After the light of the fire had said its last goodbyes, we shuffled off to greet our tent. As we pulled back the cover on our sleeping bag, we reminisced about how the day had slipped away from us. And the stillness of the night had come again without warning. As I laid there it crept in like an unwelcomed friend. At first, it came as a small urge that I tried to deny. But it slowly grew in the stillness of the night and I could no longer push it off. As I laid still in my sleeping bag, I pretended that it would just go away, but I knew better. The midnight light shuffle had come and trying to deny it was useless. I slowly crawled from my nicely arranged place of comfort and began the search for the light. As I tried to quietly click on the light, I heard it. That lone voice from another that was trying to ignore the need. As we crawled out from inside of our tent, the darkness greeted us and the midnight shuffle had begun. Over the years I have used many different flashlights for the shuffle. But through trial and error and just plain bad luck in a dark outhouse, I have learned the need for a god light. Some outhouses have electric lights and others in more remote or older campgrounds don’t have this convenience. But, after many experiences with different styles of lights. I have found that any light can be useful provided it doesn’t die during the trip.

I found that the old tube style lights can easily roll out of reach when one needs it the most. I have had the hat style clip-on lights go for a swim in a shallow pool. Only to have it light up things I did not want to see in the night. It is at these times that I felt the most abandoned by my light. I have found that a good headlamp style light fits the bill the best. They tend to stay where I put them, on my head. They don’t roll away or slide into unreachable places. And they are often adjustable so I can easily see on a dark path or road at the end of my midnight shuffle. And their size makes them easy to pack and carry until they are needed. They are also great for reading and playing games at night or in a tent. The long straps allow you to hang them from just about anywhere. We have found that a couple of good headlamps and a propane lantern are a great combination when traveling and camping. They are also my go to for doing night and astrophotography. Drop me line about your favorite lights for traveling and camping. And always, “Shoot the world with light.”

• Missing the Picture
• Equipment for low light Photography
• Macro Photography on a Budget
• HOW OUTDOOR PHOTOGRAPHY CAN HELP YOU TO RELAX
• What’s Your Lens?