Picked up a portable, flexible-leg tripod by Joby called the Gorillapod SLR-Zoom. Still on my list of equipment-to-buy is a real tripod, but those aren’t as portable as this one. Haven’t tested it in the wild yet, but seems like it is excellent. Light enough that I can throw it in my camera bag, and use it if I need it, and ignore the weight if I don’t need a tripod. Bonus includes a bunch of cleaning tools which are also good to have on hand.
Kit includes: 1) Joby GP3 SLR-Zoom Gorillapod; 2) SLIK Compact Ball Head; 3) Cameta Microfiber Cleaning Cloth; 4) Image Recovery Software; 5) Memory Card Wallet; 6) Cleaning Kit. ♦ The Joby GP3 SLR Camera Gorillapod firmly secures your Digital or Film SLR Camera with Zoom Lens as well as Video Camcorders weighing up to 6.6 lbs. to just about anything. Unlike traditional tripods, it doesn’t require an elevated flat surface for you to take the perfect shot. The Gorillapod is much more than just a tripod — you can wrap the three flexible segmented legs securely to a tree branch, fence, park bench, or anything else that’s convenient. Besides allowing you to shoot at slower shutter speeds for creative effects, it also lets everyone get into the picture for self-timer shots. ♦ The SLIK Compact Ball Head can hold an impressive 3.5 lbs. and allows adjusting your camera’s postion to get just the camera angle you need. ♦ Your camera’s LCD monitor screen and optics usually become soiled with fingerprints, oily smudges and other contaminants. It can be really frustrating trying to clean the LCD monitor safely and completely without smearing using typical lens tissue or lens cloths — especially out in the field. The Cameta Microfiber Cleaning Cloth is designed using the latest 21st Century technology to perform this task quickly, safely and easily. ♦ The Digital Image Recovery Software is fast, easy to use, recovers most popular file formats and works with virtually all brands and types of memory cards. ♦ The Memory Card Wallet holds and protects three memory cards and has a belt loop.