Aside from the Johnnies-come-lately and habitual procrastinators, most consumers have probably wrapped up, literally, their shopping for this holiday season. Hopefully, boxes of DSLRs and shiny point and shoots have slid off of your shelves an into the hands of happy picture takers.
While your customers—or the lucky gift recipients of those cameras—get to know their equipment and push the potential of their photography, you can help them add capability to their cameras by promoting post-holiday accessory sales.
Presenting them with a tempting array of accessories that can take their shooting (and your profits) to the next level represents an extended marketing opportunity that parallels your customers’ hopes that a new camera will expand their imaging possibilities.
Whether they realize their HD video recording necessitates a higher capacity memory card or they could benefit from a tripod, your holiday shoppers are terrific post-holiday candidates for buying accessories they hadn’t realized they would need. The list includes lighting systems, camera stabilizing systems, backup systems, batteries, flash units, digital filters, camera bags and lenses—all generally pretty high-margin items.
We’ve gathered a selection of post-camera-purchase items that will suit a range of skill levels—and budgets!
Joby Gorillapod Video: On-the-Go Tripod
Joby’s Gorillapod Video tripod helps put an end to shaky personal video—whether capturing the action from the sideline of a football game or making a social media video. Its omni-directional video head makes for easy orientation at any angle, with 360º pan and 135º tilt.
Constructed of anodized aluminum, the lightweight tripod has wrappable legs, along with magnetic feet, to provide stability. Plus, a quick-release plate takes users from hands-free to hand-held in seconds. It works with most mini/pocket camcorders and point-and-shoot cameras. $30. joby.com
SanDisk Ultra 64GB SDXC Memory Cards: eXtended Capacity
Perfect for the latest high-megapixel point and shoots and DSLRs, as well as HD camcorders that support the new SDXC format, SanDisk Ultra SDXC cards deliver huge storage capacities and faster download to a PC. The cards feature a Class 4 rating to ensure smooth HD video capture and playback—and fast transfer speeds of 15MB/sec. Next-gen SDXC cards increase storage capacity from more than 32GB to 2 terabytes! But have your customers check their manual, because not all cameras support the new format. $210. sandisk.com
Adobe Photoshop Elements 9 & Premiere Elements 9: Windows and Mac
This bundle includes tools to help users make the most of their photos and videos—like the content intelligence in the spot healing brush that analyzes what’s in an image and de-clutters or repairs photos automatically; eg, removing tourists from a scene with a brush swipe and filling in the background. Scrapbook and photo book layouts can be created with drag-and-drop ease, and guides walk users through the process of making a subject leap off the page in 3D or creating pop art effects. Users can also create movies with tools that automatically fix audio problems, trim bad footage, stabilize shaky shots, and correct color. Uploading/importing from cameras is also easy from within the app, as is posting to Facebook and combining media into interactive online albums. $150, bundle. adobe.com
Tenba Mini Photo Messenger Bag: Urban-Inspired
Tenba’s urban-inspired Messenger collection now includes a mini photo/laptop bag and small camera bag that incorporate the body-hugging and retro-discreet styling of Tenba’s courier-style messenger bags. They are constructed of weather-resistant military-grade denier nylon and offer various pockets and storage spaces to keep camera equipment and accessories organized and protected. The mini photo/laptop bag ($84.95) has a padded sleeve for an iPad, 13-inch MacBook or similarly sized laptop. Its adjustable dividers protect a DSLR with three lenses, flash and accessories. The small messenger camera bag ($114.95) fits a comparably sized camera system. tenba.com
Tiffen Image Maker Pro Filter Kits: Increase Creativity
Photographers can take their creativity to the next level with five filter kits from Tiffen that complement HD video capable DSLRs. The Fundamental, Contrast Control, People, Grad, and Diffusion kits each include three 4×4 filters for the most common shooting situations, optical filters used to control light in exterior situations, aesthetic filters and a padded pouch with a loop. The Fundamental Kit, which contains an UltraPol circular polarizer, neutral density 0.9 and pro-mist 1/4, is geared for outdoor applications, $365. The People Kit contains the nude FX 1, nude FX 3 and 812 warming filter, for portrait photography. $285. tiffen.com
BenQ Joybee GP1 Mini Projector: Anywhere Multimedia Viewing
The pocketable GP1 mini LED projector has a built-in USB video reader and projects 15- to 80-inch images with great color and clarity. Consumers can load their photos and videos, or movies, onto a USB drive and insert it into the GP1 for large-screen viewing on any flat surface—computer free! It also connects to an iPhone/iPod dock, notebooks, DVD players, TV boxes and gaming consoles. And, with its plug-and-play application along with auto color correction, even kids can add “wow” to sleepovers by connecting it to their gaming consoles or DVD players. $399. benq.us
Gary Fong Puffer Pop-Up Flash Diffuser: Pro Effects
The Puffer pop-up flash diffuser softens the harsh light of an on-camera flash to eliminate shadows and create pro-style diffused lighting for portraits, close-ups, or eBay product shots. The Puffer’s compact size also makes it travel friendly; it stores flat when not in use to stow in a camera bag or pocket. Attaching to a camera’s hot shoe, the Puffer is available for a variety of camera makers’ models. $20. garyfong.com
USBCell Rechargeable Batteries: Charge from Any USB Port
USBCell AA rechargeable batteries have a built-in USB plug so they can be recharged from any powered USB port, at home or on the go. Used like a normal battery, they’re made with NiMH to last for an extensive time period, and they eliminate the need for separate charge adapters and cables. They charge to 90% in five hours and 50% in one hour, with indicator lights showing when the battery is charging and fully charged. USBCell AA batteries can be reused for hundreds of times. Two-pack, $18. usbcell.com
Canon Selphy CP800 Compact Photo Printer: On-the-Go Printing
Designed for portability with an optional battery pack, the CP800 prints borderless photos in color or black and white in credit-card or postcard sizes that are water-resistant and last 100 years. Users can preview images on the 2.5-inch tilt-up LCD and turn pictures into an art-inspired collage with the CP800’s image shuffle feature, which selects images from a memory card and arranges them on one 4×6. Other functions include: a smooth skin feature that produces more natural skin tones; an image optimizer that aids in correcting exposure and adjusts the brightness, contrast and sharpness of images; red-eye correction; and a portrait image optimize feature that automatically delivers face detection, backlight correction and noise reduction. $99.99. usa.canon.com
Tamron SP 70–300mm f/4–5.6 Di VC USD: 60th Anniversary Lens
Tamron’s SP 70–300mm telephoto zoom (model A005) is available in the Nikon, Canon and Sony mounts. Its VC (vibration compensation) image stabilization and ultrasonic silent drive (USD) provide fast, quiet focusing for photographing fast-moving subjects. It can be used with full-frame sensor and AF 35mm cameras with a 70–300mm zoom range, or with APS-C sensor cameras. With a max magnification ratio of 1:4, it’s geared for semi-macro photography, and its VC lets users shoot an extra four stops slower—to make handheld, night and interior shots better. Low-dispersion and extra-low dispersion elements deliver “best in class” resolution. When focusing, the lens’s external size does not change, providing balance. $399. tamron.com
Redrock nano DSLR Rigs: Smooth Out HD Video
Redrock’s nano line for DSLRs with video capabilities consists of seven rigs and five accessories. The accessories include the nano baseplate, nano focus+zoom lever, microHandle Plus with shoe mount, 2-inch 15mm carbon fiber rails and a 2-inch handlebar rod. The rigs include the Grippit, runningMan, LowDown, LowDown Deluxe, Stealth, Stealth Grip and Stealth V. They are manufactured to professional standards and can be upgraded to more advanced rigs. “Customers said they wanted additional options that were smaller, more lightweight and offered an affordable entry point, all while maintaining Redrock professional quality and interoperability,” said James Hurd, “chief revolutionary” for Redrock Micro. Prices start at under $495. redrockmicro.com
Mirror, Mirror on the Camera: See Yourself before You Shoot!
Distributed by Argraph, “Mirror, Mirror on the Camera” is a self-adhesive self-portrait 1/2-inch mirror that sticks on a camera so shooters can see themselves and friends before snapping away. To help eliminate chopped heads, missing persons and otherwise messed-up shots, the device is marketed primarily to teens and young adults who are constantly taking self-portraits and inclusive group shots for social-networking sites. The mirror is made of engineering-grade ABS that is vacuum-coated for a high-reflective surface. A 3M adhesive helps ensure
it will stay attached to the camera yet allows removal if desired. The mirror is housed in a high-visibility package and peeks out through the package, inviting customers to “try-it-now.” $5.00. argraph.com
