Steve Weinrebe's Mode Studio

Back in August I had posted one of my irreverent photo tools, a pocket level bought at a hardware store. Now I’d like to show you where I keep it. My excellent photo lab (Pro Color in Philadelphia, sadly no longer around) had a policy to recycle used slide boxes, so I started collecting them to give back a bag of boxes every now and then. Going on location corporate shoots quite a bit in those days I quickly realized those little plastic boxes made excellent storage for a variety of items. The pocket level, pictured in it’s case with some cotton to protect it, is only one item I store in my location bags in slide boxes. Note that you can write on the top with a permanent marker to keep track of what’s where. I use these for spare bulbs, loupes, tripod step-up screws, flash adapters, and a host of other doodads and gadgets.If you came into photography post-film, or just don’t have any of these useful boxes to re-purpose, try pilfering a favorite uncle’s slide bins, or checking at the absolutely oldest lab in town to see if they have any of these to give to a good home. I guarantee there are a lot of slide boxes collecting dust and waiting to be put to good use in your location kit.