Photography Bay

Digital Camera News, Reviews and Tips

Watch a Guy Dive Into 1,000 Mousetraps in 4K at 1,000fps

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Ever wonder what it’s like to jump into the middle of a thousand mousetraps?

Me either.

The Slow Mo Guys put 1,000 mousetraps on a trampoline and then jumped in the middle of them. They shot with a Phantom Flex 4K at 1,000 frames per second. Skip to 1:37 for the slow motion action.

You can rent a Phantom Flex 4K for $3,500 per day or up to $10,500 per week. Buying one will run you north of $100k. You can roll a little cheaper to get to get close to the 1,000 frames per second territory with the Sony RX100 V. Not quite 4K at those frame rates but it’s pretty solid for the price.

 

Game of Drones: DJI New Investments Could Value the Company at $10 Billion

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DJI Phantom 3

DJI has singlehandedly launched the drone market into the stratosphere. The DJI Phantom is instantly recognizable and synonymous with the word “drone.” It is nearly a household name. Just last week, we saw one at the center of a sequence on Big Bang Theory.

Right now, you can order a DJI drone to be shipped to your door in a day or two at prices ranging from $350 for a base-model Phantom 1 to over $6000 for a DJI S1000 that can haul heavy-duty camera. And there are models at nearly every price point in between. There is much and more for everyone in DJI’s lineup. [Read more…]

DJI F550 Drone Return-to-Home Function Causes Collision with Rock Wall

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[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F74VKHUwn8s&w=700]

The return-to-home function on RC drones like the DJI Phantom and F550 is a pretty cool feature, which we saw saved the day for Eric Cheng when he took his Phantom over an active volcano. Of course, if there is a rock wall between you and your drone, it could present some problems. [Read more…]

Forget the $500 Gimbal; Make a DIY Anti-Vibration Drone Camera Mount for $10

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The problem with mounting a GoPro to a DJI Phantom or other drone is that the vibration of the propellers creates a terrible jello effect in the footage. This is the main reason that gimbals have become such a popular accessory for drones. But gimbals are expensive.

Two grad students from USC were searching for a cheaper way to reduce the jello effect in their footage from their Phantom-mounted GoPro. After months of failure in testing several aftermarket products, they finally built their own mount with household items for less than $10.

They discovered that they had to dampen the attachment between the GoPro and the Phantom, which is something that none of the attachments on the market allowed. In the end, they used a pair of sponges and some semi-rigid wires to connect a mount that was constructed from a plastic lid.

The results are impressive and resemble the look of an expensive gimbal when viewing the output footage. You can see a full walkthrough, along with sample footage, in the video above.

DJI Responds to Phantom Flyaway Concerns and Safeguards in Phantom 2

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DJI Phantom

In July 2013, I posted an article detailing the numerous flyaway reports for the Phantom quadcopter that many users had experienced. It proved to be a very popular topic and users are still reporting issues and addressing possible solutions in this forum thread.

When I asked DJI about the issue via email last year, I received what seemed to be a basic troubleshooting response. Later in 2013, DJI released the Phantom 2 Vision and Phantom 2 quadcopter with additional features; however, the documentation for the Phantom 2 did not allude to any flyaway concerns relating to the original Phantom.

I attended DJI’s press conference at CES 2014, which highlighted the Phantom 2. After the press conference, DJI opened the floor for questions, at which time I presented the question from Photography Bay forum member and reader concerns regarding the original Phantom flyaways and whether the Phantom 2 takes into account any of these concerns with new safeguard to prevent flyaways. [Read more…]

Dave Hill Slow Motion BTS

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[vimeo https://vimeo.com/42172430 w=640&h=360]

Check out the above behind-the-scenes video of a recent Dave Hill commercial shoot for the Fiat Abarth.  Motion elements for the shoot were captured with the super slo-mo Phantom Flex and Phantom Gold cameras, while the stills were shot with the Canon 5D Mark II and Hasselblad H3D-50.

The DP behind the motion side of the shoot was Brandon Lippard, who also shot one of Doritos Crash the Superbowl winning commercials back it 2010.  Remember this one? [Read more…]