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Go Pro

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Jan 31, 2013
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Location
Warren, Manitoba
Ok, so, I bought a Go Pro 4 Black on E-bay last night. Up here they wanted $550 for the Hero 5 and the reviews weren't the greatest and most suggested getting a 4 if you could find them. Local sports store had them on sale for $399 but they all sold out in 2 days. So I resorted to E-Bay Canada and paid $380 with shipping from BC.

I'm now shopping for accessories et al and was wondering from all you existing users about things like battery life. Robin, when you go out on a 2 week solo, how many batteries do you take? Have the remote?

I already have some ideas of mounts and views I will try out, just need all the reviews and info I can get as I accumulate the necessary accessories.

Thanks
Karin
 
Does yours have a view screen? If not, you can download an app on your cell phone that will allow it to connect by blue tooth to the camera and your phone becomes the screen. Very handy when you are trying to set up shots.
 
HAHAHAHAHA....she ummmm, doesnt have that kind of cell phone Mem.

dang, she may have to sell my boat to afford the accessories. I had better chain it to a tree.
 
PLEASE-do not get a helmet and mount it on top, I will avoid you...haw.:cool:

I bought cheap batteries on eBay, they have held up with recharges and I bring 5 batteries and 2 cards. A Go Pro battery really outlasts these cheapo's, but I have had good luck with them. I will buy them again.
I bought the wi fi remote control but have never really used it. Not sure why, I guess I don't trust it and since you can't play back what you recorded in the field you have to wonder if it worked when you needed it to. I should practice at home but you know how that goes.
I had a "spider" mount I think it's called, a small tri pod with flexible legs. It lasted a while but the legs started fall off, I never replaced it. It does work well though, nice around camp and you can hang it in a tree, but I would not use it in the canoe without a lanyard attached to the camera, I don't trust it.

I just take my handle bar mount attached to a spare beavertail paddle. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8ybDeybxoA
You can get some nice off the side of the canoe shots with it wedged into the gunnels, nothing worse than endless over the bow shots in a video, just my 2 cents.
 
Not sure the 4 is going to work for me but we shall see. Apparently the 3+Silver is superior to any of the newer models, there are 2 on Kijiji now... I could always sell the 4 again, ha ha. I have my Freedom 56 vacation coming up to play with it, have some ideas. It may go well with my Bambi Cam dash cam.
 
Check out the manfrotto super clamp. They are awesome. Rock solid. Maybe a little heavy for lake and portage style tripping, but on the river they can take a hit and won't budge.

I've got two knock off cameras. Can't comment on go pros specifically, the batteries can record for 1.5 hrs straight. I think I have ten batteries and bring along a 22,000 mA lithium battery to recharge them all twice. I run at least one camera all the time because I'm bad about turning them on when I need to and miss a lot of shots.
 
Does Go Pro swim? Hubby wants one to stick on the roof of the car and drive real fast up Mt Washington.
 
Whichever GoPro you choose Karin, I'm looking forward to seeing proof of "the monster pike that got away".
Tripping/fishing/camp chore videos are fun. I even like walking the portages via the video. Armchair travelling.
 
Brad, first week of September we are headed to a friends camp on Pakwash Lake in Ear Falls Ontario for a week of blissful boat fishing. I'll work out some ways to capture our week of fishless days. I'm planning on taking my solo canoe as well for some calm day paddling and slow pickerel fishing.
 
You will probably want the adapter to mount the GoPro to a camera tripod. Once you have this, you can improvise other mounts. Wherever possible, I would also use a tether in case the mount comes undone. There are stick on mounts that you can put on most anything, but I agree that the handlebar mount would be a good choice.
 
Brad and Wayne Jennings' GoPro mount is a spring clamp about a dollar in value. Drill and add bolt as shown here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EI4AkbYCrIE

If you are going to be using the waterproof housing, audio quality will be poor since the camera's mike is encased in plastic, without any opening to let sound in. Poor sound seems to be a major gripe with waterproof GoPros, so maybe an external mike will help get the paddle splashes, falling rain and other water sounds for a truly, uh.... immersive experience (sorry couldn't resist). There are vids and web info sites on how to do this, buying the skeleton housing and then waterproofing that in some way seems to be an option along with others.


PS.... here's a very watery kayak vid with good sound quality made possible by an external mike. No wind noise either, probably has a wind sock on the mike to prevent that. Not the easiest option from the attached web page info.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zp7HZ9l7CtU
 
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The No Go, Go Pro or, why to not buy things from Ebay.

Nice little unit, unfortunate it doesn't seem to want to work correctly.

First issue, it keeps indicating No SD card. Apparently, there are few cards that are compatible with this unit, only Lexar or Sandisk ultra supreme flavour. Now, the Kingston one I have in it does record video and photo's regardless of what the camera thinks. Not sure the picture quality is all that great due to the card or lack of access to the full menu's.

Second, of course, the fact I cannot access the full menu's so I cannot change POV, frame capture speed, etc. Not sure why or if it has something to do with the card issue. I keep looking into the online manual for clues. Also, the blue light stays on constantly.

Thirdly. Playing with it today I find that with the housing on it, I can turn the unit on but the record button doesn't function. So I had to turn it on and start recording before locking it into the housing. Wouldn't that be annoying on a canoe trip.

I have not as yet given a review on Ebay for the purchase and won't until I figure out if this is a camera issue and I was sold a DUD, or if it is just me doing something wrong. I did order extra bits from Best Buy before I received the camera so if this doesn't work I will have to look for a Hero4 Silver instead.

Just to be able to read the little screen on the front I have to use my desktop magnifying light thingy. Even a simple magnifying glass isn't strong enough for my eyes, so I went bigger.
 
Sounds like the camera has some issues. My Hero 3 Silver has been flawless, the fact that it won't work in the housing is a deal breaker imo. Good Luck I hope it works out.
 
I see no point in being angry about this. It happens and it is as always, buyer beware. Gives me another reason to dislike people. I'll keep poking at it before I declare it a dud. Otherwise I'm impressed with the build quality of the mounts and such, nice to see metal being used for the important pieces.
 
The GoPros and other video cameras need fast SD cards. I don't remember the specs, but I bought several 16G cards for mine. The fast cards will work in other cameras. I can't speak to the other issues.
 
Sorry you may have gotten a lemon.

I don't care for GoPro videos except for helmet cams on whitewater runs or for very specialized closeup shots. The lens is so wide angled as to cause considerable foreshortening and other distortions.

For flatwater tripping videos, I prefer -- both as an amateur photographer and as a viewer -- a zoom camera having both still and high quality video features, plus a lightweight tripod and a Manfrotto clamp with an extension arm.
 
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