Top 5 Favourite Youtube channels

Right just for a change of pace I thought I would a top 5 list and this post will be on my favourite Youtube channels as of just now.  This will probably be based simply on how much I view them and of course the enjoyment factor involved.

So with that let's get going and take a look....

5. Randy Santel 

At No.5 is Randy Santel, who is a competitve eater/bodybuilder, who travels around the US and Europe trying out an extensive series of eating challenges.  This is basically another Man vs Food eatingt challenge show or rather Youtube channel but big Randy is an affable guy, who manages to pull off the show and make it both enjoyable and entertaining.

Big Randy however has his limits on how much he can eat and normally 8 pounds is around his max but he can certainly make a dent in most of his challenges and there are very few he has lot although one or two of them have seen him spew up!  Randy actually said in one of his Q and A's that he deliberately keeps to challenges of 8 pounds or under to give himself the best chance of winning so he can keep his motto true to his word "Win before you begin!".

The channel also uses a mix of different music tracks, which are dubbed over while Randy undergoes his challenges and they are largely rock or heavy metal tracks but they work well and some of them are really good.  Randy paradoxically tends to listen to stuff on his headphones such as Taylor Swift etc or even Eminem, which is at odds with the stuff he has dubbed over!

The only nagging points about the channel are that Randy tends to use the same phrases over and over such as "Very, very excited tonight!" but to be fair he does acknowledge himself he uses it too much and occassionally changes it to "I'm frickin pumped!" or "Extra, extra excited!".  And perhaps some of the videos get a bit repetitive with the content of him setting up to eat and doing the challenege and so on.

However any negatives are outweighed by the enjoyment of the channel and Randy's amiable personality helps carry it along nicely, so it deserves a place on at No.5.

4. Cameralabs 

At No.4 is Cameralabs, and this is the first of a few photography channels as I'm a photographer myself, so naturally I'm interested in listening to the pundits harping on about the latest gear.  This channel is run by professional camera reviewer, Gordon Laing, who has the enviable job of testing out the latest camera gear before doing extensive reviews on how they fair.

Initially however the channel comprised purely of Gordon giving background info on camera gear and giving tips aswell sample clips and still footage of cameras he tests.  But recently it has changed to incorporate Gordon's very enjoyable reviews with the American professional photographer, Doug Kaye and the two of them together enjoy a nice rapport together as they discuss the latest cameras and other gear.  Initially however they did their reviews on the "This week in photo" TWIP network but they ended changing over to doing the reviews on Cameralabs.

The videos do go into extensive detail on the camera features and they mainly consist of Gordon doing most of the talking throughout but Doug also throws in his tuppence too and together they provide reviews that informative and entertaining.  Its also interesting as you learn about new kit and the differences between camera technology e.g. APS-C, Full Frame, Micro Four Thirds etc.

Although it has to be said it does occassionally get a bit dry in content and some of the techno babble get's a bit over my head and even sometimes I end up nodding off watching it.  But overally its generally alot of fun and a channel well worth watching, so it warrants its place here at No.4.  

3. Cinemasins

At No.3 is the popular channel, Cinemasins, which is of course a channel, which looks at a different film each time and its commentator, Jeremy Scott, points that film's flaws or "sins" for everyone.  And its generally a pretty funny, well observed channel and Scott really does dig out some of the "sins" that you might have not picked up on or even indeed totally agree (although I don't always agree with Jeremy!).

Some of the channel's best videos have included "Face/off" where Jeremy picks through the film's various sins, most notably how can both men undergo facial surgery yet look exactly the same in terms of height, eyes, body-shape etc of the person they are taking the appearance of!  Then there is the stupid idea of just how could Sean Archer (played by Nicholas Cage and John Travolta) can miraculously escape from prison and know how to override the prison security system when he has never seen it before!   

"Batman Returns" is also great as Scott observes that it "really is a truly shitty Batman movie!" and one of his most references in the film comes when we seen Bruce Wayne watch TV in his mansion and the TV is placed quite close to his log fire which prompts Jeremy to say "Why place the TV so close to the fire!  Won't it melt soon?!".  

Other favourites I could mention but would take too long to go into include Die Hard 2, The Rock, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Superman II, Showgirls, Rocky IV and many more and again Jeremy's criticisms are well observed and generally pretty funny.

The channel does have some drawbacks however as there are sometimes where Jeremy does rip into some films rather unfairly and they are maybe films I personally enjoyed that he might hate (e.g Star Trek III or Revenge of the Sith, I mean is it really that bad??? Yeah the other two prequels suck for sure!).  However there may also be films that Jeremy really likes that I don't get such as Wall-E (one of the all time most BORING films), Unbreakable (one of the dullest films ever!) and Mad Max: Fury Road (totally overrated!).  Its like Jeremy falls victim of the opinion of what is popularly good among filmgoers rather than go against the flow at any time (although at least that's how I see it at times).

But that aside, Cinemasins is a lot of fun and well worth checking out for the fun factor of seeing your favourite films and of course some of your least favourite getting a roasting and so it deserves a place here at No.3.

2. Thomas Heaton 

At No.2 is another photography channel, which is of course belonging to the English photographer, Thomas Heaton, who really has made a name for himself with his channel so far and righly so as his videos are both very informative and enjoyable and they showcase his stunning work nicely.

Thomas did start out however making very few videos but as time has gone on and his channel has grown in popularity he is now regularly putting out content on a weekly basis and he is also adding alot of variety in his videos and not just limiting them to landscape photo trips as he does interviews, featurettes on upcoming projects, photo-lab printing, software editing, also even camera gear he uses aswell as the odd hook-up with other photographers.

Thomas also is very well travelled in his videos as he is not limited to the UK and he has travelled to various countries such as America, Norway, Iceland and probably a few more that we might not know about.  The production value of his videos have also improved very much overtime and he makes good use of music on his channel and picks some nice ambient tracks that convey the feeling of what he is trying to convey with his photography.

Some of Thomas's videos also include his now wife, Charlotte although you do get the impression she is quite camera shy as she is often seen turning her head or Tom has the camera pointed away from her.  However Tom's dog, Monty, is far from shy and Tom is often seen with Monty on some of his travels.

There aren't too many downsides to Thomas's channel except perhaps there are times where I think he is just a bit too considered in his photography and that he will trek thousands of miles and presumably fork thousands of pounds to travel someone to take probably no more than half a dozen pictures at a time!  I mean if it were me I would be taking hundreds of pictures on my trips there!  But again, Thomas to be fair being a professional and a "considered" shooter that takes his time and plans out his shots carefully and that does allow for him to cut down on the otherwise time-consuming process of trawling through hundreds of photos to get to that one killer shot.

So overall Thomas Heaton's channel is definitely one of the most informative and enjoyable photography channels on Youtube and it definitely deserves it place at No.2.

And before I get to No.1 (and in the spirit of Watchmojo) here are a few honourable mentions....

First man photography - This is another photography channel, which is also pretty enjoyable and its presenter, Adam Karnacz does a good job in presenting his videos and keeping the content varied and entertaining to watch.  Adam's early videos did start off with him looking a bit nervous and self-conscious but as time his gone on he has become more self-assured in presenting them and he has even toned down his intros as he used to bellow out "Hello, I'M ADAM!!!" when he introduced himself.  Adam's content includes everything such as landscape vlogs, photo critiques of amateur photographers work and how to do different types of photography such as Infrared, Macro, Smoke and Waterdrops as well as tutorials on how to do various edits in Lightroom.  So overall this is a very good channel and one that is definitely worth checking out.

Oliver Harper - this is a film review website, which is run by Oliver Harper, who is a reviewer and former cinema projectionist.  Oliver puts together retrospective reviews on some of his favourite films and films that he might consider as being overlooked and his reviews are always well edited, presented and very informative.  Oliver does also does some full length commentaries on various films with some of his friends but they tend to be a mixed bag and can be a bit boring at times to listen to as they can veer off point during watching a movie.  But overall this is another good channel worth a look.

David Thorpe - Another photography channel run by retired professional English photographer, David Thorpe, who is now a dedicated user with Micro Four Thirds cameras (which I also personally use!). David reviews mainly cameras but also sometimes other gear, too, and his reviews are always self-deprecating and charming as he displays his warmth and humour throughout.  His reviews at times can get a bit technical, especially if you are a newbie to photography but its still worth looking out for his channel and he's always very responsive to any questions you might ask him, so he get's my vote for sure.

Matt Stonie - This is another competitve eating channel featuring former World No.1. competitive eater, Matt Stonie, who weighs over a mere 8 stone yet THIS guy can eat well over an 8th of his own bodyweight in one sitting (we're talking maybe 20 pounds of food!).  Matt's video have gotten more and more fun over the years as he has gotten older he has gotten better at presenting them and the majority also feature his younger brother, Morgan, who is hilarious at times with his stoned sounding voice and his quips.  Matt just recently completed a challenge over a whopping 20,000 calories consisting of three giant burgers, 75 chicken wings, three bowls of chili and a big bowl of chili Doritos!  Its definitely a channel worth a look and has to be seen to be believed!

Channel Awesome - Then of course we have Channel Awesome, which features different contributors but is mainly known for the "Nostalgia Critic" played by Doug Walker, who has been doing the show for nearly 10 years now as he plays the volatile "critic" who reviews mainly bad films and often loses it in the process.  The channel however does feature plenty of other content such as "Top 5" hosted by Walter Banasiak, which is worth a watch he counts down the best and worst performances of famous Hollywood actors.  Doug also does reviews of himself in person along with his brother, Rob Walker, which can be fun although their voices sound a little familiar at times!  Then there is Tamara Chambers, who frequently works on the NC videos, who has her own show "Tamara's never seen" where she reviews films she has never seen before, some of which are a real surprise.  So Channel Awesome has plenty of "awesome" content worth a gander.

And the No.1 Youtube channel for me is....

1. e6 Vlogs 

Yes at No.1 is yet another photography channel, e6 Vlogs, which is hosted by English professional landscape and travel photographer, Craig Roberts.

Why is he at No.1???  Well for a few reasons, for starters his photography is excellent and he also uses Micro Four Thirds cameras, which as I said before I use and I am a big fan of myself, and he namely uses one of my favourite cameras: the Olympus E-M1 to take most of his images but he does also use film cameras, too such as a Holga.  Craig's videos also offers much variety in his locations as he travels to landscape areas such as the Peak and Lake districts and Northern coast, but also does urban city-walk shoots in different cities such as London, Newcastle, Manchester and Leeds.       

Craig's videos also are pretty entertaining, too, as they often display his quirky sense of humour and in one episode where he shoots on location at an unknown beach, he boasts he has bought a new drone and says "let's go fly!" and we see camera viewpoint as if a drone is taking off.  However in the next scene we see Craig walking through the shot, holding a small tripod (or selfie-stick) with his video camera on it and he stops and sheepishly looks at the screen and says "I don't have a drone".

Another example is when Craig is at the Peak district and he climbs up Mam Tor and enroute he sees a sign that says "Beware cliff edges, keep children under supervision at all times" and Craig turns to the camera and says "But I don't know anyone called Cliff Edges!".  And lastly another example is in another video where Craig does a shoot out in the fields somewhere and at the end of the video he walks toward an open pathway and next to it is a narrow gate, but instead of choosing the pathway he goes through the narrow gate instead!

However next to Craig's photography, another highlight is also his choice of music, which is also excellent as his choice is pretty eclectic but does feature alot of easy listening music whether it be electronica, funk, jazz or other and he uses them very well to fit the video footage.  And I regularly find myself downloading the tracks that he puts up from Youtube, so that's definitely a compliment to the guy's taste in music, so perhaps he should be a DJ, too in his spare time!

And lastly Craig is also generally very responsive to any questions you ask him on his channel too in the comments and he has probably not left one question I've asked unanswered and that's one area where I think Thomas Heaton needs to catch up!  Nah, I do appreciate these photographers are very busy of course and they can't always take time to answer my silly questions but I digress a little.

The only bad thing I'd say about his channel however is that the content is a little more sparse than some of the other channels as he has only just over 30 videos so far but I think Craig is now starting to upload more content a bit more regularly now and let's hope he continues to do so as his videos are great fun, informative and feature some great photography.  So for me this right now is my favourite Youtube channel, so I think it more than deserves the top spot.

Right, so that's it for now and I will be back sometime soon with yet another review or post of some kind.  Till the next un its bye for now and to those Youtubers, keep up the good work and keep that content going.

Later!