Our Top 25 Amazon Favorites

If there’s one thing I know, it’s that Amazon makes the world go ’round. Whoever initiated Amazon Prime is a genius, and I would like to personally thank them for their contribution to my life. But really, all jokes aside, David and I wanted to share a few of our favorite things with you! [Cue the Sound of Music playing in the background] These books, gear, and household items are ones that we absolutely love, and we think you might too! Here’s our top 25 Amazon Favorites!

Books

Business

How to Win Friends and Influence People: Though this book may not sound business related, it came recommended by Amy and Jordan Demos for learning how to serve and work well with clients! It goes over amazing concepts on business relationships and sales, maintaining clients that will become raving fans, and even dealing with tricky situations!

Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover: David absolutely loved this book! While we personally believe it’s perfectly okay to have a credit card for hotels and gas, we are big believers in Dave Ramsey’s zero debt lifestyle. This book will rock your world and teach you principles on dealing with money and getting control of your financial life!

Profit First: If you are a business owner and you pick a single book to read from this list, CHOOSE THIS ONE! This book has completely changed how I view my business financially. For the first time since starting my business, I feel like I finally have a firm grasp on my finances. I can confidently know that I’m setting aside money to pay myself, my contractors, my taxes, and my expenses using this simple process!

Fiction

The Knightinggale: I am not much of a fiction reader, but I enjoy a good book on a trip or vacation to unwind. I started this book over a weekend trip and could hardly put it down! It’s set in the WWII era and beautifully balances love, heartbreak, and heroism of two sisters.

Where the Crawdads Sing: Another vacation read that had me captured! This unique and mysterious love story is set in the deep swamps of North Carolina.

Little Fires Everywhere: This book takes a look into what appears to be a picture perfect suburban society and as the title suggests, exposes the little fires everywhere. Bonus, it’s now a series on Hulu! It’s artfully done, but quite heavy and for mature audiences only.

Life & Marriage

Love Does and Everybody Always: These two books written by Bob Goff are uplifting and easy reads! Each chapter is a story from Bob’s life. He shares his takeaways and insights with a Christian worldview. Bonus, I’ve met the guy and he really is as cool and crazy as his books make him seem!

Love & Respect: This book is so good it’s almost painful. It unravels marriage and the true underlying causes of frustration or what the book refers to as “The Crazy Cycle.” I read this shortly after we got married and learned so much about cultivating a fulfilling marriage.

Photography Gear

Everybody knows that photographers need cameras, lenses, and SD cards…but what they may not realize is that sometimes it’s the smaller, less known items that can make all the difference! These items below are a few of my smaller gear items that go a long way in helping my business!

Clear Storage Boxes for SD and CF Cards: I keep all of my cards stored in these boxes after a session or wedding until the images are delivered. They’re deep enough to throw 10 SD cards in to organize what cards belong to what client. Just write on the top with expo marker to label whose is what!

External Hard Drive: If you’re a photographer, you know these are a must! I love this hard drive because it’s shock proof and durable. It is constantly attached to my computer and travels with me everywhere!

Weekly Planner: I believe the secret sauce to success is setting goals and tasks and accomplishing them! This weekly planner helps me highlight my biggest tasks for the week, prioritize them, and set schedules for each day. It even has a box to check off good daily habits!

Camera Strap: David and I each use this camera strap and love it! It’s affordable, comfortable, and neutral.

Storm Jackets: When the rain comes, it pours. And when it’s a wedding day, we don’t have the option of rescheduling. These storm jackets slide on over your camera and lenses to protect your gear. (Trust me, even if your gear claims to be “weather sealed,” it’s probably better if it doesn’t get wet!)

Clear Umbrellas: Once again, the best thing to have ready when rain comes! I have 10 of these in my car at all times, just in case we need to whip them out… and believe me, we have put them to good use–like at this rainy mountain wedding!

Lens Extenders: If you love those dreamy up-close macro ring shots and detail shots, but you don’t want to spend $800+ on a macro lens, this is for you! I haven’t been able justify buying a lens that can only be used for a handful of shots so I got these lens extenders that twist onto a 50 mm lens and magnify your existing lens! I can get gorgeous macro shots at literally a fraction of the cost with these bad boys!

Winter Gloves with accessible thumb and index finger: These are a lifesaver for cold shoots and winter weddings! The thumb and index are accessible so you can still fully operate your camera without freezing your fingers off!

Household and Beauty

Cord Organizers: One of my biggest pet peeves is fishing for my phone charger cord at night! These stick onto any surface and hold your cords, keep them organized, or in my case, keep your dog from chewing them!! Yeah…that happened…

Plastic Organizer Bins: Yes, it’s probably clear that I love organization! These bins keep drawers from feeling cluttered and help you keep track of things!

Living Room Rug: I think about half of the people I know have this rug, but just in case you haven’t seen it yet, here it is! It’s neutral, cute, and affordable!

Folding Board: You may think we’re crazy, but we love a well organized closet. If you have any previous retail experience, folding boards may give you PTSD (I feel you!) But there’s nothing quite like a perfect T-Shirt stack that satisfies your need to organize in every way!

Outdoor Rug Mat: I grabbed this outdoor mat to put underneath our welcome mat for a cute layered look, and I love it!

Ultimate Ears Wonderboom Bluetooth Mini Speaker: We LOVE this speaker! It goes everywhere with us whether it’s the kitchen, the gym, the park, or the pool. It’s compact, waterproof and basically indestructible, plus it has amazing sound quality! Bonus: IT’S PINK! Or you can save a few extra dollars and get the black one here. But come on, pink!

Boscia Makeup Breakup: I am a drugstore makeup kind of girl. I do not spend more than $15 on literally ANY product I put on my face… except for this one! Once you try this product, you’ll wonder how much makeup was left on your face every night before. I’m not kidding. It gets rid of day old water proof mascara like it was never there in the first place! Bonus: you only need a tiny amount, so it lasts long enough to be worth the extra $$$

Elf Concealer: Like I said, I do not buy expensive makeup. However, I have heard this is similar to the Tarte cosmetics shape tape concealer that everyone raves about, so I gave it a try! Works like a charm, only costs $6 instead of $30!

That’s our top 25 Amazon favorites for now. You can view a full page with all of our favorites right here too! If you liked this post and you want to stay up to date on new products we are loving going forward, please let me know! We’d love to keep you updated and share more!