If you’re looking to advance in a career as a filmmaker or photographer, your camera alone isn’t enough. Additional camera equipment like stabilizers and lights will add professional flair to your work, and learning how to use that equipment will help you hone your craft. As you consider branching out into new photography territory, learn how supplemental camera gear can help you.

Boosts Picture Quality

When you’re only working with your camera, you might fill up your memory card with blurry shots and takes that are out of focus. Investing in additional lenses will help you zoom in and make your image quality crisper. You’ll open yourself up to more possibilities, like shooting from far away or taking lots of clear action shots.

Keeps the Camera Steady

Even if you’ve generally got a steady hand, human bodies are never completely still. Faint micro-movements of your hands can still shake your camera and leave you with blurry photos or video footage. A good stabilizer vest rig takes the pressure off your hands to remain still and redistributes the weight of the equipment throughout your core.

Extends Your Camera’s Life

Anything that steadies your camera, like a stabilizer vest rig or a tripod, improves your image quality and also keeps your camera from wobbling or falling. Learn how to mount your camera onto several different stabilizers and you won’t have to worry about a precious piece of equipment suffering damage. Plus, a cushioned camera bag will keep your camera and spare lenses safe in transit.

Makes Post-Production Easier

A production slate (the ever-familiar clapper with production information scrawled onto the front) may not seem like gear or equipment in the way that a tripod is. But if you’re in the movie business, the sound of that clapper helps you or your editor sync up sound with motion. Gray cards, too, may look confusing at first sight. However, they each sit at 18 percent gray, right in between the brightest lights and darkest shadows. Color correcting is a breeze with a simple gray card.

As you embark on your hobby or potential career, you might start with nothing but a camera. But as you work, you’ll find yourself wishing for a little more help! Supplemental camera gear can help you in dozens of ways, both during shoots and in editing afterward. Start tinkering with new equipment today!