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The cameras YouTubers love
It's easy to forget that for some of the world's biggest YouTube creators, their rise to internet stardom all started with making videos on a webcam. That's exactly how people like Marques Brownlee (aka MKBHD) and Justine Ezarik (aka iJustine), who now have more than 8 and 5 million subscribers, respectively, began their careers as YouTubers almost a decade ago. But for both of them, gone are the days of using a webcam to create video content. As technologies such as full-frame mirrorless cameras, 4K and 8K have emerged, so too has Brownlee's and Ezarik's desire to up their production value -- especially since their channels focus on consumer electronics. In 2019, videos from Ezarik and Brownlee can rival quality from TV shows and films, thanks to their investment in cameras like Sony's A7III and RED's 8K-ready DSMC2 Brain. The latter is a $60,000 system, which shows just how serious Brownlee is about the videos he makes. And Ezarik and Brownlee aren't the only ones trying to push the envelope for YouTube creators. Jacques Slade, whose channel about sneakers and tech has more than 1 million subscribers, works with a camera setup that consists of three Sony A7 IIIs. Popular YouTuber Casey Neistat, meanwhile, switches among a Canon 6D Mark II DSLR and Sony's A7R II and A7S II full-frame mirrorless shooters. It's clear there isn't a one-camera-fits-all solution for YouTube creators; they each have their own preference based on the brands they like, their audience and what they're shooting on any given day. For example, when Brownlee isn't using his RED 8K camera because he needs a smaller and lighter shooter, he'll jump to the Canon EOS-1D X Mark II. That's a long way from the webcam he started with on YouTube in 2009. To learn more about Brownlee's and others' choices, we spoke to some of the world's biggest YouTubers, who talked about the cameras they started with, what they're using now and what they recommend for newcomer creators.
YouTube video maker MKBHD wins Tesla's 'Project Loveday' ad contest
Tonight at 11:45 PM ET Elon Musk will deliver the first production Tesla Model 3s during a livestreamed event, and now the company has some new ads to play during any down time. Fans of its cars and technology submitted their own advertisements for the Project Loveday contest, which was inspired by a 10-year-old's letter. Musk announced the three winners tonight on his Twitter account, with YouTuber and tech reviewer Marques Brownlee aka MKBHD nabbing the top spot. The winner has been promised a trip to a Tesla product launch, and Tesla said it will play the most popular videos on the stream tonight. The winning isn't just a slick look at the car, it also shows off some of the high tech features like Summon and its appropriately-named Ludicrous Mode acceleration. Tesla has eschewed traditional advertising for its vehicles so far, but now that it has so many high quality videos to pull from -- and a car with a price closer to the mainstream -- maybe that could change.
