To GoPro Or Not To GoPro... That Is the Question

[Farrealm]

Hi Everyone,

Wondering if anyone would like to share their experience with their choice of 'action cam' (good or bad, it doesn't matter).

Reason for asking:

I am looking for a new camera for my F450 (will be my first 'action cam'). I was about the buy the ubiquitous Hero 3 Black,... I mean there is even a banner on the Multi Rotor Forums.com home page telling me that I should buy one (so it must be good :nevreness. That was until I came across some pretty damning reviews on the GoPro website.

Now it seems to me that there are generally two sorts of reviews on the web: A) Super positive (like someone got paid to write it...), and B) Super negative (like "I didn't bother to read the manual" or just plain unlucky to buy that one dodgy model). But the number of negative comments on the GoPro 3 made me think twice (problems mainly seem to be around dodgy firm-ware and horrendously short battery life).

So I have been considering alternatives like the Sony's AS15, and the AS30 which will be out by the end of the month. One thing I like about the GoPro is the apparent colour accuracy, while plenty of other cameras (including Sony) produce these weird over-satured images. I can see the appeal but I prefer colour accuracy.

Anyone like to comment on pros and cons of their choice of camera?

 

[LeeT]

When GoPro released the Black, it was not ready for prime time, seriously pissing off their customers. There have been a couple of firmware upgrades that, to the best of my knowledge, stabilized the product. It is my second GoPro, and I have been pleased with the quality of the vids and pictures. The camera gets warm while in use. It has relatively short battery life, around 45 minutes. That is probably not an issue as most of the FPV equipment can charge the battery while in flight.

I am a relative newb (6 mos doing AP) using mine on a F450. Some of the more experienced will,weigh in. So far, I am not disappointed with the camera.

 

[SMP]

We use over a dozen of them in our commercial photography business. Thus far, the gopro3 black despite it's finicky card issues remains the best cam in the segment by a fair margin.

 

[RCJardin]

It is simple really. Compare the picture quality of the Sony and Gopro3 Black and it becomes no contest it is GoPro all the way regardless of the odd issue. You need the best quality picture and Gopro have no internal wranglings to deal with of a GoPro camera possible outshining another model.

 

[fj_montilla]

I use a GoPro Hero3 Black and a Sony Nex7. I like them both for different reasons. The GH3 to me is a no-brainer. Good quality in any lighting situation. The only thing that bothers me about the GoPro is the bent/warped horizon and the "yellowy" image it creates, especially when there's a lot of green in your viewport. Some peoble dont mind it, but it "jumps" at me. The Nex7 gives me a lot of control, which opens up more issues in challenging light situations. For your F450, the GoPro Hero3 is probably the way to go. There's a lot of gimbal options, free software, cables for fpv, plus it's a cool piece of equipment.

 

[kloner]

It's finicy on the memory cards you use, the latest firmware addressed that but none the less, it needs more than just a clone of a sandisk class10, it needs write 40mb sec or higher kinda class 10. samsung or the super high end sandisk that's red and gold from a reputable place, not ebay. That is the most counterfiet product on ebay if it's not just fake from the get go. i ordered 3 times in a row and each one was cancelled by ebay fraud department. use b&h, best buy, something like that.

they take decent vids for such a small package

 

[dma251]

Kloner, what gimbal are you using in the video above? I'm trying to find a good one...

 

[PeteDee]

The only thing that bothers me about the GoPro is the bent/warped horizon and the "yellowy" image it creates, especially when there's a lot of green in your viewport. Some peoble dont mind it, but it "jumps" at me.

Both easily fixable in GoPro Studio.

 

[kloner]

that's a discovery pro

 

[Farrealm]

Awesome vid Kloner!

 

[Farrealm]

Thanks everyone for replying. It convinced me of getting the Hero 3. I had a look at Sony's new AS30, which has some nice features such as image stabilization and GPS tracking. But, when it comes to overall image (really what it is about...) the Hero 3 looks best. I agree with fj_montilla, the sometimes "yellowy" images are a bit weird. The Sony images are striking (for a few seconds) but then you notice that the contrast and saturation are way too high. And then there is Sony's turquoise sky... I guess both brands (probably like all other) don't get the white-balance right (perhaps they really should have a manual setting) but in the end it seems infinitely easier to edit out any Hero 3 yellow-wash then all the shortcomings of the Sony image. (the squarish GoPro is also easier to mount...).

 

[adanac]

I would say that there are issues (not there IS issues as an earlier person might have written) with the Hero3 but none that can't be overcome. It's a different camera from the Sony, which I have not used. I have two of them and we use them extensively on the show I shoot for, as do many shows. GoPro studio is very useful and now has lens correction, which is great.

With regard to color, you can shoot in Protune and play with them later either in GoPro Studio or in your favorite NLE.


I really don't think the issues with it are big enough that you'd regret it.

 

[Roger Ramjet]

I have personally work with both and I must say that the Sony HDR AS-10/15 is really impressive in many aspects. You be the judge..... My choice is clear and it is not the Gopro 3 Black Edition.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xWYyvX5FcQ

 

[sixshooterstang]

only difference i see if the color balance is different on both.

 

[adanac]

It is of course very possible or even probable that Sony or someone else comes out with an "action" camera that has better image quality. Part of the discussion is colored by the fact that GoPro has dominated, and will likely continue to dominate the market.

In that sense, I am compelled to use the GoPro because I need to bring industry "standard" gear to the productions I work on and the production standard for action cams is generally GoPro. Moreover, I've been working on a show that doesn't even use the H3. They're still shooting with and airing footage from the H2.

Another potential advantage of a company, like GoPro, that dominates the market is that their popularity, ubiquity and income from their products hopefully motivate them to support them properly - the GoPro Studio might be an example, although that may also be down to their relationship with Cineform. That said, it may be competition from Sony and others that motivate them to improve. There is already talk of an H4.

For the reasons stated above, I need to stay with GoPro for the time being.

 

[Farrealm]

As I started this thread I thought I'd share some photos of my GoPro Hero 3 (black) mounted on my F450.

After reading all the replies I ended up getting a GoPro. A local shop sold them for $385 (Australian), which helped to sweeten the deal ($1 more expensive then the silver version). As I mentioned before I had a look at the various Sony-s, including the new AS30. I agree with Roger Ramjet, the Sony with its vivid image definitely has appeal. The problem for me personally is that I can't get past Sony's saturated and contrasty images. As I mainly plan to use my GoPro for APV of landscapes at sunrise and sunset I needed a different image quality. 'Out of the box' the GoPro did it for me. Two other things that I considered where weight and 'mountability'. The GoPro is lighter (not by much...) but with its square frame it seemed easier to mount.

I must say, even though I was a bit worried about the GoPro reviews, setting it up on my Mac and iPad with the GoPro app was pretty easy. No issues at all... so far........... (well... how to get Java working on a Mac.... $#@!&.... but that's another story)

Then came the question on how to mount it on my F450. I'd already spent some time browsing the web for solutions. In the end I made my own landing gear to give it some ground clearance and mounted the GoPro under the bottom place (see the images). I made the landing gear from 10mm aluminium tube. I cut out a section at the top and mounted it to the frame using a bit of velcro and cable ties. It has some sort of rubber knob at the base. All from the local hardware store. I have flown with it before and it works well. By the way, they are about 160mm long and spray-painted.

The mount is really simple. I considered a few options but ended up using the mounting plate that comes with the GoPro packaging. I cut it down to a nice size and attached it to the base plate using two bolts and 3 washers per bolt to absorb any vibrations. They are just standard tap washers. Using the base plate allows me to slot in the "The Frame" mount for the GoPro. The difference in CG isn't too much and I only need to move the LiPo back a couple of cm to correct. The whole setup is just over 1.3kg. I tested in the backyard (very windy unfortunately) but couldn't observe any 'jello' during the first few tests.

Have a good weekend!

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[adanac]

I don't think you're going to be unhappy with the H3. Shoot in Protune and work with the colors later in GoPro Studio.

As I started this thread I thought I'd share some photos of my GoPro Hero 3 (black) mounted on my F450.

After reading all the replies I ended up getting a GoPro. A local shop sold them for $385 (Australian), which helped to sweeten the deal ($1 more expensive then the silver version). As I mentioned before I had a look at the various Sony-s, including the new AS30. I agree with Roger Ramjet, the Sony with its vivid image definitely has appeal. The problem for me personally is that I can't get past Sony's saturated and contrasty images. As I mainly plan to use my GoPro for APV of landscapes at sunrise and sunset I needed a different image quality. 'Out of the box' the GoPro did it for me. Two other things that I considered where weight and 'mountability'. The GoPro is lighter (not by much...) but with its square frame it seemed easier to mount.

I must say, even though I was a bit worried about the GoPro reviews, setting it up on my Mac and iPad with the GoPro app was pretty easy. No issues at all... so far........... (well... how to get Java working on a Mac.... $#@!&.... but that's another story)

Then came the question on how to mount it on my F450. I'd already spent some time browsing the web for solutions. In the end I made my own landing gear to give it some ground clearance and mounted the GoPro under the bottom place (see the images). I made the landing gear from 10mm aluminium tube. I cut out a section at the top and mounted it to the frame using a bit of velcro and cable ties. It has some sort of rubber knob at the base. All from the local hardware store. I have flown with it before and it works well. By the way, they are about 160mm long and spray-painted.

The mount is really simple. I considered a few options but ended up using the mounting plate that comes with the GoPro packaging. I cut it down to a nice size and attached it to the base plate using two bolts and 3 washers per bolt to absorb any vibrations. They are just standard tap washers. Using the base plate allows me to slot in the "The Frame" mount for the GoPro. The difference in CG isn't too much and I only need to move the LiPo back a couple of cm to correct. The whole setup is just over 1.3kg. I tested in the backyard (very windy unfortunately) but couldn't observe any 'jello' during the first few tests.

Have a good weekend!

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