Riding Video Fail

So before my beach trip I finally met up with my cousin and borrowed his "action camera", it's an old Oregon Scientific model that shots Standard Def (640x480) and from our previous experiences, not very well. Far be that from stopping me from trying again!

So with fresh batteries and an empty memory card I set it up on the handlebars and wanted to shoot scenes from the beach journey. The first shot was to be going across the St. Johns Bridge, itself a gorgeous structure. I hit record and of course all things went wrong. Let me just list them out for you.

1. Camera is at an angle. Not a good one.
2. Camera shoots a shitty picture.
3. Camera records sounds, um, poorly.
4. Camera shot for 51 seconds and shut itself off. Note: This may have been a blessing in disguise.
5. Camera refused to shoot any more video. See note on #4.

Knowing that I would stop a lot I unhooked the camera and threw it in my bag. But I had to share it with you. Apologies before hand.
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Czpd9cwfbmo[/video]

Dave, seeing you know about these things, have you tried the GoPro or the Contour HD etc?
graeme

GRM 450 said:

Dave, seeing you know about these things, have you tried the GoPro or the Contour HD etc?
graeme

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Actually a Contour was recently purchased for the American Norton movie so I will see about using it for a few shots. But this one was on hand so I tried it out. And if we want to put a camera somewhere that is a little dangerous this might be the one to use. Don't let my cousin see this. :mrgreen:

I figured out why it only shot for 51 seconds and no more. Seems like the operator put the memory card in upside down and 51 seconds is all that the internal memory will hold. :roll:

So I'll try it again. :mrgreen:

Have you got suppressors in your ignition system ?, i.e. Carbon leads or resistors caps or resistor plugs ?.

Yes the video was crap, but the bike appeared to be interferring ( in a non sexual way ) with the video camera.

Swoosh, is it possible to have a microphone on a lead fitted at the rear somewhere.
It would give a better sound from the mufflers, instead of the Engine. ??

It's an old camera and not the best in the world. That is what you are seeing. And the vibrations don't help.

No external mic possible. But I will put the camera on the back of the bike next time to look back.

GRM 450 said:

Dave, seeing you know about these things, have you tried the GoPro or the Contour HD etc?
graeme

Click to expand...

+1 on the Go Pro. I am just beginning to use mine for mountain biking and am really impressed. I think you can find an HD model for under $140.00 and they really offer a nice variety of mounting options.

I didn't recall everything in Portland being off camber and slanting to the right. I guess I was on the other side of the hill.

You will get better results if you turn off the "steady Shot" or "anti vibe" or what ever you have. That is what all that wavy crap is about.

pvisseriii said:

You will get better results if you turn off the "steady Shot" or "anti vibe" or what ever you have. That is what all that wavy crap is about.

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This camera is so old I don't think it has those options.

swooshdave said:

pvisseriii said:

You will get better results if you turn off the "steady Shot" or "anti vibe" or what ever you have. That is what all that wavy crap is about.

Click to expand...

This camera is so old I don't think it has those options.

Click to expand...

If it's an old Sony handycam, it's got it.