Ulanzi FM01 Filmog Ace smoke machine review: add atmospheric effects to your clips and stills

To date, I’ve tested a few fog machines for Digital Camera World – the Ulanzi Filmog Ace being the fourth. By this stage, I’ve become a convert to carrying a fog machine in my kit bag for both video and photo shoots. In video shoots, the fog adds an extra dimension to the scene as it swirls and billows in front and behind the main subject. In photo shoots, fog helps fill empty space and causes the background colours to become diffuse (with flatter tones), which helps the foreground subject stand out.

I’ve found that my portrait shoots in particular benefit from the extra texture, color, and atmosphere that the output of a fog machine adds! I also enjoy sci-fi toy photography shoots and have been through a phase of adding atmosphere to my set-ups by using the Ulanzi’s foam modifier to turn fog into dry ice.

Ulanzi is a Chinese company that, since 2025, has been producing a very wide range of camera-related gear, including lenses, tripods, LED lights, and camera backpacks. Their products are aimed at a wide range of photographers and videographers, too, from smartphone vloggers to professional content creators. The Ulanzi Filmog Ace will be of interest to any video maker or photographer due to the benefits a touch of fog can add to film shoots, portrait photos, and product photography.

Ulanzi FM01 Filmog: Specifications

Ulanzi FM01 Filmog: Price

The Amazon prices for the Ulanzi Filmog are reasonable when compared to a fog machine with very similar specifications - the Telesin C40 Portable Smoke Machine. The Telesin fog machine retails at a slightly pricier $129.99, but it’s very comparable to the Ulanzi Filmog Ace in shape and size, plus it also has a detachable remote control panel. Check out our Alternative section below for more information on the Telesin C40.

Ulanzi FM01 Filmog: Design & Handling

When it comes to smoke machines, the core design features are present in every model. The four devices that I’ve tested all have a fuel tank that needs to be filled with a food-based glycerine liquid, which is then heated up (or atomised) to create fog/smoke. The cheapest and most basic fog machine is the Lensgo Smoke-S Mini, which is basically an aerosol-sized can that jets out fog at the press of a button. It doesn’t have the ability to adjust the amount of smoke being emitted.

The more sophisticated Ulanzi Filmog Ace bears a strong resemblance to the similarly priced Telesin C40. With the Filmog Ace, you can adjust two key properties - the strength of the built-in fan that blows the fog into the air and the volume (amount) of the fog being generated.

These adjustments are made on the control panel on the side of the Filmog. A small OLED screen enables you to see which property you are adjusting (such as the fan strength), and then you can tap the physical + or - buttons to increase or decrease the setting. It’s equally easy to adjust the smoke amount setting. A trigger button (which has a red circle that makes it look like a camcorder’s record button) then causes smoke to spew out of the nozzle for as long as you press it.

There’s also a submenu that enables you to cause the smoke to billow continuously, or to be emitted in bursts of a specified duration, such as 15 seconds. These extra options enable you to operate the Filmog hands-free and focus on composing your shots.

Like the Telesin C40, the Ulanzi Filmog Ace’s control panel can be detached and used to remotely control the fog machine. This is a very useful feature as you can place the fog machine in shot (or just out of the edge of the frame) and modify its properties from up to 10m, which leads to a smoother and speedier shoot. The Filmog also boasts a 1/4” thread at the base so that you can mount it on a tripod if required, though as it sits happily and stably on the floor and billows smoke upwards, I didn’t need to mount it on a tripod during my test shoot.

Ulanzi FM01 Filmog: Performance

The Ulanzi Filmog Ace ships in a compact, zippable carry case. The interior of the case has shaped foam inserts to store the fog machine itself, plus essentials such as a bottle of fuel. Inside the lid is a webbed mesh storage pouch that contains plastic modifiers, such as a bendable tube that enables you to direct the smoke in specific directions.

In theory, being able to direct smoke with a modifier is a nice idea, but in practice, I found that trying to direct smoke was like trying to herd cats. On location, I would discover which way any wind was blowing and then place the Filmog in an appropriate place so that the wind would take the fog into shot. The Ulanzi carry case is fairly compact, so it fitted comfortably into my Stratus Photo backpack along with the rest of my gear for the test shoot.

My first attempt at using the Filmog Ace ended in failure. I’d hired a model to test the Filmog Ace and another fog machine - the Colbor Cineflare CF5. As you’ll see from its review, the Colbor Cineflare performed perfectly. I had, however, neglected to plug a cable into the Filmog Ace’s USB-C charging socket prior to my shoot, so it didn’t have enough juice to atomise the fuel and create fog. This was entirely my fault and not a failure of the Filmog.

Take 2! I hired another model for a sci-fi-themed shoot and returned to London’s Barbican Centre with a fully charged Ulanzi Filmog Ace. For a teleportation sequence, I used a Viltrox K90 tube light (see review) as a prop and placed the Filmog Ace at the base of the tube LED. I then used the Filmog’s detachable remote control panel to emit a burst of fog to augment the teleportation effect as my model materialised into the location.

The cool thing about using smoke in conjunction with an RGB LED is that when backlit, the smoke takes on the colours of the LED light. Smoke is also great for adding texture and atmosphere to both portrait photos and video shoots, and it also fills empty space.

For a second sequence, I placed the Ulanzi Filmog next to a Viltrox K90 and triggered it to emit smoke while my model, Maddy, fired her laser. The smoke picked up the blue colour of the LED, and its billowing, windblown movement added motion to my scene.

The combination of Ulanzi fog and Viltrox LED light certainly elevated the production values of my sci-fi sequence, as you’ll see from our supporting video. I did encounter a temporary problem when filming this sequence. When Maddy fired her gun I pressed the Ulanzi’s trigger button, but the smoke jetted out intermittently and in short bursts, rather than in a long, powerful jet of fog.

Fortunately, the device was clever enough to warn me (via the control panel’s OLED display) that I hadn’t attached the atomising changer (fuel tank) correctly. This was quickly and easily rectified, and the shoot continued smoothly, with plenty of smoke being generated.

Ulanzi FM01 Filmog: Verdict

The Ulanzi Filmog Ace does an effective job of producing high volumes of fog and smoke to add a cinematic look to your video and photo shoots. The removable control panel is easy to use, and you can easily customise the fan strength and smoke volume settings to produce a range of fog-related effects. When I was shooting outdoors and fog blew away quickly, I tended to put the fan and fog settings to the max to quickly fill the frame with smoke. When indoors, I dialled fan and fog settings down low and used the kit’s supplied flexible tube and a foam shield to create dry ice effects for my product photography— in this case, shooting the Ulanzi Filmog Ace itself!

I did encounter a couple of hitches on my test shoots, but they were both caused by user error— not charging the device beforehand and not rotating the atomising chamber securely into place. I can certainly recommend the Ulanzi Filmog Ace as a way to make your stills and clips look more cinematic, especially when used in conjunction with an RGB LED like the Viltrox K90 (see review).

Alternatives

The Colbor CineFlare CF boasts a couple of extra features not found in the other fog machines. The tip can rotate and be angled to direct the fog. An LED at the tip adds a colourful flare effect to the grey fog. You could file these extra features under ‘gimmick,’ but it is a 5-star machine.

Read the full Colbor CineFlare CF5 review

As its name suggests, the Lensgo Smoke S Mini is a smaller (and therefore cheaper) smoke machine, and as a result, it produces less smoke than the more expensive Ulanzi Filmog Ace. It may be more suitable for product photographers as its foam accessory does agree great job of producing dry ice. It also ships with a handy remote control unit so that you can trigger smoke from up to 10 meters.

Read the full Lensgo Smoke S Mini Fog machine review