A digital camera can be a large ticket item by itself. Add to that the accessories that are

available to enhance your camera and you have a substantial investment. Whether you’re interested in photography strictly as a hobbyist to preserve the family history or hope to use it to build a profitable career, you’ll want to protect the equipment you’ve so carefully selected.

Most photography enthusiasts takes their cameras everywhere. On vacations, to the beach, to the park, to the ball game, just to name a few. All of these places have potential hazards and dangers for our camera equipment. An inexpensive, but effective, protection for our equipment when heading to the beach is to slide them into large zip lock bags before packing them into our camera cases. This will help keep them protected from the salt and sand that you can’t avoid when you spend a day enjoying the beach.

When your camera is out of the camera case, it’s best to always keep the strap around your neck or on your wrist. This is the only way you can be sure to avoid dropping it and doing irreparable damage to the camera or the lens. Pictures can be taken very comfortably while the strap is secure around your neck and will give you the peace of mind that your camera is safe.

There are some people out there who would rather take your camera than buy their own. Don’t advertise your equipment. Purchase a quality camera bag that will accommodate your camera and all the accessories you’ve chosen. But avoid camera bags that name what equipment is inside the case. This will just bring unnecessary attention to your camera case and make you a more likely target.

When on a road trip, don’t leave your camera equipment sitting on the front or back seat of the car when you stop to eat or any other activity which doesn’t require you to use your camera. Either take your camera case with you, put it in the trunk, or conceal it well, if you have no trunk. If you choose to leave it in the car, and you have no trunk to lock it in, be aware of your surroundings, making sure no one sees what you’re doing.

Check into insurance. Your homeowner’s insurance policy would probably offer affordable coverage for all your camera equipment. If you’re planning a vacation, consider travel insurance, making sure that the one you select covers all your valuable camera equipment, also.

By: Suzanne Vandegrift