Do You Have Everything You Need?

I hope not - the shop hopes not - and the wholesalers and manufacturers certainly hope not. We are not trying to be monsters, but the photo trade is a business after all...We hope...not yet. Well, look...either you do, and can cycle past the shops with a cheery wave and a depressing ring on your bike bell, or you don't, in which case park the bike and come in. If there is one thing we have, it's things. Photography things. And if you don't need them that's no reason not to buy them. You may find need hits you suddenly, and if it does, you're prepared. It's worked for the Boy Scouts for over 100 years and we're prepared to sell you a forked stick too. Take the red and yellow Kodak film case. You may not have known you needed one until now, but from here on in the condition of being case-less will haunt you. You will juggle 5 rolls of 135 film in your pocket - getting lint all over the felt light traps and splitting one open, like as not. And this could all have been prevented by getting one of these latched cases. Please Kodak, make one for 120 film as well. And the Gorilla Pod mobile phone starter kit. The one that makes you the master or mistress of every family party - you'll be in the shots as well as everyone else. No more propping the thing up on a pile of potato salad to get the group shot. How could you leave the shop without one? And that business of fumbling through your surprisingly expensive filter collection while out on a photo safari. You know, where you scratch the neutral density filter just before the sunset of the century...? Well now you don't - you keep the darned things in a Lowepro filter wallet along with a good microfibre cleaning cloth and do the decent thing - leave the entire collection on a rock out in the bush when you pack up to come home. Is it all too much - this photography business? Trying to capture images and process them and print and exhibit and hang and store them? Too many steps and too many specifications? Do you long to just get out there and look at ducks or sailboats or sheep? Well we can accommodate you - the Olympus line of binoculars seems to have a power and a lens size for every need. You can leave the camera at home, take an anorak and packet of sandwiches, and still have a great day out. If it rains you'll get wet but the binoculars will be fine. Heading Image: Grey hair, of which we are here to save you. Unless you have inherited both my grandfather's genes and would welcome a thick head of it. Or a new hat.