A Peek Inside My Camera Bag :-)

I mentioned in yesterday's posting that one of my Sunday afternoon tasks was to clean up my camera a bit, clean out my camera bag, make some sewing repairs to the bag, and then repack it. I thought it might be fun to give you a glimpse inside my camera bag. :-)

The camera bag, that black container at the top, I think I've had since the 1980s. My husband may have given it to me. It's looking a bit ratty and has had numerous repairs. It has a main pocket for the camera, a pocket along the side facing this way, and two smaller pockets, one on each end. This bag, with camera inside, goes practically EVERYwhere with me.

Inside is my trusty camera: the Canon PowerShot SX 50 HS. I bought it in November of 2013 after my Canon PowerShot SX40 HS, which I purchased in December 2011 (just a day or two before joining Blipfoto, in fact), developed an alarming squeal whenever the lens retracted or extended.  You may see both cameras side by side here. Both have seen what I can only characterize as heavy, heavy use.

I adore this camera model. It is easy to carry, and easy to use. It is convenient for use in outdoor conditions, which is my primary shooting environment. Perhaps most importantly, it makes (if I dare say so myself) such pretty pictures!

This model is considered by some to be a "bridge camera." It does not have lenses that can be removed and changed. It does have a pretty awesome super-zoom (50X) that can bring birds on a faraway tree branch up close and personal!

So that's the biggest and most obvious thing in my camera bag. Let's delve into the pockets now, shall we!??? And see what we can find! I'll start at the top left, and go around clockwise, describing the items on the pink plastic tray.

First things first: keys! I have learned the hard way that sometimes my camera bag is the ONLY thing I carry with me. I locked my car keys inside my car at Millbrook Marsh one beautifully foggy September morning. My husband was out backpacking. I was stranded at the Marsh first thing in the morning and had to call a friend.

The friend drove me to my house, where I dug up my house key from where it was buried in the yard, then got into my house and got a spare car key, with which I accessed my car after my friend drove me back to town. I learned a good lesson that day; now I ALWAYS carry a car key AND a house key in my camera bag!

Next is a little notebook with a pink cover with a kitten and some sparkly purple shoes on it, given to me by my little sister. It says, "Life is short! Buy the shoes!" (As if I needed ANY encouragement on that one.) I use the notebook to keep track of when I last changed the camera battery. Sometimes I tuck four-leaf clovers or little flowers that I find into it for pressing.

And the rest of the items . . .

A ruler. I don't know why. I have never used it, but I expect it might be good to use to place in a photo to show scale.

A rubber walrus. It's sitting in the shadow of the camera, just below it. The walrus appeared in a Blip posting entitled, "This is a picture of a Walrus on a potato." I took that photo three years ago. The walrus rides with me still.

To the right of the walrus is a silver turtle with green enamel. Above the turtle is a round pink box in which Daisy the Hedgehog travels. Daisy's red and green friends the Crittergators travel in the ALTOIDS mint tin to the right of that.

Above the ALTOIDS tin is a silver Kokopelli figure on an orange rock; I admit it has not yet been featured in a photo shoot, but perhaps soon. I think Kokopelli needs to meet the rattlesnake that guards the gates at the Arboretum's Children's Garden; somehow he hasn't made it there yet.

That colorful floral figure at the top right of the pink plastic tray is the famous Jeweled Stag, who is a favorite of the Dancing Girls. The stag first appeared a few years ago, and travels with me always.

To the lower right of the stag is a little photo implement for brushing or blowing dust off your camera lens.

Beneath that are two things I never travel without: Care Deeply lip balm (from Avon), and an emery board to file my nails. I HATE having a ratty nail; it can ruin my whole day! I . . . must . . . file . . . it down . . . NOW! And I have rather large, round lips, which I can't stand to have chapped; thus the lip balm!

Below the Care Deeply lip balm is a blue whistle, which I carry because my mother told me to. She says I should blow it if I should ever need help. I guess I'm kind of curious to see what amazing help might come. No, I have never blown the blue whistle. (See, Mom! I listened!)

And now, probably the most bizarre item in my camera bag. (As if hedgehogs, and Kokopellis, and jeweled stags, and rubber walruses are not enough!) To the left of the blue whistle is the multipurpose pocket survival tool! Say that fast, seven times, will you. It features a can opener, knife edge, screwdriver, ruler, cap opener, 4-position wrench, butterfly wrench, saw blade, direction ancillary indication (whatever the heck that is!), 2-position wrench, and lanyard hole. DO NOT MAKE ME PULL OUT THE MULTIPURPOSE SURVIVAL TOOL, PEOPLE! I MEAN IT! (Hey, I was a Girl Scout, so I believe in being prepared!)

To the left of the tool are some soft camera cloths. Above those is instant glue. I have used it to glue one or more of the Crittergators back together on occasion. :-) I consider it to be "medical supplies." 

To the left of that, there are several memory cards atop a container of clean lens tissue paper. To the left of that are a pair of pens. Below them are the camera battery recharger and one extra camera battery (the NB10-L). I usually carry two, but I had put the second one into the SX 40 HS camera to take this picture. :-)

And the last item, far left bottom: a couple of one-dollar bills and some change. There's a total of less than 15 dollars there, just enough to buy me lunch downtown and/or pay my way to get my car out of a parking garage.

There, now you know! Is there anything missing? What else should I add?

The tune to accompany this posting of a glimpse inside my camera bag (which is almost as personal as a glimpse inside my purse) is Rod Stewart, with Handbags and Gladrags.