Camera/Video Recommendations?

[R6F4orR1]

I figure if I am going to spend the money for riding the track I want to have some video footage so I can see where I'm doing things correctly, and more importantly, where I'm doing things not so correctly.

Anyone have any suggestions about what kind of camera setup to use? I want it to be something I can use on track and on the road, since I have a trip to Deal's Gap coming up in June.

Thanks,
Ted

 

[MikeK]

Seems like a bunch of people are using the Go Pro Motosports Wide these days, small and holds about 60 minutes of footage on the SD Card. Supposed to have a software upgrade out soon that will double the capacity to 2 hours, you can check them out here: http://www.goprocamera.com/index.php?area=2&productid=2#

 

[LesPow]

www.helmetcamera.com
www.helmetcameracentral.com

 

[TheGrouch]

I have a GoProWide, which I've only used for dirtbiking so far. At $170, it's about the cheapest, simplest route. Very easy mounting system.

Plan on buying 6-8 rechargeable AAA batteries, as this thing will run through a pair in an hour.

The only vid I have online: http://vimeo.com/3735357

And some Go Pro NESBA vids from youtube: http://www.youtube.com/results?search_type=&search_query=go+pro++NESBA&aq=f

 

[avizpls]

cool! browse youtube...i like the wide views. I have the standard lens and like it, but its no good for aiming at yourself.

 

[Thunderace]

There are a lot of options, depending on your price range.

ATC2K ~ $109
GoPro ~ $150
MotoComm ~ $300
vHoldR ~ $325
Vio POV.1 ~$650
Bullet DVR ~ $1000

Those are pretty much the price range you're going to see with the exception of a tank mounted standard camcorder. Basically, the difference between all of those units is price and quality. The higher the price the better the quality. This doesn't mean that the ATC2K is not a quality item, it just means the quality of the video and adjustability of the video goes up with price. You also get the ability to adjust things like screen resolution, microphone sensitivity and maybe remote operation. The bullet cameras will also give you more mounting options because of it's size.

I have the Vio POV and I absolutely love it. It is about as simple as you can get and the quality of the video is excellent. I can watch the video on a 52" LCD TV with almost no distortion. Most of the lower priced units really look best on the PC.

Here's an example of my unit:

http://mdrecmgt.com/jim/621NelsonCrash.wmv

By the way, the Vio crashes extremely well, as you will see in the video! :banghead::doh:

 

[Olde English]

I have the vholdr camera.
http://www.vholdr.com/
Question, what's better: helmet mount or mounting on the bike?
Helmet mount is nice to see where the rider is looking, but I've noticed that it is annoying to watch since there is a lot of movement.

 

[crewnutz]

samsung sports cam is nice........comes with a bullet cam and everything you need to make nice videos........you can find them online for about $300-$400

helmet-cam is a bad way to go IMO........too much movement & often it is angled in an odd way

 

[Thunderace]

I agree that the helmet location is annoying. I'm trying to focus on the track ahead and you might be looking in another direction.

 

[zangman]

I have both the GoPro and the POV. POV has the better quality and the mount is more stable. Allows for more cray mounting options. Higher in price but quality too. And the POV can take an 8gig card.
Here is a small comparison of the two on the section at CMP.
http://zangman.com/media/comparison.wmv

 

[7-FITTY]

I have the MOTOCOMM set up and like it alot video quality aint the best but for the price its fantastic also comes with all you need to set up and go

 

[jsin38]

I have the ATC2K from Oregon Scientific. Got it on Amazon for about $85. If you go this route, be sure to get only the 2GB SD cards. Bigger cards will not work.

Check out the footage from Summit Main here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9ye3OkiefM

 

[aowens2]

I say just buy the gas cap camera mount system, and a cheepo camera that will record decent video. Usually a 5.0 megapixel camera or higher. I don't like the thought of busting up a $200 video system if I have a incedent. Whole setup for maybe $80, only $20 if you already have a camera. Just be sure and test it before you go to the track, some cameras won't record under lots of vibration.

And if you do go down, usually thats a pretty protected part of the bike anyways.

 

[rk97]

^ yeah, i'm with owens on this one.

cheapest camera with image stabilization. mount and go. go to Best Buy and shake the thing while taking video to test. Then go online and buy the refurbished version of the same camera for 70% off.

I'm looking at this: http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?InvtId=DV-M5056BLK-VP-RB-R&AID=10439518&CJPID=600263&cm_ven=CJ&cm_pla=600263&cm_cat=598022 $49

I'll mount with velcro, like my lap timer. Maybe add a zip-tie around it. mount on the top of the tail for filming people behind me, or right in front of the frame slider. if you 'wiggle' the velcro when you put stuff on, it's almost as hard to get off as your knee pucks

**edit - when i said mount on the tail, i'm assuming you can use the software to rotate the image 90 degrees after you take the video.

 

[BarrelRoll]

jsin38;49128 wrote: I have the ATC2K from Oregon Scientific. Got it on Amazon for about $85. If you go this route, be sure to get only the 2GB SD cards. Bigger cards will not work.

This. ATC3k can do 4 GB SDHC cards for a few bucks more. It's also important to get a high speed SD card and high power batteries. I find the ATC2k will eat a set of standard AA's in about two hours of record time or less, and if it dies during recording, chances are your entire video won't be written to the SD card.