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I purchased a GoPro Hero HD over the summer for some climbing I did and have a few questions for people who use them in the snow.

 

Where do you mount your GoPro?

 

and

 

What video resolution do you use?

 

Thanks

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From what I've seen people usually either mount them on the side or the top of their skiing helmet. Another option is to stick it to the end of a ski pole and you can use it to film yourself - that looks quite good. Not sure about resolution - Im guessing 720p is going to be good because you have the widest angle (170 degrees) and you can also film at 60 fps - this is nice if you want to make some slow-motion shots. You could go up to 1080p but your viewing angle is limited to 127 degrees - as you go to narrower angles, any camera movements become more distracting. You might want to experiment a little, but I think for videos (as opposed to video games) you wont see a massive difference from 720 to 1080p unless you have a really big, plush TV. Another consideration is the space you have on you memory stick and how much footage you want to take. The 1080p and 720p at 60 fps are going to take up twice as much disk space as the 720p at 30fps.

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Good answer Gary. I have been filming at 720 and 60 fpp and happy with results but am interested in your comments re 30fpp. I don't need to do any slow-mo so would I be better off at 30 ? Would that result in smaller more manageable files without noticable quality difference?

Cheers

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Thanks for your answer. I didnt realise the wider angle was less distracting and was going to use either 960 or 1080. I will try out the multiple options you suggested. Memory space hasnt been an issue so far.

 

Also do you guys use the anti fog inserts? I have had some issues with the case fogging up at altitude and when in the water.

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Depending on what you are filming you might be able to see some difference between 60 and 30 fps even at normal speed, but definitely much more apparent as you slow things down. With the narrower field of view, the vibrations and movement of the camera is more noticable - also, it becomes more tricky to get what you want in the frame. If file size wasnt an issue, I'd just film at 720p 60 fps. If it was an issue, Id go with 720p 30 fps and maybe a bit of 60 fps for anything I might want to slow down. Dont know about the anti-fog inserts - maybe a good idea on a snowy day?

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The anti fog inserts work well in winter surf, I will be testing them out on the snow this winter - I don't want to risk ruining the videos with a foggy lens! In the surf, I have been using the 960p 4:3 setting, as this apparently has the tallest field of view. I am currently tossing up whether to use this or the 720 setting on either 30 or 60fps on the snow. I am planning to use mine helmet mounted, I also have the chest mount and will probably take some video from a pole looking back at me, the better videos I have seen usually have plenty of different camera angles, i think it helps keep from making the video seem repetitive.

 

Has anyone checked out the new GoPro HD 2? Processor twice as fast, so 60fps and 170 degrees at 1080p, as well as improved low light performance.

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Cheers guys. Heaps of great info there. Ill let you know how I go. Hopefully I can get some good footage at Niseko in early Jan.

 

Regarding the HD 2 - It looks amazing. The promo video is something else. I love the super slow motion around the middle of the film.

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I am tempted by the HD2 - my mum has offered to make a contribution towards one for my Christmas present! In February, they bring out a wi-fi attachment which allows you to control the camera and also stream the video to a mobile device such as a smart phone while recording to the SD card - could be very useful in some situations.

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Contour have had this process for about 12 months and you are right it is a great tool for checking your results on the go on your smart phone without having to wait till the end of the day

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recommend not using 100% go pro footage in your stuff tho, it gets boring really quickly.

 

and don't forget the "5 second rule" either

a single 25minute video of a single ski run is very dull, your friends say its nice cause they're trying to be polite.

5 minutes worth of "best of" 5 second clips will keep people interested

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recommend not using 100% go pro footage in your stuff tho, it gets boring really quickly.

 

and don't forget the "5 second rule" either

a single 25minute video of a single ski run is very dull, your friends say its nice cause they're trying to be polite.

5 minutes worth of "best of" 5 second clips will keep people interested

 

I used to be in the business and absolutely agree. A pretty turd is still a turd. Composition always trumps cool in the long run.

 

If the HD Hero can do 1/10 of the what the promo video shows then I'd be impressed. Don't be fooled though....there is some powerful editing going on in that vid. That ain't no iMovie. Back in even 2000......to get video like that we would have had to shoot on film and edit on uncompressed non-linear gear (Avid Media Composer) otherwise rendering times and slow motion artifacting would have been horrendous.

 

Anyway, ya....looks like a kick ass little B roll camera.

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recommend not using 100% go pro footage in your stuff tho, it gets boring really quickly.

 

and don't forget the "5 second rule" either

a single 25minute video of a single ski run is very dull, your friends say its nice cause they're trying to be polite.

5 minutes worth of "best of" 5 second clips will keep people interested

We also have a canon HD camcorder which we will use, so hopefully will get a good variety of angles etc. Will try to remember to keep the clips short when editing!

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