Articles from Zhen Siang Yang

In recent years, NAS devices have quietly regained relevance, particularly among photographers and small creative teams. This resurgence is driven not only by concerns over cloud storage costs and data ownership but also by improved affordability and the accessibility of modern NAS technology. The TerraMaster F2-425 Plus enters this space as an affordable flagship hybrid NAS, combining high-speed networking, NVMe expansion, and a more approachable setup experience—features that were once reserved for far more expensive systems.

The L-Mount Alliance was first unveiled at Photokina 2018. It was positioned as a long-term ecosystem play—one that harmonized multiple brands and prioritized system longevity over short-term competition. For years, the alliance remained relatively compact, dominated mainly by lens options that often leaned toward the premium end of the market, produced by brands that pioneered the alliance, such as Leica, Panasonic, and Sigma. 

As a professional photographer, I am one of those people who carry at least one camera with me all the time. Because of this, I always bring a two-bag combo—a sling bag and a backpack—when shooting on location or traveling around. Having an additional sling bag with me offers immediate accessibility to things I need easily, while storing all the backups on my back, and that translates to higher efficiency when working. While I understand there is no such thing as a perfect bag, I do invest a lot of time in searching for a bag that is capable of serving multiple purposes when I need them in a certain way.

The demand for storage in mobile devices has staggeringly increased in recent years due to high demand in mobile content creation workflows, especially with smartphones supporting professional video formats such as ProRes. With more and more people creating with their phones, Hohem aims to fill the gap in supporting these market needs with the SSD-01. It not only acts as an external SSD, but also as a compact, all-in-one solution designed specifically for creators who record, charge, and capture audio simultaneously.

Smartphone technology has come a long way and has reached a point of technological maturity where it has now completely integrated into our lifestyle, becoming one of our necessary companions for everyday tasks. Foldable phones, on the other hand, have been actively evolving over the past few years and have started to catch up with traditional bar-designed phones. With the launch of Huawei Mate X7, Huawei continues refining its foldable philosophy by placing greater emphasis on durability, camera performance, and shooting flexibility—areas that matter most to photographers and visual storytellers.

In my previous article, where I discussed how square sensor format might reshape how we compose and shoot and how it could possibly help push digital cameras into their next evolution cycle in the future, the idea is great, but there are still currently no camera manufacturers in the mirrorless camera realm that are willing to take the risk and experiment with this idea. Meanwhile, what we do have on hand in every modern full frame camera is the Super 35 or APS-C crop mode.

As a photographer, I have always believed that printed photographs hold a special place in our lives, inviting us to pause and relive a moment. But in today’s digital world, where taking images has become effortless, we often find ourselves capturing thousands of photos just for the sake of it, rarely printing any of them.

For years, foldables have been known to offer nothing more than mediocre-level cameras. With the launch of the new Huawei Mate X7, they have just raised the bar for foldable phones with a device that packs a bunch of serious camera hardware. The new Huawei Mate X7 is being positioned as the first foldable with true flagship-grade imaging technology that finally doesn’t force you to compromise on photography for form factor.

Every year, holiday gift guides for creators, especially photographers, tend to circle around the same checklist: the latest camera body, new lenses, or even faster cards. But with how expensive and increasingly complex camera gear has become, it is now harder than ever for someone with little technical knowledge to pick the “right” piece. The risk is real, as you might end up spending a significant amount on something that doesn’t fit the creator’s needs, ends up underused, or quietly collects dust on a shelf.

As photographers, we have all felt that creeping anxiety when leaving a car full of equipment that’s often worth more than the car itself. Whether it’s a quick stop on the way to a location shoot or leaving our gear in the car parked overnight, the thought of something happening to it is always at the back of our minds. This is where a reliable dash cam with parking monitoring can add an extra layer of peace of mind.

The DJI Osmo Mobile 8 is the latest smartphone gimbal from DJI, and while it still looks primarily the same, it quietly fixes and updates everything you wished the predecessor would have. The gimbal now supports 360° pan rotation, updated intelligent tracking, and access to Apple’s intelligent subject-tracking technology. This gimbal finally feels like an all-around tool that can be integrated seamlessly into your filmmaking workflow.

Introducing the Osmo Mobile 8, the latest addition to DJI’s mobile gimbal series, designed to expand creative possibilities for smartphone filmmakers. Designed to support a wider range of filming scenarios, the Osmo Mobile 8 introduces 360 ° Pan Rotation for smooth panoramic shots, an ultra-comfortable grip for low-angle filming, and—for the first time—intelligent tracking of cats and dogs.

At the back of my mind, portable monitors have always been about compromise. You get the convenience of a second screen, but usually at the cost of image quality or brightness. Finding the right balance between great display quality and portability has always been tricky, especially in the budget‐range segment.

Old photos are some of the most precious things we hold onto, as they often carry priceless memories that we can no longer go back to. Yet they rarely survive the passage of time unscathed, especially for those in physical prints that are more prone to becoming faded or scratched. Having lower-resolution digital images that lack details from the early 2000s doesn’t help either, leaving us hoping we could see more to relive the memories.

Huion introduces the third generation of its popular Kamvas Pro 24 4K pen display, the Kamvas Pro 24 (Gen 3), marking a bold step forward in its professional lineup. Built upon the solid foundation of its predecessor, this model brings noticeable refinements in precision, color accuracy, and responsiveness, powered by Huion’s most advanced PenTech 4.0 technology.

Since the first iteration of the DJI Mini series drone, I have always dreamed of having a small, portable drone equipped with a large 1-inch sensor—specifically, a drone capable of combining the benefits of being lightweight while delivering great image quality. Prior to this, it had always been a game of choosing your compromise. Flying a compact drone meant compromising on image performance, while a larger drone naturally offered better quality at the expense of portability.

Since the earliest days of film photography, we’ve been locked into aspect ratios defined by the film itself, whether that’s 3:2 from the standard 35mm film, 4:5 from the 4x5 large format film, or even 1:1 from the 6x6 medium format film that carved out its own niche result. The strange thing is, even after transitioning into digital, the aspect ratio has remained one of the least challenged conventions in photography. Digital cameras became faster, more powerful, and more efficient. But the frame is still the same old 4:3 or 3:2 rectangle that we have been stuck with for over a century.

DJI has once again redefined what’s possible in aerial imaging with the launch of the DJI Mini 5 Pro, the world’s first sub-250 g mini drone to feature a 1-inch CMOS sensor. Compact yet powerful, the palm-sized drone pushes its boundary with pro-level image quality, advanced safety features, and extended flight time, making it a versatile tool for creators at any level.

Introducing DJI’s latest wireless audio system, the Mic 3, a smarter and more compact upgrade to its predecessor. DJI has taken what creators loved about the previous generation mic and refined it with improved connectivity, longer battery life, and smarter features packed into a sleek design. This new system promises to deliver professional-grade sound while staying lightweight and versatile, making it an appealing option for filmmakers, vloggers, and content creators who demand reliability on the go. Let’s find out if this sleek, compact system truly lives up to its promise of delivering smarter audio for creators, or if it’s just another incremental upgrade.

After a successful launch two years ago, Xencelabs finally announced the latest Pen Display 24+ (PD24+) on August 6, 2025 — this round with even better feature upgrades. The PD24+ is the world's first drawing display that features Calman Ready integration.

Introducing Hohem’s latest smartphone gimbal, the iSteady V3 Ultra, an upgraded version of Hohem’s V series gimbal. It brings the functionality of its bigger brother, the M series smartphone gimbal, to this more budget- and consumer-friendly product. This also means that we finally have an affordable AI-powered gimbal that actually allows you to see what it is tracking through the magnetic AI tracker, with the introduction of the detachable touchscreen remote controller.

Photography has never been more accessible than it is today. With easy access to high-speed internet leading to endless online resources, tutorials, and social media platforms, we would assume that learning photography has become easier than ever. However, my recent observation, coming from the experience of trying to learn a specific technical approach, proved otherwise. Instead of directly finding clear, in-depth guidance, I found myself drowning in an ocean of clickbait titles, surface-level explanations, and misleading information. This stark contrast to my early learning days made me realize that learning photography from the internet is now harder than it was a decade ago.

DJI has expanded its OsmoAudio™ ecosystem with the launch of the DJI Mic 3, a next-generation mini wireless microphone that combines the compactness of Mic Mini with the functionality of Mic 2—giving creators professional-grade sound in a compact, easy-to-use package.