Go Pro for Bimini Trip

[Volffas]

On quadcopter forums and GoPro forums this seems to the proven leader for naked GoPro cameras. Here is the link for a combo pack that fits over your waterproof housing. I haven't tried either of these, but the guys who have seem to have good opinions of them.

I bought this one to use on my quadcopter, mostly to be used as a lens protector to keep me from scratching up the lens. At $9.99 it makes me feel better that I won't scratch the lens if I wreck the quad, but I can't say that it has made any noticeable difference in the quality of the picture.

 

[ArmyChief]

So..I'm afraid to ask what a quadcopter will cost me.

 

[Volffas]

So..I'm afraid to ask what a quadcopter will cost me.

Be afraid! Be VERY afraid! Ha ha!

Honestly it isn't that bad. It really just depends what you want to do. You can spend anywhere from $15 on micro quads to $10,000 + on huge octocopters that can hold DSLR cameras. The best choice for beginners who want to dabble in aerial photography is DJI Phantom. A brand new Phantom 3 that was just released last month will run you $999 and it comes with it's own camera. The Pro version is $1,259 and records in 4k (but same as the GoPro the regular version should be more than most people would ever need.) The good news is that they are ready to fly right out of the box and include everything you need. My only recommendations would be to get a carrying case and buy an extra battery or two because 20 minutes is never enough flight time.

Or you could go the used route and get some pretty good deals. I used this site to purchase my Phantom 2 at about 60 cents on the retail dollar. It came from someone in Chicago who used it to professionally film. You can also check out this site for Phantoms for sale. With the Phantom 3 just coming out, now is the best time to buy Phantom 2's.

The hard part is deciding if you want to use a gimbal and GoPro or the DJI camera. Most people will say if you are going to mix the camera footage with other cameras getting a Phantom that can hold a GoPro is the way to go, which is what I have. However, those quads are just about as expensive as the ones with the DJI camera on them and you have an extra $300+ in the air that can get lost or sink to the bottom of the ocean. This is what I ended up buying (and I paid less than what he was asking delivered to my door) and it came with top of the line antennas, a tv screen to see what the quad sees, extra batteries for the quad and the screen and Tx, waterproof carrying case, and a lot of extra little parts.

My suggestion to anyone wanting to get into flying is spend about $50-$60 and get comfortable flying something like this before launching $1,000+ into the air without any experience. Everyone crashes their first time flying, better to do it with a $50 machine.

Good luck!

 

[biffdotorg]

Yes: http://micbergsma.tv/product-category/filters-adapters/

I was also looking at the GoPro Hero 3+ Black specs a bit further. If you want to do higher frame rate 4K video, you may has well jump to the Hero 4 black.

If you want to shoot photos at those high resolutions, the 3 is still a good option. I just cannot imagine editing those huge files, so never enabled 4K on my gopro. That and I don't know of anyone that can see take advantage of the difference on the PC's or televisions they are viewing them on.

Good luck guys!

 

[biffdotorg]

My suggestion to anyone wanting to get into flying is spend about $50-$60 and get comfortable flying something like this before launching $1,000+ into the air without any experience. Everyone crashes their first time flying, better to do it with a $50 machine.

Good luck!

You mean I could have saved myself $1200 and had just as much fun!!

You are right though, I flew my Phantom 2 for a while before ever installing the Gimbal, my GoPro and all the First Person View equipment just to be sure I was not going to crash it and waste all that cash. So far, so good! I was even asking on sites what equipment I could take off once installed, just so that I could practice fly without all the equipment hanging from it.

Now with the FPV equipment installed, it's the only way to fly. I can see branches, rooflines, power lines etc, that my lack of depth perception cannot see. It will also fly out of my line of site in no time. So the FPV setup is great for that reason as well as framing the shots.

I cannot wait to do more from the boat this summer. That clip I put in the other forum is just a start. We were out Sunday fishing, and I didn't bring it with due to the high winds. That and space in the boat. Catfishing can be messy and space consuming with all the gear.

(My wife custom cut the reflective blue graphics for mine)

 

[biffdotorg]

On quadcopter forums and GoPro forums this seems to the proven leader for naked GoPro cameras. Here is the link for a combo pack that fits over your waterproof housing. I haven't tried either of these, but the guys who have seem to have good opinions of them.

I bought this one to use on my quadcopter, mostly to be used as a lens protector to keep me from scratching up the lens. At $9.99 it makes me feel better that I won't scratch the lens if I wreck the quad, but I can't say that it has made any noticeable difference in the quality of the picture.

Did you have to recalibrate your gimbal once the filter was installed? These things are so sensitive to weight that it was a common concern that it would be required. I am still running mine naked and should put some protection on the lens

 

[ArmyChief]

I'm blown away with the acronyms and technology. I think I'll pass on the UAV this year

 

[Volffas]

Did you have to recalibrate your gimbal once the filter was installed? These things are so sensitive to weight that it was a common concern that it would be required. I am still running mine naked and should put some protection on the lens

I didn't have to recalibrate the phantom, it does that all on it's own once you lift off. It will sway from side to side for a couple of seconds and then steady itself.

 

[Ronnie]

If you are flying over water I suggest you put something on it to keep it afloat in the event water landing. I had two batteries go bad unexpectedly In that I took off at 95% charged and within a few minutes the charge dropped below 20% triggering the auto land feature. Fortunately I was able to steer it my way before it touched down but if are over water and flying low you may not be so lucky.

 

[biffdotorg]

I didn't have to recalibrate the phantom, it does that all on it's own once you lift off. It will sway from side to side for a couple of seconds and then steady itself.

I was referring to re-calibrate the Zenmuse. They come calibrated for the exact weight of the GoPro. In fact, that is one reason we have a Zenmuse for GP3 and GP4. If it's working for you, then I guess the answer is no, that's awesome as my gimbal is working way to well to screw it up with added weight.

I did just get shipping confirmation on y 3D printed items for the setup. I ordered snap on leg extensions, so I can still use my bag. A snap on Gimbal lock for transport, and quick release GoPro strap for the gimbal. So I can pull my GoPro off the Zenmuse quickly without a screwdriver while on the boat! Shapeways has all sorts of cool GoPro/Drone items custom made by a 3D printer! It's a cool process that encourages feedback so that they can make revisions during production runs.

I love how ecommerce and 3D printing have made the process of Concept to Product so interactive with the consumer. It's amazing how good products can get quickly, or shot down quickly.

 

[Volffas]

I was referring to re-calibrate the Zenmuse. They come calibrated for the exact weight of the GoPro. In fact, that is one reason we have a Zenmuse for GP3 and GP4. If it's working for you, then I guess the answer is no, that's awesome as my gimbal is working way to well to screw it up with added weight.

I did just get shipping confirmation on y 3D printed items for the setup. I ordered snap on leg extensions, so I can still use my bag. A snap on Gimbal lock for transport, and quick release GoPro strap for the gimbal. So I can pull my GoPro off the Zenmuse quickly without a screwdriver while on the boat! Shapeways has all sorts of cool GoPro/Drone items custom made by a 3D printer! It's a cool process that encourages feedback so that they can make revisions during production runs.

I love how ecommerce and 3D printing have made the process of Concept to Product so interactive with the consumer. It's amazing how good products can get quickly, or shot down quickly.

I haven't seen any negative effects. I only used it without the cap 2 times, but it seems to work perfectly fine still.

I ordered the Shapeways gimbal lock, I love it. It made me really nervous having that thing swing around wildly every time I picked up the quad.

Let me know how the quick release goes, I would be very interested in one of those too. I'm worried that I'll lose those little screws this summer on the boat when I take the GoPro out. It's such a pain that I have really considered getting a second GoPro and just keeping it in there all the time, but my wife already thinks I've spent too much on this thing (and she's not wrong).

 

[biffdotorg]

My thoughts exactly. I just about did the same on a second GoPro. Those little screws could be easy to lose. I almost bought the snap on blade guards as well from Shapeways, but the weight of the whole unit is getting up to the point that I will just use my screw on guards when around objects. I have to take them off to get my Phantom in the bag. So I may not put them on when out on the boat. If it hits anything out there, I have bigger issues. Other than myself when hand-landing.

 

[smthng]

In case $30 bucks is enough to sway anyone still on the fence, LLBean currently has the Hero 3+ Silver for $269 with free shipping. I ordered two, no hassles. http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/82805

 

[ArmyChief]

Is that a good price with no accessories?

 

[Ronnie]

I think it is a good price for a new one. Most don't come with anything but the case, two stick on mounts and a charging cable as well as a battery. The specialized kit like the surfers edition may come with a suction cup mount but the price will be accordingly higher.

I'm looking at used ones and the price has been between $200 and $250, some with an extra battery or mount but most with no extras. The batteries go bad so I don't put much value on used ones (they cost $20 new).

 

[Murf'n'surf]

I got an email this morning from Foscam. They have a GoPro like camera for $99. It might fit the bill for a one time use camera that shoots 1080.

 

[smthng]

Is that a good price with no accessories?

That's a good price for a new one... they're rarely on sale. I plan to grab a $30 accessory kit and a couple bar mounts for them and call it done.

 

[Ronnie]

If I were going to buy something other than a gopro it would probably be a Polaroid cube for $100.

 

[PaulyB]

I have a polaroid cube I'd let go for $45 shipped

 

[Ronnie]

@PaulyB , consider it sold. I will Pm you.