paddling with a camera

Recently, Sea Kayaker Magazine published a review of this gadget by Gary Luhm, a professional photographer (many cover shots for Sea Kayaker and Kayak & Canoe magazines) paddling with Canon 5D DSLR, but also carrying Pentax Optio W10; check his tools, FAQ, and tips.

Gary's wrap up:

The camera works pretty much as advertised. The picture quality is good for 3 MP camera, comparable to the 3 MP cameras that flooded the market just a couple years ago, although the HERO 3's digital noise (random specs on the image) is slightly higher. The simple controls also have some appeal for shooting from a kayak. However, with no way to review images, you will have to exercise some of the patience that was required of film cameras.

Summary of CNET editors' review by Will Greenwald:

The GoPro Digital Hero 3 is a cool idea for a camera, but in action, it simply isn't very good. It's a sluggish performer and shoots soft, small images. That said, the wrist-mounted, underwater housing is a great boon, and it might prove a fun, inexpensive alternative to swimmers and other water-dwellers who want a camera they can submerge.

Some of my thoughts about the GoPro Hero camera:

• It is simple. Two buttons control the camera: power/mode and shutter. Simple is good for kayaking. In fact, I do not operate too many control buttons in my Pentax Optio when paddling: power, zoom, exposure correction, shutter.
• Fixed focus lens and 3 MP... It could work for me with a better quality lens and higher resolution allowing cropping. I have found that most of my images shot with a tiny camera from a tippy kayak require some rotation to make the horizon horizontal and, in turn, some cropping.
• No picture or video preview, the small LDC provides only some info on pictures and shooting mode. So, it works like a film camera. You have to return home and download pictures to the computer to see you have shot. Not so good in the digital photography era.
• A pivoting camera mount and a neoprene band are nice, but I would not paddle with a camera attached to my wrist or paddle. It may be OK for other water sports like sailing or windsurfing. I am not sure if the camera has a standard tripod mount which would allow one to attach it to a mini tripod or sticky pod.
• Is it small? Yes, it is quite small: 1.3" x 1.8" x 2.6" in a waterproof case (1" x 1.5" x 3.2" without it) and weights 4.5 ounces. However, my Pentax Optio W10 is not that much bigger or heavier: 4.2" x 2.1" x 0.9" and 4.9 ounces and it doesn't need a waterproof case.
• Is it cheap? You can buy it at amazon.com for $140. However, you can buy the waterproof 7 MP Pentax Optio W30 for $243, and older 6MP Pentax models somewhat cheaper: W20 for $230 and W10 for $210. I am still shooting with Pentax Optio W10 and most of my pictures in this blog are shot with that camera.

You can still find an earlier camera mode Go Pro Digital Hero VGA All-Season Sports Camera for about $80 with much poorer image resolution (VGA - 640x480 pixels), and a very cheap (~$13) Go Pro Hero 35MM All-Season Sports Camera preloaded with a film.

Related posts:

• Kayak Photography Links - Tips and Hints for Paddling Photographers
• 10 Tips How to Avoid Blurry Pictures when Shooting on Water
• Photo Kayaker Top 5 Tips for Shooting Paddlers
• Windsurfing with Digital Hero 3 - a Waterproof Wrist Camera from GoPro
• Compare prices for GoPro Digital Hero 3