GEAR MINI TESTS
Two of the latest bits of DJI tech, a Sigma fisheye lens, Nanlite’s slimline LED panel, a smoke machine and some editing software get the treatment
WORDS ADAM DUCKWORTH AND ROGER PAYNE
DJI OSMO POCKET 3 CREATOR COMBO £619/$669 dji.com
DJI’s Osmo Pocket 3 gimbal camera and Mic 2 wireless audio system work perfectly as two stand-alone products, but we’re reviewing them both because of a simple trick they do when joined together. That’s to use a single Mic 2 audio transmitter with the Osmo gimbal to record sound internally to the transmitter as a backup, as well as beaming it wirelessly to the camera’s memory card. Nothing else is needed – no wires or separate receiver. Simply set it up in the Osmo Pocket 3’s menu. For that reason, DJI sells a £619/$669 kit with the gimbal, one Mic 2 transmitter with fluffy windscreen and charging cable, a magnetic wide-angle lens attachment and battery extension handle that lets you screw in the included mini tripod. A set of NDs is available as an extra. For the full dual-mic set-up with two transmitters, receiver, charging case and carry case, that’s £309/$349.
Of course, then you’d have three transmitters. So we made up our own kit: a full Mic 2 set-up (which we test on the next page), a bare Osmo Pocket 3 for £489/$519, then the wide-angle lens and non-battery extension plus mini tripod bought as accessories to save cash. At least there are options so you can get just what you need and nothing you don’t. We’ve actually been using the original DJI Osmo Pocket gimbal camera and Mark 1 Mic kit since they were released, so know them very well. But the new versions offer a lot more, so it makes sense to upgrade. Starting with the Osmo Pocket 3, of course it’s not an A camera for serious filmmaking. But as a carry-everywhere kit for some fast B roll or behind-the- scenes footage, it’s very useful thanks to its smooth three-axis gimbal to take away the shakes. The gimbal doesn’t offer all the controls of a full-size unit, but the basics are there. You can adjust speed as well as modes such as follow, FPV or tilt lock. Like the original Pocket or newer Pocket 2, it has a lot of consumer-style electronics many serious filmmakers would probably never use, such as face tracking for shooting selfies or using DJI’s own app to automatically edit together videos and stills before uploading them to social media. The new Pocket 3 has even more of those fun and funky features, as well as hyper time-lapse. But we love it as a portable, motorised three-axis gimbal camera that records super-smooth 4K footage
at up to 120fps and Full HD at 240fps to a micro SD card for you to edit later. That’s twice the maximum frame rates of the older models. But what makes it even better is that the small sensor has now been replaced by a far higher- quality and larger one-inch type. This not only gives an increase in low-light performance, but also produces sharp 4K footage that can be useful as some cool B roll or to get a point of view where it would be impossible to hide a larger camera. And you can monitor the action via the smartphone app, too, as well as make camera adjustments. The old versions showed a significant crop in 120fps HD though, but no crop in 4K at 60fps. The new model doesn’t crop in 120p in 4K or 240p HD, which is a huge bonus. Footage is particularly impressive considering it’s from a camera with a small lens, which means you’re not
KITTED UP The clip-on case houses the magnetic wide-angle lens. You’ll need an adapter for the mini tripod
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