The Novoflex Castel M - A Review

Many thinks to Novoflex for giving me a loaner Castel-M rail to work with for the last couple of weeks. I will be sending it home soon but have had it long enough to put it through some pretty heavy testing. This video summarizes what I found. This is a long video so I have it broken into sections in case you are in a hurry: Chapters: 00:00 - Introduction and what to expect 04:49 - Meet the Castel M 08:44 - Manual stacking 11:22 - A demonstration of the setup 13:06 - An interlude and some awesome customer service 15:10 - the stuff in my bag 22:20 - Some pointers and tips on stabilizing a subject 25:00 - the shooting process 31:00 - my top tips for manual stacking in the field 32:39 - Who is the Castel-M for? 42:50 - Wrap-up, pictures, and out-takes There is a lot of content about manual stacking throughout this video - It is not just a review and we cover a lot of ground on technique, equipment and approach, so there is stuff in here for everyone, including the beginner who is interested in learning how to focus stack using a manual rail. When you go to buy your copy of the Castel M you can do so at any of your usual sources for high quality photography gear - like Amazon, Adorama, B&H should all have the rail in stock. I have not been informed about any sales or coupons but if Novoflex US still has the new customer, 10% discount you might want to look at getting it from there. Several of you already have and use this rail, so if you want to get a second opinion, track one of those folks down and ask them.Ideas for the livestreams or a video you would to see - tell me about it! Gear Nikon D850 - @ Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 zoom - @ Other cameras Nikon D7500 - @ A Nikon D3400 - @ A Fujifilm XT-2, with a battery grip - @ I use a TS adapter from Kipon- @ I use Audio Technica shotgun microphones in the studio, - @ And the Procaster from Australian mic-maker Rode - @ who also make my DSLR microphone - @ and my wireless microphone system - @ I record all my sound separately onto the awesome Zoom H5 Digital Audio Recorder. - @ I have retired the GoPro Hero 8 Black and Media Mod - https://amzn.to/2UScm3J & @ And am now using the Osmo Pocket II for DJI - this thing is incredible - if you EVER shoot content for uploading or sending to friends, get this creator kit - you will thank me... @ That is just some of the stuff I use - if you have any questions about my macro gear, or my recording equipment, just ask. All my audio, music and sound effects comes for Epidemic Sound - I have been with them for about 3 years and they are pretty awesome - @ FIND ME HERE I am not good about social media - I have no time, but every once in a while I will post to ... Instagram: @_new_trix Flickr: @manofmacro/ Twitter: @lls I am getting better at being over here - Discord: This is an invitation… come on over and meet the rest of the gang! @ I do keep my website current - My website: @ SUPPORT ME HERE If you would like to support my work, you can do so in any of the following ways: by becoming a Patreon patron - @llsphotography By making a donation to the video assistance fund on my website @ns You could buy me a cup of coffee via PayPal, but clicking on @cro For the most complete selection of macro photography products in the world, all on the same site, use this link when you go shopping on Amazon - https://amzn.to/3eV74vk. The sis an affiliate link which means that I may make a small commission for referring you to Amazon when you complete a qualifying purchase! Thank you!