Joby GP2-E1EN Gorillapod Flexible Tripod, $39, this mini tripod is perhaps the simplest yet most useful tripod. The Gorillapod lets you mount your camera just about anywhere you want, even on the handlebars of your bicycle for some action video or photography. Once you have one, it's hard to ever leave home without the Joby. The tripod comes equipped with a universal 1/4-20 screw to attach your camera to the mount. It can support small to mid-size SLRs with a compact zoom or prime.

Hoya: 77mm close-up lens kit, $98, for macro work and portraiture, these close-up filters are ideal. For the creative photographer on the go, the Hoya closeup kit is simply a lightweight case of 3 close-up filters that screw on to the end of the lens. These offer versatility yet barely any weight in one's photography kit. These come in various lens thread sizes.

• Hoya: 72mm close-up lens kit, $89
• Hoya: 62 mm close-up lens kit, $93

Giottos Optical Cleaning Kit, $16, every photographer needs a good cleaning kit to throw in their bag. The Giottos kit includes the essentials: a small rocket blower for blowing dust and particles off the lens, retractable goats hair brush, cleaning solution, cotton swaps, and a microfiber cloth for buffing out spots and fingerprints. There are more extensive lens cleaning kits out there, but this one covers the basics.

Bogen Super Clamp with standard stud, $27, has thousands of uses--in our opinion, no camera bag should be without one.The Super Clamp holds just about everything: camera bodies, lights, umbrellas, hooks, cross bars, backdrops, even other Super Clamps. They hold these items to just about everything: posts, doors, door frames, stands, beams, tripod legs, etc. Get at least two for your giftee and they will constantly come up with new and innovative uses for the Super Clamp.

Holga 120CFN, $47 (review), a fun medium-format film camera, the Holga produces really interesting low-tech works of art with very little mechanical functioning. Some of the creative quirks and photo effects of the Holga include soft focusing, double-exposure capability, intense vignetting, and unpredictable light leaks. Each Holga is unique and produces rarities of their own. This is an inexpensive gift and will encourage seeing the world in a different way, as well as bending creative processes to create new and interesting works of art.

• Holga 120FN, $40
• Holga 120N, $28

Lowepro Terraclime 100, a great gift for the environmentally-conscious photographer, the Lowepro Terraclime is over 95% recycled (all of the fabric is made from 16 oz. PET bottles turned into durable water-resistant material). For its relatively small size, you can throw a full frame or small frame DSLR with a prime lens, along with a flash, memory cards, possibly even another prime lens. Fitting a rangefinder camera in this bag is even easier. Features include a padded camera wrap to use as an additional layer of protection for a DSLR, memory card pocket, zippered interior pocket, adjustable shoulder strap, and double-loop hook closure. It's pretty stylish as well as functional--and environmentally-friendly.

Lexar 4GB CF 300x, $45, or SanDisk 4GB CF Card, $25, memory cards are always a welcome gift. We don't think it's possible to own too many memory cards, especially when considering many of the newer DSLRs with HD video capture.

For cameras that take SD cards instead, go for these:

• Lexar 4GB SD Card
• SanDisk 4GB SD Card, $39

Kodak BW400CN 35mm, 36 exp, $5, a multi-purpose, black-and-white chromogenic film designed for processing in color negative chemistry. For the film buffs on your list, this film offers the elegance of black-and-white photography with the convenience of being able to print on color negative paper. Even better, the film can be developed in any pro lab running a C-41 Process.

Wacom Intuos4 Medium Pen Tablet, $350, will change how you work with photographs and any creative image editing or design work. Once you get used to using a pen on a flat surface instead of clicking and dragging with a mouse, the tablet is easy to use. The pen has interchangeable nibs to adjust the width and type of line and editing you can accomplish. The tablet also features eight ExpressKeys that can be assigned to custom functions. This is a great addition to any photographer's digital workflow.

Creative tilt-shift lens: Lensbaby the Composer for Sony, $270, this lens delivers creative photography similar to using a much more expensive tilt-shift lens. For a boost in your giftee's creativity, this lens is perfect for trying new angles and perspectives on recognizable objects. Portraits get very creative and interesting using the Composer. Photographers simply tilt the lens to a desired angle and then focus with the manual focusing ring.

• Lensbaby the Composer for Canon, $270
• Lensbaby the Composer for Nikon, $270
• Lensbaby the Composer for Olympus, $270
• Lensbaby the Composer for Pentax, $270

Adobe Lightroom 2, $250, compatible with both Mac and PC platforms, Adobe pares down Photoshop to the essential functions for photographers. This program allows you to post-process your RAW and JPEG digital images. Rather than using Bridge, you can use Lightroom as a cataloguing software. It includes tools for flexible sorting, selecting and organizing. Version 2 allows for quick spot corrections, red-eye removal, adjust overall color, exposure, and white balance without affecting the original image. Every change made to an image is automatically tracked. For more advanced editing, you can open in Photoshop while still tracking the image within Lightroom's cataloguing system. A very complete package for speed photo editing at a very decent price.

X-Rite Eye-One Display 2, $207, is the best entry-level monitor calibration package currently available. This colorimeter precisely measures the response of your monitor, be it CRT or LCD, to create its "profile." This fingerprint allows you to easily conform the monitor's behavior with a known standard. Don't settle for a one-size-fits-all solution by using canned profiles; each monitor is unique and requires its own profile. This program will enable your giftee to make their pictures look the way they were intended to be seen.

Epson R1900 Printer, $550, this mid-range photo printer from Epson offers extensive printing quality at a price that won't break your budget--perfect as a gift for the advancing photographer. The Epson R1900 uses advanced MicroPiezo pigment ink jet technology offering 5760 x 1440 dpi maximum resolution with an 8-color ink palette and has a 13 x 44" maximum print area.

Flip UltraHD Camcorder, $179, a pocket-sized camcorder to take with you everywhere, this newest iteration from Flip is the Flip UltraHD with 1280 x 720p high definition recording at 30 fps. It has a simple and easy-to-use interface, as well as an improved processing engine for better video in low light conditions. The flip-out USB port means everything's self-contained and no need for extra cables. The FlipHD has 8GB of internal memory for capturing about two hours of HD video.

Pentax DA 35mm f/2.8 Macro Limited, $700 (review), Normal prime (on a small frame sensor), Pentax's first Limited series macro lens. Including its built-in slide out hood, this lens is entirely built from aluminum to extremely tight tolerances. This 1:1 macro delivers life size close-ups in a very compact package, great for nature and landscape photographers. The DA 35mm offers full time manual focus touch up, even when the camera is set to auto focus. While this is a great feature on all lenses, it is especially useful in macro photography. Being a true macro the DA 35mm offers excellent optics and very low distortion at the edges of the frame. This lens also doubles as a moderately fast normal prime lens.

Sigma DP2, $569 (review), boasts a high 14MP Foveon CMOS sensor, approximately seven to twelve times larger than the 1/1.8in to 1/2.5in image sensors used in ordinary compact digital cameras. The DP2 has a fixed 24.2 f/2.8 fast lens, great for low light photography. It also includes a RAW mode for retaining full image capture detail, as well as a JPEG option. The camera has a built-in pop-up flash with manual control, a hot shoe for mounting an external flash, a 9-point focusing area, and manual focus. For a pocket-sized camera with very advanced features and capabilities, this may be the camera if cost is not a concern.

Olympus PEN E-P1, $585 (review), the camera with the cool retro look and brushed metal body, the 12MP E-P1 is based around the "micro 4/3" standard, removing the bulk from the DSLR camera body and creating a compact pocket-sized camera. When paired with the 14-24mm retractable lens, the camera can take some very high quality photos even in low light. If your photographer friend on your list is more old-school, they may wish for the additional optical viewfinder accessory, otherwise they'll have to compose images on the LCD screen.

Canon Pixma PRO9500 MkII Printer, an affordable yet professional wide-format printer, the 10-color PIXMA Pro9500 MkII prints up to 13x19" on a variety of specialty and fine art papers. The printer comes with Easy PhotoPrint Pro software and Adobe Photoshop Elements (helpful if the photographer you're buying for doesn't have Photoshop already). The Pro9500 uses Canon's Lucia inks with image permanence up to 100 years with color prints and 200 years with monochrome printing (also dependent upon the paper used). The Canon Pro9500 MkII is a great printer for gallery-quality prints.

Pentax K-x (red), 18-55mm kit, $650 (review), for a budding photographer, or a photographer on the go interested in making a bolder statement with their gear, the Pentax K-x is available in red, white, navy, and black. The 12MP CMOS sensor has image stabilization built-in for improved photography and video of up to 4 stops. The K-x has an expanded ISO range of up to 12800 (better than the 3200 max ISO of the K-7). It also shoots 720p HD video. This camera is ideal for photographers stepping up from a point and shoot to a DSLR camera. You can't go wrong with the colors either!

• Pentax K-x (white), 18-55mm kit, $650 (review)
• Pentax K-x (navy), 18-55 kit, $650 (review)
• Pentax K-x (black), 18-55mm kit, $650 (review)

Tamron 60mm f/2 Di II Macro Lens [Canon], $500, the first medium telephoto macro lens designed for small-frame DSLR cameras with a fast maximum aperture of f/2, one stop faster than the usual f/2.8. The 60mm macro lens has 1:1 focusing, ideal for photographing jewelry and detailed still objects. Encourage a creative exploration of macro photography for that special someone on your list, and make sure you subtly check which camera system they're already using. A Canon-mount 60mm Tamron lens won't work on a Nikon.

• Tamron 60mm f/2 DI II Macro Lens [Nikon], $500 (review)
• Tamron 60mm f/2 DI II Macro Lens [Sony], $500 (review)

Adobe Photoshop CS4 [Mac], $650, or Adobe Photoshop CS4 [PC], $600, this is the essential tool for more advanced image editing as well as simple color enhancements and resizing. No other software comes close. This latest version of Photoshop allows for even more extensive image editing, and includes tools useful for video editors, designers, and more. You may even be able to create your next Cyborg assistant with the program--maybe not a real life-size version, but most certainly a visual representation of one. If your giftee already has an earlier version of Photoshop, buy them the upgrade to CS4. They'll thank you profusely!

Canon PowerShot G11, $479, fits in your pocket and has a variety of very advanced features for a point and shoot camera. The Canon G11 has fewer megapixels than the G10, Canon chose to step back from the megapixel war and offer a high sensitivity 10MP sensor, decreasing the noise and improving image quality. The G11 also has an articulated LCD panel on the back to allow for more creative shooting. Add some underwater housing to the package, and your giftee will thank you for months to come.

• Canon Underwater Housing for the G11, $175

Elinchrom D-Lite 2 Monolight Flash Kit, an advanced lighting kit from Elinchrom with a very reasonable price tag, allowing photography enthusiasts to experience advanced lighting technology with a limited budget. These lights are very lightweight, compact, and with a lot of light control most entry-level units don't have. If your photographer is on the go and needs a portable system, or is just getting into studio photography, this kit is pretty amazing.

Canon EOS 7D, $1699 (review), Canon's newest and most feature-rich advanced amateur DSLR with a 18MP sensor, ISO settings all the way up to ISO 12800, 8 fps continuous shooting, HD 1080p video at 30 fps, and wireless control of speedlites (a feature previously only found on Nikons), and a host of features that make it the advanced amateurs choice for a mid-range DSLR.

Nikon D300s, $1700 (review), uses a 12MP sensor that produces excellent low-light performance (very similar to the popular D300). Now add HD video to the D300 and a stereo input for an external mic, and you get one excellent advanced DSLR. The D300s can capture 7 fps continuous shooting, has an expanded ISO range to 6400, and features dual card slots for CF and SD cards.

Pentax K-7, $1100 (review), is designed for advanced photographers and features a rugged yet compact body with a 14.6MP CMOS sensor, HD movie capture, and relatively fast 5.2 fps continuous capture. The K7 fitted with a compact limited lens makes for a very feature-rich but very small and compact camera system for adventure photographers on the go. They will especially like the fact that the body is weather, dust and cold resistant.

Panasonic DMC GH1, $1500, digital SLR cameras keep getting smaller and smaller. Most photographers seek for as many advanced features in the smallest most compact body for everyday photography. While not the smallest DSLR body Panasonic offers, the GH1 offers high-quality photography and HD video performance in a body based on the Olympus 4/3 system, and works with a range of lenses designed for the 4/3 system. One feature that sets this camera apart from other DSLR/HD video hybrids is the continuous auto-focus feature while shooting 1080p high-def content. It also has a built-in facial recognition system, which remembers people's faces and will prioritize that face's focus--let's just make sure your camera doesn't mistake your favorite Uncle Bob with your not-so-favorite Aunt Sally's face.

Sony A850, $1999 (review), for the techie gal or guy on your list. Sony offers a full-frame DSLR for a very reasonable price with a 24MP CMOS image sensor, a body-integrated image stabilizer system that allows for up to 4 shutter speed stops of stabilization, great for shooting in low light. For shooting fast-paced action, the Sony A850 only gets up to 3 fps, so this camera may not be ideal for sports photographers or journalists capturing action moments. Sony has an extensive system of Carl Zeiss, Konica-Minolta lenses behind it, and could be a very appropriate system for a Konica Minolta film user converting to digital.

Leica M9, $6995 (review), this is a gift only for the very deserving someone on your list [maybe for yourself?], the Leica M9 is the first full frame digital rangefinder camera. With an 18MP CCD full-frame sensor, all lenses created for the film Leicas are fully compatible with the Leica M9 offering the same aspect ratio. Upgrading from the small frame sensor M8, the M9 has a quieter shutter for better stealth photography, and an exposure bracketing feature that allows for multiple exposures [combine the images into HDR (High Dynamic Range) photos during post-processing]. Who wouldn't be happy to get this camera neatly wrapped and tucked under the tree?

Eizo Coloredge GC241W, $1805, a top-of-the-line 12-bit monitor with a 24-inch screen. The Eizo monitor's output R, G, and B output levels are calibrated at the factory. For a more accurate color-managed workflow, this monitor allows for more accurate viewing of the images on screen and translate to more accurate print colors. For any professional, a high-quality monitor is essential for their workflow.