[Ed. note: This holiday season, Gizmodo has partnered with Tamron to bring you a series of gift guides for the photography buffs in your life. And because she has really great taste, we asked our friend Lisbeth Ortega from Photojojo to share the gear she's really excited about. Check out her picks below.]
Your best buddy/uncle/cousin is the kind of photographer who is always carrying a camera on hikes or is crouched at the sidelines at football games. They're into action and have that hawk-like skill of spotting great shots from afar. That's just how they do.
So, what do you get them? There is so much photo stuff to pick from, it's hard to know, especially if you don't happen to be a photographer yourself.
To help you out, we picked out a five fantastic gizmos that would pretty much make their shooting life, like, 10x more awesome.
The Folding Tripod
This is a perfect tripod for photographers who are always out and about with their camera. It folds and unfolds like to a tent rod, which is what makes it super lightweight and compact. The best part about it is that you can fit it in a side bag pocket without noticing any extra weight. Folding Tripod — $50
Three-Way Camera Strap
There are all kinds of straps made for all kinds of wearing styles, but this one gives you all of them in a single strap. It can convert from a wrist strap to a shoulder strap to a neck strap. Your photo friend will have a comfortable shooting session no matter which strap mode they decide to go for. Three-Way Camera Strap — $40
Digital Time-Lapse Camera
If your photo buddy's into the whole nature bit, there's a good chance they've thought about making a time-lapse. The thing is time-lapses can be complicated to set up and tedious to edit. This camera's *made* to shoot time-lapses. All they have to do is set the time intervals, press a button, and they'll get a finished video when it's done. Digital Time-Lapse Camera — $199
Tamron's Telephoto 70-300mm Zoom Lens
What's a hawk-like attention to detail without a lens to actually capture what you see? This 70mm-300mm telephoto zoom lens is made just for that. What's great about it is that — in addition to its razor sharp imaging results and its fast autofocusing, thanks to the USD (Ultrasonic Silent Drive) — it comes with Tamron's VC (stands for vibration compensation) image stabilization, which is exactly what you need when you're shooting with a telephoto. This guy works with Canon, Nikon, and Sony camera mounts.
Tamron SP 70-300mm Di VC USD — $349*
The Chromonaut Camera Bag
For a photographer who shoots outdoors on the regular, you'll want to get a sturdy, weatherproof bag that will comfortably fit all their gear. The Chromonaut will do all that, and then some. It's handcrafted in Japan from dapper water-repellant canvas and comes with removable, cushioned dividers, so your buddy can fit their camera, lens, and flash nice and snug. Chromonaut Camera Bag — $215
Head here to take a closer look at Tamron's entire line of lenses, and then come on back next week for five more gift ideas for the photographer in your life.
Lisbeth Ortega is head editor at Photojojo, an insanely great photography newsletter and shop. Whether it's DIY tutorials or can't-find-it-anywhere-else photo goodies at the Photojojo Store, Photojojo's on a mission to inspire and share the good word about the greatest photo stuff in the world. You may have caught Photojojo in The New York Times, ReadyMade, Wall Street Journal, and the CBS Early Show.
*With $100 mail-in rebate, valid through 12/31/12.