GoPro.. your experience and thoughts.

honestly i dont see the value of go pro's for surfing. mounted to the board they cant provide much by way of a learning tool.

 

My wife bought one for me a couple years ago and I got the FCS fin plug installed on the nose so that I didn't lose it, but I have yet to use the damn thing. Something about it just seems kooky when most days are in the waist to chest high range. For days over head high, who wants that thing in their way anyways? I dunno, to each their own, i was thinking of maybe getting the wrist strap or something and just taking it underwater for some cool footage, but when I surf I just want to surf, i don't like distractions.

 

I recently saw a dude using (and ads online for) a gizmo where it allows you to remotely turn on a camera that you have set up on a tripod on the beach. To me, that's a way more valuable tool. That whole angle with the gopro on the front of the board looking up at the surfer is 1) getting tiresome to look at from an aesthetic perspective and 2) like pumpmaster said, doesn't really show you anything of value in terms of improving your surfing. It's gotten to the point when I see a video posted online and it's one of those gopro looking back vids I just don't watch. You can't tell if a guy is riding a 3 foot wave or a 13 foot wave anyway.


I think the best aspect of a gopro is its durability and waterproofing. That allows you to do a lot of different stuff like strap it to your hands and take turns with your buds filming each other from the inside section. Strap the thing to a long broomstick and have someone longboard behind you on the same wave, stuff like that. Get creative.

 

a lot of people tag someone with a gopro on their board as being a kook... and no way around it... it does look "kooky" to have one on your board... but where it really pays off is when you get back home and sit down at the computer and check the footage out... 1. its entertaining and cool to sort of relive the session and
2. its a way to better your surfing..... you just have to get past feeling like everyone is making fun of your for having it on your board...lol.

the bright orange barck door floating thing is probably the best accessory to have on it.

 

how does it make you better? Ive seen a ton of go pro 'edits' and cant see how the board mount would help with analyzing body mechanics etc. the beach tripod thing could be a good option tho.

 

It helped me realize areas where I had become lazy over the years.
I had stopped surfing for about 6 years or so then started up again and I noticed I kept hurting my feet/toes...
upon viewing gopro footage it had become clear to me that my popup had gotten lazy. Fixed it...
I also had to start surfing bigger boards as I had gotten heavier over the years.... not fat mind you!!!haha. and it helped me see how I needed to position my feet to help turn the larger boards better...
just my own experience.

 

my lady also got me one 2.5 years ago or so. i used the adhesive plate to stick it on the nose of my longboard, didnt do FCS plug install as i was not sure if i was going to like it. its cool to see shots on bright blue bird days when its clean and green. but it got old quick cause all shots and videos are similar. i only used it that winter/spring 10 times max when no one was really around. i kinda felt like a kook when waves were good and im messing with camera. also not really worried about a camera when summer crowds are out. for what its worth it never came off that mount. and i put it thru the motions trying to get cool shots. with that said if someone wants to buy mine, i'll part with it.

 

there is no way getting around feeling like a kook. but i really don't give a sh*t what anyone thinks. If you just take a few angles and don't edit it, it's going to look like poo. This is my best vid so far and I still think it's crap because it's not nearly as stable as I had hoped for.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2NPs8J8vJI&list=UUUMvJVJvJ80KIpJrg1mf0Uw

 

in my opinion it's all what you make of it... you have to have a creative mind and really play around with all different angles and such in order to get a TON of footage, which you then need to edit for it to come out even remotely cool. It also can be used as a learning tool too, but for the surf mount specifically you really just need to use it tastefully.

Here's a video I put together a few weeks ago when I went to Puerto Rico with a few friends. We're nothing special (especially as surfers, we're relatively new) but we did a lot of fun things and I tried my best to capture it all and highlight the vacation:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xl-_s6hhzdw&feature=related&hd=1

 

Got one last year. Haven't mounted it on a board, because I hate that POV style shot. Just take it in the water around my wrist and shoot my daughters and friends. Not ideal, but might as well get some use out of it. Have been able to snag some great stills from the videos.

 

I don't know about anyone else... but I'd much rather watch a few clips of myself then clips of other people kooking out.... lol. Im jus kidding about the kooking thing. But I'd still rather relive the session I had then watch a group of other people that I have no clue who they are.

The thing about the gopro and surfing is surfing... lets face it, we can have fun with our friends and be psyched for our buds when they catch good waves... but surfing is the most self centered sport one can engage in. And by that nature... watching other people doing regular stuff is not enjoyable. thats why I think gopro for surfing, especially when mounted on the board pov style is 100% for the surfer to watch and 100% annoying to everyone else around...

 

It really comes down to this:

Price of GoPro Black $399
Features
Waterproof
Video resolution: WVGA, 720p, 960p, 1080p, 1440p, 2.7K, 2.7K Cin, 4K, 4K Cin
Shutter speeds: Up to 240 fps (848 x 480 pixels)
Weight: 73g
Dimensions: 1.7 x 1.5 x 2.2 cm

Price of Canon EOS-1D Camera (Body Only) $12,000
Features
Video Resolution 4K (4096 x 2160), Full HD (1920 x 1080)
Shutter Speeds 1/8000 - 30 seconds
Big, Not Waterproof and must buy $$$ lens


You are getting a camera that can shoot better video and has more features, is waterproof, for $399! You would need to spend $5000 plus a lens to get something similar. These cameras are going to revolutionize the industry.

Use them for what they are for and don't complain about it because you just got the best deal you will ever get on a camera EVER! You can control the camera with an app from your smartphone, its waterproof, it fits in your pocket, you can put it anywhere and it performs better that a camera $3,000 more expensive!


Also i agree with this guy:

 

Can't believe Canon thinks they can get away with charging $5k for something a $400 Camera can do... Pretty crazy that they have millions of ppl fooled

 

how can a camera make you kooky? if you rip, you rip. if you don't, you don't. it's a cool tool, use it any way you want. just don't expect other people to care about the **** you're posting unless you're killing it.

 

Yeah I used the HD hero 3 so all the underwater stuff was with the dive housing - it comes with it. It really makes a huge difference in underwater quality.

 

Shoulda named that thing the EgoPro.