Godox announced the updated version of their square-headed Speedlight the V860III last summer. Having an extra portable flash unit in your bag is always a good idea, particularly if you’re like me and often end up shooting on location, so I was keen to try it out. Godox boasted several new features such as a new hot shoe lock and modelling light, but is it really different enough from both the previous V860II or the round-headed V1 to warrant an upgrade? Let’s take a look!
Hands on with the Platypod eXtreme
We recently covered the launch of the Platypod eXtreme. It’s the latest of Platypod’s Kickstarter projects and it’s part f their flat tripod line, coming in at $119 on Kickstarter. I have had one in my hands since late January. I took it with me to Iceland, Croatia, Wales, and a number of other places to test. Here are my thoughts.
The eXtreme boasts a few improvements on the Platypod Max (reviewed here), which is the model it most closely resembles. There are some clear upgrades to this model and it will be my go-to “tripod” for low-angle shots. The weight of the eXtreme is up there on the list, it weighs only 9.6oz versus the Max which comes in at 12.9oz (and is actually smaller). The construction of the eXtreme is where the weight saving comes in. There are more cut-outs for accessory use and to make space for the collapsible screw legs, which gives the eXtreme its angular-looking aesthetic. The material itself, which is aircraft-grade aluminum, remains the same high quality as before, and the thickness is the same.
Wildlife photographer Steve Perry gets his hands on the new Nikon Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens
The recently announced Nikon Nikkor Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens caused a bit of a stir amongst wildlife and sports photographers – at least, the ones who shoot Nikon. It may be a third of a stop slower than its F mount DSLR predecessor, but it comes with $10K shaved off its price tag and its weight over its predecessor has been cut almost in half, too. But how does it stand up to the job of actually shooting?
In this video, wildlife photographer Steve Perry takes out a pre-production version of this lens, with its Phase Fresnel (PF) optical tech – which helps contribute towards its lightweight design – to give it a spin and see how it handles. Steve details the actual shooting experience and goes over the features of the lens.
OWC Atlas S Pro V90 UHS-II SD cards are fast, reliable and reasonably priced
In January, OWC announced their new Atlas S Pro V90 UHS-II SD Cards, available in 32GB, 64GB, 128GB and 256GB capacities. They’re priced very competitively, too – that is to say, they’re less expensive than many of their V90 competitors but still a little more expensive than V60 UHS-II cards.
As V90 cards, they guarantee sustained write speeds of at least 90MB/sec. According to OWC, real-world testing has provided write speeds of up to 276MB/sec and read speeds of up to 290MB/sec. Such claims are easy enough to verify – at least, one would think so – so when OWC offered to send us some to try out, we decided to put these speeds to the test ourselves.
The Crabs are the best magic arms I’ve ever used
You know how your camera always wants friends? A monitor, a recorder, transmitters, mics, and more. (And then the friends want their own friends, like batteries, memory cards, and so on, but this is another topic). Well, all those “friends” need a place to live on your setup, and the new iFootage Spider Crabs could easily be the BFF in this group.
The Spider Crabs are a set of magic arms. Those are articulating arms with small ball heads on either side and a central knob if you are not familiar. When you tighten the central “elbow” knob, it locks the entire arm together. This makes it really easy to mount accessories and move them with ease.
The Rode VideoMic GO II should be your new go-to low budget on-camera microphone
Rode recently released their new Rode VideoMic GO II, replacing the VideoMic GO in their lineup. But this isn’t simply an update, it’s a complete overhaul, redesigned from the ground up. So, it presents a pretty major upgrade over its predecessor that inherits a number of features from its more expensive big brother the Rode VideoMic NTG, including the new holey design as well as USB connectivity.
I’ve been using one for a little while now and have done some tests and comparisons on the camera and when it’s plugged into a computer as a digital USB audio device. I’ve also done tests with and without the windshield to see how well it stands up to the breezy weather we’ve been having recently in Scotland.
Autel Evo Nano drone – Is it really a DJI Mini 2 killer?
This review of the Autel Evo Nano has taken a little longer than I’d anticipated to complete due to the abysmal weather we’ve been having here in this part of Scotland over the last few weeks. But I think this has turned out to be a bit of a blessing in disguise.
You see, when the Autel Evo Nano first came to me, there were quite a few features missing or not fully working. Even after its general release and people could actually buy it, it still had a few issues. But now, most of them seem to have been resolved and I’ve been able to fly it to its current full potential now that the weather has perked back up.
The Insta360 ONE RS is a worthy successor, adds 6K video, Active HDR and native FlowState stabilisation
Insta360 has today announced the new Insta360 ONE RS. It’s the follow-up to the company’s popular and modular Insta360 ONE R, released in 2020. It boasts some fancy new upgrades in both the core module as well as the 4K “Boost” module, but is it any good?
I’ve been playing with one for the last couple of weeks, so today we’re going to talk about some of its differences and benefits over its predecessor and take a look at some sample footage from both shot side-by-side to see how it compares. For those who just want the announcement info and the specs, you can check out the announcement article here. For the rest of you, carry on reading.
The Haida M10 II Filter System brings some nice workflow improvements over the original M10
I’ve used a number of square filter solutions over the years and it’s rare that new holders are released, but that’s what’s happened with Haida, with the release of the Haida M10 II. It’s an update to the original Haida M10 (review here) and it’s not just a slight rework with a new name, but it actually comes with some pretty nice design changes and improvements over its predecessor.
First up, my overall thoughts about the original Haida M10, which you can read about here, have not changed. It’s still a fantastic holder and the M10 II takes nothing away from it, and on first glance, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the M10 II is pretty much the same as the M10, although the changes that have come with the new version make it even more of a pleasure to use.
The PortKeys BM5 WR on-camera field monitor checks all the boxes of a great monitor
External monitors and I have a love-hate relationship. I love how it makes filmmaking easier for me. However, there are a lot of things that make using one harder. The weight, the battery, the I/O, cable management, and all sorts of things like that make choosing a perfect monitor pretty tough. After a few weeks of using the PortKeys BM5 WR, I feel relieved. It boasts all the tech you could need, with all the comfort one looks for in a monitor. But most importantly, it has GREAT cross-compatibility. let’s dive into it.
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