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About Udi Tirosh

Udi Tirosh is the Founder and Editor in Chief of DIYPhotography, he is also a photographer, a relentless entrepreneur, a prolific inventor and a dad, not necessarily in that order

The SmallRig RC 450B is a medium power LED light in a streamlined package

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A few months ago, SmallRig entered the LED lighting market with the RC120 and RC220 COB units (reviewed here and here). Even in our initial review, we said that the true verdict of these lights would be their ecosystem. And now, SmallRig is adding four new lights to the mix: RC 350D, RC 350B, RC 450D, and RC 450B. This is a mix of daylight and bicolor lights at 350 and 450 Watts output.

The new lights show Smallrig’s commitment to the LED line, and I would not be surprised if there are more lights to come at higher ratings. After all, this is the path we saw Aputure, Nanlite and Godox go with their road map.

This review, however, will focus on the series leading light, the RC 450B, a 450 Watts Bi-color LED light. (The rest of the series is similar in functions)

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This is the story of how I shot my wife touching a Comet

She pointed up to the sky and touched the comet igniting a spark that entwined with her soul and the soul she has created. A bond that is entangled for the rest of eternity and existence. And that very soul that grows, thrives, and lives inside of her is Comet Girl!

It was about two years into my journey of being a night photographer. My knowledge and experience were still fairly average, so taking this shot was a real challenge. Here is the story of my exploration of Comet Girl.

One late evening, I was scrolling through my social feed and saw this image of Comet Neowise. I then saw another one and another one. I was left in disbelief and was sad that I had missed such an opportunity to see a once-in-a-lifetime & rare sighting. Little did I know this Comet wasn’t going anywhere in a rush, at least for a few weeks, and after more research, I soon realized I had not missed my chance to see it and capture it.

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A somber prediction – A.I. will replace all creatives

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If we already have AI software, like Stable Diffusion and Midjourney, that can generate one brand new image based on a text prompt, couldn’t it generate 24 of them?

Couldn’t the AI image generation model eventually be trained to render entire videos with a text prompt, and couldn’t that algorithm eventually be trained to generate sounds and dialog as well?

Wouldn’t this eventually become a paid streaming service where you put in a prompt, and a full-fledged movie pops out the other end? A movie that required no writers, directors, actors, sets, costume designers, or editors to create, just some AI software.

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Photographer creates a global tribe of women using artificial intelligence from his armchair in North Yorkshire

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As artificial intelligence (AI) technology continues to develop, so too does the ability to create realistic images with the help of AI.

I have been spending some time testing out how good this new technology really is, trying to figure out who has the creative control, how I feel about being removed from the process, and how as a photographer, I can take advantage of this new tech while sitting in my living room in the middle of North Yorkshire.

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DIYP reviews the Sirui Dragon flexible LED light strip

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The market for photo and video LEDs is becoming quite commoditized. Having good CRI (95+), both RGB and white LEDs, or an app, is not enough to compete in the market anymore. This is why brands are turning to fight either on price, quality, and service or, most interestingly, on features and innovation. Enter the Sirui Dragon Light, a bendable, app-controlled RGBWW LED strip. While this is not the first bendable light (see KYU-6), it is the first big, high-output flexible light. And this is worth a look.

Sirui is well known for its tripod line and its anamorphic lenses, so it is interesting to see how their knowledge of other photography lines will translate into making an LED. And right off the bat, you can see it is not a tube, it is not a panel, it is not a COB, it is something else entirely.

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Deconstructing two commercial shoot frames

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Creating a commercial shoot from scratch is somewhere between business and art. On the art side, you want to make sure you are proud of what you have created, and on the business side, you have to meet a deadline, keep a budget and deal with a client.

There is a lot to be said on how to manage the business side of such a shoot, but today I want to focus on the artistic side. Specifically, I want to talk about creating a winning frame while keeping budget in mind

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Hands down, this is the best video case for traveling

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When it comes to running a smooth production, everyone loves their kit. The problem is that carrying your kit around can be quite an unpleasant experience. Between all the bags of gear, you can really get lost. Enter My Case Builder, where you can make your dream case.

It’s not only the size and padding, My Case Builder (MCB) can create a highly customized case that literally fits all your gear in the most precise way.

Take Maor Cohen, for example. Maor is a commercial videographer who shoots fashion. He uses a Tilta Float with a hefty BMPCC rig attached. It’s a wide 45cm rig and does not fit in any standard bag. Between the BMPCC rig and all the accessories Maor brings to a shoot, he was walking around with quite a few bags. We needed to end this.

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This is how I made these freaky AI selfies, and now you can too

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We have shared quite a few articles about AI and image generation recently. From art to deep fake to tool creation. Dall-E and Google’s Imagen have definitely been instrumental in bringing text-based image generation to the masses,  but have you considered some more fun applications? Like creating photos of yourself as a Viking, warrior, or James bond?

Asteria just released Dreambooth, a “Tailor-made AI image generation” tool. I played with it for a while, and let me tell you. It is a rabbit hole. Let me share a quick tutorial on how to use this tool to create the perfect collection of “you”.

If you create any good “prompts”, share them in the comments. Not sure what that means? You will at the end of the article.

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The PortKeys LH5P II monitor is also a clever camera remote

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If you are shooting video, you know how annoying those built-in camera monitors can be. Even if they are slightly bigger. Even if they tilt. Even if they flip out. They are just not very convenient when you need to do work on a bigger scale. I am not dissing them completely. Some situations call for small built-in monitors. But you want an external monitor when you need accuracy and a bit more real estate. Today, we will look at PortKeys LH5P II, which is not only an on-camera monitor but also a clever camera remote.

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The best switcher / streamer: YoloBox Pro vs Feelworld L2 vs ATEM mini

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Today we are comparing The BlackMagic ATEM mini vs. the Feelworld L2 vs. the Yololiv YoloBox Pro. There is a comparison cheat sheet right after the jump, but for the full post, keep reading.

When Covid hit, we all started streaming from home. In fact, I recall when webcams were in such high demand that you couldn’t even get them for their weight in gold.

Now, a webcast is just the base, and if you want to play in the big league, you are probably in the market for a switcher/streamer kind of device.

I would say that there are three types of switchers out there: The BlackMagic ATEM mini type, with a lot of buttons and things to press; the Feelworld L2 type, with a small monitor and a traditional T bar; and the Yololiv YoloBox Pro type that kinda look like an oversized tablet. But which one should you choose? Let’s break it down.

Those may seem like three completely different devices. But in the end, they are all used for the same purpose, switching, streaming, and recordings. And so let the fighting begin

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