Inside My Camera Bag | James Thorn

Hi! I’m James, a commercial photographer based in Melbourne, Australia. My interest in photography has been with me for as long as I can remember, however it wasn’t until 2014 that I started to take it seriously.

I completed a Bachelor of Photography Course (majoring in Commercial Photography) in 2017, and have since been working for a variety of companies and clients as I continue to build my photography business, Electric Bird Creative.

I would say that my photographic style is quite varied. I thoroughly enjoy working in the studio, under extremely controlled conditions where I can finesse to my heart’s content, but I also enjoy letting go, experimenting and seeing what sticks (sometimes literally!)

I mostly shoot in the studio, however I’m yet to own my own studio kit. Pictured in my Shotkit ‘gear photo’ is my standard kit that I take pretty much everywhere. On top of that, I’ll often use Profoto or Broncolor studio lighting and a variety of props and accessories that I hire close to home.

The first item in my kit is my beloved Nikon D810. I purchased this camera in 2015 and it’s going strong to this day. As a lot of my work requires fine detail and incredible sharpness, I cannot go wrong with the 36MP sensor on the D810. It also has pretty great high-ISO performance for whenever I’m limited with the amount of light I can use.

Now for my lenses… I have to say the Nikon 85mm f/1.8g is my favourite. It’s such a versatile lens that I use for still life and portraiture. Paired with the Nikon D810, my images are tack sharp and when I shoot wide open, the bokeh is beautiful.

Second up, my trusty Nikon 50mm f/1.8g. There’s not much I can say about this lens that hasn’t been said a million times before. It’s small, light, cheap, sharp and delivers perfect results every time. I also use this for both still life and portraiture and occasionally architecture shots when I don’t need to go too wide.

Thirdly, my Nikon 35mm f/1.8g. My third lens in the f/1.8g series from Nikon, it performs just as well as the others and I use it quite frequently when shooting architecture that doesn’t need to be super wide.

Finally, my Nikon 70-200mm f/4. I don’t use this lens as much as the others, but it’s great for when I shoot the odd event or want to go a bit longer than 85mm on a portrait shoot. I love this lens and have never regretted getting the f/4 instead of the f/2.8. It’s much smaller and lighter and not to mention a lot more affordable.

Another trusty piece of equipment is my Manfrotto 290 tripod with a ball head. This tripod has seen its fair share of action and is still going strong today.

It’s small and light enough to carry around between locations and studios, but still perfectly sturdy enough to get tack sharp images each time. I’ll probably upgrade to something with a geared head in the near future, but this tripod has never let me down.

I also carry a Hoya Circular Polarising Filter with me everywhere I go. It comes in super handy whenever I need to knock back reflections on products and buildings.

Finally, a minor detail, I have my Lexar SD and CF cards. I usually shoot tethered, so I don’t use them a lot these days, but I love the security of shooting to two cards when I’m out and about.

I also use Capture One Pro for tethering and RAW processing. I find it quite a bit more reliable for tethering, especially with my Nikon. After RAW processing, I move to Adobe Photoshop CC for any further post production.

Depending on what I’m shooting, I’ll also carry some random items including fishing wire, sticky adhesive, tooth picks, water sprayers, scissors and cleaning cloths. You never know when you’ll need to hang something up or hold it in place with some adhesive and a toothpick!

www.electricbirdcreative.com.au | @electricbirdcreative