Inexpensive 4k Video Cam

I'm no professional photographer, but I enjoy taking photos leisurely.  I'm more of a video guy. Specifically, I like shooting process videos of the things Anh and I do with Creative Session. So when Panasonic announced the G7, It was the perfect budget 4k video camera for me. I was gushing over the full frame Sony a7s II but couldn't justify dropping 3k for the body. Yet alone investing in new lenses.  I love the G7 price point. It's affordable, lightweight, and perfect for the type of work I'll do. Highly recommend. I'll post sample footage soon. 

Below is the G7 straight out the box. To the right is the blacked out version. Just the way I like it. If you're wondering I used black architectural tape to mask all the white labels.

Ricoh Theta

One of the perks of being an industrial designer is you get to play with cool new technology, this way you keep up with whats trending, and to call the gimmicky ones. My initial impression of the Ricoh Theta 360 camera was meh... but, this is before I spent a week with it.

The camera fits nicely in the hand, its about as thin and tall as the Iphone 5. I love the chirp noise it makes when you snap a photo. It comes in White, Yellow, Cyan & Magenta. I wished I got the white one, but who's to complain with free. You can shoot both photos and videos with it. Videos record up to three 3 minutes so plan your shots accordingly. It has 4gig of internal memory, and there is no external expansion slot. Luckily you can download the footage via the THETA app. Photos only not video. For videos you'll have to connect to a PC. When you run out of space on the Theta just download footage onto your phone. Unless your phone is full too. 

Im really excited that this camera does a great job at portraying how epic and vast a place really is. We've all taken photos of places so amazing & grand, but our photos doesn't do it justice. How many times have you said "Its way more impressive in real life?" Well I think Ricoh Theta is onto something. Enjoy the photos I've taken with it. 

I'm hoping to get some awesome photos of the Golden Gate Bridge this weekend. But check out these test photos for now. Click and hold to pan around on the photo. 

#yungbent #hoang test - Spherical Image - RICOH THETA

CANARY Smart Security Camera

About a week ago Canary reached out to Creative Session and sent us their first product to use. It's a smart security camera that connects to your network and let's you keep an eye on the things via the app. In my case, BENTLEY!

Thanks for the hook-up, Canary team. Special thanks to Brittany of the marketing team-I won't put your full name here so you can avoid any potential stalkers, unless you want me to. Then send an email stating so. 

A little background on Canary: They're a startup based in New York. I like their modern approach to security cameras by adding smart sensors that provide me data such as: Air Quality, Temperature, Motion, Humidity, Night Vision, Audio, Siren & Cloud Storage. These features are all valuable. I thought I was just receiving a internet-connected camera. Sorry Dropcam! You've been beat. 

The packaging is impressive and made really well. Can someone over at the Canary HQ please let me know who produced your packaging? Because it's nicely executed, and the soft-touch paper and the folded box are great design decisions. My favorite part of unboxing the camera is the tasteful pops of Canary yellow at unexpected moments. 

The camera is nested nicely in a paper pulp tray and properly protected. I'm shocked to discover how small the device is. I was imagining something twice as big. It's a bit taller than my iPhone 5s. BTW! if you're reading this Apple, I'd love to get my hands on an iPhone 6 or 7 - I'm familiar with how Industrial design works. 

The setup was a breeze, it literally took me 5 minutes. The toughest part was probably downloading the app. I forgot my iTunes password. 

I'm super stoked about this camera, the live stream is crispy and high def, and most importantly I can see what Bent's up to when I'm gone. Recently he's discovered a way to get onto the kitchen counter. . .