Inside My Camera Bag | Linda Kristiansen

I am a fine art photographer and digital artist from Norway, based in Vollen, 30 min from Oslo.

I started out with photography many years ago as an assistant for a studio. This was, at the time, a random choice and I moved on to doing other things after about a year. Photography stuck with me as a hobby and I went through phases shooting my kid, nature, macro, a lot of water droplets, friends and family. Eventually I also did client-assignments. I went through a few of the Canons – I believe I had the 300, 450, 650 and the 700.

My starting point with conceptual photography and digital art was when I discovered creativity as a way to help myself through some rough times. Dealing with anxiety and depression I was unable to work for a long time and I began experimenting with self-portraiture. This became a great outlet for me. All the work that went into making these images was like meditation and I could go on for hours and not even know time had passed. I spent entire weekends with photoshop-tutorials and learning new techniques and ways to process my images. I continue to do this. With Adobe Photoshop there is forever something new you can learn and the endless possibilities fascinate me.

Doing self-portraits, a tripod and remote is essential. I have a Canon RC-6 remote that I’ve used for years. It works perfect every time. My tripod is a Velbon CX 680 that my brother got for me.
I moved on to also using models but still utilize the tripod and remote, as I sometimes need to be my own assistant and flick some hair or fabric. Also if I know I’m going to composite later it’s important to keep the same angle and perspective so a good tripod just makes life easier. I also keep safety pins and clamps in my bag, it comes in handy more often than not.

For a long time I was more than satisfied with my Canon 700D. My way of creating gave me so many possibilities in editing so I felt happy using what I had. With also doing client work I eventually accepted that I needed an upgrade and I now own a Canon 5D Mark II. My lenses are Canon 50mm f/1.4 and the Canon 28mm f/1.8.

Up until last year I did all my editing with a mouse. Then I was lucky enough to get a Huion H610PRO tablet for Christmas. It took a little getting used to but now I can’t imagine editing without it.

I edit my images on a ASUS laptop with an external ASUS screen. It’s getting old and slow, so this will probably be my next upgrade.

Not really being able to afford a lot of equipment, early on I decided that my attitude was “be creative with what you have!” So from making softboxes with Ikea-storages to doing stock photography with my phone, I think imagination, or lack of, is the only thing stopping us from creating what we want.

Last but not least I have to mention my camera bag. I got this bag from Epiphanie years ago and I just love it. Not to mention the fact that it doesn’t look like a camera bag.

• Canon 5D Mark II
• Canon 50mm f/1.4
• Canon 28 mm f/1.8
• Canon RC-6 remote
• Velbon CX 680 Tripod
• Epiphanie Lola Camera bag
• Huion Tablet H610PRO

www.lindakristiansen.no