Ever wonder what we bring with us on a wedding day? While some things are seasonal (in the summer Matt won’t leave the house without sunscreen!), there are definitely staple items that we consider essential that we always make sure to have with us!

This one is definitely for our fellow photogs, but our couples might also be interested in what we bring with us on shooting days!

Words of Affirmation

While not physical gear, when we’re on our way to a shoot, we have a bit of a mantra that we like to say together to put ourselves in a positive mindset so we are present, intentional, observant, and the best that we can be for our couples!

Camera Bags

If it ain’t broke don’t fix it – we both use the exact same camera bag! We’re huge fans of the Thule Aspect camera backpack both for the comfort it provides when having a fully loaded pack (Matt actually hiked with his up a mountain in Iceland!) as well as the massive storage compartment for cameras and lenses as well as a smaller compartment for miscellaneous items. Seriously, we haven’t been able to find another backpack that rivals the sheer amount of storage that the Aspect has – we can both comfortably pack two camera bodies, 2-3 lenses, all of our flash gear, lens cleaning kits, and still have room for anything else that we need for a shooting day!

As a secondary bag, Matt also has a 3L Peak Design Everyday Sling that is with him all day during a shoot! It’s great for carrying extra batteries, SD cards, a lenses, flash gear, and some snacks!

Straps & Harnesses

We keep things pretty simple with this! Jess predominantly shoots with two cameras, so she uses an India Earl x Rose Anvil Bandit dual camera harness almost exclusively, and Matt will use a Holdfast Money Maker dual camera harness for two cameras, and a Peak Design Slide strap when rocking one camera.

Cameras and Lenses

Each one of us packs two camera bodies for both redundancy should one fail, as well as giving us the option of “switching” between two different lenses at will. We each have a Nikon D850 as our main camera body and a Nikon D750 as our “backup” camera body. We are big fans of the Sigma Art Series family of lenses and each will use a 35mm, 50mm, and 85mm lens throughout the day!

*Bonus!*

Another tool that we started using last wedding season was a set of lens filters from Prism Lens FX! They offer some really cool light/image bending and kaleidoscope effects that we’ve really been liking for some shots!

Light

We’re natural light photographers and we are always looking to leverage any and all natural light and ambient light (candles, string/twinkle lights, etc.)! With that being said, we are ready and prepared to deal with and shoot in any lighting situation and keep things really simple – you won’t see us with any clunky lighting setups! We utilize both the Godox V1-N and Nikon SB-700 speedlites..

Batteries and Digital Storage

Power and storage is at the heart of what we do, so we make sure to keep multiple backups of camera and flash batteries (we even bring chargers just in case!) as well as multiple SD cards to make sure that we capture every moment! We use first party Nikon camera batteries, rechargeable batteries for our Godox V1-N flash, and rechargeable Panasonic AA batteries for our Nikon SB-700 speedlites!

Switching over to rechargeable AA batteries was actually a pretty big game changer for us in terms of both cost as well as being environmentally friendly!

Miscellaneous

To go along with all of our camera gear, there are also other essentials that we make sure to keep in our packs! 

Snacks are really important to us (Matt actually considers them one of the most important things on a wedding day!) because during a long shooting day we need to make sure that we keep our energy up so we are present and focused for our couples! We tend to pack a variety of protein bars as well as trail mix for a quick bite when we need it! During longer days where we have access to our car we’ll also pack a cooler with some more substantial food just in case.

Water is just as important!. We keep a case of water in our car at all times and will carry around at least one bottle each! Gotta stay hydrated, especially in the warmer months!

We also have rain gear in case we get drizzled on (we even have a pair of clear umbrellas in our car for couples that want to embrace the weather if it does rain!), a change of clothes, extra pairs of shoes/boots, and a tripod that we rarely ever actually use haha!

Where to buy

While shopping on Amazon from the comfort of your computer/phone is definitely as easy as it gets, we do our best to shop locally and support local businesses whenever realistically possible! If you’re in the Toronto area and are in the market for any sort of camera related gear, we can’t recommend Downtown Camera or Henry’s enough! Both stores have offered us so much helpful information and support and we haven’t regretted making a single purchase in person!