A couple of weeks ago I published a list of 10 photography business essentials. Today’s post is widening the list to include all sorts of equipment, software and ideas that help my business. There has also been a few ideas thrown about on Twitter and Facebook which have also made this list.

If there’s something missing that’s important to you then please share in the comments.

In no particular order…

1. PhotoCreative365.com – it’s not just a place for me to share ideas but it also forces me to discover new ones. I’ve shared my thoughts and done reviews on many of the tools mentioned in this article so if you haven’t already become a member and sign up to our weekly digest email……. shameless plug over…. on with the list!
2. Canon 5d mk2 – for what I do it’s prefect. Full frame, great ISO and one day I might even use that video function
3. 24-70mm 2.8 L – often my lens of choice and a great all rounder
4. Gary Fong Lightsphere – whatever you think of Tupperware I use this a lot.
5. Guy Gowan website membership – think you know a thing or two about Photoshop? Think again!
6. Guy Gowan process action – see above. EVERY image I process gets put through this action.
7. Photoshop – When it comes to processing images nothing else comes close.
8. Lightroom/Aperture - Although I personally rarely use either they still are great tools and need to be part of the list
9. An iMac – let’s not get into a PC verses Mac debate….. it does what I need to to and it does it well.
10. An iPhone – or any smart phone to be fair.
11. A MacBook pro - just because I can’t carry a 27 inch iMac with me and the iPad doesnt have Photoshop.
12. The LensBaby Composer – because it’s fun!
13. Tea and coffee – Editing just wouldn’t be the same without them!
14. 70-200mm Zoom – 2,8 for show or for about £500 f4 is great for on the go
15. A LinkedIn account – great for b2b networking and there’s some worthwhile groups – link to 10 linked Lin groups
16. A Facebook Page – Easier separates your personal and business life on Facebook
17. A Twitter Account – more for networking, discovering new things and ideas.
18. TweetDeck – Voted our top twitter tool for photographers in our recent Twitter Poll for Photographers
19. HootSuite – my personal favourite as a social media tool. Schedule tweets and Facebook posts. There’s also great stat analysis
20. A Google account – setting up your account is just the first step, the next few suggestions are just some of the tools at your disposal
21. Google analytics – Free and one of the mist powerful website analytic tools around.
22. Google Reader – Organise all those feed subscriptions and while you’re there add PhotoCreative355!
23. Feedburner – Burn your blog feed, promote it, share it and track it.
24. Google keywords tool - Probably the most useful SEO keyword research tool you could use.
25. Google ads - why pay a third party to do this for you? Link to article?
26. Webmaster tools – there’s loads of other great tools to look at which we haven’t mentioned so have a look
27. Your own hosting package – there are lots of different out of the box website packages which offer hosting but if your serious about creating your own website this should be your first port of call – link to article
28. A WordPress.org instal – Use just as a blog or your main site. The next few suggestions are some of my favourite plugins and Theme resources.
29. A ThemeForest account – The biggest marketplace for affordable WordPress themes
30. A GraphPaper Press Account – WordPress themes and plugins designed with photographers in mind
31. The Photocrati theme package – perfect theme package for photographers who are new to WordPress.
32. The NextGen Gallery plugin – one of the best WordPress gallery plugins available
33. The Wibiya Toolbar – powerful tool not just for WordPress.
34. WP Editorial Calendar - a great way to organise and schedule your blog posts. This is fast becoming my favourite WordPress plugin.
35. S2 Member - A great site membership plugin which allows you to manage different levels of access to your site.
36. The All in One SEO Pack – There are quite a few different SEO plugins for WordPress but this has to be the most popular.
37. A Tweet button – there are quite a few of these so have a look around to see which one fits into the design of your site
38. A Facebook like button – see above
39. The Facebook social plugins – promote your Facebook page within a widget on your site
40. Contact Form 7 – Just about everything you want from a contact plugin. Make sure you add the Capcha plugin
41. A Joomla 1.6 instal – A great alternative to WordPress although a rather steeper learning curve.
42. A RocketTheme Account – they do offer WordPress themes but the real gems are the Joomla themes and extensions.
43. A YouTube account – Even if you’re not that into video this is the worlds 2nd largest search engine.
44. Studio Management Software – Organise your client database, calendar and invoices. There are plenty of good ones out there but a great place to start is Studio Cloud.
45. An Accountant - I’m sure Emma (my wife and account for photographers) wouldn’t like to be called a ‘tool’ but she’s pretty essential to our business.
46. MS Office - Even if you’re using a Mac some files can’t be opened in Pages. We have to accept the fact that the number 1 platform of choice for the world is still PC.
47. An Animoto Account – An increasingly popular choice for photographers to create slideshows.
48. A Dropbox account – Again there are lots of alternatives but it’s good to have some way of sharing large files easily.
49. A Skype account – Recently brought by Microsoft for $8 Billion we could see some interesting developments coming soon.
50. A landline – There are dozens if ways clients can contact me but this is number 1.
51. An answering service – let’s face it you’re busy, so it’s nice to have someone taken your messages!
52. An email account that’s linked to your website – It’s just more professional than having Hotmail, Yahoo or Gmail at the end of your email address
53. A good email signature – Include links, contact numbers and even a tagline.
54. A good tripod – the best ones can last a lifetime so it’s a great investment even if it sits in the boot of your car.
55. A good set of light stands – Lots to choose from so buy the best you can afford.
56. A Nissin Flash unit (or two) – At half the price of Canon or Nikon equivalents Nissin is fast becoming the Strobist flashgun of choice.
57. The Calumet Swivel Umbrella Adapter - Solid as you like
58. An 5-1 umbrella – handy and affordable for a bit of off camera flash
59. A 5-1 reflector – The bigger the better!
60. The £2.59 Gel set – Cheap, cheerful and colourful
61. ColorChecker Passport – another important tool to keep in your camera bag.
62. Radio Poppers – Or any wireless transceiver system if you don’t fancy spending the big bucks.
63. The Interfit Strobies kit – loads of great tools and gadgets in these big boxes
64. A Colormunki – or similar colour calibration tool.
65. Insurance – Not just for your gear butPublic Liability and Professional Indemnity too!
66. A good set of business cards – call me old school but these are pretty essential
67. A PayPal account – Pay and receive but explore other options too like…..
68. A GPRS credit card machine – Take payments on the fly!
69. A business bank account – Even if you are only part time you need a place to put all that money and your accountant will thank you for it.
70. A printer which can print on blank DVDs. – A quick and affordable way to personalise your DVDs
71. A Dye Sub Printer – not just for event photographers!
72. Keyring backs – See my article Marketing Campaigns for Photographers – The humble keyring for more information about these.
73. A black and White Laser printer – quick and cheaper way to print verses inkjet alternatives.
74. A Wacom Tablet - once you get the hang of it you’ll wonder what you did without it!
75. Samples, samples, samples – Have a sample of everything you sell and the biggest versions of them too!
76. A Great Suit – not just for court appearances!
77. Loads and loads of memory cards – They don’t last forever so make sure you label them in case of errors
78. Loads and loads of batteries – see above.
79. A step ladder – handy bit of kit for many types of photography.
80. A monopod – if you don’t have a stepladder
81. An alarm clock – no one likes being late after all!
82. A RAID system – not cheap but the best way to backup your files
83. Off site backup storage – A place to store your DVD backups or even cloud based storage is always advisable.
84. A 50mm – Everyone has got to have one if these and a 1,8 can be brought for under £100….. bargain!
85. A support network – read my articles Building Your Photography Support Network and It’s Good to Talk (to Other Photographers) for a bit more insight into this.
86. A Thing – have something which is uniquely you. Read 10 Different Ways to Set Yourself Apart as a Photographer for a bit of inspiration.
87. Convention Tickets – The Societies convention here in London is my highlight of year!
88. Photography Association Membership – It doesn’t matter which one as long as you embrace the community!
89. Reliable suppliers – It’s not just about great products. You need your suppliers to be reliable.
90. Evernote – A great little tool for noting down ideas and bookmarking.
91. Flyers, postcards and all that jazz – Change these with the seasons and make them specialisation specific.
92. A light meter – Otherwise it’s all just guesswork!
93. A comfortable pair of shoes – we do spend a fair amount of time on our feet after all!
94. A camera bag for every occasion – it rarely the case that one type of bag suits every job so build up a collection!
95. A mobile background set-up – handy thing to have and fairly affordable.
96. A projector or massive viewing screen – depends on if you are doing viewings in clients homes or in the comfort of tour own home.
97. A MailChimp Account – Organise lists, integrate into your website and get more business!
98. An assistant – You can’t do it all on your own so a little help goes a long way!
99. Motivation and good health – if you’re not motivated and feeling healthy then all if these tools are worthless!
100. Clients – You’ve gotta have clients to pay for all this stuff after all!