Essential Accessories for Concert Photography: My Top Picks and Brands

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Concert Photography is a fun field that challenges the most of our creativity and also the gear, going way beyond our camera and lenses. Here’s a list of the that I consider of the most essential accessories for concert photography:

Memory Cards:

There’s nothing worse than shooting a whole gig and eventually running out of space on the memory card, or worse, having it corrupted for whatever reason. Some cameras allow you to have a dual slot card and act as a backup, which is a great measure, but I always tend to carry extra memory cards just in case.

V90 SD Cards:

My go-to cards are the not-so-expensive but still great V90 SD cards. that support high-speed shooting and can go from 30 pounds to 200 depending on the capacity.

Brands like Lexar, ProGrade and Sandisk are the most common and I own the ProGrade and Sandisk ones.

If you’re on a budget, the V60 cards can do a good job, but keep in mind that at sometimes your camera might suffer a bit with buffering.

CF Express Cards:

If you do video or need even faster speeds or larger capacities, the CF Express are the best option you can find. Although more expensive, they have a way faster read and write speed and are compatible with shoots at 4k at 120p, and when using an external reader you can grab the photos from the card at a very high speed.

The most popular ones are the Sony Tough CFexpress Type A and the Lexar Professional Silver series. Both will provide you with a huge speed improvement and durability.

Extra Batteries:

Needless to say, that worse than the scenario mentioned above, having no battery to shoot definetly ends your whole experience. Most newer camera models have a great battery life, but I’ve had moments where I ended a gig at about 10%, and definetly wouldn’t want to miss a shot because there was no more battery.

Ideally, I recommend buying the OEM batteries for your camera brand, as they usually provide better compatibility (I had some 3rd party batteries that my camera rejected), but there are also great alternatives like Wasabi that does a good battery replacement and most recently some batteries already come with a USB-C port inside them, which is great if you need to charge on the go, being able to use even a power bank for that. For the USB-C powered batteries, I recommend the Neewer or K&F Concept brands for Sony, but check for your camera brand if they provide it.

Earplugs:

I won’t delve much into details here, as I do have a whole article on recommended earplugs for concerts, but they’re essential to keep your hearing protected in the loud enviroment of a concert. From foam to custom made earplugs, get one as you won’t regreat it.

Camera Clip and Lens Switch System

If you are not carrying 2 cameras, just like me, I highly recommend looking for a quick lens switch system. For Sony, Canon and Nikon, I recommend the Peak Design Lens Kit paired with the camera clip or a strap, although there are other options for almost every camera brand available. They help so much in eliminating the need for bulky bags and make it quicker and safer for me to switch lenses during a concert.

Lens Blower:

If you switch lenses like me, a lens blower is one of the most essential accessories, as it takes a quick second to blow it on your lenses and sensors to remove most of the dust and debris that they might collect when exposed to the environment, ensuring your equipment stays well maintained and provides great quality.

My current setup:

  • 2 V90 SD Cards in camera (256 and 128gb)
  • 2 extra Wasabi Batteries
  • Ultimate Ear custom made concert earplug
  • Lens Blower
  • Godox V1s Flash with diffuser

I won’t dive deeper into flashes yet, as they’re usually frowned upon in concerts. I do carry one as sometimes I do backstage shots or to take crowd shots before a concert starts.