One of the pitfalls novice landscape photographers often fall foul of is shooting a horizon that isn't straight, and they are often harshly criticised for sloping skylines - because, ultimately, unless it's justified in some artistic way - the sky never slopes when the eye looks at it. I have often read that a spirit level is used by many photographers, so I decided to pick up a standard hotshoe spirit level from Jessops. At the time, it cost me about £6.95, but I see on their website that the price has currently risen to £10.
The spirit level itself seems well-made, and fits neatly into the camera's hotshoe. For most landscape photography this shouldn't be a problem, since you won't be using flash at the same time. The level seems accurate, and is very easy to see from all sides, being made of clear plastic.
Having said that, I can see no reason why you would have any use for this if your camera is capable of displaying grid lines in the viewfinder, as most Nikon cameras from the D80 upwards are capable of doing, along with many Canon SLRs. The disadvantage of the spirit level is you have to remove your eye away from the viewfinder to check that it is still level, whereas an in-camera gridline allows you to check the level and a whole lot more. I find the in-camera grid to be quicker and more versatile. However, if your camera doesn't have such a feature, this spirit level is a good quality little piece that will banish wonky skylines forever.
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