DIYPhotography.net

Chad Bredahl just sent in this smart tip about using a seat belt pad as a deadcat. (Deadcats protect microphones from wind, so if you are shooting video outdoors, it kills a lot of the wind noise).

Deadcats are not that expensive to begin with, but I guess auto part shops are easier to find if you are on a hurry and need a quick solution.

If you think this is crap, skip to 2:10 to see/hear the effect of the pad on wind noise, I was surprised on how nicely it works.

Thanks for the tip, Chad. Click to continue ›

After last month's notice about Nikon firmware getting decrypted by Simeon Pilgrim and Vitaliy Kiselev, I thought we may see a nice NHDK (kinda like CHDK, but colored yellow). Click to continue ›

Compressed air cannons are lots of fun for launching paper rockets. Turns out they are also pretty useful for indie films. What? Why would an indie film director want to launch a paper rocket? Actually, the compressed air can be used to throw a small pile of debris, creating a small "explosion" for an action sequence.

The awesome guys over at Realm Pictures came up with a great film that shows the entire setup for creating such an explosion, including the mentioned cannon.

They are also trying to fund their ambitions underwater indie film via kick starters, and share the plans for this cannon and a bunch of other cool film DIYs with backers (including the waterproof LED strip light we featured a while back), so give them a call on their Kickstarters page.

Thanks for the tip Rich Click to continue ›

We have featured a few DIY versions of the C-loop system before, but I think that is the simplest one yet.

Photographer Rui Nelson Silva came up with this simple plate and bolt solution for a bottom-attached camera strap.

It is based around a small aluminum plate that you can make if you have the skill or buy a similar one at your local hardware store. Click to continue ›

It is not often that we see tow of our favorite techniques used in a single film. photographers Colin Mika & Brandon Vedder of All Cut Up Films created this beautiful time lapse of Los Angeles with a twist (or actually two).

The first is that the entire film was shot through a snow globe, which I assume means that the camera was upside down for the entire duration of the shoot.

The second is the use of paper cut filters to achieve a shaped bokeh.

Click to continue ›

I just love it when people use ordinary stuff to create new gear. Take a Yoyo for example. It's built to roll and collect wire, reminds you of something? It reminded Marc Cocchio of a basic slider. And indeed a slider was build from a yoyo. Here are Marc's rough guidelines on how to make a similar device.

(Of course, if Yoyo seems absurd to you, you can always go for a pen or a BBQ Rotisserie.

As a maker, Marc used all kinds of scrap that was lying around and a bit of trial and error, so the tutorial below is set so you can build a similar (yet not an exact copy) of the slider.

The non-cheap portion of this project is the camera, remote and tripod. It's important to have a tripod with an "arm" that can rotate such as my Giottos MT8361. Manfrotto makes a few cool ones, too. Click to continue ›

If you are doing any videography, a jib (or a crane) is probably the third piece of gear you will buy (after a camera and a slider).

Jibs can bring huge production value to your videos. See this tutorial by J. P. Morgan for example. Alas they don't come cheap. A small starters jib will set you back about $270 and a production monster like this one will be about a left kidney.

I just wish someone will have plans for a small and affordable crane. Lucky me you. Videographer Dan Colvin from Unitips has a tutorial just like this. Click to continue ›

A while back we shared a niec little clip called the Nice Clip. It is a clip that attaches to the lens cap and make it clipabale. It really is one of those smack-me-on-the-head-for-not-thinking-about-this kinda of ideas.

Luckily, its simplicity makes it a good candidate for a DIY version. I guess photographer Sean Ragan thought the same. Using a small lapel clip and heavy duty outdoor mounting tape.

Click to continue ›

Photographer Joel Pirela set out to build a "real" lomographic camera that will beat the looks of any iPhone lomographic application. I mean, slapping a sticker on your iPhone and using instagram can never compare to the feeling that you get from pressing a real shutter on a real camera.

Click to continue ›

It's really cool how cameras can now shoot with acceptable results at super high ISO ratings like 6400. A few years back ISO ratings like this were nothing but a dream. (And before that Fujipress 1600 was the highest I ever used. Never saw a Fujipress 6400)

Alas, when shooting in the dark it is not an easy task to focus. And please forgive me canon users, but if you're a red brand lover, you're pretty much screwed).

Enter Malowz's invention - a strong focus assist that uses $10 in parts from deal extreme. Using a powerful LED and a strong reflector, Malowz build a hot shoe device that projects light to assist in focusing. Click to continue ›