After sharing on social media about how we prep for a wedding day, we got questions about what we ACTUALLY pack in our bags.. so we decided to open up our Bobby bags to you.. literally! I'm going to start by saying that we aren't sharing the PHOTOGRAPHY GEAR we take with us. The reason being, we are of the 'you can shoot with anything' mentality. It's not about your equipment, it's about your level of skill. What good is an incredible selection of expensive equipment if you have absolutely no idea what you're doing with it?? Moving on..
1. OUR BOBBY BAGS!
We love our bags! At first, I wasn't entirely sure that I would love it. I felt like there just wasn't enough pockets for all my smaller bits a pieces.
After customising my bag a little, I was more at ease about not losing the tiniest things in the bottom of my bag.
We bought our Bobby XD Bags from Culture Kings, on sale, for about $100 each + $20 postage.
There's only something like four Culture Kings stores across Australia.. and we live near none of them -- but we received them in less than a week!
Honestly, they're amazing!
We have a system to how our bags are packed -- We have our bags packed exactly the same way, apart from the fact that we each hold different lenses.
In the outer pocket, we keep things that we need quick access to, with the inside pockets reserved for items of lower priority but still important to have on hand.. let's work through each section..
2. MEMORY CARDS
We keep our empty cards in the outer pocket. We each carry three 32GB, 120MB/sec compact flashes.
As you can see, we're Sandisk fans. We've actually never used anything else.
Some will question the use of 32GB cards and how many photos we risk, over using an 8GB.
No idea what I'm talking about?
-- The larger the memory capacity, the more images it holds, the more images at risk if you have a corrupt card.
This is why we don't use anything over 32GB.. but we haven't yet come across an 8 gig card that reads at a faster speed, is UDMA 7 compliant and has RTV coating [if you want to learn more about memory cards and what to look for, be sure to join our mailing list to get some great info on that!]
Once our memory cards are full, we put them back in their case and into the smaller pocket on the inside of our bags -- this way we know they're both safe and not mixed up with the empty cards.
3. SOOTHERS & LIP BALM
We are introducing ourselves and giving direction ALL DAY LONG.. my mouth gets dry and so do my lips.
I like to keep a packet of Soothers on hand, along with a chap stick or some lip balm -- this lives in the outer pocket with the empty memory cards. That's all that lives in that pocket.
4. PHONE, POWER BANK & COILED CABLE
What we love the most about our Bobby Bags is that they have a USB port in them to connect your power bank to on the inside of the bag and then externally charge your phone without mucking about!
There is a small pocket on the inside, which PERFECTLY fits our Cygnett Charge Up Sport Powerbanks, which are capable of three full iPhone charges. We find that my phone only usually needs one, with John's needing around two because he's usually recording Insta Stories or doing other behind the scenes stuff for our 'Get Schooled' photography group!
There's a pocket on the outside, underneath the strap, which fits our phones perfectly, along with our cables! We each have the Comsol Lightning to USB Cable, which we found to be so much more practical than a normal cable.
Because it's coiled, it 'curls up' and is just much more tidier and isn't getting caught on anything. It's long enough to have our phones plugged in and sitting inside the pocket, or pulled out so we can use it on the go!
5. DRINK BOTTLE & HYDRALYTE
It's harder than you'd think to just 'grab a drink' on a wedding day. It's actually near impossible!
You're running around from place to place before you even realise that your bottle is about empty and there is no way you [or even your second-shooter sometimes] will get a chance to drive to the shops to buy anything -- ESPECIALLY if you work predominantly in the country, like we do!
We fill our bottles with water before we leave the house and then take the chance to top up whenever we can. Usually, that's towards the end of 'Getting Ready' shots.
'Hydralyte' is an electrolyte drink which helps to replenish your body when you've been unwell, dehydrated or have been really active and sweating profusely [or, like me, you have blood pressure and electrolyte issues!].
We buy our Hydralyte in a bulk box of sachets, or in a tube of effervescent tablets, depending on what's on special at the pharmacy.
I'm not a huge fan of the tablets. They 'carbonate' the water, causing me to spray water in my face every time I open my drink bottle, and the taste isn't as nice as the sachets.. but they work just as well as the sachets.. so, it usually comes down to 'what's on special'.
Each time I refill my bottle with water, I add Hydralyte [or, I should say, John refills my bottle and adds Hydralyte] because I usually never come close to the maximum recommended dose for a 24 hour period, but I do recommend speaking to your doctor or pharmacist about taking these, especially if you have hypertension.
6. IMMODIUM & QUICK-EEZE
I kid you not, SOMEONE will require one of these things throughout the course of your day!
I, myself, have woken on a wedding day and was like 'damn.. where's the Immodium.. I can't be sick today!'.
If you aren't familiar with either of these things; Immodium is used in the treatment of diarrhea and other gastrointestinal issues and Quick-eeze is used to help settle upset tummies or indigestion.
They're both over-the-counter medications and I'm sure you can even buy them from the supermarket!
We keep them safely tucked away in a little bag which lives in a pocket on the inside of my bag.
Both of these are fast acting.
Immodium tastes like peppermint flavoured chalk, but it works!
Quick-eeze tastes like a peppermint Starburst.. but, again, works wonders!
Again, speak to your doctor or pharmacist before taking Immodium, especially if you have GI issues or constipation issues.
7. PANADOL
I don't know a photographer who doesn't have aches and pains at the end of a wedding day -- I call it the 'Wedding Day Hangover'.
I guarantee, either you or someone in the bridal party will need Panadol at some point during the day.
8. HOTHANDS
Winter is usually off-season for photographers, but people still have Winter weddings.. especially in Dubbo, where the Summers are just way too hot and the Winters are still pretty dry.
These babies are so nice to have in your pocket on a freezing wedding day!
All you do is open the packet and shake the bag up! It warms up on it's own and lasts hours!
9. WET WIPES
Sometimes you just need a wet wipe. Whether it's to cool you down on a hot day, freshen you up, or wipe a sticky ring bearer's face.. sometimes you just need them.
As parents to three, we've tried all the brands!.. These ones are our favourite.
They stay nice and wet, they're a good size, they're soft and they're durable.
10. LINT-FREE CLOTH
This starts off in the outer pocket of my bag and then ends up in my pants pocket or jacket pocket -- I use it that often!
Whenever I swap out lenses on my camera body, I always give it a quick once-over to be sure that there's no dust or marks on it before I use it.
You can buy these from pretty much anywhere, but John and I both wear glasses, so we have a large collection of lint-free cloths from our optometrist, which are regularly washed and circulated throughout our home, car and camera bags.
11. BLISTER PLASTER PACK
These things!
Unless I'm wearing shoes which I know are 100% comfortable, I wear these!
12. BACK-UP PANTS
We keep a pair of back-up pants in the car.
If I'm wearing a dress, then I don't worry, but we pack an extra pair for John ALWAYS! -- we are bending over all day long.. you just never want to be caught out!
That's everything!
I used to pack a LOT more.. but now I send our couples an email as their wedding date approaches, suggesting emergency items to have on hand [like a small sewing kit, hairspray, extra hair pins, etc] so they're not extra things that I have to carry around, but I've still made them aware that these are things that brides unexpectedly need on a wedding day.
I also don't carry around a lot of styling items; I tend to avoid it altogether.
We do a lot of 'prep work' with our couples, so they provide the styling items that have some significance to them.. or we'll grab whatever's around us.
We are currently looking into adding ear-piece walkie-talkies to our gear -- which will likely be added before our next wedding.
It's really tricky to be calling or texting each other when plans change or something happens and you're both flat out.
More often than not, plans change when we're on opposite sides of the venue, so we need a way to communicate more effectively and efficiently.
We'll keep you updated on that one!
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