Fellow fetish content creators often ask me what camera gear I use to create my latex and rubber content on social media and YouTube. I’ve touched on this many times on social media, but not on this blog. I’ve also never covered the topic in detail.
Let me preface this guide by saying I’m not an expert. I’ve been involved with photography and video for many years, and I have a lot of experience with it. However, I don’t do this for a living. I still have much to learn in the photography space, especially with modeling and portraits. I do this as a hobby, and I’ve never taken classes or had professional training. Take that as you will.
In this article, I’ll share what camera gear I use to take my latex and rubber photos for social media and videos for YouTube. I’ll also offer some advice on editing your content.
First, a word of advice on how to start
Before I tell you what equipment I use, I want to make something very clear. Everyone has a different opinion on what gear is best and what you should use to create your art. If you want to purchase new equipment because you want to start taking photos of yourself in latex and rubber or make videos online, don’t.
Seriously, the best camera is the one you currently have. Not having a fancy mirrorless or DSLR camera shouldn’t stop you from starting to create content and sharing it with the community. If you have a smartphone, start with that. Only upgrade when you’re ready to take things to the next level. Never let a lack of professional equipment stop you from starting. Just start!
The cameras I use
First, let’s discuss the cameras I use to create my content over time. I started posting photos and videos online in 2015.
2015-2020: My iPhone and a Canon EOS 80D
I used my iPhone when I started creating content for my Instagram (@LatexRocker) in 2015. I also used my dad’s Nikon camera. This wasn’t ideal, but it helped me get started. I then upgraded in 2016 to a Canon EOS 80D DSLR camera, although I didn’t use it for any kink content until 2020. I primarily used it for my landscape photography and non-kink YouTube content.
The Canon 80D is a great camera. It shoots high-quality images and records 1080p HD video. You can see an example of one of my videos filmed with it. Canon has since replaced this camera with the newer, 4k-capable Canon 90D and the R series.
Canon 80D features and specs:
- 24-megapixel crop-sensor
- Dual Pixel AF
- 1080p HD video recording
2020-present: Canon EOS R5
I currently use a Canon EOS R5 mirrorless camera for all my photos and videos. For most kink content, this is probably overpowered. Canon didn’t make the camera for just taking social media photos. But, as I shoot landscape photos and other types of videos, it was worth the investment for me at the time. I purchased this camera in 2020, and it’s been doing fine ever since.
The Canon R5 features:
- 45-megapixel full-frame sensor
- Dual Pixel CMOS AF II with subject tracking (including focusing on your eyes automatically)
- 8K RAW and 4K video recording
The camera accessories I use
Cameras are only part of the equation. Lenses and accessories make a huge difference.
Lenses
I currently use the following lenses:
- Canon RF 15-35mm f2.8 L
- Canon RF 24-105mm f4 L
The RF 24-105 is a nice lens that can zoom while still being wide enough for self-portrait shoots. However, I purchased the RF 15-35mm in 2022 to take advantage of the f2.8 aperture (and, therefore, the ability to shoot in darker settings) and the even wider view.
Accessories
For accessories, I use a battery grip. This allows me to use two batteries in the camera at any time. I primarily started using one for hiking or road trips, but now I always have it attached. It has the dual benefit of making the camera look way cooler.
I also have a variety of lens filters. I don’t use these much for my kink content, but some could be fun. I have one that makes RGB lighting look foggy, which I want to mess around with more.
Accessories I use:
- Vanguard Alta Pro 2 tripod
- Canon R5 battery grip
- Shure Lenshopper VP83F microphone for YouTube videos
Accessories I have, but haven’t utilized:
- Tiffen 82BPM14 82mm Black Pro-Mist ¼ Diffusion Camera Filter
Lighting
The biggest trick for making your content look better is lighting. You want to ensure you light the subject adequately, whether with lights or a bright, natural source. I have a professional Godox video light, which I use for most of my photoshoots and videos. Godox lights can run from $200 to more than $500, depending on the model.
I also have some smaller RGB LED lights for adding a splash of color. I need to invest in more of these to properly light a scene that way, but it’s a lot of fun.
At the very least, I’d invest in a cheap photography lighting kit or a small light that can sit on top of a camera in the hot shoe mount. This will make a huge difference!
Lighting I use:
- Godox video light
- Pixel G1s RGB Video Lightsome text
- Pro tip: Either mount it on the camera or use a GorillaPod 3K tripod
Editing
Photos
I shoot my photos in a neutral color and RAW so that I can edit them fully on my computer. For years, I just sort of managed my settings until I thought it looked okay. Now, I have the light levels displayed on my camera screen so I can better tell if a photo or video is properly exposed.
Once I complete a photoshoot, I download my photos to an external hard drive. I then import them to Adobe Lightroom Classic, where I do basic photo edits. This includes brightness, saturation, camera color calibration, sharpness, contrast, and dehaze. I also tend to lower the temperature so that the gray walls in my house take on more of a blue tint. From there, I denoise the photo and adjust individual colors if necessary, such as making the oranges and reds in my face more or less saturated. If I’m wearing a rubber accessory, like a harness that has color, I usually make that color pop more.
Once I’m done in Lightroom, I export the photos. I then open them all in Photoshop. One of the realities of shooting latex and rubber at home when you have pets is getting hair and dust all over the rubber. This may not be super evident on social media, but when you see the full-size images, it’s really bad. I take the time in Photoshop to remove as much hair or specks of dust from the rubber in the photos. This is time-consuming but worth it. I achieve this with the Spot Healing Brush Tool. If it’s particularly bad, I’ll sometimes jump to the Patch Tool.
Once done, I resize the images to fit Instagram’s portrait dimensions, which cuts a lot of the vertical space in the photo. I then slap my watermark on top and export the image as a smaller file. I aim for around 4-6 MB, which reduces the quality of the photo but makes it more accessible for uploading to social media.
Software I use for editing:
- Adobe Lightroom Classic
- Adobe Photoshop
Videos
For videos, I edit them in Adobe Premiere Pro. I don’t edit my videos very much, as they don’t need to be some elaborate professional production. I color grade the footage since I shoot videos in C LOG, which has a very gray, neutral color scheme. I then adjust the audio levels, cut sections that don’t need to be shown, and enable the overlay layers I use in every video, including the YouTube endscreen template.
I’ll also use Premiere to take screenshots of the video for the thumbnail, which I edit in Photoshop.
Photo storage
Previously, I kept all of my photos and videos on an external hard drive. I would then save my edited, final copies in Google Drive. Unfortunately, my external hard drive that I had been using for years failed when my cat knocked it over. I lost all of my original files from before 2023.
Now, I still use an external drive, but I back up EVERYTHING to Google Drive, and I pay for cloud storage.
Conclusion
I hope you found this blog post helpful. I get asked about my camera equipment quite often, so I figured a blog post would be a good place to get into the details about what I use and what my process for my self-portrait shoots looks like.
Let me know if you have any further questions on social media, and I can continue to update this post.
