If you’ve been tasked with buying a Christmas gift for a photographer and have no idea what to get them, you’ve come to the right place. Chances are the person you’re buying for either seems to have everything already, or you don’t know a single thing about photography and have no idea what to buy for them — this is usually how every single photographer ends up receiving the dreaded lens coffee mug at some point in their life.

In this guide, we’ve rounded up some of the best equipment and accessories to buy a photographer, and we’ve split it up into sections for what to buy a beginner, intermediate and advanced user, then provided three different price tiers for each section.

You’ll find an affordable sub-$20 option, which is great if you’re looking for a cheap stocking filler or you’re buying a Secret Santa gift and don’t have much knowledge about cameras and photography. Then there’s a sub-$100 price tier for great quality gifts that don’t break the bank, and finally, a $100+ category for if you really want to splurge.

These gift ideas are primarily geared toward astrophotographers in particular, but many of them will also suit other styles of photography as well.

Beginner

Beginner gift advice

It can be really fun and exciting being a beginner photographer discovering all the different styles of photography with a world of camera and lens options (not to mention all the accessories) at your feet, but it can also be a very expensive time because you need to invest in, well, everything — especially if you want to get into astrophotography specifically.

Beginner photographers usually only have one (typically more affordable) camera with one or maybe two accompanying lenses and not much else, so there’s a whole host of helpful extras and accessories you could gift them to help them along with their photography journey. Or perhaps they’ve been using their smartphone and want to make the jump to a proper camera but don’t want to spend too much — one of the best budget cameras or best beginner cameras would be a great place to start.

Understandably, you may not want to spend a lot on a gift for a beginner if they aren’t sure whether photography will be a long-term hobby, so we’ve given various price options below to give you some choices depending on your budget. From memory cards, spare batteries, lens warmers, star filters and astronomy software to bags, tripods and astro-specific lenses, you’re sure to find the perfect gift for any beginner astrophotographer.

If you want to spend a bit more, or if you’re buying a gift for yourself (no judgment here!), this could be a great time to invest in one of the best lenses for astrophotography. The kit lenses that come with starter cameras are fine but usually don’t have the large aperture or wide focal length required for dedicated astrophotography. 

There are two routes you can take here: Prime lenses (fixed focal length) or Zoom lenses (variable focal length). Prime lenses are generally favored for astrophotography as they can let in a lot more light than a zoom lens can, but they’re less versatile and can be more expensive than zoom lenses. A zoom lens can still produce great astro results though, and you can use it for other styles of photography as well. 

If you’re buying a lens as a gift, make sure it’ll fit the recipient’s camera, and look for a fixed or minimum focal length of 20mm or lower (14mm or 16mm are great), and an aperture of no more than f/2.8 — f/1.8 and f/1.4 are perfect for astro, but f/2.8 will still give great results.

Intermediate

Intermediate users can be a bit more tricky to buy for (unless they’ve outright told you what bits they want to upgrade!), as they already have a bunch of gear and know how to use it to a reasonable degree, but buying the best of the best could well be overkill (and expensive). There’s a fine line to balance, and we’ve provided some options below that can certainly work for anyone who wants to level up and take astrophotography more seriously, plus some ideas they may not have thought of if they’re only just branching out into astrophotography.

Let’s assume they’ve already got a camera, a lens or two and a tripod — what’s next? It’s likely they’ll have made their way through all the entry-level gear and are now looking to invest in more specialized gear or better quality upgrades of what they already have. This is where some of the best accessories can come into their own, as they’ve already bought all the basics and can now start collecting extras to help advance their chosen photographic style. 

If you want to spend a bit more or are buying a gift for yourself (again, no judgment!), perhaps it’s time to level up by investing in one of the best cameras for astrophotography — we named the powerhouse Nikon Z8 as the best mirrorless camera overall for astrophotography.

While the focus for astrophotography is usually more on what the lens can do, it’s still important to have a camera that can handle low light effectively. If you’re buying a camera as a gift, you want to take the camera’s ISO range into account, as well as the autofocus detection range and number of megapixels. Some cameras even have dedicated night modes, check out our best cameras for low light photography guide for some ideas.

Advanced

Advanced gift advice

Advanced users usually already have all the gear they need and then some, so it can be a nightmare buying a gift for an advanced photographer — what do you buy someone who has everything? Not to mention, the kind of gear advanced and professional users are investing in is usually on the more expensive end of the spectrum, which not everyone can afford to buy as a gift. Advanced users are more likely to be using some of the best cameras for astrophotography alongside the best star trackers and best lenses for astrophotography.

You may think you need to know a lot about cameras and photography when buying a gift for a user at this level, but this isn’t always the case. We’ve listed some options below that are suitable for any and every type of advanced photographer, plus a ‘best of the best’ option to really knock their socks off.

If you want to spend a bit more or you’re buying a gift for yourself (still no judgment!), why not consider attaching your camera to one of the best telescopes to really level up your astrophotography?

We named the Sky-Watcher Skymax 150 PRO as the best telescope for astrophotography as it covers a wide selection of celestial objects from planets to nebulas, has excellent optics and a high-quality build. It’s lightweight enough to take with you to dark sky sites, and it’s user-friendly and easy to accessorize. We think you can’t go wrong with this telescope for astrophotography.

Christmas Gift Guide FAQ

But here’s a quick rundown of some ideas for a great Christmas gift for a photographer:

– Camera: Photographers usually already have a camera, unless they’re complete beginners and have told you specifically which one they’d like, so most of the time you’re off the hook here. Buying a camera is a very personal decision, so make sure you know exactly what they’re looking for if you’re looking to gift them one. Check out our best cameras for astrophotography guide to give you some ideas. Or if you’re buying a ‘first camera’ for someone, you’re sure to find something in our best beginner cameras guide.

– Lens: A lens is a great gift if you know what camera they have and whether there’s a specific focal length they’re missing in their lens lineup (or one they want to upgrade). If you’re buying for someone who wants to take up astrophotography, the best lenses for astrophotography are prime lenses with a focal length of 20mm or lower, and an aperture of f/1.8 or f/1.4. 

– Tripod: A tripod is a brilliant gift for an aspiring astrophotographer, and there are tons available that all do different things at different price levels. The best tripods are reliable, sturdy and lightweight to carry.

– Camera bag: One of the best camera backpacks can make a great gift if the person you’re buying for is growing their kit list and not only needs somewhere safe to store their gear at home but something comfortable that can accommodate all their equipment when they’re out in the field.

– Star tracker: Star trackers are primarily used by more serious astrophotographers, so it’s a great gift idea if you know they focus on shooting the night sky. The best star trackers move your camera in line with the Earth’s rotation to avoid capturing star trails, so it really opens you up to shooting those super long exposures to capture stunningly detailed shots.

– Storage: Photographers always appreciate storage! It’s not the sexiest gift in the world, but it is incredibly useful. This can be in the form of memory cards and card holders, or even an external hard drive to back their images up on. 

– Filters: Filters are a great gift for any photographer, but they all do different things. Astrophotographers will love a light pollution filter (especially if they live in urban areas), or you could also opt for some ND (Neutral Density) filters, a polarizer or some UV filters for more general photography. 

You’ll need to know the size of the filter thread of the lens they’ll be using it on, so make a note of the lens they use so you can look on the manufacturer’s website to find out the size of the filter thread (or look on the front of the lens, it’ll have this symbol Ø with a number (eg Ø67) — that means the filter size is 67mm).

– Power bank: Another practical gift for a photographer, the best power banks can hold a lot of charge to help astrophotographers on a long night of shooting. Make sure you get one that has a large capacity, suitable ports and isn’t too big and bulky to carry around.

– Headlamp: Another helpful inexpensive gift is one of the best headlamps. Astrophotographers need to be able to see what they’re doing when out on a shoot, so having a hands-free headlamp is super useful. Make sure you get one that has a good battery life and has a red light to preserve night vision.

– Lens warmer: One accessory that’s often overlooked is a lens warmer — particularly if your area gets very cold at night. A lens warmer can be plugged into a USB device (often a power bank) and has a few different heat settings to keep your lens (drinks, hands etc) toasty warm, and it’ll help prevent permanent damage to the lens due to condensation.

– Camera strap: Most cameras come with straps, but you can buy some stylish and incredibly comfortable camera straps separately — this is a particularly good gift if they have a heavy setup and need a wide strap to prevent neckache.

– Spare batteries: A useful gift, sure, but not the most exciting one. This would definitely work as a stocking filler, just make sure you buy the right ones depending on their camera.

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Memory and photography are inextricably linked, bearing witness to life’s most significant moments: birth, death and all that transpires between. Throughout her career, teacher and photographer Aline Smithson has chronicled how photographs move through time — conveying memory, history and being — and shift based on ever-changing technology.

“If Memory Serves: Photography, Recollections and Vision,” produced by the Los Angeles Center of Photography, honors Smithson’s contributions to photography and her work as a teacher and mentor. The exhibit will open with a reception on Saturday, Dec. 16, at the Brand Library and Art Center in Glendale and continue through Saturday, Feb. 24.

Filling out the 5,000 square-foot gallery, Smithson’s work will stand alongside collections by 12 of her former students and collaborators: Safi Alia Shabaik, Elizabeth Bailey, Dena Elisabeth Eber, Sarah Hadley, Diane Hemingway, Rohina Hoffman, Susan Lapides, Annette LeMay Burke, Annie Omens, Lori Ordover, Aurora Wilder Collective (Jennifer Pritchard in collaboration with Patrick Corrigan and DALL-E), Aline Smithson and Rosalie Rosenthal.

“Since the beginning of my photography career, I’ve been looking at how family photos move through time,” Smithson said. “Even in the ’80s, I began to find photographs on the ground and started thinking about how our legacies are increasingly difficult to keep.”

Since the early aughts, when digital photography began gaining popularity, photos and memories have slowly migrated from physical images and albums to the ether of the net. While digitization may seem like an indelible canonization, files corrupt and hard drives fail, eradicating years of photo memory. Smithson’s work documents the decline of the photo album and underscores the need to preserve family histories.

“The ‘corruption,’ the literal de-composition of digital files is its own kind of fugue state — a loss of ‘consciousness’ with wide-ranging implications and effects: the erasure of histories, writ large, and those quieter histories of the self and family,” Smithson explained.

Smithson’s portion of the exhibit, titled “The Ephemeral Archive,” consists of dozens of photo albums and thousands of photographs untethered from their families, collected from across the country. Her show will feature six bodies of work, including three installations and Smithson’s first foray into filmmaking. As the name suggests, the works examine the transience of technology and its effect on collective family memory.

“This show allowed me to take this concept that we’re losing our physical histories and expand and create six bodies of work around that idea,” Smithson explained.

One installation will feature a wall of family photos chronicling life events, great and small. The piece touches on the “ubiquitousness of what we put in the photo album — birthday parties, graduations, weddings — what we choose to document and save,” Smithson said.

The show also features Smithson’s first short film, which explores the burden of carrying memories through time. Another work features a found photo album, with only captions remaining, inviting viewers to imagine what the pictures might have been. Captions in physical photo albums are often hyper-specific, including notes, dates and anecdotes, providing invaluable historical context. Digital photos are often scattered across various devices and platforms without context.

“As memories fade and individuals move on, the meaning behind these images can be lost. The stories that once accompanied family photos may be forgotten, leaving future generations with incomplete narratives or archives lost to apathy, technology or time,” Smithson explained.

Since 2001, Smithson has worked as a teacher and mentor at LACP. Many of the participating artists in the show came out of Smithson’s year-long portfolio master class in 2021 during the pandemic.

“We all wanted to be connected,” Smithson said. “Everyone in the group is a true artist. They’re not like student photographers. Everyone got along really well and brought wonderful attributes to the group.”

By the end of the class, Smithson realized each person’s work, including her then-current projects, touched on the same theme: memory. Inspired by this synchronicity, the group went on to collaborate on a traveling exhibition with the same focus.

Curated by LACP Executive Director Rotem Rozental, “If Memory Serves” is the newest iteration of the group’s previous work, including new works and two new artists, Hoffman and Shabaik. The show is entirely women-led and features artists from LA and nationwide.

“I think the show is going to touch people that are not necessarily in the art world. … It is about family, and it’s about archives, personal things,” Smithson said. “It’s an amazing opportunity, and I’m so grateful to LACP, and I’m so excited to be showing with all these wonderful artists and showing so much work at once.”