HiiGuy field notes

Guides

Camera settings, honest reviews and what gear actually feels like after a full day out. From a company that makes one thing: the strap you carry it on.

A dark camera seen from behind on warm cork at winter dusk, a string of holiday bulbs melted into soft amber circles behind it, with a lens, pine cones and gloves around it and one lit bulb in front

01 Latest Nov 2026

Holiday Lights, Handheld: Why ISO 100 Is the Wrong Starting Point

The lights went up on the street last week, you took the camera out after dinner, and what came back was a card full of orange smudges with a bright blob where the tree was. Nothing is in...

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Contact sheet

A dark camera body seen from behind on the worn tan leather of an old trunk at dusk, a tall lens standing beside it, a lit amber tube behind, and a padded strap pad and a silver hook on the leather

02a6100 Nov 2026

Will a Camera Strap Fit Your Sony? a7 III, a6100, a6400 and the a7C II

Your camera weighs less than a can of soup and every strap listing you open shows a DSLR the size of a brick. That is...

A dark DSLR seen from behind on a sun-warmed brick garden wall late in the afternoon, surrounded by lenses, a blower, a card case and a brass torch, the clipped hedge behind it thrown out of focus

03AF-C Nov 2026

Focus Modes and Focus Areas Are Two Different Settings

You pointed the camera at a face. The hedge behind the face is beautifully sharp. The face is not. You were in single...

A padded black camera shoulder strap laid across a charcoal daypack on a sun-warmed honey stone step, a DSLR and a lit lantern beside it, hazy rooftops behind at dusk.

04camera strap Nov 2026

The Strap Question Nobody Asks Until Day Four of a Trip

Day one of a trip, the camera is weightless. You are out of the hotel at seven, you shoot three hundred frames, you b...

Two DSLR bodies side by side on a weathered garden bench at dusk, lit by a small warm LED panel

05camera comparison Nov 2026

Nikon D5600 vs D7500: The Cheaper One Has More Megapixels

You have already made the hard decision. You want a Nikon DSLR, you want the one with the mirror and the optical find...

A padded camera strap laid flat on kraft paper by candlelight, with a camera and winter gear around it

06camera accessories Nov 2026

Buying a Camera Strap as a Gift When You Do Not Know Their Camera

You have decided to buy a photographer a camera strap, and it is a better instinct than you know. It is the one thing...

A camera seen from behind on a warm oak kitchen worktop in the last light, a lit filament bulb beside it, a sliced loaf on a board, a mug of coffee and one small print lying on the wood.

07beginner photography Oct 2026

Your First Week With a Camera Somebody Gave You

It has been in the box for three weeks. Somebody who loves you spent real money on it, said something warm about your...

A padded black camera strap lies face up on a spread tan canvas jacket at dusk, a small caged lamp burning beside it, two camera bodies behind and a swivel hook and tripod plate loose in front.

08camera strap fit Oct 2026

Getting a Crossbody Camera Strap to Sit Right

The strap arrived, you put it on the way the pictures show, and the camera ended up somewhere stupid. Pressed into yo...

Spare battery, card case, lens pen, blower and folded rain cover around a camera on a lamplit desk

09camera accessories Oct 2026

What Actually Fails on a Shooting Day, and the Cheap Fix for Each

The camera is almost never what ruins a shooting day. Ask anyone who has come home with half the frames they expected...

Wide padded camera strap lying open on rusted iron, its narrow webbing running out both ends, lantern lit nearby

10buying guide Oct 2026

How Wide Should a Camera Strap Be? Width, Padding and Hour Six

Two straps on the same shelf, both promising comfort. One tag says 32 mm, the other says 45 mm, and nothing printed o...

Small DSLR lit by a warm desk lamp on a woven jute mat at dusk, a tall tripod standing behind it, a padded strap, a rubber blower, a lens and a card case laid out around it

11camera accessories Oct 2026

6 Accessories Worth Buying for a Nikon D3500

The D3500 is a camera with a very clear edge to it. Nikon's published specifications put the body at 12.9 ounces, or ...

Padded black camera strap lying open on a sun-warmed brick ledge at golden hour, a lit brass lantern and two DSLRs of different sizes behind it, the metal quick release resting on the brick

12camera strap Oct 2026

Will This Strap Fit My Nikon? D3500, D5600, D7500 and D850

You have a nikon camera strap open in one tab and your camera on the desk beside you, and the only thing you actually...