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Watch: Video tests to see if the Nikon Z6 II Eye AF really that much better than the Z6

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Some of the biggest complaints about the Nikon Z6 have been addressed with Nikon’s new Z6 II. It now has dual card slots for redundancy and its continuous shooting speed has been bumped up from 12fps to 14fps. But one somewhat embarrassing setback of the Z6, even after the firmware updates, was its Eye Autofocus abilities.

Manny Ortiz has had his hands on a pre-production model Z6 II for a little while, and he wanted to put it to the test to see if the Eye AF issues, particularly in low light situations have finally been resolved. And, well, it looks like they might have been.

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These are the best and the worst ways to use a single-light setup

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Although a single light doesn’t seem like much, there’s a lot you can do with it. From some more traditional setups to unusual horror setups, a single light can really be extremely versatile. In this video, Manny Ortiz will show you the best, but also the worst ways for using a single-light setup in only three minutes.

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This is the easiest way to stop screwing up your lines on-camera

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Speaking to a camera is rarely an easy thing. Even for seasoned professionals, it can take several takes to get all the words out without screwing something up. Most YouTubers understand this problem intimately. But there is an easy tool to help you stop flubbing your lines, shoot in fewer takes and ultimately take less time to shoot your videos.

In this behind the scenes look at how he shoots his videos, YouTuber Manny Ortiz walks us through the gear he uses to create his videos, including his favourite tool to stop him messing up his lines, the Parrot Teleprompter 2.

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Dear introverted photographers, here are five tips for successfully working with people

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If you’re an introvert, you may find it very difficult and even exhausting to work with people. Naturally, it makes it more difficult to work as a photographer in certain genres. But there are ways to deal with it. In this video,teams up with fellow YouTuber, photographer, and introvert Taylor Jackson. They share some tips for all you introverted photographers to help you work with people and feel less awkward.

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Tests show the Eye AF on the Canon EOS R nails it after latest firmware update

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Earlier this year, firmware update brought Sony-like Eye AF to Canon EOS R. But is it really harder, better, faster, stronger than before? Well, Manny Ortiz got to test it out in some tricky lighting conditions, and it turns out Canon nailed it! In the fun video below, Manny demonstrates Canon R’s improved Eye AF in action and shares some of his impressions.

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This is what it looks like to shoot portraits at absurd 900mm

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One would say that shooting portraits with a 400mm or 500mm lens is overkill. Absurd, even. But what shooting portraits at 900mm? Manny Ortiz teamed up with Irene Rudnyk and Gerald Undone to find out. They used a Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens for shooting portraits, and to make things even more absurd, they paired with an APS-C Sony a6400. In other words, they shot portraits at around 900mm equivalent and it looks like they had a lot of fun doing this crazy experiment.

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Here’s what happens when photographer and model switch roles

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As a portrait photographer, have you ever wondered what it’s like for your models to be in front of the camera? In this super-amusing video, Manny Ortiz and his most photographed model – his wife – walked in each other’s shoes. Manny became Diana’s model for a day, and she was the photographer, and they show us what it looks like when a photographer and a model switch roles.

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Getting out of creative rut: what happens when a portrait photographer tries to shoot street photos

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I believe we all hate it when we get stuck in a creative rut. But hey, it happens, and there are ways to overcome it. One of the ways to get out of it is to try a different genre, and that’s exactly what Manny Ortiz did. The portrait photographer hit the streets and tried something new – street photography. It didn’t go quite as he expected, but he learned a lesson that will be valuable to all of you who are currently experiencing the creative block.

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Photographers, this is why you should stop comparing yourself to others

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As photographers, I believe all of us frequently look at other people’s work in order to admire it, to learn, and draw inspiration from it. But many of us also compare ourselves to others, and it can become toxic. In this video, Manny Ortiz discusses why we should stop comparing our work to other photographers’, and suggests what to do instead.

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