For the past nine years, photographers around the world have tuned in to watch DigitalRev TV on YouTube. It boasts more than 1.7 million subscribers, making it the most popular photography channel on YouTube. This popularity is undoubtedly thanks to DigitalRev’s entertaining host, Kai Man Wong. Known to viewers simply as Kai, he joined DigitalRev in 2009. Now, however, Wong and DigitalRev are parting ways.
The announcement was made in a video on Wong’s new, solo YouTube channel. In it, he thanks everyone at DigitalRev while laying out plans, of sorts, for the future of his own channel, which may branch out into other types of tech in addition to camera gear. He also shares some advice that aspiring YouTubers or anyone looking for a job in video production will appreciate.
“You see, life is all about taking opportunities, getting your foot in the door,” he says in the video. “But sometimes it’s about jamming your bloody foot in the door and creating opportunities.” Wong had applied for an editing position with DigitalRev, but convinced the company that the future was in creating entertaining, original content — and that is exactly what the company let him do. The “Cheap Camera Challenge,” which put an outdated or toy camera in the hands of a working pro, was one of his most successful creations.
Wong, who is from the U.K., worked for DigitalRev in Hong Kong alongside the equally hilarious cameraman and occasional co-host, Lok Cheung. The two had vastly different on-screen personalities, which made for a photography show that was surprisingly entertaining. However, in 2015, Kai returned home to the U.K., and DigitalRev TV just wasn’t the same since, according to FStoppers.
Still, after a successful seven-year run, it is hard to ask for more. DigitalRev TV will continue, of course, but without its charismatic host, its future is a little unclear. Wong will likely bring many viewers to his personal channel, but his content may be limited until such a time as the channel can support itself. With any luck, the transition will be beneficial to both Wong and DigitalRev, and hopefully, viewers will soon have even more great content to watch.
