David’s Holiday Gift Guide for Digital Photographers

I set out to write a simple holiday gift guide like the one that my buddy Scott Rouse posted recently. I started out trying to make a list of goodies that any serious digital photographer might want, but my own secret desires kept creeping in. Warning: Some of these things that I want are expensive, but there are also some bargains in here, too. In the end, it is the thought that really counts! Perhaps you will find items on my wish list for your special someone.  Without further ado, here’s my own personal holiday wish list:

Dear Santa and Hanukkah Harry,

I am so grateful for the things that matter most; my family, the joy that good friends bring me, and fine health. You brought me an abundance of these in 2008. Thank you. Truly, these are all that I really need, but I have been very good this year. I put together this list just in case you feel like bringing me something else. I know that I can be hard to shop for, so I even included hyperlinks for you! If you feel like putting something new under the tree, I would love a—

A few weeks ago, I wrote a complete article about which Mac Pro Tower best suits my digital photography dreams on my ComputersForPhotographers blog, but just in case you missed it, here are the specs.  Please tell the elves to make me a:

Mac Pro Tower

• Two 2.8GHZ Quad-Core Intel Xeon Processors
• 2GB (2x1GB) RAM* (I’ll get more RAM for it later from Crucial.com)
• 500GB 7200-rpm Serial ATA Hard Drive
• NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT 512MB Graphics Card
• One 16X SuperDrive

Santa, of course I’ll need a new Dell 2408WFP Widescreen monitor to go with that new Mac Pro tower! I know that the tower is awful expensive, so you will be glad that these Dell monitors are the best value on the market. They are sharp, colorful, and they calibrate well.  They work great on both PC and Mac computers.  In my opinion, these are one of the best things that you can get for a serious digital photographer like me.

I already have two cameras that I love: a Canon Mark III and a Canon 20D that has been converted to black and white infrared, but this new Canon sounds so sweet.  If I had a Canon 5D Mark II, I could shoot better wide angle shots (thanks to its 21.1 Megapixel full-frame sensor), record incredible 1080p movie clips, and get much cleaner pictures with its ridiculous range of ISO settings.  Santa, just in case you are not up on the whole video lingo thing, 1080p means super high definition.  The crazy part is that I can start shooting movies right away using my current Canon lenses. It’s like buying a high def video camera and a professional grade still camera, without having to start all over.  My current cameras are nice, but there is nothing else like this on the market. This camera is likely to be on any professional photographer’s wish list for years to come.  Follow this link to see an amazing sample video that Vincent Laforet shot with this camera.

As an outdoor sports photographer, I often find myself working in situations where a flash is essential. I have the older model of this flash and while I still like it, the time has come to upgrade. This new model is easier to attach, it recharges faster, and it puts out more light.  If you think about it, aren’t those the most important features of a flash? Not only is the new version faster and brighter, but the Canon 580EX II comes with a built in PC port which makes it so much easier to connect the flash to a wireless slave.  With the older Canons, you have to mess around with a whole bunch of specialized cables or adapters which is a major hassle. :<

Sometimes the perfect gift is just a little spending money, and for photographers there is no better place to spend than at B&H PhotoVideo. Trust me, I could shop till I dropped there with a B&H Gift Card. If your budget is limited this year, Santa, these cards are available in any denomination above $20 and there is no dormancy fee. As an additional bonus, items purchased with a B&H gift card get free UPS 3-Day Shipping!

Santa, so far this list has been pretty self-centered.  It’s been all about me and my material wishes, but this year, with our economy spiraling down, it seems more important than ever to think of others. I fear that many of our big corporate institutions are going to scale back, or completely eliminate, their charitable giving this winter. Unfortunately, as the economy slows the need for help grows.  As I’m sure you know, I am partial to community improvement charities like The United Way, or The American Red Cross, and to environmental groups like The Nature Conservancy, and the Natural Resources Defense Council. I would be so grateful if you donated to these organizations on my behalf.  There are so many good charities out there, though, so you may want to check out this link to CharityNavigator.org in order to make your own well-researched decision and donate to causes you care about, too.

Happy Holidays and thank you,

David

Filed Under: (02) Product Reviews

Tags: (04) Computer Hardware Advice • apple • canon • computer • flash • gift • mac