Using the Insta360 X3 to Tell a Story This is an unpaid and unbiased take on the Insta360 X3.
My use case is kind of unique. This is an action camera. I use it for b-roll clips. You might have seen it on some of my camera reviews. The Insta360 X3 easily mounts on the cold shoe of my main mirrorless camera. This allows me to show the photographer’s perspective.
The 360 footage is cool in general. You can move it around as needed. Some angles look distorted or warped, but overall it does a pretty great job.
I don’t see this as a main camera for anything, to be honest. Possibly the original intent, but honestly many of the more know skate videographers are using the Panasonic GH line for their main cam. Some like Ty Evans use high-dollar cinema cameras. I could see some using this or a GoPro as b-roll, but not as a main camera. Action cams have a small target audience.
The colors on the Insta360 X3 are bright and vibrant. I honestly love the way they look. The default color profile was Vivid, but I changed mine to standard which actually toned it down a bit. Vivid was a bit too saturated for my taste.
The stabilization is top-notch on this camera. If you need stable footage walking around, this is something to consider.
This camera does have a specific fisheye look. This is part of why I wouldn’t use it as my main camera. Your footage will have some odd distortion based off of this. Additionally, the focal length is so short that you have to get super close to your subject for close-ups. To be fair, that’s not the purpose of this camera. It is to capture everything in the environment.
I’ve used this camera to capture fairs, festivals, and parades. It’s really cool that you can just press record. The footage can be reframed later if needed. I would not use this as primary footage, but it supports the primary footage well and can even do things most cameras would struggle with. Walking through a crowd would be one example.
One of the selling points of the Insta360 X3 is the Invisible Selfie Stick. This is a super cool feature and it is automatic. On a sunny day, you’ll likely see the shadow of the selfie stick. Not a huge deal, but could impact a large group shot for example.
Insta360 Invisible Selfie Stick and Tripod
Insta360 Invisible Selfie Stick (standard)
One weird thing about this camera is the Micro SD card compatibility. I’ve never seen this before. You can only use select Micro SD cards. I had a higher-end one that I thought would work. The specs were higher than needed and SD is generally backward compatible. Did it work, nope. The camera didn’t recognize the card, so I formatted it on my computer and got the camera to recognize it. The card later crashed and I lost my footage. The same card works perfectly fine in my other cameras. I did have the correct type of card laying around and it has worked great since. Make sure to do your research if you buy this. I’ll link to the one I use in the description.
The Insta360 X3 is an interesting camera. It hits a decent price point at $450. This is in the ballpark of a new lens. The use case will likely be limited regardless of what you want it for. I will say it does a great job filling in gaps. This differs from a new lens because you can shoot with it at the same time as your main camera. The quality of the footage is not the best, but it works great for b-roll.
The editing software is free to download and super easy to use. I do most of my editing in iMovie and would rate it similar in difficulty (which is easy). Being able to reframe a clip several times as needed is pretty cool.
Would I buy this camera again? Yes. I didn’t know what to expect at first and honestly thought I might try to get some pseudo-drone shots. You will find creative uses for this camera which makes it fun and functional.
Battery life is pretty good. I didn’t purchase an extra battery and feel good about it. The camera can charge the battery internally via USB C which makes it perfect for travel.
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Til the next time…