Camera Recommendations

[deltamark]

Hi all,

I'd like to purchase a camera and flexible mounting setup that I could attach to my helmet and various points on my CB1100 sidecar rig. I'd like to to record and publish some "Rudi the Sidecar Dog" excursions and trips, but would also use it to create and share some all-season backpacking / hiking / canoe trips with our younger dog, Hank.

I don't know much about these systems, but a GoPro setup is at the top of my list right now. Any suggestions as to which model, package or accessories might best to suit my purposes?

 

[peterbaron]

GoldOxide is very happy with his remote control unit ...Eken???
Very sure he will chime in.

P.S. Make sure you get good shots as Rudi may get upset if it doesn't look good in a pic!

 

[GoldOxide_imp]

If one feels like spending stash on a modern GoPro unit, I'd say do it. They have been top notch for a long time and have excellent firmware algorithm implementations.

If one feels like not spending stash but are happy with "good enough" video and audio, then as PB has alluded, a late model "Eken" offering will do just fine. You may not get the best algorithms for managing video jitter, but they are still quite good and very economical and well built. Yes, certain Eken models include a wireless remote that is very handy when stopping and starting video recording while riding.

"Eken" is the classic GoPro knock-off (maybe more correctly --> alternative) that can be found at AliExpress and similar none-brands at some Costco stores, and many other online and brick-n-mortar stores.

 

[Gone in 60]

I've been using a GoPro Hero 8 for the past two years to record my daily commutes in case something happens. It's been great, and I've got mounts on all of my helmets. In some cases, I have made custom mounts out of JB Weld to conform to weird shapes. I've also got mounts on other parts of my bikes to get some more interesting angles.

 

[mvk24_imp]

I've been using a GoPro Hero 8 for the past two years to record my daily commutes in case something happens. It's been great, and I've got mounts on all of my helmets. In some cases, I have made custom mounts out of JB Weld to conform to weird shapes. I've also got mounts on other parts of my bikes to get some more interesting angles.

Is there an option to have the gopro hooked up to a larger battery pack or something? I always had issues with the battery dying quickly during a day of riding back with my Gopro 4s and such

2014 CB1100, 1981 KZ440 LTD, 1993 Yamaha XJ600 Seca, 1994 Yamaha XJ600 Seca

 

[Gone in 60]

Definitely. If you check out some of the moto-vloggers online, they run bigger packs. Check out itchyboots.com, she talks quite a bit about her camera equipment if you look through her information.

My standard battery will run for about an hour, long enough for my commutes, and I charge it on my helmet while I'm at work.

 

[andyferd_imp]

I've been using a Hero 5 black mounted to my helmet for the last few years and it has been fantastic. If I were to buy one now I'd get at least an 8 though. I bought a custom mount for my helmet:

HJC RPHA-70 ST Camera Mount

You can also get generic gopro mounts on Amazon or make a custom one with JB Weld like Gone mentioned. The batteries for me last about an hour, so you will need extras on hand or you can buy a battery bank and plug the GoPro in as needed. While riding, I keep the battery bank in my chest pocket and plug the GoPro in if I'm going on a long ride. This makes it so I don't have to stop and change batteries. Also, I'd buy the largest size SD card the camera can support. You'll use up the storage quick.

 

[Gone in 60]

Huh, Andy, I had searched quite a bit for custom helmet mounts, but never found the site you linked. Would have been easier than going the homemade route. I put a wad of JB putty over an irregular surface, then stick a standard GoPro mount to it. Then sand, paint, and double-side tape it to the surface.

 

[KiowaEagle_imp]

I have a GoPro8 and like it but when I upgrade it's going to be to a 360 degree camera because it's so much more versatile. With the standard camera if you mount it to the bike it will record the ride but that view gets boring. If you mount it on your helmet you can look around but you really have to make a conscious effort to turn your head to look at things. It makes you realize how much you are moving your eyes when you look side to side. With a 360 camera you are constantly recording all around you and then can use any portion of that image through editing. It makes for a much more interesting and watchable video.

 

[Gone in 60]

Another thing you can do with the newer cameras like the 8 is use voice commands. If you route a microphone into the helmet, you can tell it to start and stop recording, so you can turn it off during the boring parts of your ride.

 

[Nachodaddy]

I have studied "Itchy Boots" videos to learn how she uses her camera equipment and get some idea of what she is using. I am pretty sure she has a 360 with a bar type mount that she can mount on the front of her bike looking back at her and it is designed to keep the camera from "seeing" the bar somehow, so it looks like the camera is riding in front of her bike as she rides. Nice touch. It is also apparent that she uses a drone for brief overhead shots. There are drones that can "follow" you, but obviously not at 80mph on the Santa Monica Freeway. I think she may use the drone in a place where she can stop, set it up, ride a short distance recording, then stop and retrieve it. My daughter has glasses that have a camera in them and she wears them to record sports events, like basketball games. They give good video, but aren't much help if you need to wear prescription lenses, as they come with a non-prescription lens. Remember, editing is done in real time, so the more you record, the longer you have to sit and watch it to get what you want out of it.

 

[Tev62]

Camera choice is just the start of it, there is more to consider. Go cheap to start with a non 360 camera paying attention to how you can connect a cheap lavalier mic which can be permanently fitted in your helmet. Batteries are the Achilles heels of any camera so look for ones that allow you to attach a power brick for days worth of battery power. Getting a helmet mount camera is the easiest way to attach a microphone, if you fit it anywhere else you are not going to get any audio apart from wind noise unless you run a microphone all the way to your helmet.

The GoPros have a good reputation but are expensive, you really want the media mods for audio connections etc to make them more useful on a bike. I currently run an old GoPro 4 Black which reliably records 1080P/60FPS connected to a €5 mic in my helmet and a €12 power brick in my pocket. The video output is perfectly watchable on a large screen TV, nothing more is required. I have a 360 camera and they are good but personally I think they only add a dimension to a video and should not be the primary video source. If you do want to make it your only camera you will need a separate audio recorder with a mic in your helmet, its hard to run a mic from a 360 camera on a pole!

Then you have to process the video, your PC wants to have decent processing power, an Intel i7,16GB memory and a decent screen is a minimum to my mind, anything less and your video processing is very cumbersome.

You have to be careful of falling into the trap of hours and hours of video of you and you bike going down the road, no matter how nice the scenery. Very few people find it entertaining and even you will not want to watch back two hours of yourself driving down a road, you want to have a subject matter and be commenting. If you are not talking about something stop recording, save you battery and camera memory. Video files are large and processing a 2 hour video for 5 minutes of content is very time consuming.

 

[GoldOxide_imp]

... remote stop/start button is handy to avoid long, dry riding flicks.


Although, they might be useful when you are expired from riding and drooling in your rocking chair. Long riding videos of daze long gone could be just the ticket to get it up again. (someone will have to set-up the video for you though :dodgy: )

 

[deltamark]

Wow, thanks everyone for the excellent input! Will also take a look at the Eken.

 

[mvk24_imp]

Can you set up a gopro to run like a dash camera where it will contiue to overwrite the oldest file? So you can just let the camera record constantly in the event something happens you weren't expecting but if nothing happens you dont waste space on the memory card

2014 CB1100, 1981 KZ440 LTD, 1993 Yamaha XJ600 Seca, 1994 Yamaha XJ600 Seca

 

[GoldOxide_imp]

Can you set up a gopro to run like a dash camera where it will contiue to overwrite the oldest file? So you can just let the camera record constantly in the event something happens you weren't expecting but if nothing happens you dont waste space on the memory card

2014 CB1100, 1981 KZ440 LTD, 1993 Yamaha XJ600 Seca, 1994 Yamaha XJ600 Seca

I believe the later models can do that.

Certainly, many non-GoPros can, and in particular, high-definition body cams.

 

[Gone in 60]

I've gone through the menus on my Hero 8 looking for a looping/overwrite mode. If it can do that, it's not easy to find. Not an issue for me, as I'm recording 40-45 minutes of daily round-trip commuting and wiping the SD card unless I want to save something interesting.

The Garmin Mini 2 dash cams I put in our cars overwrite, unless you verbally tell the camera to save something or save it on the app.

 

[Tev62]

I've gone through the menus on my Hero 8 looking for a looping/overwrite mode. If it can do that, it's not easy to find. Not an issue for me, as I'm recording 40-45 minutes of daily round-trip commuting and wiping the SD card unless I want to save something interesting.

The Garmin Mini 2 dash cams I put in our cars overwrite, unless you verbally tell the camera to save something or save it on the app.

My old GoPro 4 Black has looping. Available intervals for Looping are 5, 20, 60 and 120 minutes. For example, if you select a 5-minute interval, only the previous 5 minutes is saved when you stop recording. The menu icon is the video icon with an arrow wrapping around it.

 

[mvk24_imp]

I've gone through the menus on my Hero 8 looking for a looping/overwrite mode. If it can do that, it's not easy to find. Not an issue for me, as I'm recording 40-45 minutes of daily round-trip commuting and wiping the SD card unless I want to save something interesting.

The Garmin Mini 2 dash cams I put in our cars overwrite, unless you verbally tell the camera to save something or save it on the app.

My old GoPro 4 Black has looping. Available intervals for Looping are 5, 20, 60 and 120 minutes. For example, if you select a 5-minute interval, only the previous 5 minutes is saved when you stop recording. The menu icon is the video icon with an arrow wrapping around it.

My old GoPro 4 Black has looping. Available intervals for Looping are 5, 20, 60 and 120 minutes. For example, if you select a 5-minute interval, only the previous 5 minutes is saved when you stop recording. The menu icon is the video icon with an arrow wrapping around it. O awesome cause im pretty sure I have looping on the Hero 4 I use for my drone. I just didnt put 2 and 2 together to realize that was overwriting.

2014 CB1100, 1981 KZ440 LTD, 1993 Yamaha XJ600 Seca, 1994 Yamaha XJ600 Seca

I've gone through the menus on my Hero 8 looking for a looping/overwrite mode. If it can do that, it's not easy to find. Not an issue for me, as I'm recording 40-45 minutes of daily round-trip commuting and wiping the SD card unless I want to save something interesting.

The Garmin Mini 2 dash cams I put in our cars overwrite, unless you verbally tell the camera to save something or save it on the app.

Yea my Vantrue dash cam does that unless I press a button to save to previous 3 minutes.

It also has inertia sensors so if it detected someone hitting my car or something when its parked it will save that footage.

2014 CB1100, 1981 KZ440 LTD, 1993 Yamaha XJ600 Seca, 1994 Yamaha XJ600 Seca