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Camera Recommendations for long rides

by beigemaster
Mon, Jan 22, 2018 12:40
10

Hi all.

I'm planning a C2C in a day ride this summer to raise a bit of money for a local charity- so I'm quite keen to do my best to document it as hopefully this will bring in some more donations post event.

 

My budget it a bit tight, so I'm wondering what the most cost effective way of filming everything on the bike would be (I'm planning on having a couple of mates in a car for support so they could probably do a bit of filming with a borrowed dSLR).

 

Things I'm considering:

 

Buying a second hand GoPro or similar

Using the camera on the iPhone 6s 

Hiring a newer GoPro for the day

 

Last time I did any serious filming/editing it was back in the days of using Mini DV tapes, so that's why I'd consider just using an iPhone or an older GoPro or cheaper/similar make (since both of these are easily superior to cameras from 10+ years ago). I don't want to use hours of footage- probably a condensed 6-10 minute video of the best bits (Hard Knott pass etc).

 

If anyone has any experience or advice on cheaper cameras or hiring I'd be very grateful.

 

 

If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.

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10 comments

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alansmurphy | 6 years ago
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Being a bit of a tech nerd I ride with 2 computers so I can manipulate one to the camera.

 

The Virb editing software is pretty good though and usually synchs quite well. It puts your GPS record onto a map and you can drag the timing backwards and forwards and match up to a video frame. The easiest way to achieve this is to stop before you hit record, gives the most obvious movement on the fit file.

 

The only issue i had is autopause can sometimes be a bugger. If you're using it I would set the minimum pretty low.

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beigemaster | 6 years ago
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Thanks for the replies everyone.

 

Just to check a curv ball into the mix- my friend has offered his Garmin Virb (original, not Elite) for mates rates. 

 

Does anyone know how easy it is to syncronise .FIT files from an 810 with the footage?

 

I've seen lots of videos where it all seems very straightforward where you just drop the .FIT file into the software and it magically syncs up- my question is how does it do this if your camera doesn't have a GPS built into the unit? Do you have to just starting recording footage at the same time you record your ride on your head unit and then chop and change everything together? 

 

Quite confused on this one! 

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LastBoyScout | 6 years ago
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I've got a Veho Muvi camera which claims 4 hours battery life, although I've not tested it's limits yet. In theory, that and a spare battery should cover most rides. Can get them on eBay for just over £100, including various mounts. Mine's on a K-Edge mount which I already had. Happily, they use the standard 1/4" tripod mounting screw, rather than the GoPro standard.

As CXR94Di2 said, you could run it with an external battery taped under your stem, but you may still need to change memory card, unless you drop the resolution.

Seems to record in 15 minute segments, though - I might be missing a setting somewhere.

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The Gavalier | 6 years ago
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Biggest problem will be battery life, you’re likely to get 1.5 to 2 hours at best. Buy a cheap SJCam and then a stack of spare batteries and then just pop a new battery in when you stop for a feed. 

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fenix | 6 years ago
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Borrow a go pro. You can't record the whole ride unless you recharge but you can get enough clips to make it interesting. Start . Finish. Anything interesting in between.

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alansmurphy | 6 years ago
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Yeah, I have an EE action cam and an EE capture cam (slightly smaller, less resolution and also good also uses GoPro mounts). EE launched these when Mr Facebook was saying that video was the future - think they launched them with a sim so you can live stream which didn't take off. The unit was a high ticket item at release with good reviews of picture quality etc. 

 

The weight in the casing (to waterproof) is the only real difference with GoPro which can cause mounting issues - i.e. on top of the handlebars if you haven't a tight fit it could move with vibrations. I found the link below seemed to work and sometimes either hanging beneath the bars (upside down) or in a position where you were puttling it at a limit (so it could only move one way) overcame it. To be fair, GoPros can move too.

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Aluminium-Bicycle-Standard-Handlebar-Accessory/dp/B00PW9X8EO?pd_rd_wg=mooZw&pd_rd_r=a190b940-98e8-4046-9bdc-1ca5102c12f3&pd_rd_w=7IfJ5&ref_=pd_gw_simh&pf_rd_r=BXB3F41DWE4Z0M0B7NT2&pf_rd_p=14f91171-0541-58ad-938b-3aec945f4cb7

 

The watch I've never used, chunky and horrible. But linking to a phone so you can see it is set right is a bonus.

 

If you go onto You Tube and search BADS Cycling and look at the 2017 videos I think I was using the capture cam there 1

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kil0ran | 6 years ago
1 like

The Shimano CM-2000 was on sale recently. Battery life is quite frankly bobbins but if you have ANT+ sensors you can trigger it based on cadence or speed (or location from your phone) so if you just want to film certain sections then it might be up to the job.

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alansmurphy | 6 years ago
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Easy peasy.

EE action cams are going for £35-£45 on eBay. Good picture clarity and use GoPro mounts so you've the opportunity to mount one on the bars and one on the body if you like. Waterproof case too. At that price you can get 2 and as one dies get your mates to charge it.

If your friends are happy to do some filming you are likely to use most of their shots. Watching you struggle up a hill or getting low to the road and going arty on you flying round a bend (or using that time lapse photo mode) will be much more entertaining than your footage and heavy breathing 3

Another consideration is your bike computer. A Garmin device means you can use their Virb software to edit your recording and add data to the video. On a quick descent a Speedo adds man points 1

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beigemaster replied to alansmurphy | 6 years ago
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alansmurphy wrote:

Easy peasy. EE action cams are going for £35-£45 on eBay. Good picture clarity and use GoPro mounts so you've the opportunity to mount one on the bars and one on the body if you like. Waterproof case too. At that price you can get 2 and as one dies get your mates to charge it. If your friends are happy to do some filming you are likely to use most of their shots. Watching you struggle up a hill or getting low to the road and going arty on you flying round a bend (or using that time lapse photo mode) will be much more entertaining than your footage and heavy breathing 3 Another consideration is your bike computer. A Garmin device means you can use their Virb software to edit your recording and add data to the video. On a quick descent a Speedo adds man points 1

Have you used the EE action cams? Sound a little too good to be true if they're really that good for the price but always happy to grab a bargain if I see one!

 

I think my friends are more likely to go and do their own thing rather than tracking me for the entire ride- even strong riders you're looking at a 10 hour completion time, ideally I'd love to do all the filming from the back of the wagon/set up arty shots while simultaneously be riding my bike- but stupid "physics" seems to get in the way.

 

"much more entertaining than your footage and heavy breathing 3 " apparently there's a lot of that sort of thing on the internets which seems very popular......

 

 

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CXR94Di2 | 6 years ago
1 like

I have a Gopro session hero 5. I plug in 5000 mA backup battery, use 132gb memory card. I can get 10hours of 1080p video recording with image stabilization. 2 or 3 cards and you've got the while ride. The only downside is with the charging door open you lose the waterproof feature/function. Then again why would you want to record it when it's pouring it down

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