I don't get the resentment about certain channels that have relationships with vendors and manufacturers, especially the heat that AstroBackyard gets from a few people.
Yea.. I understand the preference of getting a perceived unbiased/honest review from someone who has purchased the gear themselves, but this is really an unrealistic expectation for a large YouTube Channel. Most people don't have the resources to buy tons gear just to review.
I do get the negative connotations that come with being an influencer, but again we're not talking about tiktok and the tide pod challenge. I think it's wrong to conflate these astro channels with the social media influencers.
It takes a lot of effort to create content that people will want to watch. If you have never edited a video, then you have no idea how much work and time goes into it. Quite frankly, processing an astro image is easier than putting out a quality video. My videos are bare bones and it still takes me longer to put one together than it does to process an image.
AstroBackyard is one of the few examples where the channel is their day job (Nebula Photo's is another). The earnings from YouTube is not enough to live off of. For example, my little channel had over 100,000 views and over 10,000 hours of watch time last year and I made $500 from it (Uncle Sam took 50% of that too!, lol
). So these guys have to earn their money through other means (Affiliate links, Patreon, etc).
If you don't like the product reviews.. then don't watch them and let the man earn his bread. I enjoy his other videos. like his travel videos, neaf reports, star parties, and meeting other astrophotographers. His overall story telling is very good.. and his video production is the best out there among Astrophotography channels.
). So these guys have to earn their money through other means (Affiliate links, Patreon, etc). 
