumping tax on electrical goods.

magicbastarder wrote: »

not quite the same, getting money as a present. people like to think some thought has gone into it.

I know it seems like money is an easy way out but when you do think about the voucher your turing legal tender that can be used anywhere into a restricted credit that can only be used in one place, may have a time limit on how long it can be used for and really is it anymore thoughtful than just giving a person the money you would have spent?. I think they're just a marketing trick.

Just giving money does feel wrong though, I'll give you that. Although I've just started giving my younger sister money instead of presents and she's definitely happier with that arrangement. If someone knows what they want to get and are just waiting on funds they'll be delighted to see cold, hard cash slapped into their hand.

The day out sounds good though, it forces them to get off their ass and do some photographing. That can be hard to do.

pixbyjohn

ScumLord wrote: »

There are a good few shops on amazon that won't ship to Ireland either because of that dumping tax on electrical goods.

Parcel Motel for the win

draiochtanois

This post has been deleted.

Ben D Bus

Not everyone photographs landscapes or street scenes. And not every photographer wants new kit.

Get on to Model Mayhem and book him (or her?) a half-day in a studio with a nudey model! Or even a non-nudey model. Fashion & portraits can be great fun when the subject knows what they are doing.

M5

GPS tracker for geotagging photos is handy if they like travel photography! Lets you see where photos were taken long after you can remember where

Corkbah

Ben D Bus wrote: »

Not everyone photographs landscapes or street scenes. And not every photographer wants new kit.

Get on to Model Mayhem and book him (or her?) a half-day in a studio with a nudey model! Or even a non-nudey model. Fashion & portraits can be great fun when the subject knows what they are doing.

and if the person doesn't like portraits (nudie or not) …. then they can always just chat with the person ???

A gift (in my opinion) should be personal, OP, if you don't know what to get the person … then you are not thinking in the right direction, maybe chat with the person and see if there is anything that they want/need, or chat with their friends/family - sometimes money is great then some people consider it an insult or a gift with little imagination (I couldn't find you anything so …go buy something yourself) … similarly with vouchers.

Personally I enjoy getting vouchers/cash and without sounding rude, I find a lot of gifts purchased for me are money wasted - even my wife has stopped buying stuff as she could see its not being used and the money is wasted, I put a lot of thought when I purchase gifts, some I have handmade simply because I felt it was more of a gift than paying a couple of hundred to get it done professionally….materials and time spent on making the gift can often cost more than having it made professionally.