Full Stack Creator

Tyler flew out to Apple's event in California and got hands-on time with the new MacBook Pro. Yes, it has an OLED touchscreen. We get into what Apple actually announced, why Steve Jobs said touchscreen Macs don't work, the Dynamic Island, the weight drop, and whether the roughly $400 upgrade is worth it. Plus the pro workflow demos from the event, a quick buyer's guide, the new Creator Studio updates for Final Cut Pro, and Tyler's iPhone Duo follow-up.

Hands on with the iPhone Duo

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Custom AI-built tools are starting to solve the everyday problems that off-the-shelf software leaves behind. A Final Cut copy-and-paste helper, a client production app, and a thumbnail mockup tool show what photographers, filmmakers, and small teams can build around their own workflows. ChatGPT and Claude offer different ways to get started, while AI-assisted Blender animation keeps cameras, lighting, and assets editable. There’s also a look at agents that manage email and create personal podcast feeds, where they still fall short, and why creative judgment matters as software gets easier to make.

Why add a variable aperture to the iPhone now? Apple’s camera team explains the thinking behind the iPhone 18 Pro, from manual focus and automatic ISO to film grain, halation, and Apple Reference Image. The conversation also covers the iPhone Duo and the creative possibilities of its folding design.

Tyler's presets and LUTs http://stalman.com/shop
David's thumbnail training https://thumbnailacademy.com/

A closer look at the iPhone 18 Pro cameras after the review: what variable aperture really changes, where Apple’s film styles fall short, and how the new Pro Controls feel in everyday use. Plus, viewer questions about AI reframing, lens flare, telephoto quality, and whether it’s worth upgrading.

What creatives got out of the iPhone 17 Pro and how they plan to use the Duo & 18 Pro
Austin Mann's photography https://www.austinmann.com
Andy To's Youtube https://www.youtube.com/@andyto
Tyler's presets and LUTs http://stalman.com/shop
David's thumbnail training https://thumbnailacademy.com/

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Tyler went hands-on with Apple’s new iPhones at Apple Park. Now he joins David to unpack the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone Duo, and what Apple’s announcements mean for photographers, filmmakers, and solo creators.

We explore the camera upgrades, variable aperture, photographic styles, folding design, and real-world shooting workflows—with footage from the event and Tyler’s own photo examples. Which features will actually help you create, and which iPhone makes sense for your work?

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David's thumbnail training https://thumbnailacademy.com/

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Apple’s surprise Mac Mini and Mac Studio updates arrive just before iPhone season, accompanied by a casual social-first launch video. The M6 and M5 Pro Mac mini options make a strong case for creators who want a compact desktop for video editing, while aftermarket SSD upgrades offer a way around Apple’s expensive storage tiers. The M5 Ultra Mac Studio pushes further into visual effects, AI-assisted photo and video editing, and private local AI, with high-memory configurations and the option to cluster machines for larger models. USB-C genlock adds a specialized but genuinely useful tool for frame-perfect sync in multi-camera shoots, screen recordings, and virtual production.

Tyler's presets and LUTs http://stalman.com/shop
David's thumbnail training https://thumbnailacademy.com/

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Now the initial hype has died down, here's what we really think of the DJI Osmo Pocket 4P
Everyone should follow Kai https://www.youtube.com/@kaimanwong
Tyler's presets and LUTs http://stalman.com/shop
David's thumbnail training https://thumbnailacademy.com/

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Special Guest: Kai W.

Most camera companies make something great in 2026, which is why choosing one has become so hard. After covering Sony, Nikon, and Canon in part one, we looked at the brands taking less obvious paths.

Fujis are cameras people actually want to carry. Great JPEGs, fun film simulations, and a commitment to APS-C and GFX instead of full frame. Lumix offers some of the best value in hybrid cameras now that its autofocus has caught up. Leica is having incredible sucess with the Q series. OM System keeps the original promise of Micro Four Thirds alive with small lenses, rugged bodies, and excellent reach, but its aging sensor technology is becoming hard to ignore. Hasselblad delivers a more refined shooting experience than GFX but you pay for it in price and enormous files. DJI continues to push drones, compact cameras, and stabilization forward. And Blackmagic is easy to overlook if you only follow hybrid cameras, but it remains deeply embedded in live event productions.

Full disclosure: we’ve worked with Lumix and Hasselblad, and some of the cameras discussed were provided as loaners. There isn’t one winner here.

These brands make sense for different people, which is more useful than pretending one spec sheet can settle the argument.

Breaking down the modern camera landscape now that nearly every major system now has a strong option, but each excels in different ways. Canon’s reliability and professional reach vs Sony’s lens lineup, Nikon’s ergonomics RED acquisition.

Based on early reviews rather than hands-on use, this episode assesses how the Sony FX5 moves beyond the FX3 with internal RAW, Open Gate, CineAlta tools, a larger articulating display, and a detachable EVF. It also weighs important trade-offs: no internal ND filters, Open Gate initially limited to RAW, 32-bit float tied to the handle, and incomplete anamorphic support. The result is a strong fit for Sony-based freelance cinema shooters and crews, but a less natural choice for hybrid photographers, wedding shooters, and solo creators who need a single all-purpose body.

The Canon R6 V is a capable camera that raises some questions about how much form factor maters and how much should your existing gear ecosystem shape the decision. Where does Canon's R6 V sit in the video and photo lineup, and most of all, who is this camera for?

Recorded at Apple Park with Adam Lisagor, this conversation gets into what stood out from WWDC26 beyond just the feature list. It covers the looser, more human feel of this year’s keynote, what it’s like shooting in Apple Immersive Video, and why Apple’s new Photos tools feel both exciting and a little uncomfortable. Spatial Recompose, Expand, and Cleanup open up a bigger discussion about AI, photography, memory, and how much a photo can change before it stops feeling real. The conversation also touches on the “Snow Leopard” vibe of the release, and why vibe coding might really matter for creative work.

Special Guest: Adam Lisagor.

Apple’s latest Photos app updates bring a new level of AI powered editing directly into the iPhone experience, including tools for spatial reframing, extending the edges of an image, and removing more complex distractions with Cleanup. In this interview, Apple’s camera team explains how these features use depth estimation, Gaussian splatting, private cloud compute, and new image models to make advanced edits feel simple while still preserving the original photo as much as possible. The conversation also covers Apple’s approach to privacy, its collaboration with Google on model foundations, and the use of metadata and SynthID watermarking to identify AI generated edits.

Frame rates are one of those video settings that can seem more complicated than they need to be, partly because different creative worlds use them differently. Movies are still usually associated with 24fps, which comes from the history of film and the minimum frame rate needed to create convincing motion without wasting film stock. Over time, that look also became tied to narrative filmmaking, because we are used to seeing scripted stories presented that way.

For online video, 30fps often makes practical sense, especially when the goal is to clearly show real products, screens, interfaces, or everyday motion. It can feel a little more direct and realistic than 24fps without going all the way into the very smooth look of 60fps. For YouTube, social platforms, tutorials, tech videos, and other reality-based content, 30fps can be a very sensible choice.

60fps has real uses too, but it is not automatically better. It can be useful for sports, gaming, home videos, fast-moving kids, travel moments, or anything that might need to be slowed down later. The tradeoff is that it usually creates larger files, needs more light, and has less motion blur, which changes the feeling of the footage. In lower light, that can mean more noise or heavier noise reduction, especially on phones.

Higher frame rates are mainly useful for slow motion, but they also come with technical considerations. In regions with 50Hz lighting, 100fps may be a better choice than 120fps to avoid flicker. PAL, NTSC, and odd frame rates like 23.98 and 29.97 can still matter in certain workflows, especially when mixing cameras, timelines, and audio. There is no single correct frame rate for everything. Each one has a purpose, and it helps to understand what you are gaining and giving up when you choose it.

The real reason influencers hold their mics like that

We're joined by special guest David Imelto rank and debate the most popular compact and everyday carry cameras, including the Fujifilm X100VI, Ricoh GR series, Leica Q3, Sigma BF, Lumix S9, OM-3, Osmo Pocket, and more. They break down which cameras genuinely deserve the hype, which are overrated, and why compact cameras have become one of the biggest trends in photography and filmmaking again.

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Special Guest: David Imel.

AI is everywhere right now and so is the hype, so we built a tier list of AI use cases for creators.

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Breaking down when and why to actually use ProRes, Apple Log, and Pro Raw on iPhone for professional photos and videos

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