GoPro on the Beach

Dave here.....

One of the gifts Holly gave me for completing the Coast to Coast Challenge was the latest GoPro camera - Hero3 Black Edition. It's a real small sports camera that comes with waterproof housing, a remote, and a bunch of other things you screw it into that I haven't figured out yet. The camera has its own built-in wi-fi, which is how the remote works, or you can control it with your i-device. There's no viewfinder or display screen so the camera on its own doesn't give you feedback (you can buy an attachment or use the iPhone app).

Here's why I wanted a GoPro: 1) it's tiny 2) takes wide angle videos and photos 3) takes rapid photos at 30 fps 4) takes interval photos - like 1 every 5 seconds 5) you can wear it on your head. I did number 5 during the Never Land 5k. Battery life is advertised at over 2 hours. I can't get any more than 45 minutes. The wi-fi sucks a lot of battery. One other watch out - when you put it in the water casing it forces on the wi-fi automatically. I took it out one day to find my fully charged battery was dead. Still need to read more on these topics and find more tips.

I had a week to play with the camera on Jost Van Dyke in the British Virgin Islands. I haven't edited any video yet (why blow it all in one post?) but here's a sample of the photography:

These photos were taken from the same place. The top photo was taken with no zoom using my Pentax Optio WG-2. The bottom photo was taken with the GoPro - which has a set focal length.

 

 

 

We're going to need a bigger iPad..... These are interval photos I shot one night - 1 shot per 5 seconds. I plan to import these into iMovie to make a timelapse video.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is Just one of those photos.

 

 

 

Not sure about this but I think the angle you hold the camera determines how wide the point of view angle becomes. On the top photo you can see the chairs are about 3-4 chair lengths to the water. Those same chairs look really far in the bottom photo.

 

 

 

I was sitting on a barstool and just held the camera up with my arm.

 

 

No flash. Gotta think about backlight.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There's lots more to learn. Overall, there is a lot of technology packed into this little thing. It will never replace a conventional camera in my bag, but it's a great extra to have along for those fun shots and videos.

Here are some of my favorites (with some "ugly" ones included at the end):