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We ordered a bunch of Flickr prints and here’s an in-depth review

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In August this year, Flickr brought back its photo printing service. Alex (a.k.a. Shaka1277) ordered two prints to see what they look like, and he kindly shared his impressions with DIYP and our readers. But, many people wanted to know more about prints from Flickr and about the ordering process itself. So, we ordered a bunch of them and here we bring you a truly in-depth review.

I printed some of my photos: color and black and white, digital and film; in different finishes and different sizes. You’ll see what they look like, and I even did some torture-testing. I got everything in photos, videos, and of course – in writing, so you can get a full picture. So let’s get right into it!

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Rode NTG5 – The ultimate all-rounder shotgun microphone

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The Rode NTG5 short shotgun broadcast microphone came with a lot of interest and intrigue. The biggest question being “What’s with the holes?”. The NTG5 has an all-new design over Rode’s previous shotgun microphones, which Rode says helps to produce a more natural true-to-life sound. We put the NTG5 to the test to see how that claim holds up.

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The Manfrotto Advanced2 Hybrid Backpack is the best photography travel bag I’ve ever used

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I’ve spoken about camera bags before. They’re one of those things that photographers just seem to collect. Each has its purpose, but ultimately, many of them fail to live up to expectations and just end up becoming gear storage to keep the dust off your kit when it’s not in use. I’ve owned far too many bags for years, so new ones rarely get me excited anymore.

Recently, though, I’ve been using the new Manfrotto Advanced2 Hybrid Backpack, and it’s very quickly become my favourite travel photography bag and one that I use all the time.

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The Feelworld F6 Plus on-camera monitor features 3D LUTs and a touchscreen interface

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The Feelworld F6 Plus is the latest 5.5″ on-camera monitor from Feelworld. Except in name, it shares little in common with the Feelworld F6 it replaces. It’s had a complete redesign over its predecessor, with a shiny new display, touchscreen interface, HDMI passthrough and LUT support.

We first saw the F6 Plus on display at NAB earlier this year, and I’ve been using one as my main on-camera monitor for a few weeks now with various cameras. So, here’s the rundown on the specs, how it works in practical use and my overall thoughts on the Feelworld F6 Plus.

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This review of the DJI Mavic Mini focuses on its abilities as a filmmaking tool

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Perhaps it’s just that the DJI Mavic Mini is an impressive little drone, or maybe it’s the beautiful scenic views of Glencoe reminding me of my own visit there a couple of weeks ago, but this is one of the most complete Mavic 2 reviews I’ve seen so far that’s specifically geared towards photographers and filmmakers.

In this review, the guys at Drone Film Guide put the Mavic Mini through its paces, to push its capabilities and really see what this tiny 249g drone can pull off. Drone Film Guide concentrates more on the filmmaking side of things and less on the tech side of drones. But whenever a new drone comes out, it needs to be tested to find out where its filmmaking limits are.

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Review of the Haida M10 Filter System and 6 & 10-stop neutral density filters

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Although many lens filters were pretty much eradicated by the advent of digital photography, there are two which still hold a lot of value that can’t really be accurately replicated in Photoshop. Those are polarizers and neutral density filters. You can try, but you’ll never get it looking exactly like the real thing.

Recently, I’ve been trying out Haida’s M10 filter system, along with their circular polarizer, 6-stop M10 drop-in ND filter and the 100x100mm square 10-stop Red Diamond ND filter. The weather’s been kind of crappy here in Scotland lately, but I did get out to give them a try and do some slightly more objective tests, too. Here’s what I found out and what I think.

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A hands on first look at the new Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark III

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It’s only just been announced, but The School of Photography was lucky enough to be the first to get their hands on the new Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark III in the UK, so they’ve posted a review video. In it, they put the camera through its paces, testing the camera for both its photography and video abilities, exploring the new features on a model shoot.

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Blackmagic Pocket 4K/6K cage comparison – SmallRig vs Nitze

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If you’ve had a go at shooting video for any length of time with any camera that has a DSLR or mirrorless-like form factor, you soon realise that you need some form of cage. You need to attach handles, lights, microphones, external batteries and all kinds of doohickies. Sure, you have a cold shoe on many cameras, but you can only attach one thing to that.

When it comes to the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K, there isn’t even a cold shoe. There’s just a 1/4-20″ screw thread, and it can’t handle a lot of weight attached to it. The solution to this problem is to add a cage.

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The Feelworld FW279 is a super bright 7″ external monitor that can’t be beat at its price point

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If there’s one certainty when it comes to shooting video, it’s that at some point, you’ll want to pick up an external monitor of some kind. One big problem that many of them have, though, is that they can be quite difficult to see outdoors when it’s bright. I’ve tried a few from different brands over the years, but when it comes to bang for your buck, one company that’s pretty tough to beat is Feelworld.

For the past few weeks, I’ve been using Feelworld’s newest super bright 2,200 nit 7″ Feelworld FW279 monitor, now that the sun’s starting to make brief appearances here in Scotland. And so far, I really like it.

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I spent a week photographing concerts with the Canon EOS R and here’s what I think

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Canon Portugal sent me a Canon EOS R with the Canon RF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens for me to test. Unfortunately, it was only possible to keep it for a little over a week, but I still managed to make the first day of the MEO Mares Vivas Festival where I am the official photographer. This gave me the opportunity to test it during the day in good light for the assembly of the venue, but also at night in concert, which was what I was most interested in seeing.

I had already tried some mirrorless cameras, from other brands, and I confess that I was never very satisfied. Certainly, never to the point of wanting to chang I had already tried the Canon EOS R once, but only for a few minutes, which was not nearly enough to form an opinion about it.

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