GoPro Hero 2 with BlurFix Lens.

[macado]

I know this has nothing to do with vintage diving which is why I posted here but was curious if any of you use a GoPro camera? I just got a GoPro Hero 2 and attached the BlurFix flat lens adapter.

So far I'm really impressed with the quality. I had it mounted on my head and tucked under my hood so it wouldn't fall off.

I'm really looking forward to using the GoPro while diving double hose so that I don't have any bubbles in my videos.

I posted a video of my last scallop diving trip in Boston Harbor if anyone is interested: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWf_UMPZ8W4

Nothing emmy award winning but not bad for my first video I've ever taken with the GoPro.

[DaleC]

I started using a GoPro mounted on my light (UK Light Cannon) and am happy with it so far. I don't have the blur fix but one benefit of that is I can video myself my turning the light towards me.
Here are two clips. The first is 1 minute above water and the second is 6 minutes UW.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZNBPfBA ... ature=plcp

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67YIm9xH ... playnext=1

[2THDIVR]

Video reminds me of my scallop diving days off Salem, before my move to FL.
I'll have to post some of my old lobster pics.

[Drado]

All the in-water videos I've posted of me have been using a GoPro with a flat lens. I've just recently upgraded to a Hero2, and can't wait to get that wet - after I complete my DIY goodman handle tray and XML lighting system

[kgehring]

Cool tray and lights for GoPro
http://www.aquaprohd.com/store#ecwid:ca ... ct=9583119

[DaleC]

here's how mine is mounted. I would have liked it a little further forward but the light body was too rounded.

[macado]

Cool tray and lights for GoPro
http://www.aquaprohd.com/store#ecwid:ca ... ct=9583119

Nice! I can see my wallet shrinking right now. This looks like good setup.

[SurfLung]

- On Drado's advice, I shopped around and found a simple flat lens replacement for my GoPro and installed in the car on the way to Fortune Pond. That BlurFix costs about twice as much but looks worth the money... My lens is plastic and can get scratched. The results of using it are pretty dramatic improvement in sharpness. Here's the video we did from Fortune Pond using GoPro and the flat lens:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DR8MhHqLPO0[/youtube]
- Dale I really like your diving light mount idea. SwimJims video lights worked well lighting up faces and getting better pictures down deep... But I'm not serious enough to shell out for underwater video lights. Mounting on a dive light may be just what I need!

[swimjim]

A point to consider whether shooting video or still is that you want your light source away from the camera. You want to illuminate the subject, but not the water between the lens and the subject. This helps eliminate back scatter and also cuts down on your cameras auto focus system "hunting". This is why lights and flash units are typically mounted on arms away from the camera itself.

[simonbeans]

Underwater lighting is one of the skills that even pros battle. No matter how clear the water appears, minute particles WILL bounce the illuminating light back to the lens. The best solution is to 1) shoot natural light only, with all the inherent problems or 2) mount your stobes or video lights off to the side and behind the lens. A diffuser also helps. My camera/video system looks large and awkward (that is why Herman calls it a "big honkin camera"), but to get the images without back scatter, the strobes must be able to be away from the camera lens. Here is a nice shot David Haas took of me in Cozumel in 2009. You can see the spread of my strobes.

[DaleC]

I did have a large light array before but found it cumbersome for what I want to do under water. I really just want to document things I see and perhaps tell a story or two.
It's all a trade off.

[Drado]

Well, being the frugal person that I am ( and not having the bucks to get a big honkin camera ), I completed my DIY Goodman handle tray. I also had 2 old LED lights which I upgraded with Cree XML emitters capable of around 800 - 900 lm each.





Handle was from an old reel I had, the top part from an old chopping board, the arms from an old gorilla pod. And a couple of zip ties. Total cost for the things I didn't have on hand for this project: Around $25.98 for 2 sets of XML emitters and 2.8A LED drivers.

Hoping to get this puppy wet soon!

As an aside for the Go Pro users with the flat lens (specifically Aquapix): Recent anecdotal evidence has surfaced that the use of the Hero 2 might lead to lens cracking due to the slightly larger lens of the camera. I contacted Aquapix to get more info posted on their site (highlight mine):



I asked some questions and ascertained that the lens that cracks is the flat lens, and not the camera lens. This is present more in the glass lens, rather than the Makrolon lens. Still they advocate the use of a spacer, which in my case, since I have a plastic lens, I'll be quite satisfied with using the anti-fog insert as a spacer -although they do provide the spacer for free to all previous purchasers.

Blurfix users, EOM and other larger solutions do not have this problem.

[macado]

I am really liking the BlurFix solution so far especially with the advantage of being able to attach any 55mm lens, especially for color correction. It also has the added advantage of not affecting the integrity of the original lens so if the flat lens were to shatter, the camera will stay dry.

It does seem the that GoPro is working on an official solution due out soon however I don't know if their version will accept filters. It does look like their version is more square from the picture I saw and should hopefully eliminate vignetting in all video modes.

[DaleC]

Nice DIY Ed

[Creed]

This was shot with a Hero camera. We didn't have a light for it, and I forgot to pack my dive lights, so it's pretty dark.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1VoZ7QV6IU