As photographers, one of the best pieces of gear to carry with us is gaffe tape. I regularly have a roll with me. While black gaffe tape is perfect for securing things like paper roll backgrounds to the floor, or holding pieces of gear in place, colored gaffe tape has another purpose.

Safety.

I photograph on-location almost exclusively, meaning there are people walking around my gear regularly. Add in a busy event with food and drink involved, with dark lighting, and you have a potential recipe for disaster.

But with a roll of neon-colored gaffe tape, you can make your gear stand out so that people don’t run into it. I picked up a roll of neon green gaffe tape, and put a long piece on each of my light stand legs. To date, I have yet to have anyone walk into them, when in the past, this would be a constant trip hazard.

They’re also great for putting on the edge of umbrellas or other sharp objects that might be at eye-level. It certainly would not be good if someone ran into those!

Next time you go on-location, be sure to have some colored gaffe tape with you, or already secured to your gear. It’ll keep your gear upright, and will prevent anyone from an accidental trip to the floor.