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DIYP reviews the Zhiyun Crane 2 motorised 3-axis gimbal stabiliser

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Ever since I got to play with the original Zhiyun Crane at Photokina 2016 I’ve wanted to put one of these things to work and see how it handles. I’ve used a number of smaller gimbals for phones, but the ability to load up a DSLR or mirrorless camera offers huge benefits. I almost never invest in the first generation of anything, but then they released the Zhiyun Crane 2.

GearBest got in touch with us to see if we wanted to check one out for ourselves and how it might help with the content we create here on DIYP. With The Photography Show and other events coming up where we need to shoot video, it seemed like a great opportunity to give it a good workout and really put it through its paces. But it’s quickly become one of my favourite video creation tools.

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Four weeks hands on with the iMac Pro

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I am not going to bore you with the how and why I was able to get my hands on a $5,000 iMac Pro for a few weeks. Let’s just say I’m glad that I’ve already had my firstborn, otherwise I think I’d be delivering him to someone else.

Let’s start with the packaging – yes I know, the packaging. I really, really wanted to not be a fanboy about this and I really don’t appreciate other reviews that talk about the packaging of a product because who cares, right?

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Using diffusion filters – LEE ‘Soft’ Filters 1 to 5 comparison test

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I’ve used diffusion filters for years but rarely for their intended purpose. If you don’t know or haven’t heard of them, then diffusion filters are transparent glass or plastic sheets that go in front of the lens and they diffuse the light as it enters the camera. The resulting images taken with a diffusion filter have an appearance of reduced contrast that ultimately looks hazy offering a slightly dream-like effect.

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This Sony A7III review shows it’s as good in the real world as it is on paper

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Since its announcement at WPPI recently, the Sony A7III has been the hot topic around the camera body water cooler. A lot of people had a something to say in the day or two that followed after having tried it for a little while. But now we’re starting to see some proper hands-on reviews with tests to see just how it performs in the real world.

In this in-depth video review, Jay P Morgan takes the Sony A7III for a spin around Vegas. He gives it a pretty thorough workout to test the limits of Sony’s new “basic” mirrorless camera. Looking at it on paper, it certainly seems to set the bar rather high now for entry level full frame cameras. With high ISO, video, burst mode and autofocus tests we get to see if it stands up to those specs.

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Loupedeck vs Palette Gear Review: Faster Editing in Lightroom

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Loupedeck and Palette Gear are two completely different types of consoles that essentially aims to do one thing: help you edit a little faster in Adobe Lightroom. That’s a general statement, but if you’re here, you probably have a bit of an idea about the two devices. I have both and I’ve spent a few weeks with each to see which will find a more permanent place on my desk, so let’s get to it. First, a quick overview about each device.

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The Light L16 — brilliant and braindead

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On Oct 8, 2015, a completely unknown company announced a new camera which promised to change how we think about photography.

The L16 combines breakthrough optics design with never-before-seen imaging technology to bring you the camera of the future.

The L16 would use 16 camera modules with varying focal lengths with folded optics instead of 1 single sensor, and use “computational photography” to fuse the individual photos together with depth data, producing results that would be “DSLR quality”.

The marketing promised a unicorn camera that prosumer/enthusiast photographers like me would want to carry around as an every-day tool. In theory, I would be able to leave my traditional cameras behind — today a FujiFilm X-T2, Leica Q and Sony RX100mk5 — and travel with just the Light L16.

2 years and 1 day after I pre-ordered my camera, my Light L16 finally arrived.

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DIYP Reviews the Manfrotto Element Carbon – Small but mighty

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The Manfrotto Element series of aluminum travel tripods have become quite popular since their initial release.  Now they’ve updated the line with the new Element Carbon. I’ve had one for the last few weeks, so here are some of my thoughts.

I’m not typically one to go for small tripods. Well, with the exception of the Manfrotto Pixi, those things are awesome. But sometimes I need my camera a little higher up. On location, when I need it to clear ground clutter or foliage, the little Pixi just doesn’t always cut it.

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The Best Bag For The DJI Spark

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If you own a drone, you know that moving it around could be quite challenging. While most drones feel solid, the propellors never seem to be quite safe 🙂

I got to play with the DJI Spark for a bit and aside from being a modern miracle of technology, it demanded some friends. The first of which was a bag (or a case). I did not get lazy and took the Spark to a store and pretty much tried ALL the bags they had.

And I found the perfect bag for the DJI Spark, the Lowepro Viewpoint CS 80.

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Nikon D850 review for wildlife photography

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It’s finally here!

The long awaited Nikon D850 review is finally finished! It took me 11 states, two countries, eight weeks, and 16,000 images to get it done, but here it is! This is a true field test loaded with real world examples, advice, and tons of tips for getting the most from all the new features.

Yes, it’s a bit of a long review, but I didn’t want to simply tell you about the new features, I wanted to show you how to use them as well. Nothing more frustrating than a review that tells you about some amazing new feature but leaves you clueless when it comes to using it, right? Well, rest assured this will give you all that and more. So, sit back, kick your feet up and enjoy!

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