Authors — Joey Daoud
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Hands on with GoPro Rigs from PolarPro
One of the little gems I stumbled on in the far reaches of the central hall at NAB last year was Polar Pro, a company that’s been putting out clever GoPro rigs (among other things). I got a chance to put some of their gear to the test on a recent climbing trip in Arizona. Here are my thoughts. ProGrip and StrapMount The ProGrip is a handy mount for the GoPro and remote, making handheld shots a little more stable and adding easier access to control of the camera with the placement of the remote. I loved it. The handle […]
by Joey Daoud on Jan 11, 2016 -
PolarPro Has Tons of Clever Rigs for the GoPro Action Shooter
I know, another company with more GoPro accessories. At first I was skeptical that I’d see something new, but as someone who dives and hikes, just about everything I saw from PolarPro solved a lot of mounting and accessibility problems I’ve had in the outdoors, from keeping the camera quickly accessible to adding extra power. It’s not much of a surprise these are well thought out accessories. Company founder Jeff Overall is an action sports enthusiast himself and was looking for a decent polarizing filter for his GoPro for snowboarding. When he couldn’t find one he made it and started PolarPro during his […]
by Joey Daoud on Apr 19, 2015 -
Post Workflow Gets Blurred and (Sometimes) Free with Updates From Avid, Blackmagic, Adobe, Apple
While most of the attention paid to Blackmagic’s releases at NAB went to their slew of new and updated cameras, they also released DaVinci Resolve 12, which they say has made a bigger improvement in the last year than their last five years of updates. When they introduced 11 last year, they announced new editing tools within the app. They’ve further expanded Resolve as a feasible NLE with multicam features, tons of trim mode options, and a brand new audio engine for audio editing. I played around with Resolve at the booth. The timeline definitely felt familiar and the ease of making […]
by Joey Daoud on Apr 16, 2015 -
New Rugged Hard Drives from LaCie and G-Tech
LaCie announced some updates to their familiar rugged line at NAB. There is now a larger housing with two drives for RAID 1 or 0. It includes both a thunderbolt and USB 3 interface, with 4 TB for $419. Also new to the rugged line is a 1 TB SSD drive, priced at $899. There’s a variety of other options in both SSD and spinning disk ranging from 250 GB to 2 TB. Not rugged but a new mobile addition is a USB-C drive. Expect to see more of these now that Apple has made it clear that’s the new direction of connections. Comes […]
by Joey Daoud on Apr 15, 2015 -
Review and Collaborate on Projects with Wipster
If you’ve ever dealt with a video project that needed feedback from a team of people, chances are you’ve worked with Dropbox files, password-protected Vimeo links, and a scattered selection of email chains. Wipster aims to streamline the process with their online platform. Simply upload your video file and choose who you want to share it with. Everyone you list will get an email with a unique URL to view the video without needing to create an account and log in. From there they can use Wipster’s powerful commenting feature, which lets any collaborator comment on any frame in the video just by […]
by Joey Daoud on Apr 15, 2015 -
Solo Smart Drone Creates Virtual Second Operator
While news of another GoPro drone being released may not seem too exciting, 3D Robotics’ new Solo drone has some incredibly smart features that set it apart from everything currently on the market. Anyone who’s operated or dealt with a drone on a shoot soon realizes that to get very complex camera moves you need two operators — one to pilot the drone and one to control the camera. Solo is able to automate some of the tasks of piloting and camera control so a single shooter can get some incredible shots. Check out the video below for an idea of […]
by Joey Daoud on Apr 14, 2015 -
Sennheiser Rethinks the Wireless Lavalier with AVX
Traditionally when you see a lavalier you’re looking at two identical boxes with frail antennas and dangling cables. Sennheiser decided to rethink this with their new AVX system. The completely redesigned receiver is designed to plug into the XLR input with a very minimal profile. This connects to a wireless lav or handheld transmitter, also streamlined to have no dangling cables or antennas. Both units are rechargeable and simplify wireless recording by automatically finding free frequencies. A complete kit sells for $899 and will ship in June. Update: the rechargeable batteries are replaceable with either other rechargeable batteries or regular ones. Also released […]
by Joey Daoud on Apr 14, 2015 -
Aputure DEC Adapter Turns Still Lenses into Smooth Remote Follow Focus System
It’s that time of year again for a slew of new cameras and gear to be revealed at NAB. I’m out at the show for my second year in a row, writing about new gear throughout the week on the site. I’ve got an interest in gear I’d use myself, for single shooter setups and low budget productions. But if there’s something you’d like to see covered, just reach out to me on Twitter or comment here. One new device I saw that really solves a lot of problems for the one-man band shooter is the DEC Adapter from Aputure. […]
by Joey Daoud on Apr 13, 2015 -
Fotodiox’s GoTough Filters Add More Image Control to Your GoPro
While GoPros shoot great action footage, there’s some effects you may want that can only be achieved through filters. Fotodiox offers a filter set and mount to offer more control over your GoPro image with their GoTough filter adapter and WonderPana filters. I tested out a set with the HERO 3+. The kit really depends on the housing used, so it can work with a HERO3 or HERO4 too and there’s an adapter for older HERO3 housings. The kit comes with a 53mm filter adapter, UV, ND8, and a polarizer filter. Because of GoPro’s auto settings you won’t see much of […]
by Joey Daoud on Apr 13, 2015 -
Domke Journalist Series Next Gen Camera Bag Review
If there ever was a piece of gear that I’ve experienced a Goldilocks dilemma with, it’s my camera bag. Or bags: different jobs call for different bags and configurations, so I’ve gathered a few over the years. Recently I’ve gotten to put a classic through real world use, the Chronicle from Domke’s updated Next Generation Journalist Series. Domke is an iconic camera bag you usually see slung around the shoulders of journalists out in the field (or movies, like The Bang Bang Club). The Chronicle is a medium sized bag that feels extremely sturdy and well built. It’s got a […]
by Joey Daoud on Apr 12, 2015
