What's in my smartphone photography bag? (Blog #33)

Welcome to my latest blog, which this week is where I talk about the accessories I carry with me when I go out on a photography expedition or shoot. You might ask why do you need anything beyond carrying your smartphone for taking photographs? You don't want to be lugging loads of gear around because that rather defeats the main benefit of smartphone photography, doesn't it? But I suppose the answer to how much gear you do take depends on how seriously you take your smartphone photography.

Back in 2021 I took this photograph (see below) of my then photography accessories. You can see that at that time I had four tripods, a set of lens, a selfie stick, power pack and cable, wired earbuds, a telescopic lens, a Bluetooth shutter release device, and cotton buds and a lens cloth. Since then I have accumulated more gear, but have substantially trimmed down what I actually take out with me.

Smartphone photography should be all about convenience and portability, and therefore not being encumbered by the heavy gear that goes with DSLR camera photography. Having said that, I have found that there are some accessories that are both necessary and useful.

Let's start with my bag.

You need one that isn't too big or too small, so before you buy your bag gather up all the accessories you are likely to want to carry around with you, and make a judgement about how big your bag needs to be. After trying several bags, all of which turned out to be too small, I settled on the Verlenpaple Men's Small Canvas Messenger Bag, which will comfortably accommodate my gear. I like a bag with lots of pockets so that everything isn't just lumped together in one or two compartments. 

You're obviously going to be carrying your smartphone, which should be fully charged, and have its camera set up as you want it.

If you are going to be out all day taking photos then your phone battery is going to take a hammering. You therefore need a reliable power pack that when fully charged will provide two full phone charges (see below). My power pack has the ability to handle USB-A and -C, and Apple's lightening charger. I found that this Charmast power bank holds it charge between trips, which is very useful. At less than £30 from Amazon, it's an accessory I highly recommend.

During use, the camera lens picks up dirt and grease, so keeping it clean is going to help you get 'clean' images, free from dirt specks and mucky smudges. I always carry cotton buds and a glasses lens cleaning cloth around with me.

A tripod helps eliminate camera shake by making your phone rock-solid stable, so helping to produce much sharper images. When shooting in low light and long exposures, a tripod is a must. You'll also need a phone holder to attach your phone to the tripod. I use a phone holder that can rotate, allowing me to set up my camera in portrait or landscape mode (see photo below).

But even using a tripod won't totally eliminate camera shake if you are manually pressing the shutter release. I have taken to using a set of cabled earbuds, which include an in-cable control button, as a 'remote' shutter release; this does away with the need to touch the phone when taking a photo and so risk movement. A Bluetooth remote button works just the same, but I have found that a plugged-in cable is much more reliable. (I have had to buy a cable adaptor to convert the round earbud jack into a C connector.)

I like to carry a selfie stick around with me, not necessarily to take selfies, but to grab high and low shots. Mine also doubles as a tripod. The selfie stick works with Bluetooth, but I have occasionally had problems getting my phone and stick to connect, so as backup the wired earbuds come in useful.

I recently purchased an Ulanzi phone grip, which I was initially very pleased with, but not so much now because the Bluetooth connection isn't always that reliable. I still take it out, but if the Bluetooth plays up, it stays in the bag. 

All of the accessories I have cited fit comfortably into my bag, and are not too heavy to carry. It's all about portability.

Being prepared when heading out on a photo shoot is all part and parcel of being a photographer. There is no reason why being a smartphone photographer as opposed to a DSLR photographer should be any different.

In summary: the amount of gear I take out with me does change from time to time, and sometimes I leave it all at home and just take my smartphone. A power pack is an essential, as is a lightweight tripod, and things with which to clean your camera lens. The Ulanzi phone grip is an optional extra. 

Thank you for reading this blog. Please feel free to leave a comment. If you've enjoyed it then please share with your friends and family so we can build a happy community.

You can catch more of my photography on my social media channels listed above. See you next time.

© Mike Young 2024.