Currently tempted by the new Gopro but can’t decide on that or upgrading my Nikon DSLR to a model which takes video.

The SLR would be great for footage from different vantage points, creative use of focus and all that but obviously not as a headcam.

The Gopro on the other hand is a great headcam but I’ve not seen too much done with it off the rider except zipline stuff and quite frankly endless headcam footage is not pleasant to watch at all.

So I’d love to see some creative stuff done with them thats not just headcam, your stuff or great examples you may have seen
It may help me make my mind up… 🙂

Some non headcam in my video all filmed with gopro 1 and 2 nothing professional. edited with sony vegas .Plus remember gopro,s are 100% waterproof http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpWGEGeYUzY

this was all filmed on the latest go pro

I use a mono pod often. fit the seat post mount to the narrower end, then it is better balanced when holding and more steady. I glued on a flat stick on mount (with the sticky stuff removed) so no unscrewing to take on and off…

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QqNzOpt6Ous&list=UUSv198UD3Wy-dBsg3K40IvQ&index=2&feature=plcp[/video]

Set up works ok on the coast and easy trails but not a good idea riding one handed on anything rough 🙂
mix it up with some chest and gorilla pod mounted ride by shots and try half slow when editing to get more film time as you ride by, and i also mount the Go Pro above the front tyre riding a ridged bike, (Larry cam :-))
just edited on Windows movie maker so nothing fancy…

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6I5CPbCByQ&list=UUSv198UD3Wy-dBsg3K40IvQ&index=6&feature=plcp[/video]

Go Pro works good on a tri pod too, but time consuming to set up…

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pa15nakOl8k&list=UUSv198UD3Wy-dBsg3K40IvQ&index=4&feature=plcp[/video]

Liking some of those. Looks good on the end of the pole Coastkid. What happens if you get the pole in the shot? Are you able to crop moving images? Its not something I’ve looked into enough.

Check out my jedi and nath ride herts. I filmed it with a go pro attached to a log . On youtube and vimeo iirc

[video]http://vimeo.com/27294548[/video]

Dh at cwmcarn seat post, frame and chest

Alps last year frame mount

[video]http://vimeo.com/28885744[/video]

This is a video I made with the go-pro a few months ago. Great fun, easy to use and definitely works for non-helmet cam shots.

[video]http://vimeo.com/m/42642213[/video] 😀

Not exactly mtb, but a good mix of gopro and canon d5. Look out for the hoof cam

’The Adventures of Don Quixote by Bicycle’

A mixture of chest mount and carefully placed on rocks etc trailside:
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovuJXI4tzho[/video]

Chest mount (non bike related)

GoPro HD 1080p

[video]http://vimeo.com/32563532[/video]

I thought about an SLR for video, but the GoPro is much more versatile for what I do.

[video]http://vimeo.com/38454525[/video]

[video]https://vimeo.com/37137438[/video]

The Day Off

This one is Da Bomb!

[video]https://vimeo.com/16879009[/video]

Kodiak Alaska mountain biking mashup

Some cracking ones there thanks folks.
Was trying to work out how they did all the ones on that Kodiak Alaska vid but not sure. Maybe a heli-cam on some of them? Couldn’t see any rope/wire on the sweeping following shots…

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgMSPkm6DSw[/video]

Not my video but the promo video for the HD Hero 2 is amazing! Its made me want one but not really for bike videos, just as a small good quality camera I can take around anywhere.

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUEZCxBcM78[/video]

Here are a few of mine from the past couple of years

[video]http://player.vimeo.com/video/12009037[/video]

[video]http://player.vimeo.com/video/18839508[/video]

[video]http://player.vimeo.com/video/13331341[/video]

Cheers, Rich

Liking that Jedi. Off-bike shots can be quite good. I think I’d want to try to add a bit of dynamic movement to the shots if I could, it adds a little something but its easy to fall into the trap of doing the same thing.
(how did you work out the position of the twin rails on the northshore corner? Trial and error and bent mech hangers?) 🙂

The resolution on the actual Gopro promo is unreal when you watch it off Youtube, how come it looks so different to the others? Is it purely down to upload compression etc?
I know Youtube compresses the hell out of footage but I thought Vimeo didn’t. The Vimeo ones always look a lot better.
Is the resolution as good as that straight off the camera?(presuming you use the highest quality setting)

Keep em coming, but off bike/rider footage is really what I want to see done well. 🙂

the vid is the only time i used the go pro. it has no view finder so i guessed each shot. only took less than an hour to film 🙂

The resolution on the actual Gopro promo is unreal when you watch it off Youtube, how come it looks so different to the others? Is it purely down to upload compression etc?
I know Youtube compresses the hell out of footage but I thought Vimeo didn’t. The Vimeo ones always look a lot better.
Is the resolution as good as that straight off the camera?(presuming you use the highest quality setting)

This is what I’m wondering as well. No footage I’ve seen from “normal” users looks anywhere near as good as the official GoPro stuff but then again I bet not many people bother or have the knowledge to improve it in post. I borrowed an original GoPro last year and thought the quality was a bit crap. Really blocky and soft straight out the camera. I’d like to know how GoPro got their promo looking so good because it’d be awesome to have that quality!

Actually, not a bad comparison between a Gopro and an SLR in terms of quality and frame rate here.

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZsykO1lXkU[/video]

I have posted this before but here it is again. Only one bit of helmet cam but I would suggest its not the normal angle. 🙂

[video]http://vimeo.com/39667530[/video]
To see the proper HD quality though you will need to watch it on vimeo http://vimeo.com/39667530.

If you are a photographer and feel you would be limited by not having the control over the image in the same way you do with your Nikon then the GoPro (or any other “sports cam) will feel really limiting.

About 2 hours ago I just ordered a Canon 600D because I have found that I’m at the limit of what I can do creatively with only a GoPro. I want the control you have with a DSLR in terms of depth of field and focal length. The wide angle of the GoPro is great… until its not. Wasted so many chances of big epic “down the valley” type shots because as soon as you are 20ft away you are a tiny spec in the image.

I think the GoPro Promo stuff comes out looking so good because its always shot in perfect conditions. Lighting is really important to achieve those really nice clean, saturated looks. The things that people are talking about being crap with their GoPro footage is quite difficult to take out in post.

By the way I believe that the GoPro shots at 15Mbps.

I’m quite pleased with the underwater shot a friend got of me towards the end of this one: https://vimeo.com/41035094

And the opening shots of this one: https://vimeo.com/38639938

Not a GoPro, mind. shot with an XTC100, standard def camera.

composite – Member
I have posted this before but here it is again

Thanks for all the comment there. Yeah I really like your video. I’ve watched it a few times now, very creative.
You’ve made me lean back towards an SLR now… Doh! 🙂

I think the perfect combination will be a DSLR and a sports cam. You can get all your beautiful cinematic off bike shots but then mix them up with great on the frame stuff. Another thing to remember is that there are just times when you won’t want to use the DSRL because you are worried about breaking it, where as I’ll put the GoPro almost any where.

If you have the budget to drop £500+ on a DSLR that you will use it for stills pics as well then I would say go for that and you can always pick up a GoPro HD1 down the line for less than a new lens for the DSLR (my mate just got one for £160). Just think of it as a wide angle lens you can take any where. Another “warning” though you will probably have to get into editing in a a bigger way if you want to make the footage match cutting between the 2 cameras. Colour grading will become your friend. 🙂

Yeah, try to use both. I’d love a decent normal camera to go with the gopro.

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6Ds7Uxey90[/video]
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIejBE44Jdw[/video]

kayak23 – Member
….
Was trying to work out how they did all the ones on that Kodiak Alaska vid but not sure. Maybe a heli-cam on some of them? Couldn’t see any rope/wire on the sweeping following shots…

the making of the video and mounts etc is here:

Freakin ‘tard camera mount