11 replies to this topic

[whackywoody]

Hi, I'm thinking about buying a small helmet digital video camera that will fit to the side of my helmet to make sure I can record my crashes at a sunday trial. I was thinking of a small camera (like cabestany's at SSDT) like the bullet which would take an SD card be about 720P, weatherproof and fit within a budget of £120. As I am a bit of a newbie when it comes to video recording can anybody suggest any make and models digital vid cameras which would suit my requirements and my budget.

Cheers and Merry Xmas

[IanJ]

Hi,

I've used Go-Pro & Contour helmet cams for karting (not to mention in model planes, but thats another story!). Probably prefer the Contour range.......and can be had for £150 on Ebay.

As with any camera the quality of the output is all about the lens. You'll be disappointed if you go ultra cheap.

Ian.

Edited by IanJ, 14 December 2010 - 11:11 PM.

[malcra]

I've used the GoPro HD camera for classic scrambles and also for trials, and please with the results.
Having an HD camera means good results for the TV or for youtube

Classic Experts

Llanthony Classic Scramble

Edited by malcra, 15 December 2010 - 02:33 PM.

[totalshell]

nice quality camera malcra, certainly brings a new perspective to yooo tube videos.
seems that there are plenty on eblag however a note of caution.. if you buy from the USA or elsewhere outside th euro zone you WILL get stung for Vat and postal charges once the stuff arrives in the uk. typically stuff leaves US same day arrives Uk the next and sits in customs for 7-10 days before you get the tax demand..

Edited by totalshell, 15 December 2010 - 08:34 PM.

[copemech]

Great video!

Can you post one up on a regular basis just to remind me of the old days soo I do not actually purchase one them things, am spoiled now on a mod bike, yet with those sections, scores may not change with me riding!

[chewy]

What a fantastic Blog from totalshell.. Like you Cope it got my "Juices" flowing for a similar project..... top marks.

[copemech]

Seems to me the Contour has an advantage in fitment as a helmet cam. Have seen the go-pros and just can't get my head round that in a trials environment.

[chewy]

Yea I agree i bought Contour ready for this summer (after a lot of deliberation as the picture quality of the go pro appeared better to me). I actually put a small bolt through the helmet adaptor as well as the sticky pad, there's a little lanyard to the actual camera and you can level the camera with your line of sight easily, I leave the mount on my helmet and the camera fixes to it with "velcro" as well as clipping into the splines. My first effort was in HD which really uses up memory and is tedious to upload so I will be using 720 from now on. If anybody can reccomend a simple and cheap editor software I would be interested as that is now the next step for me.

[Bigman]

Has anybody ever done much filming using a chest mounted camera? I have always found that helmet cams tend to move around alot and the angle never seems to give a good perspective of the stuff being ridden. I imagine that a chest cam would give a good view of the stuff being ridden and also not move around quite so much.

On the Camera front, I have used a go pro and liked it, but that was a while ago, looking into getting one for myself in the next month or so.

Adam

[shedco]

Latest thing is hd keyfob spy camera. At £35 they make everything else look very bulky & expensive.
Down side is you will have to import from Hong Kong.

[bigfoot]

The problemm with these small cameras is the same as a stills cameras. The small lens just doesn't do any film justice. For helmet work I'd also look for a camera that does 60 fps (Go-pro and Contour do this) 30 fps can be a bit jumpy when the going gets fast.

Chewy, As I've said before I like Corel Video Studio but for HD you really need to run it in proxy mode. Its available for free download and 30 days totally unrestricted use for you to try. Youtube has some good step by steps on proxy mode.

[chewy]

bigfoot, on 18 April 2011 - 07:09 AM, said:

The problemm with these small cameras is the same as a stills cameras. The small lens just doesn't do any film justice. For helmet work I'd also look for a camera that does 60 fps (Go-pro and Contour do this) 30 fps can be a bit jumpy when the going gets fast.

Chewy, As I've said before I like Corel Video Studio but for HD you really need to run it in proxy mode. Its available for free download and 30 days totally unrestricted use for you to try. Youtube has some good step by steps on proxy mode.

Thanks for that bigfoot ; I'm already on with it. Got a few camera setting questions for you when in Scotland, nothing yo won't laugh about regarding simplicity.. I think I will be leaving HD alone for a while just going to get used to using it from capture to publish.