Tuesday 26 April 2011

Go Pro Hero 1080 HD sports camera, So far so good...

I have been on a filming frenzy with the new Go Pro camera when out cycling nearly every day in the last week`s dry weather, it is an impressive bit of kit...


I have been trying out various settings on the Go Pro Camera using the chest mount,
I plan to add this to cycling films but last week films have all been done mostly just with the chest cam view, once i work out the resolution that looks best for locations- open ground/woods etc.. then it will be mixed in with compact video views and picture`s.
First film was on the Pugsley around the sandy coastal trails at Gullane,
sometimes it was over exposed in the sunshine reflecting in the Sea Harr (fog) we have been getting here on the coast when cool sea air meets warmer air on land,
This film was using the default resolution setting (r4) which is a fish eye 170 degrees, it looks a bit warped and not so good out in the open as distance views are lost...


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I do a lot of regular (inland!) mountainbiking too but dont post it much on here as i like to keep this blog coastal related but did some films on my MTB,
Next evening i rode trails around Seacliff and Tyninghame on the old Cannondale Super V suspension bike...


Adding a few takes using the seat post/ handlebar mount,
quality was smoother still with the suspension and in the woods the quality looked better while still on the r4 default setting.
I hope this gives a more involving view of on the bike,
opinions from those readers who don't ride mountain bikes would be welcome!
do you like it?- or feel sick watching this?...felt great riding it -:)



And returning home some more film through Binning Woods...


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Last Friday evening i rode around Butterdean Woods with friends, again i filmed but switched to the r3 Resolution setting, but although quality looked improved it was a kind of `looking through a letter box view` with no view ahead of the trail or other riders and the camera angle was too low for this setting, to raise the angle the camera can be swapped upside down then you switch the film around,
I will have another go at this setting later, a bit cheesed as a fantastic evening riding a very dry Butterdean, a fantastic mix of rooty twisting trails, even though i jumped off the North Shore being too close to gary before the sea saw!,
fellow cyclists will like these trails!


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Easter Weekend and Saturday was overcast with light rain showers and a biting cold wind, Problem with this time of year is when warm it is very warm out the wind in the sun, if the wind comes out the East off the North Sea and its damp its bitter cold, winter or summer cycling clothes?... a bit of both!
Had a great beachride with friend Jason on the Pugsleys down to North Berwick Harbour which was very quiet due to the weather...





A very relaxing days ride...


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Now the not so good news is the time to Edit, hopefully this will get better as i get the hang of using the Pinnacle Studio HD 15 software i had to buy to upload the HD film, My PC needs more power to upload and work the editing quickly, and i think the Pinnacle is far to complicated-for me anyway, but it is a professional editing software capable of TV standard editing...
For now i am uploading all Go Pro film clips and publishing it (to my public films on windows) then editing using Windows Movie Maker, i only use fade in/out to black or white and mix clips by dragging over which Pinnacle cant do without going into a huge library of effects, why is there not a quick to access basic effects folder?,
I like to make a quick film most of the time, hour tops most for a cycling film,
So hopefully this camera can add a more `on board` view in my cycling films...

lastly, after a mellow beachride film i went out last night riding the local Garlton Hills, bone dry singletrack trails, Springtime is full on now, leaves are out on the trees, The Gorse bushes-called Whin`s here are in there yellow flower and the County is a patchwork of bright Yellow Oilseed rape fields,Green Winter Barley fields and brown freshly sown fields still to reveal there crop...




As well as the Ancient Ridge road which crosses the Garltons there are a lot of trails created by cattle which when dry make for good high speed fun,
mixed with some paths and a crazy ride down the north side of Skid Hill it was a fun couple of hours riding from the doorstep...
Old school trails, old school bike, old school tunes...

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There seems to be some upload issues with Youtube re HD films too which a few folk have, but there is help at hand, i just have not had time to look through all the editing and filming tips for these cameras`s yet,
but there is a lot of good info on these forums/sites;

Go Pro User free forum

Eye of Mine upgrade site

Lots to learn yet...here is what can be done with these cameras...

3 comments:

  1. Great to watch these movies...I don't ride mountain bikes or any off road but it is great to see these full action videos.

    The Go Pro seems a big unit...I would like to record some fast road descents in Spain when I cycle to Gibraltar and back in September but am a little put off by the size of this camera. What is your opinion on the unit size and weight...?

    -Trevor

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  2. Not sure the weight trevor but it feels light using a phone battery and chest mounted you dont notice it at all, helmet mounted is more noticable with all these cameras and you can look to sides but the land looks flatter in front

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  3. Get a Mac and edit with iMovie, which is a brilliant software for editing HD and normal movies. Easy, intuitive, fast, nice effects. Examples on my youtube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/Habichtshorst

    Otherwise I'm jealous of your GoPro cam, been wanting one since a year or so. Lovely little camera, and I find the size and weight no problem at all (had a friends one in my hands).

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