Gear Review: DJI Osmo Action 4. Worth it in 2026?

Ok, so full disclosure here, I got this in the Amazon Black Friday sale on December 1st, last year, (that’s 2025 if you’re here really late!). It was part of a flash sale they had on some DJI products and I bagged the DJI Osmo Action 4 for £150; an absolute bargain when you consider that on the same day, it was on sale on DJI’s own website for £289. I’m pretty chuffed with the bargain I bagged on this one. I wasn’t actually looking for anything but this was too good to miss.

But why the Osmo Action 4, it’s had two successors since its launch, haven’t I just bought something that is already out of date? For me this was about value for money and adding value to what I do. No it’s not going to produce cinema worthy movies (at least not in my hands!), but it is going to give me felixibilty and add value to what I do, particularly to my social media offering in ways that my current kit doesn’t allow me to. At least not as well or as conveniently as this does.

I already own the DJI Action 2 and I like it, but it’s a touch on the fiddly side and I wanted something that gives me a bit more (the OSMO Action 4 already trumps it on being able to shoot in D-Log, something which will be a game changer for me) and that will also give me some more flexibility if I want to talk to camera but not have to break out the DSLR to do it.

This blog contains Amazon affiliate links. If you make a qualifying purchase after clicking one of these links then I may receive a small kickback.

First Impressions?

I was surprised how small the box was, but then remembered it’s only an action camera so I am not sure what I was expecting. I’ve not had a massive amount of time to play with it, but it feels good quality, the screens (front and rear) are both really clear and responsive.

One thing that was quite quickly brought to my attention when I put my SD card in is that it wasn’t fast enough. This is something I should have known/realised, but if you’re shooting memory dense 4K footage then you’re going to need a V30 memory card in the DJI Osmo Action 4 - it just means that your card will be handle the mountains of data that are being thrown at it in a way that won’t lead to constant crashes. I’ve ordered one and hopefully this will be enough. I like cards from Lexar and Sandisk. I would recommend 256gb or 512gb for this camera. (Update: It’s arrived now, I went with a Lexar 256GB. I have it formatted in the camera and it’s working a dream and at 4k 30FPS is indicating it will hold about 4 hours worth of footage, more than enough for my needs)

DJI Osmo Action 4

Buy on Amazon

I went for the ‘essential’ combo, and in that you’ll get the camera, a battery, a mounting cage and a bolt to attach it to GoPro type accessories. I’ve tried some of the generic GoPro attachments I have in the studio and they all fit fine. You also get a USB cable and some stickers. The final thing you’ll find is a lens hood which is great for attaching if you break the protective lens cover, but be aware that if you don’t have the protective cover fitted, the camera isn’t waterproof!

It’s solid feeling little unit, but I think it will need to be handled with care in order to protect the lens. It’s not too heavy and will likely spend a lot of time in a Smallrig cold shoe mount attached to the top of my camera for some BTS and timelapse work.

The unit comes supplied with a plastic protective “frame”, similar to what you would get with a go-pro, but if you’re not familiar with these, then it’s a bit like a bumper case for a mobile phone. You also get the magnetic quick release mount, which I really like. The magnets are strong and the way it attached to the bottom of the camera feels really secure. It’s the same as on on DJI action cams and it works (for me) really well. You’ll also get an Osmo locking screw, which is for attaching the camera to tripod mounts, handlebar mounts or whatever other attachment you decide you want to put it on. You name it, there’s probably an attachment for it. If you’re coming from GoPro then you’ll find that most of the stuff you already have will fit onto it quite easily without the need to buy a ton of new stuff.

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I have an old GoPro Hero7 Silver, and the DJI Osmo Action 4 is slightly bigger than this, but that bigger sensor has got to go to somewhere, as well as all of the tech to support the front and rear screens. The touchscreen is bigger than on the GoPro and this is a very welcome addition. The menus are easy to navigate and the settings are where you would expect them to be. If you already own a DJI action cam or any of their gimbals then the menus are going to feel very familiar to you. They’re not quite as easy (for me at least) as the Canon menus, but then maybe I am a bit biased!

Battery Life

This is advertised as being upto 160 minutes, so well over two hours, but this is obviously going to depend on a number of variables such as the camera settings you are using.

Charging this camera isn’t the fastest, I haven’t completely emptied it yet, but even from 60%, it takes well over an hour to charge. Your experience may vary, but this is one of the drawbacks for me.

Using the OSMO Action 4

Pairing with the DJI Mimo app was a breeze, and like with other things from DJI, you can use your phone as a sort of field monitor to get things framed up well. I have always found this to be beneficial with things that have a smaller screen to work with, no matter how clear the screen is.

Talking of the screen, it’s clear, it’s responsive and easy to use. Navigating the menus is easy and with up to 750nits of brightness, it’s going to be easy enough to see in bright sunlight.

This is a really intuitive piece of kit, and within minutes of getting the battery inside it, I was ready to go and play with it, but the weather and the darkness put paid to that for its first night.

The menus are really intuitive and easy to find your way around, there’s nothing complicated here. Everything is easy to find and is where you would expect it to be. Make sure to activate pro-mode if you’re wanting to take advantage of the d-log profile inside here.

One thing I don’t like, and its a gripe with a lot of action cameras is that it’s a pain in the you-know-what when you need to the card out of the camera - the whole cage has to come off so you can access the doors and their slots. I know this isn’t a massive issue, I really do, but I also hate the faff that comes with getting the card out of the camera!

The first use out and about was easy, just using the controls on the camera. Nothing fancy, just hand-holding and shooting. This is probably really picky, but the buttons on the camera itself are quite stiff and take a fairly firm press to activate. Again, not a huge issue and I’d be complaining if it started recording when I didn’t want it to because the buttons were pressed to easily. Just make sure you have got the shot and then leave a little pause before you press the button to stop recording so as not to introduce unwanted movement into your footage.

Who is it for?

There’s the obvious audiences for this; people who want to record FPV sports, people who want to record FPV anything, cyclists… the list goes on. But what about applications for photographers and content creators?

I bought this as I want to do some more BTS footage for my social media, as well as some small pieces to camera, and this was an ideal camera for me to do this with, and at the price point I got it at, it was a no brainer. It also has time-lapse functionality, something else which I value and it records slow mo in 1080p at 240fps. I’m not sure what my application for this will be yet, but I am sure I will come up with something in the future.

Video Quality

This is what you would expect from DJI. It’s pretty damn good. One of the major selling points for me with this camera was the ability to shoot in D-Log; I have been longing to be able to shoot and grade my own log footage for sometime, and this is going to allow me to do that.

This camera shoots in 4K upto 120 and in 1080p, you can double that to 240fps.

The stabilisation in this camera is first rate. I am not known for being the steadiest person at times and having this is great when I am hand holding, or if the camera is on a tripod being battered by the wind!

Have a look at the video below and take a look at the difference between the graded and the ungraded footage. I have done all of the grading in PremierPro, I’ve still not quite got my head round DaVinci enough to be willing to share it yet! I’ve also popped a download link to some ungraded log footage at the bottom of this page, so that you can have a play with it before you make a purchase, if that’s the kind of thing you like to do.

DLOG Footage transitions to a really basic, saturated colour grade using DJI Input LUT and some basic colour correction.

Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Clear, easy to navigate menus make using the camera easy.

• Large f/2.8 aperture and large sensor aid low light shooting.

• Dual touchscreens are really useful for vloggers.

• Good video specs — 4K video up to 120 fps, 10-bit colour, and 240 fps slow-motion at 1080p make it versatile for cinematic clips, action shots, or creative video.

Cons:

• Charging takes a long time.

• 400mm minimum focus distance makes some close up shots unachievable

• Photo output is 10MP which isn’t a massive amount of resolution.

• No ultra-high (e.g. 5.7K) video resolution — For creators needing very high detail or future-proof 4K oversampling/creative cropping, the 4K max could feel limiting.

Where can I buy one?

I got mine from Amazon in the Black Friday sale, so you might not get the sam great price that I did, but check them out by clicking here.

In Conclusion

I really like this piece of kit, it will give me flexibility and a wide variety of options when it comes to recording video out in the field and I need my “big camera” for the business of taking photos. I will probably stick to using something more substantial in the studio when I need video, though the D-Log makes it a very appealing option for the added colour grading flexibility.

It comes with enough accessories to get you started, but if you don’t have many attachments then I would recommend getting a few adapters and such like so that you have some of your bases covered. Oh, and don’t forget to get that V30 memory card when you order it.

The 4K is a really nice thing to have and the d-log profile gives you a ton of extra flexibility when you’re editing allowing you to make the footage look how you want it to and not how the camera things it should.

It’s lightweight enough that you’re not going to break your back carrying it around with you but you’ll want to make sure it’s well protected in your bag so that your preserve the lenses.

Thanks for reading, I hope you found this useful/insightful! If you’d like to be the first hear about new blogs and reviews and to keep up to date with what I am doing and see my latest work, please consider signing up to the mailing list via the contact page.

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Downloadable Log Footage

Click the button to start the download. This is raw, 4K, ungraded footage, straight out of camera but with the audio removed.

The Nerdy Techie Stuff

The spec table below should answer any questions you have about the spec of this camera.

DJI Osmo Action 4 – Key Specifications
Image Sensor	1/1.3-inch CMOS
Effective Photo Resolution	10 MP (≈ 3648 × 2736)
Lens / Field of View	f/2.8, 155° ultra-wide
ISO Range	ISO 100 – 12,800 (photo & video)
Max Video Resolution	4K (3840 × 2160) up to 120 fps (16:9); 4K 4:3 up to 60 fps
Slow Motion	1080p Full HD up to 240 fps
Video Colour / Codec	10-bit colour, D-Log M; H.264 / HEVC (MP4)
Stabilisation	RockSteady 3.0, HorizonSteady, HorizonBalancing
Screens	Dual colour touchscreens (front & rear)
Waterproof Rating	Waterproof to 18 m (without housing)
Operating Temperature	Cold-resistant down to –20 °C
Dimensions	70.5 × 44.2 × 32.8 mm
Weight	145 g
Battery Life	Approx. 160 minutes (varies with settings)
Connectivity	USB-C, Wi-Fi (2.4/5 GHz), Bluetooth 5.0
Photo Formats	JPEG, RAW

Gear Review: Canon EF 16-35mm F/4L - Still Worth It In 2025?

I am REALLY late to the party with my purchase of this lens, it was released in 2014, way before I had even picked up a camera and started to take it seriously for the first time, but it is a lens I have wanted to get my hands on for a long time, so when I found a “Like New” copy of this lens on MPB.COM, it wasn’t long until it was on its way to me. I did however, order late on Thursday and missed the deadline for next day delivery, but was pleasantly surprised to be told that it was going to be delivered on a Sunday.

This lens has been on the market for well over 10 years now, and what I want to explore and try to answer in this blog is the question of whether or not you should go and spend your money on this lens in 2025?

So, why buy the f/4 version, when the f/2.8 MK III version exists and people rave about it? There were a number of considerations for me here. First of all the weight, I am carrying this lens about with me a lot and every gram/ounce of weight I can save is really important to me, the f/4 comes in at 615g, which is over 150 grams lighter than its wider apertured counterpart.

I also don’t need the extra stops of light/depth of field that the wider aperture will afford me. Like I said in my blog about Landscape Photography in Lake District vs Cityscape Photography in London, I am less focused on shallow depths of field and much more concerned with getting images that are sharp. This lens still gets me the shallow depth of field when I want it, but there are some obvious caveats as to how I am able to go about it.

There’s also the price difference, we all know that faster lenses = more expensive, and the difference between these two lenses is in the order of £420, when you look at lenses in ‘like new’ condition. Brand new, the f/4 version is still being sold by Canon for in excess of £1400 so if you can buy second hand and find a decent condition one, there is a huge saving to be made.

Finally, the f/4 version of this lens boasts up to four stops of image stabilisation, which is something that none of the three iterations of the f/2.8 lens are equipped with. This is a real boost for some of those handheld shots where you just don’t have the time (or the inclination) to get out the tripod!

I’m going to be using this lens on the front on an APSC crop sensor (Canon 80D, with a crop factor of x1.6), so in effect, the lens is going to have a focal length of 25.6-56mm. This still gives me good coverage across the full range of focal lengths when held up to the rest of the lenses in my arsenal. The bonus here is that when I finally get round to upgrading to a mirrorless full frame, I will still have a great set of lenses to use on my new camera, which will work in combination with the camera and an EF to RF mount converter.

One thing I did find difficult when I was researching this lens before buying it was trying to find some sample raw files to have a look at, so I’ve linked some at the end of this blog that you can download and have a play around with before you decide to commit if you so wish.

The files still have the exif information in them so you will be able to see what settings they were taken with.

What’s in the box?

You’ll get the lens itself, a bag to store it in (I like these bags that Canon supply, and they provide another level of protection when it’s getting knocked about in the hills), the EW-83 lens hood, lens caps for the front and rear of the lens and an instruction manual.

As you would expect from Canon, the lens is well packaged and everything arrived in one piece!

Please remember that this lens was purchased in ‘like new’ condition. This means that it came with the original box and all of the original accessories. What you receive is going to be dependent upon the condition of the item you buy - do your research and make sure you’re not disappointed with what you receive.

My experience with the lens.

This is a well made lens which feels great in the hand, has a solid, metal lens mount, as you would expect from Canon ‘L’ series lenses. It’s also (in my opinion!) a really good looking piece of kit! I’m impressed with how light it feels. It’s all well and good having the weight displayed in front of you on a screen, but to hold it and experience how light it is really brings it home.

Some of the quick stuff: it fits well on the mount on your camera, it is really well made and the autofocus system is great, if a little noisy at times, which could be annoying if you are using this to shoot a lot of video, especially if you have a microphone mounted to your camera. Everything feels good in the hand, the focus and zoom rings are easily reachable and have good grips on them to get you to where you need to be. The buttons on the lens to turn on/off the autofocus and I.S. are situated where you would expect and function in the same manner as every other lens with these options. The distance scale is clear and easy to read.

The supplied lens hood has a fairly slim profile when it’s attached to the lens, is easy to fix in place and pops off quickly with a quick-release ‘switch’.

I’ve taken some shots with this, both indoors and outdoors and had a good level of success with some of these images. I’ve shot it wide open, stopped it down as far as it will go to f/22 and at a variety of focal lengths. At f/8 you get the lens at its sharpest across the whole range of focal lengths, there is a good balance of edge sharpness and centre sharpness at this aperture.

As you get down below f/16, you do start to see some diffraction in the finer details. I haven’t noticed a whole lot of chromatic aberration with this lens, which should mean that any that you do encounter (my research tells me you might get some in particularly high contrast images), should be easily fixed in post. The lens profiles for this piece of kit are built into Lightroom, and they’ve had well over 10 years to perfect them!

One thing I haven’t been able to test is the weather sealing, we’ve been having an unusually long dry period here in The Lake District, so I can confirm that I have been out in the dustiness of my local nature reserve and the dust proofing has held up well, but not even I am silly enough to sit and purposefully throw/spray water at my new favourite toy!

Whilst this isn’t a dedicated macro lens, it does a have short minimum focus distance of 0.28metres (just over 0.9 feet). This means that you’re going to be able to get some great close ups. If you’re thinking about this lens just for macro photography then there are better options out there, unless you’re going to invest in extension tubes but this will be at the expense of losing this lens’s great autofocus.

Wide open at f/4, you can still get bokeh, if that’s your thing, but you will need to get much closer to your subject than you would if you had a wider f/stop. The quality of the bokeh however, is great - you’re just not getting the buttery smoothness you would from a wider aperture.

There is some slight vignetting when you use filters on this lens at wider angles. The filter thread is 77mm (if you own a 24-105mm f/4 already then you probably already have this size in your kit) and works well - no cross threading issues so far. The vignetting it easily removed in Lightroom with no adverse affects on your final image.

Who’s it for?

This lens is going to be valuable to anyone who is serious about their landscape photography. The sharpness across the whole focal range is fantastic (I think only my primes are sharper), especially at f/8 which is something which I really appreciate. The I.S. is solid and will allow you to take handheld shots at longer shutter speeds that you may not have been able to achieve previously - I wish my 70-200mm f/4L had it as well!

Interior and architectural shooters will enjoy the lightweight feel of the lens, alongside side the well controlled distortion (barrel at the wide end and pincushion at the narrow end) means that getting solid, straight and even lines is something which is quickly and easily achievable.

The focal length is great for vlogging, giving you a wide enough angle to be able to get context in your shots, with the ability to punch in for that all important close-up! The light weight of this lens is going to mean that it’s easily balance-able on a gimbal and isn’t going to push you too close to its weight limit.

Videographers and vloggers will appreciate this lens, but should be aware of the noise from the autofocus and IS motors, so an off camera mic is likely to be required to completely eliminate it.

Should you buy this lens in 2025?

Yes. It’s quite a straightforward answer for me. I like that to an extent, it is ‘futureproof’ insomuch as if you upgrade to another Canon (mirrorless) system, you will still be able to use it, but will need to by the RF mount adapter. But hey, when you’re switching, it’s nice to have a set of great quality lenses ready to go with only the added expense of the adapter ring to buy.

If you’re looking to add something to your lens setup to replace your kit lens, then this is a great option, but it won’t give you the reach you’re used to with the 18-55mm. If you’re looking for tighter compositions, you might want to keep hold of this for the time being or have plans to invest in something which will give you that extra reach at the long end.

This is a sharp lens, especially in that f/8 sweet spot. You’re not going to be disappointed with the sharpness of the images you’re going to be able to capture. You’ll love the feel of it, the build quality and the autofocus. Oh, and it looks insanely cool on the front of your camera!

Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Light weight

• Fully weather sealed with Fluorine coated front element.

• Lower Price than the f/2.8, especially when buying second hand.

• Super sharp across the whole focal range.

• Image stablisation (4 stops) supports hand-held shooting at longer shutter speeds.

Cons

• Some users, especially those who shoot in low light conditions often may find the f/4 aperture frustrating/constraining.

• Less light gathering for astrophotography work.

• The autofocus and IS motors, despite being engineered to be silent, are often audible and this could impact work, especially if you are shooting video using autofocus modes.

• Some minor vignetting when using filters at wider angles.

The Nerdy Stuff

• Focal Length: 16–35 mm (full-frame compatible)

• Maximum Aperture: f/4 (constant across the zoom range)

• Minimum Aperture: f/22

• Lens Construction: 16 elements in 12 groups

• Angle of View (Diagonal): 108°10′ – 63°

• Focus System: Inner focusing with ring-type USM for fast, silent, and precise AF

• Closest Focusing Distance: 0.28 m (0.92 ft)

• Filter Thread Size: 77 mm

• Image Stabilisation: Yes – up to 4 stops of correction

• Weight: Approx. 615 g (21.7 oz)

• Dimensions: 83 mm max diameter × 114 mm length (4.4 in)

• Coatings: Anti-ghosting coatings plus fluorine on front and rear elements for dust and water resistance

• Weather Sealing: Yes – dust and moisture resistant for outdoor shooting

Example Raw Files

You’ll need to right click each link and select “download linked file”, to save this file to your computer.

Raw Files 1-6 are images of a toy car taken in my studio against a blue backdrop and ISO 2000

Raw Files 7-12 are landscape shots.

If you’d like to support the blog and help me keep producing Lake District photography content, honest gear reviews and regular website updates, you can do so via my Buy Me a Coffee page. Keeping everything running smoothly takes time, and your support makes a real difference. Thank you.