If the question is to me, there happened to be 4 ft of fresh on the road at the time.
If the question is to me, there happened to be 4 ft of fresh on the road at the time.
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Rob1334
ACCOUNT CLOSED
Sorry, wasn't towards anyone in particular, but ya if it is a good opportunity to take one take it, but hearing poeple complain about going through hours of footage to get about 5 minutes of good footage is rediculous. Ya, take the camera with ya, but the same as my digital camera I use for taking videos of others, break it out only when they do something dumb so you can watch it later and laugh, nobody cares to watch trail rides...If the question is to me, there happened to be 4 ft of fresh on the road at the time.
The problem with the helmet camera setup is that it takes a little while to get it all hooked up and to verify that it is working. If you don't have a LANC input for your camera then you will have to have someone else turn it on for you. (If it is in your backpack).
I have lost some good footage by playing with the camera too much, but I got good sound.
The biggest problem is that you loose your camera with the helmet camera setup. Would be nice to have both be operational at the same time, instead of either/or. The wires are sometimes a pain also..I think the best setup would be this from VholdR. No cables no nothing.
VholdR
I have a Skullcamz setup and it pretty much sits at home in my camera bag and never gets used. Quality and what not is great (480i = just under DVD quality). It's novel, and you can get some cool shots duct taping the lipstick cam to random places for sure, but you have to follow really close to your subject or vise versa. Best shots I've seen are going down hill looking back up at the rider behind in a lot of deep pow.
Like ruffryder said, setup is annoying. Without a LANC you got hours of lame footage and editing is a chore. Or you think you are getting the best shot and the cam goes off. Or my personal fav, dieing battery pack so you only get audio. Personally, I'd rather just throw my vid cam in backpack and bust it out once the crew is somewhere playing around.
Be kind, edit down, less is more.
Like ruffryder said, setup is annoying. Without a LANC you got hours of lame footage and editing is a chore. Or you think you are getting the best shot and the cam goes off. Or my personal fav, dieing battery pack so you only get audio. Personally, I'd rather just throw my vid cam in backpack and bust it out once the crew is somewhere playing around.
Be kind, edit down, less is more.
yah, nothing more annoying than showing your friends all the cool shots you got with a black screen......
Samsung
I ordered a Samsung today. Smaller than a pack of cigarettes. If it works good it will be great to have a camcorder/helmet camera all in one. I bought the X210L model in the pic below(under $300). There is a better one, but it must not be on the market yet. It's called Samsung VP-X100L See link:
http://reviews.cnet.co.uk/camcorders/0,39029966,39195181,00.htm
I ordered a Samsung today. Smaller than a pack of cigarettes. If it works good it will be great to have a camcorder/helmet camera all in one. I bought the X210L model in the pic below(under $300). There is a better one, but it must not be on the market yet. It's called Samsung VP-X100L See link:
http://reviews.cnet.co.uk/camcorders/0,39029966,39195181,00.htm
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firecatguy
Well-known member
hey try and get the 300xl as i had the 205 and 210 and now have the 300 and the features are better and the 300 will take a 4gig card
if you look at my vid you will see the quality is ok but if your looking for hd camcorder its works great for helmet cam not home camcorder
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What quality of replay do you want is the real question.
If the only place you want to replay your video is on a place like youtube (2" x 3" screen) then a recorder that uses memory stick or CF is fine....but if you want to enjoy the videos on a full computer screen or tv then you won't be happy with the resolution of these units. Many camers pickup the images at or above 400 lines of resolution ....but no one/ no one has developed a recording device the uses memory to record at that same quality. To record at that res you will need to use something like a miniDV or dvd recorder.
I use a helet camera from Helmetcam.com and a Sony miniDV video camera with a LANC cord. The camera mounting and durability is the best out there. I put the Sony video camer/dvr in a backpack and run the LANC cord down the shoulder strap. If power is off I push the button once and a small LED glows green (power on), push one more time LED glows red (recording), push one more time the LED glow yellow (record standby), push and hold LED turns off (power off). Once the minicam is in the pack I never need to open it up until I'm back at the house and I always know what it is doing just by looking at the LANC cord.
I've been going through the helmet camera thing for the past few years and technology hasn't been developed yet to get a top quality recording on the cheap.....but the setup I use is very versitle and durable and when not using the remote helmet camera I sill have a top quality minicam to use for other things like underwater video photography.
If the only place you want to replay your video is on a place like youtube (2" x 3" screen) then a recorder that uses memory stick or CF is fine....but if you want to enjoy the videos on a full computer screen or tv then you won't be happy with the resolution of these units. Many camers pickup the images at or above 400 lines of resolution ....but no one/ no one has developed a recording device the uses memory to record at that same quality. To record at that res you will need to use something like a miniDV or dvd recorder.
I use a helet camera from Helmetcam.com and a Sony miniDV video camera with a LANC cord. The camera mounting and durability is the best out there. I put the Sony video camer/dvr in a backpack and run the LANC cord down the shoulder strap. If power is off I push the button once and a small LED glows green (power on), push one more time LED glows red (recording), push one more time the LED glow yellow (record standby), push and hold LED turns off (power off). Once the minicam is in the pack I never need to open it up until I'm back at the house and I always know what it is doing just by looking at the LANC cord.
I've been going through the helmet camera thing for the past few years and technology hasn't been developed yet to get a top quality recording on the cheap.....but the setup I use is very versitle and durable and when not using the remote helmet camera I sill have a top quality minicam to use for other things like underwater video photography.
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Tooo bad you didn't have the helmet cam when you landed on the piece of poo, maybe next time.
I have the same set up as quickdraw and I agree with everything he said.
One thing I will say about helmet cams in general: They do offer a nice change of perspective if used sparingly, but most of the shots I thought would be really cool ended up to be a dissapointment. An example is climbing a steep hill. When you play back the footage, everyone will think you are a wuss because it makes your steep climb look like the bunny hill.
One other negative about the cams with wires is that they are a major pain in the butt. I haven't used mine for the last couple of years simply for this reason.
One thing I will say about helmet cams in general: They do offer a nice change of perspective if used sparingly, but most of the shots I thought would be really cool ended up to be a dissapointment. An example is climbing a steep hill. When you play back the footage, everyone will think you are a wuss because it makes your steep climb look like the bunny hill.
One other negative about the cams with wires is that they are a major pain in the butt. I haven't used mine for the last couple of years simply for this reason.
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firecatguy
Well-known member
i have to disagree with you !!you only see the youtube video that people post but i also make dvd 720i with 5.1 surround sound and the video quality is awsome off sd card!
i also have been around people with your set up and i think its alot of cords and batt also mic too many things to go wrong.
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Firecatguy:
Got the SC-X300L. Thanks for the info Bro.
Got the SC-X300L. Thanks for the info Bro.
The best res you can get with a CF media type recorder is 640 x 480= 307,200 pixles . If anyone out there ever owned a 1/3 megapixle camerayou know what the pic quality was on anything bigger than a 4 x 6 print. You dvd recorder may be capable of 720i and 5.1 dolby but the source doesn't come close. If it works for what you want then great. My only point is many people try to go compact with a mp4/memory recorder thinking because the helmet cam is 408 lines they will have a great vid only to find out $4-600 later that their recorder wasn't even close to recording what the camera saw. Go to page 2 of the cnet review posted by sledhead http://reviews.cnet.co.uk/camcorders/0,39029966,39195181-2,00.htmand read the section on image quality. I went through this myself. If anyone wants to but a mp4 memory recorder I have one for sale. I also bought it from Helmetcam.com.
Also all of my minidv recorder, cables and batteries stay in my backpack. The only thing coming out is the video line to the helmet cam and the LANC cord that is tied to my shoulder strap. There is a disconnect on the video cable but I don't use it. If I want to take off my helmet or backpack then they come off together, no fuss - no mess. Cold is the biggest killer of batteries so the backpack also protects against that.
The best videos from these things come when a few people in your group have them and when wanting to shoot climbs or jumps one guy sets-up in the best place to record the action while the group runs through the action and then switch. If you want great vids or pics you need to make them happen. On a movie set they don't just turn on the camera and tell everone "ok, start doing that acting stuff". If you want good action of your ride then you need to be an active participant. Still photography is the exact same thing.
Also all of my minidv recorder, cables and batteries stay in my backpack. The only thing coming out is the video line to the helmet cam and the LANC cord that is tied to my shoulder strap. There is a disconnect on the video cable but I don't use it. If I want to take off my helmet or backpack then they come off together, no fuss - no mess. Cold is the biggest killer of batteries so the backpack also protects against that.
The best videos from these things come when a few people in your group have them and when wanting to shoot climbs or jumps one guy sets-up in the best place to record the action while the group runs through the action and then switch. If you want great vids or pics you need to make them happen. On a movie set they don't just turn on the camera and tell everone "ok, start doing that acting stuff". If you want good action of your ride then you need to be an active participant. Still photography is the exact same thing.
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I was just browsing through youtube
and found http://www.vholdr.com
via some helmet cam videos..
I'm pretty impressed, its pricey though 350 or so
but thats a drop in the bucket for some of you guys..
not to mention its good for all seasons, so you could
say give it to your kid for skateboarding.bmx.dirtbike... etc..
and found http://www.vholdr.com
via some helmet cam videos..
I'm pretty impressed, its pricey though 350 or so
but thats a drop in the bucket for some of you guys..
not to mention its good for all seasons, so you could
say give it to your kid for skateboarding.bmx.dirtbike... etc..
Why not have the camera going all the time? Then you can catch all the stupid funny **** that happens to you, and let's not pretend you never fell off your sled or something. And you can just ride and not have to worry about whether or not the camera was turned to the record position when something cool happens. I ride brother.....I don't need to stop and turn the camera on to make some good footage. Besides that, I trail ride alone 90% of the time and if I ever crash into a tree again I want to see it on tape, or at least everyone I know can see how I died..
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X2, it's the unexpected, spontanious stuff that's so fun to watch. Everything else, feel free to delete.Why not have the camera going all the time? Then you can catch all the stupid funny **** that happens to you, and let's not pretend you never fell off your sled or something. And you can just ride and not have to worry about whether or not the camera was turned to the record position when something cool happens. I ride brother.....I don't need to stop and turn the camera on to make some good footage. Besides that, I trail ride alone 90% of the time and if I ever crash into a tree again I want to see it on tape, or at least everyone I know can see how I died..
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firecatguy
Well-known member
yes if you leave it on all day you will get alot cool stuf also mount it to you head so all you have to do is look at what you like to video!!
check out my vids as i made from the same helmet cam and it works great all day one wire to the cam batty last all day long!!
we are flatlanders who took first trip to mt this last winter so dont be to judgementel of vids we also dont claim to be hardcore but the video should give you an idea of the cam!!!!!!!!!!!!http://ie.youtube.com/user/firecatguy
check out my vids as i made from the same helmet cam and it works great all day one wire to the cam batty last all day long!!
we are flatlanders who took first trip to mt this last winter so dont be to judgementel of vids we also dont claim to be hardcore but the video should give you an idea of the cam!!!!!!!!!!!!http://ie.youtube.com/user/firecatguy
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307 Snow*Moto
Member
Im actually impressed with some of the videos, even flat landers. Good job and honestly they were fairly steady. So Having said that what is the highest resolution you can get out of a helmet cam? If you dont go with a helmet cam and you bring your wife, hehe, and have her video you and your chums what hand held DV cam would you get? I guess mroe importantly what are you looking for when you buy a camera? i.e. like digital cameras you look for megapixels and digital and optical zoom. What makes a great action video camera?
Memory and batteries.
