# GoPro



## florida boy (Dec 4, 2012)

I am humoring buying one for myself and was wondering whats everyones input . Thanks


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## thomasr (Dec 5, 2012)

I have one.  Got it specifically to go on my motorcycle when we did the Dragon's Tail.  For what I got it for, I'm pleased with it, although it took a bit of trial and error to find a mounting point that didn't cause excessive vibration under hard throttle.  I wound up mounting it on my helmet.  It does kind of suck that it doesn't come with some kind of playback viewer, but you can buy a separate unit to view for about $70 IIRC.   The video capture is excellent (to me) but audio seems to lack except under the most ideal of conditions.  If you use the underwater case it's virtually null.  Class-10 memory cards are a must.  I run it on the next to highest quality setting with the biggest memory card it can take and I can get about 25-30 minutes of video time. Haven't really experimented with the lower quality settings but it's supposed to be a significant increase to the video time.   Battery life is about the same but extra batteries are available.  I got the cig-lighter (non-GoPro one) charger and it works good, though you have to look at the actual specs to find one that it likes.  There may be better cameras out there, but a big plus for the GoPro is myriad of mounting options available, its ruggedness and of course its small size.    A general purpose, all around video camera it's not, but a dandy special purpose one.   I have no real experience with other adventure type cameras.  Good luck!!


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## florida boy (Dec 5, 2012)

thomasr said:


> I have one.  Got it specifically to go on my motorcycle when we did the Dragon's Tail.  For what I got it for, I'm pleased with it, although it took a bit of trial and error to find a mounting point that didn't cause excessive vibration under hard throttle.  I wound up mounting it on my helmet.  It does kind of suck that it doesn't come with some kind of playback viewer, but you can buy a separate unit to view for about $70 IIRC.   The video capture is excellent (to me) but audio seems to lack except under the most ideal of conditions.  If you use the underwater case it's virtually null.  Class-10 memory cards are a must.  I run it on the next to highest quality setting with the biggest memory card it can take and I can get about 25-30 minutes of video time. Haven't really experimented with the lower quality settings but it's supposed to be a significant increase to the video time.   Battery life is about the same but extra batteries are available.  I got the cig-lighter (non-GoPro one) charger and it works good, though you have to look at the actual specs to find one that it likes.  There may be better cameras out there, but a big plus for the GoPro is myriad of mounting options available, its ruggedness and of course its small size.    A general purpose, all around video camera it's not, but a dandy special purpose one.   I have no real experience with other adventure type cameras.  Good luck!!



thanks for the info ! is yours the 2 or 3 ? i was looking at the silver gopro 3


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## thomasr (Dec 5, 2012)

florida boy said:


> thanks for the info ! is yours the 2 or 3 ? i was looking at the silver gopro 3



   I didn't realize there were different sizes of the GoPro.  Mine is whatever is standard, I guess, though I don't ever remember mine ever being referenced as a "3" variant.   Okay, I had to google it...I'm pretty sure I have the Hero 2.   I haven't messed with it in a while that's why my recollection is a little foggy.  
      To explain about the audio a little more,  seems to me it picks up a lot of wind noise on not particularly windy days.  Also it definately has a range...let's just say at 10 feet it would pick up normal conversation but at 12> feet there was a significant drop-off.  For my purposes I usually edit out the audio anyway so I haven't really tried to work that out.  Still, for my purposes I'm very satisfied with it.


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## Redneck Maguiver (Dec 6, 2012)

I have the hero.   I mounted mine to a Ram mount and can use it anywhere now.  Have made some other mounts as well to where I can mount it on my shot gun, rifle , helmets, handlebars, you name it.


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## Lumpkin Hunter (Feb 11, 2013)

I got the Hero 3 and have only used it a couple of times riding my mountain bike and squirrel hunting. I was trying it out so I can use it this turkey season. I have a head band mount that I got off Amazon for les than $20. It worked great. The sound is a little low with the waterproof back, I haven't tried it with the other back that came with mine. Mine is the White Hero 3. I hope to get a few kills on it this spring.


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## merc123 (Feb 12, 2013)

All of the in-car videos are the first GoPro.  GoPro 3 is much better at night from what I understand.  Also has better day footage. 

http://www.youtube.com/user/merc21782


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## rjcruiser (Feb 14, 2013)

Buddy just got one and he was using it for a golfing trip we recently had.  Color and video quality was insanely good.  I was very very surprised.

Doesn't pick up audio very well...and like others have said, you need a computer or other device to view video.  those are the two limitations of it.


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## jonkayak (Feb 17, 2013)

I have the GoPro Hero and the video is awsome. I have a pole to mount the camera on so next year when we are fishing we can dunk it and get some under water shots. Overall I'm very impressed. It you watch Gator Boys, deadliest Catch, Gold Rush and an array of outdoor and sporting shows you will notice that they use a lot of GoPros. They have made a big difference in the video we get on shows these days.


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## florida boy (Feb 18, 2013)

I am having a hard time getting mine programmed to use it.....


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## thomasr (Feb 19, 2013)

What exactly do you mean by programmed?  It's not the most intuitive system I've ever used but once you grasp the concept it becomes more straight forward.  I had to play with it for quite a while before the light bulb came on.  I also had to to a firmware update on mine as soon as I took it out of the box...did you?


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## florida boy (Feb 21, 2013)

thomasr said:


> What exactly do you mean by programmed?  It's not the most intuitive system I've ever used but once you grasp the concept it becomes more straight forward.  I had to play with it for quite a while before the light bulb came on.  I also had to to a firmware update on mine as soon as I took it out of the box...did you?



I put the firmware on it and now it keeps lockin up as soon as yo turn it on.... I have to take the battery out just to turn it off . I called GoPro's customer service and they gave me a roundabout reason why the camera was doing it and no real way to fix it....


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## thomasr (Feb 22, 2013)

florida boy said:


> I put the firmware on it and now it keeps lockin up as soon as yo turn it on.... I have to take the battery out just to turn it off . I called GoPro's customer service and they gave me a roundabout reason why the camera was doing it and no real way to fix it....



Wow, sorry I can't help you there.  I haven't experianced anything like that (knock on wood).  Have you searched the web?  Seems like I've read about similar problems but can't recall any resolution.  I don't recall the name but there was an independant website devoted to the GoPro I went to a lot when I was researching mounting options on my motorcycle.  There was a wealth of knowledge there.  I'm sure a google search will turn it up.  Good luck in your quest.


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## Canyon (Feb 28, 2013)

florida boy said:


> I put the firmware on it and now it keeps lockin up as soon as yo turn it on.... I have to take the battery out just to turn it off . I called GoPro's customer service and they gave me a roundabout reason why the camera was doing it and no real way to fix it....



Mine was doing the same thing...I wish I could help but the problem has since fixed itself.  Seems to happen to mine on damp cold mornings, filming with the non-waterproff case.


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## florida boy (Mar 5, 2013)

I ended up erasing everything on the card and starting over. Seems that I got it right this time


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## davidhelmly (Mar 7, 2013)

florida boy said:


> I am humoring buying one for myself and was wondering whats everyones input . Thanks



We've got a GoPro2 that we use mostly for a second angle camera when treestand hunting and it does decent footage but the battery life is pretty bad. We also use it for mounting on a tractor, 4 wheeler, etc when working just to get fill footage and it's pretty good for that, it also does well at time lapse photos. The new app that lets you use youe smart phone to see what the camera is viewing is very helpful in setting it up but doing the update was a nightmare, it took NUMEROUS tries downloading the update to get it to work!!


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## merc123 (May 21, 2013)

I get hours of video on my GoPro 1 by the way with a 16 GB card. That's setting on the R5, highest setting.


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## gsppurist (Oct 3, 2013)

I used GoPro2 for my pheasant hunting last year.  Worked great but low light was problematic.  Head mounts work the best for bird hunting.  I tried it duck hunting but not as successful.


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