There are several but important aspects useful in evaluating the purchase of an action cam, even more so with these Chinese cameras. Here is a Quick List of what you have to check prior to buying:
Resolution
Every camera can record videos in a number of different resolutions. Some are capable of capturing images in 4K, but most of the times this resolution on cheap cameras is fake, due to interpolation. At this point, should you ignore these? Absolutely not! First of all, we can’t expect too much from highly affordable cameras, but it doesn’t mean that such cams are bad. If you are interested, you can find more specifically about 4K resolution below.
Bitrate
Many times we mention bitrate as the cause of low image quality, also when we said before that certain camera has a good potential. Are we crazy? I hope not, but if you want to research deeper to clear some doubts, you can read a bit more in the section below.
Frame rate
The frame rate is the number of frames per second (fps) captured by the camera. This feature is important if you want to record slow motion videos, because it makes your recording absolutely EPIC! This also becomes very useful if you need smoother videos, especially if you are a sport lover.
When we approach a camera, we find ourselves facing tons of numbers and features. Well, bitrate is probably the most unknown and undervalued of all. Let’s clear it in the simplest way possible.
What is the bitrate?
The bitrate is amount of digital information (bits) recorded in time. In general, bitrate is expressed in bits per second, and usually expressed as Megabits-per-second (Mb/sec) and Kilobits-per-second (Kb/sec).
Why is that important?
The bitrate affects a lot of parameters in any digital recording, and everything spins around it.
First, it affects the video quality, and thus the size of a record file. Obviously, when more data per second needs to be written, it requires more space.
Does that mean the higher the bitrate the higher the quality? This equation is always right. Why? Let’s observe those three aspects together.
Bitrate, Framerate and Resolution… TOGETHER!
The framerate is easy to explain and easy to understand. There is a fast explanation above and I think it’s clear. The resolution, instead, is nothing more than the quantity of pixels that a camera uses to record the scene. Higher resolution means more details.
The bitrate could also be a limitation that can lose part of the information in the video.
A little bit of math makes the concept more understandable:
Let’s use the same camera at two different resolutions. The first will be 4K (4096×2160) at 60fps, and the second 1080p (1920×1080) at 30fps:
First resolution – 4096 x 2160 x 60 = 530.841.600 pixels
Second resolution – 1920 x 1080 x 30 = 62.208.000 pixels
This is why bitrate can be a problem. Each pixel is made by an amount of bits, and if we record with a frame rate and resolution that exceeds the bitrate of the camera, it must apply a compression. Everyone knows that compressions reduce the quality of the file; the more the file is compressed, the less quality it will retain.
Another aspect where the bitrate affects the quality is the velocity of data written to the storage. If you have a low bitrate, any SD card is fast enough to write the data in real time; but if you have a high bitrate, the camera doesn’t lag behind the data captured, so it is losing quality or, in some cases, it interrupts during video recording. This happened to me with the Eken V8s.
Concluding this explanation, higher bitrate means a better quality gear, which translates into more money.
If you don’t know which SD card to buy for your camera, you can consult the page here. I found it very useful!
4K Resolution
The 4K resolution is ever more available with contemporary cameras. But what is a 4K resolution?
4K is the size of the screen and the amount of information contained in a file. If a video is recorded in HD (High Definition) the resolution is 1280×720 pixels, Full HD is 1920×1080, Ultra HD is 3840×2160 and 4K is 4096×2160. This is an example of the difference between these resolutions:
Nowadays the 4K is almost everywhere, but is it actually useful?
Only a little percentage of monitors and PCs can handle the 4K resolution. Even making a post-production can create problems with resolution that high, if you don’t have a very good PC. To boot, the most famous on-line support like Youtube or Facebook needs to compress such kind of files a lot, and obviously dropping a lot of quality in doing that.
Let’s see some pros and cons of high resolutions like 4K.
Pros to have a 4K device
Cropping of images
One of the good sides of high resolution is that you can easily crop the image by 50% and still keep a reasonably high level of quality.
Create fake camera movements
It is very often in cinematic recording to create a fake movement or shaking. It is used for extra motion effect in the videos, as it makes the recording more “active” and “realistic”, as opposed to a completely static camera.
Stabilizing of images
Contrary to the above point, having a higher resolution can help one to crop and stabilize the image. Higher resolution means more available space to move in case of unwanted shaking.
The cons, as I said before, could be the in requirements to replace some part of your equipment; first the SD card, and then your computer. You need something decent to work with high resolutions, maybe it is your monitor and also your hard disk, because you need a lot of space to store videos made in 4K resolution.
In conclusion, if you have in mind to use the 4K resolution, you’d have to consider all of said compromises. If you already have all the things required / listed, well… we all envy you!
But don’t let that stop you having fun working with those huge resolution!
Our World is blessed with an abundance of life-supporting water. We highlight the water importance in every way, and as an everyday theme, it rapidly grows. The wish to see what all hides underwater is ancient, but the ability to bring out visual records from our “inner space” became possible only relatively recently.
Our visual recording devices are created for use in the air. Their optical, mechanical and electrical components must have air around them to work properly. So we encase a normal camera in an artificial “air bubble” to make sure it will operate in water. Underwater housings and bodies of amphibious cameras are just that: air bubbles for our mechanisms to safely work within.
There are two main types of underwater photo- and video-graphing devices, both becoming ever cheaper by dint of standardizations and mass-production.
Schematic view of typical Action Camera Case’s sealing
So-called amphibious cameras can be used in the air and in the water. For now, these are somewhat depth-limited, since their “pocketability” form factor sets limits to their pressure resistance. For divers which normally go deeper, or for people who do not need to photograph underwater very often, underwater camera housings may present a better solution. Majority of action cameras nowadays belong into this class. There are other systems where cameras work in liquid-filled volume so as to be near impervious to great pressures. Outstanding technology, but oh boy, beware the price! It puts those way out of our scope here.
In order to understand the watertighting which is the most important feature of such cameras and housings, let’s see what a watertighting system does, and how its proper working order should be maintained. Whatever the need, whatever type of underwater camera is “better”, its air bubble has to remain dependably safe. These simple drawings show how it all works.
Push and rotating command buttons, sealed by double o-rings
All cameras and u/w casings have to be opened to access some elements: batteries, contacts or memory cards. Their doors, covers and hatches must be opened and closed many times without compromising their ability to properly reseal the opening.
Manufacturers are trying to construct these accessing points as simple as possible for the user to operate, but some of those solutions are not as safe as can be for our air bubble contents! Sometimes those extremely flimsy aprons, scratch-sensitive ridges and rubber covers are easily damaged, and then our camera swamps and drowns, together with the joy of underwater picture-taking! Manufacturers which employ o-ring sealings delegate some maintenance to the user, but offer more safety to the cameras, because among all the watertighting means known, the o-ring principle works the best.
Three most common o-ring applications in various casings
An o-ring is a self explaining name. It is made of perbunan (aka nitrile butadiene rubber, most commonly truncated to NBR or simply nitrile), neoprene or silicone compound material. The drawings here show it as a fat black dot.
To work properly, the round o-ring has to lie in the groove which is square in cross-cut. Such groove is usually provided either in the body of the casing, or in the cover that seals it. Usually the three sides of groove square belong to one part, while the remaining fourth side is formed by the closed second part.
An exception is seen in the Ikelite watertight box cross-cut, where the closed cover and the box form the three sides of the square o-ring seat, while the fourth is open to the water and pressure of the ambient. While all the other sealing types provide fixed closure where only o-ring moves to adjust itself under water pressure, the Ikelite type uses water pressure to progressively push down the cover onto the o-ring, so as to form an even more solid seal.
This type of sealing does its work equally well as the other o-ring principles shown, but the better part is in the ease of Ikelite’s o-ring removal and maintenance.
A small Action Camera with DIY flotation bracelet
O-rings move and deform under ambiental pressure. So these wedge themselves in the corner open to the inner, lesser pressure. To enable it to move, o-ring and its groove must be slippery. Lubricant adds nothing to actual watertighting but many people will overgrease, thinking “the more the better” – which is dangerously wrong!
Properly greased o-ring is just grease-shiny – nothing more. Surplus grease collects sand, hair and salt crystals, which may effectively break the sealing and let the water where it doesn’t belong.
An adequate grease must be used. Depending upon o-ring material, manufacturers may suggest their optimal kind of lubricant. If there are no special suggestions, you can use clear household silicone grease.
To remove it for cleaning and greasing purposes, the easiest way is to slide (with two fingers) an o-ring along its groove toward one side, until it pops out. After cleaning it first, lightly grease a q-tip and run it all around the groove. Nothing but a thin film of grease should remain. Lubricate o-ring by pulling it trough greasy fingers.
Carefully put the o-ring back into the groove – and that’s all the maintenance it requires! If you don’t plan to use your camera casing for longer time, remove all (maintenance-accessible) o-rings and save them separately, best lying flat within a zip-loc bag, to retain their form.
Prior to next use, just clean and re-grease as described. If you take care of your camera or a casing and its sealing elements, these will serve you long and well.
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UPDATE: Recently I had a chance to review some action cameras where I have found yet another variation of underwater encasement gaskets! The difference is not big, but enough to cause a “think or thwim” situation.
On the good side, the new gaskets are more pliable; made of some different material that appears like a stronger version of household silicone sealant. That’s the good news, insofar as the gasket principle can’t possibly be as efficient as an o-ring; still it is an improvement. Of sorts.
Bad news is, these gaskets were not symmetrical in cross-cut! That means, one could easily remove them for cleaning – and inadvertently put them back into their groove the wrong way around! Such an error could result in its loss of efficiency, and that could, in turn, let the water into the encasement to play merry havoc with power and electronics. That we have paid for, but no Warranty will replace (water ingress is always user’s fault)!
This puts another caveat before the users. Prior to any servicing of the action camera casing, please make sure you check whether the gasket around the main hatch looks symmetrical in its cross-cut. If in any doubt about this, do the following:
Note which side of the hatch / gasket goes into the casing first.
Using two fingers, carefully slide the gasket up along its groove until it pops out of the upper groove side.
Apply a waterproof marker to colorsign the spot at the gasket rim that first enters the casing.
Now you know which side of the gasket goes where, and there is no chance to replace it in the wrong way.
Occasionally renew the mark if it gets washed off. You might also mark the groove in the same place…
Anyway, I keep on hoping the Manufacturers will eventually see the light soon and all their funny whachamacallit rubber thingies will soon(est) be replaced with o-rings. Aside from reliability, it would also make the which-side-which-way problem gone. Until that happens, let’s better be overcautious – and keep our cameras dry and working!
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Taking photos deep under the sea
Keeping Cameras Dry
Sometimes you’ll hear people complain that their newly bought underwater camera delivers fogged-over images when first used in water. At other times, some cameras sealed against water make perfectly clear photos, and then all of a sudden their lenses and monitors inexplicably mist over from the inside, usually when they go from the warm environment to cold outdoors or into the water. In all cases, the experience results in frustration.
Some even returned their camera for the very reason, or replaced it with another model which then develops the same problem. It’s circumstances, not the camera!
If an amphibious camera was assembled in humid environment, it might have retained the moisture, since its sealings will keep that assembly line air within. The same can occur with normal cameras when these are enclosed in watertight casings, such as our action cams. There are ways to have the insides of your camera and waterproof casing dry. The most obvious are the drying tabs which most manufacturers sell, but there are other ways, sometimes a lot cheaper too.
Some materials, called desiccants, have the ability to collect moisture from ambiental air. The most popular among those is Silica-gel, its crystals packed in porous paper-like bags. Such packs vary; from several grams to kilogram sizes.
Smallish packages can be left in the closed camera battery chamber overnight. When you replace your battery the next day, you can expect the inside of the camera to be as dry as can be. And if your waterproof camera casing has sufficient room between the cam and the casing (where the desiccant pack can’t interfere with camera functions), simply keep it within. This will make sure your camera and insides of the casing won’t fog over when you dive.
Silica-gel can be regenerated by heating, either in the oven or in a small pot where you hang it so that the bags do not touch the pot sides. Just lay a wire across the pot, and hang the Silica-gel packages from it by paper clips. Heat up the pot and dry the packs for half an hour or so to get rid of accumulated moisture. Keep the regenerated bags in an airtight container until you need to use them again.
Lake crab preparing for defense from the approaching camera
Small action cameras have very tight space between the cam and waterproof casing, tighter than the size of Silica-gel crystals, and you can’t fit even the smallest desiccant pack within. So you’ll need another approach.
You know those tubular containers of vitamin tablets which are dropped into a glass of water to make sparkling vitamin drinks? There is non-toxic Silica-gel “sand” under such tube plug paper seal. If you carefully replace tea in a teabag with this “sand”, you get one very slim package which can be squeezed alongside the action cam. Just be careful not to spill the fine granules all over the camera – it could be quite hard to clean it out! This desiccant is regenerated in the same way as described above. Be careful, though: teabag material burns!
Yet another way to get rid of moisture is to enclose the cam (with all hatches open or removed) in some airtight container together with crushed wads of cheapest newspaper. This is cheap and simple, and for small cameras one can use an empty resealable Nescafe tin can as an airtight space. Newspaper is very hygroscopic, and typical old-style “rag” is the best. It can collect the smallest traces of moisture overnight.
Common rice works too, but take care the rice dust does not get inside the camera. To ensure this, remove or open all camera hatches, then wrap the cam in newspaper. Put it into the airtight container, pour rice over everything, close tightly and leave overnight. Then carefully remove rice, unwrap the cam, inspect for dust. Meticulously clean it, especially the sealing parts and surfaces.
You can use this rice later to scare up some meal, too; its role of desiccant didn’t change it in any way! Another material to keep the air around the camera in its casing dry is the ole blotter! Although majority of folks nowadays use keyboards instead of pen and ink, blotters still exist. Play with blotter paper and scissors to create thin, eficacious moisture removers, made to measure just for your specific action cam casing.
Last but not least, there’s common tissue paper, of course. To re-dry for the next use, just keep paper pieces in the warm air streaming from your computer. Keep all dry desiccant pieces in airtight Zip-loc until next use.
Another way to grip a small camera while in swimming position
Flooded Camera: What To Do?
First, immediately remove the battery and memory card. Most memory cards are waterproof, so wipe them off with tissue, let dry and maybe the contents will still be readable. Connect dried card to the computer via card reader; don’t risk the memory card slot if your machine has it – card readers are cheaper if the card contacts are shorted or something.
Also, let the battery dry thoroughly for at least 24 hours. Li-ion batteries can spontaneously catch fire if something is not in order, so be aware of where and how to perform next test-charge. Putting the charger and dried-up battery on ceramic plate and keeping an eye on it for the whole duration of charging is good precaution thinking!
More bad news: water in the camera is never covered in any Warranty.
It is always regarded as user’s error. And expenditure. So you are left with three solutions.
One solution is, let your service repair the camera for you. Sending the camera to the service, keep the camera wet. If it was drowned in seawater, do not let it dry as this will complicate things. Wash the camera best you can to remove salt from its innards.
Then wrap it in wet cloth, put the bundle in watertight container and pack the whole so that it can stand the postal transport to the service. Call the service to announce it coming, explain the problem. Include some written explanation of the circumstances and what you did to remedy the situation.
Find out if the camera repairing costs are sensible! Sometimes it will be simpler and cheaper to buy new equipment. That would then be the solution #2.
Third solution is to try and repair the damage yourself if you feel you could do it. Or maybe delegate the honors to a friend who is handy in tackling such tasks. Your camera Warranty is off anyway, and whatever you do there will be a price to pay, so what can you lose?
But do read on. Perhaps what follows might help you to avoid or decide things…
Camera made floatable by fishing net floats turned into wrist strap
Horror Story 1
After a dive we were sitting in the garden, drying cameras and preparing to develop the films. Along comes one of our diving buddies, says “I still have some air in the tank, let me go and expose one more roll…” As our E-6 chemicals are one-time-use only, this made sense; two rolls in the bath spiral for the price of one.
He grabs a Nikonos III, loads a roll of film, and dives in the shallow bay in front of the house. Several minutes later he’s out like a shot and shows us the camera. Brown water sloshes around in the $1400 lens port! In his hurry, he plain forgot to plug the flash sync cable contact on the camera underside, and the sea was invited inside to play!
Imagine the atmosphere of taking the camera AND lens apart, washing out every tiny screw and spring and lever and aperture leaves and lens elements and… I shudder even thinking about doing this ever again!
We had to be quick about it as no parts within the camera are corrosion-resistant. Seems like Lady Fortune was at our side, for when we finally put it all back together and re-lubricated all moving parts, everything worked as before. And there were no surplus parts around, too!
MORAL OF THE STORY: Never hurry when you clean, set-up, or prepare your gear!
Wide-angle theme: swarm of fish circling in the lake reed forest
Horror story 2
The scene is an Underwater Photography Competition that takes two days. On the first day, everyone photo-hunts fishes; on the second day the theme is free.
One of diving competitor buddies (yes I know, but in diving no adversary is an enemy) …he scrambles out of the sea and his Nikon SLR in underwater housing is full of that telltale brown brine which comes from washed off film layers. And his facial expression looks even worse, as you can imagine. The $4000 plus system is DOA and he sure ain’t smiling!
Used to this (due to our Horror Story #1 experience), my buddy and me first prepare a solution from 1 liter of distilled water and 1 liter of pure alcohol (isopropyl). Since water and alcohol mix inter-molecularly, the total volume is less than two liters. This is an excellent washing and cleaning liquid; best first aid in such cases. We take the camera apart and wash everything in the mixture. The evaporating alcohol takes water out of every nook and cranny, and washed gear appears clean and dry.
So why did that underwater casing leak? We found out it was never serviced after the previous dive. Our friend admitted he just left it unserviced, postponing it until he forgot about it. In the meantime the sand particles, sea salt and biological matter had dried solid on all sealing points. It was enough to turn pleasure into a catastrophy.
Long story short, we managed to save the camera and the next day our friend was able to compete.
But that evening, our dinner and wine was on him!
MORAL OF THE STORY: Never enter the water with your equipment unserviced!
Portrait of a watersnake (Natrix tessellata) in the reed forest
Horror story 3.
One of my two amphibious cameras let some water in during an underwater swim. The reason was the camera’s USB port watertighting that is sealed other than by classically dependable o-rings. I was lucky it happened in the lake, freshwater being far less corrosive than brine!
To be fair, it works well as long as both the rubber seal and its seat are absolutely clean and free of any obstacles. This is every camera’s weak spot. Even a hair or a grain of sand there is enough for a seal to fail!
First I had to decide whether to try and salvage the camera myself as the speedy reaction is essential, or to send the camera to the service. Sending takes time, and I did not want to risk internal corrosion.
So I removed the lens port, opened both hatches and did my best to get rid of the water (and the Warranty). I dried the battery and memory card as thoroughly as possible. Then I force-dried the camera innards by ingeniously connecting the hair dryer to it.
Drying the flooded camera. Use only cold air – never switch on the heater!
After putting the camera back together without battery and memory card, I carried it several times down to its rated maximum depth of 10 meters. Checked to find any signs of water ingress. Finding none, I re-inserted the battery and memory card. I was very lucky; everything worked as before.
So I have just once been careless enough not to check the sealing for obstacles before putting the camera underwater. And once was enough! Hopefully, should you follow the advices given, you may never have to experience anything similar.
MORAL OF THE STORY: Even shoemakers sometimes have a hole in the sole!
Thanks for having the patience to read through all this. I hope it saves you from some serious trouble. Enjoy your work and have a Good Light!
Buying an action camera can be such an overwhelming and frustrating experience. Especially if you are being introduced with this technology for the first time.
You watched plenty of YouTube videos. Hell, you even read few articles. Everyone seams to recommend different camera. Bombed with information all over the place, you are confused. Which camera to buy? Which one is the best? You want the best bang for your buck, that’s not a secret.
I know how you feel.
I was on the same road not long ago. There are hundreds of choices to be made.
So, how can you chose the best action cam? Who to trust?
Answer is yourself. You are the only one making a decision here. You are the only person on the planet who knows what is the best for you. Ignore marketers, You Tubers and social media influences
Only by learning and understanding your needs can you truly choose “the best” action cam for yourself. In this guide, I’d like to introduce you with a basic process through which buyer goes when purchasing an action camera regardless of it’s price and features. No matter if you’re just starting out, or you’re an advanced user, I hope this guide will help you.
While army of GoPro fans await for the arrival of a new GoPro’s Hero 5 camera, I went ahead and did something quite funky.
No I did not wrote a fake article by posting “leaked” images of the Hero 5 online. (Although these days that works quite well for crappy mass media).
If you are a regular reader, you know me better than that.
You probably remember my recent article on action camera history and evolution in which I found out that the first ever commercially viable action camera was GoPro Hero 35mm.
Long story short – I was so intrigued by it, that I went ahead and bought one on eBay (got it brand-new from this seller).
I bough first ever GoPro, paid 50$ for it and I am ready to tell you a crazy story behind it.
Am I out of my mind? Why I paid over 50$ for a camera which can’t record videos and uses a 35mm film to create still images?
Except for the fact that it was the first ever GoPro, Hero 35mm is interesting because of how it was invented, made, priced and sold. More importantly, the true significance of it is not a technology, craftsmanship or a photo quality it had.
The true importance of Hero 35mm is the story behind it.
Unlike technology, telling good stories never gets old. So for a change, I want to tell you a story.
Nick Woodman – The GoPro guy.
Once upon a time, there was a a young entrepreneur called Nicholas Nick Woodman.
Meet Nick Woodman, the guy behind GoPro.
Like 99% of entrepreneurial souls out there, his obsession was to create the next big thing. But there was a tiny problem. He had a motivation, but lacked the idea.
Lacked the idea, but had enormous motivation to do something big.
With an unsuccessful business attempt after the graduation behind him, Nick was depressed.
“I actually was pretty depressed when I graduated from college.. I was literary depressed for like 6 months.. I woke up at 1 o’clock in the afternoon…lying on a couch, looking up on ceiling thinking “What am I gonna do?” (source)
Nick Woodman spent 6 months doing nothing, being depressed, think what he can do next.
He finally decided that there is no point in sitting around doing nothing. Nick needed a change. A fresh start. The only way out of of terrible everyday mundane was to do something he loved. He had a huge passion for surfing.
Here is how he described how he felt while surfing in the ocean.
I was leaving the world I knew behind, leaving everybody I knew behind and going to a place where nobody knew I was going, doing my own thing.
The idea was to go to a trip through the Indonesian and Australian coast with friends and have fun. Fresh air and new environment should be the spark to get his creative juices flowing.
The inspiration he was desperately looking for, came before he even left.
Being a profound surfer, Woodman wanted to capture photos of while riding waves. While packing for the trip, he realized that cameras he had were complicated and hard to operate while in the open sea.
That’s why Nick wanted to create a mount which would allow him to attach a non-reusable waterproof camera onto his wrist. That one-time use camera was perfect, since it was waterproof, cheap and light-weight. It would allow him to take photos while doing sports. However, it was impossible to mount a such cam onto a wrist.
It’s all about the strap
So to recap, Nick wanted to have a camera around his writs which he can use quickly while breaking waves.
Camera required some sort of a strap that would hold it tight. Strap had to be flexible and easy to operate in extreme situations and allow smooth camera usage. Unfortunately no such products existed at the time.
He kept trying until he managed to create a reliable DIY strap that was able to hold the camera. And that is when his aha moment came.
These strap can be patented and sold.
God knows how many surfers out there want to have this exact setup.
Picture below depicts his first prototype. Initial idea was to create a wrist strap which can easily fit other cameras on top of it.
One of the first Ultimate Strap prototype.
This is a very important moment for an entire story. Most people believe that GoPro started out by making cameras right away. But that is not true. Their first product was a cinch strap, later named “Ultimate Camera Strap“. He borrowed his mother’s sewing machine and started making straps. At that point he founded Woodman Labs, which later became – GoPro.
“If I didn’t follow my passion for surfing, I would’ve never had the idea for GoPro”
The strap was the first product that GoPro made, not the camera.
How strap became a camera?
Later on, Nick realized that the strap was not the only problem. Bigger problem was the camera. The recording device had to be rigid and compact, but also waterproof and easy to carry around during rigorous activities like surfing.
Another issue issue was that even when he managed to mount a camera onto a strap, camera would break down. He tried numerous models, but either they were heavy, they leaked or felt apart.
It took him almost two years of going through different camera trade shows, to finally find a compatible camera. It was an analog 35mm camera made by Chinese manufacturer. Camera was cheap enough, durable and lightweight. But even that one required modifications. Problem was a language barrier. These guys barely knew few words of English.
When dealing with the manufacturer of first ever GoPro, everything was done via email and one phone call, due to language barrier.
In one interview Woodman described his difficulties while negotiating with the factory based in Shenzhen, China.
“I actually did the deal without ever meeting the company. It was all email. I had one phone call where we could barely understand each other because of language barrier.” (source)
Eventually, he wired them 5000$ for a mold creation. Company from Shenzhen proved to be legit and that is how in 2004, Hero 35mm was born. Product was on sale between 2004-2006. It’s retail price was around 20$. What is interesting is that camera itself without accessories costs only 3$ to produce in China.
First ever action camera – HERO 35mm.
Even though Hero 35mm was not the next big thing for GoPro founder, it was the camera that paved a way for a multi-billion dollar industry. It is where it all started. Without the Ultimate Strap and 35mm analog camera, GoPro would never exist.
In 2006 company launched the (eBay link) Digital Hero. It could capture 10 seconds of video and had no sound. Later models improved to incredible matters. Digital Hero was the big thing, but that would never be possible with an Ultimate Strap and 35mm analog camera.
There is an interesting story behind why Nick named his product a Go Pro.
“GoPro was just supposed to be a company that made wrist cameras for surfers. When trying to come up with an idea for the company name I asked myself, “What do my friends and I all want to do most?” And the answer was “Go pro…we all want to be pro surfers.”
As I thought about it more I realized that GoPro was a great name in that it meant “attack it full on” no matter what your passion or interest is…get after it and live life to the fullest.” (source)
That is quite brief story on how this camera was created. In case you are still reading this, let’s now open the box and see how the camera works.
GoPro Hero 35mm overview
Camera arrives in thin plastic box. What blew my mind was that a guy appearing on a packing is Nick Woodman himself. On the front side you can see Nick smiling wearing a hat, holding the camera. There are also two more images, but I am unsure if that is him or a model, but something tells me that’s “the mad billionaire” as people call him today.
Hero Camera without waterproof housing.
His photo also appears on the back side of the camera, depicting Nick in a winter suit holding a camera with his gloves.
“Finally! Now you can surf, snorkel, ski, hike or bike wearing a camera that makes it easy to get photos of the action while enjoying the action” (text on a box)
GoPro Fun Facts
Here are some fun facts about the first GoPro :
Nick Woodman himself appears as a model on camera box and a manual.
First GoPro was an analog camera which required 35mm film.
Cam could only capture still images, but not the video.
Its operation was mechanical, so it required no batteries.
The retail price was around 20$.
The web address for their first website was GoProCamera.com, which now redirects to GoPro.com
GoPro Hero 35mm was waterproof up to 15′ (4.5m) when in water housing.
Camera arrived with pre-loaded 24 exposures 400 ASA film (1 roll captures 24 photos).
You could use both black and white film with it.
What’s inside the box?
Hero package includes:
Reusable 35mm camera
Preloaded 400 ISO film
Polycarbonate waterhousing
The Ultimate Strap (TM)
Ski Glove adapter lash
2x manual on English and French.
How it works?
My interest in photography and gear started in digital era. I do remember my dad taking shoots with analog camera back in the days, but to tell you the truth I never used an analog camera. When I asked my father to show me how to put a film inside a camera he laughed.
Son, you have 20 digital cameras around the house, but you do not know to insert or rewind a film? Jesus, these today’s kids know nothing.
The next few minutes he talked about how old days were awesome and yadda yadda yadda, but eventually explained me everything. Yea, my dad is awesome.
So for all those “today’s kids” I decided to write how GoPro Hero 35mm operates. To be honest, process is no different compared to any other analog. But, I thought it might be fun.
Once you open the box, camera is inside the waterproof housing. Case has 2 closure buckles on the bottom and the side that you must lift in order to pull the analog camera out. Camera weights around with housing and without it.
It has no batteries and operates like a mechanical device. It has a 28mm focus free lens on the front, a view finder and a film compartment at the back. On top of the camera there is a shutter button and a film rewinder.
Camera comes with a pre-loaded 400 ISO film inside.
First GoPro could not record video and had a film inside with 24 photos to capture.
In order to take a photo, you just need to click onto a shutter on top. But here is the trick. When you want to take another image, you need to rewind the film by rolling the wheel on the right side. Once you can’t rewind it anymore, that means that it’s time for a new photo. And you can do that 24 times (24 photos). Once you are done, you need to rewind the entire film in clockwise direction by lifting the rewind wheel on the top.
I have scanned the two page manual, so if you want to find out more, you can download Hero 35mm manual here. Manal itself is quite cool, so you maybe want to have it just as a collectible piece or whatever.
For better understating of the entire operation, you can watch a video I made, or just watch GoPro CEO explaining it.
Summary
I hope that you understand that the whole point of me showing of this camera is not to show its awesome capabilities. I wanted to tell you a story about idea, pursuing dreams and entrepreneurship.
My main goal was to write an article and pay tribute to the camera which made it all happen. There was not much information on this particular model online, I just wanted to write something that can stay on the web hopefully in years to come.
If this story, inspired you in any way to go out there and pursue your dreams, then it was well worth the 36$+17$ shipping to Europe. It certainly inspired me.
If you liked the story, please share it with your friends.
Thanks for reading. Be a hero in whatever inspires you.
Ever since I got a hold of my first action camera, I struggled to find the most convenient way to store not only the camera, but also bunch of gear that came along with it. After few unsuccessful attempts, I finally managed to find few ways which I will show you in this post. So this post is are all about storing and protection of our precious action cams.
There are no limits when it comes to action camera storage. Be creative, use whatever you have if you are on a budget.
Bear in mind, that there is no perfect way to store and organize anything. We are all different, have different tastes, preferences,needs and are attracted by different things.
Personally for me, it was important that the camera and a gear are easily accessible, tidy,safe and not expensive. Since I do not have much space in my room, I strived to find solutions that will not take half of it.
It is important that you evaluate what matters for you. Is it the money, design, function or something else? Everything can be found online these days. You just have to be creative. If you are willing to experiment and do few DIY projects, possibilities are limitless.
My priorities for action camera storage are :
Accessibility – So that I can get camera and gear quickly
Minimalism – does not take much space
Safety – protects my camera and gear
Price – I am on a budget, so I need affordable solutions
No matter if you have a GoPro, Xiaomi, SJCAM, Sony or any other camera, I hope that this short article of mine will give you some ideas and get your creative juices flowing.
Toolbox – Perfect for storing multiple cameras with a lots of gear
Since lately my collection of these tiny looking cameras increased, I found toolbox perfect for storing them inside the comfort of my home.
It looks decent and you can fit plenty of additional gear inside.
Additionally, the cameras and gear are neatly organized and quite accessible. Usually toolboxes have multiple “floors” and dividers, so you can grab what you need pretty fast. The best thing about that is that you can store ton of stuff in them. Not only cameras and basic gear, but also tripods, power banks, cleaning kits, you name it.
Toolbox is great for storing large amount of gear and cameras. You can store tripods and plenty of other bulkier accessories.
One additional convenience is that most of us already have a toolbox. They are available in nearly any DIY or tool shop, even supermarkets have them. I am using a pretty beaten up plastic box which my father no longer use for his tools.
So I “borrowed” one from him. Ehem, okay you got me. 🙂 I took it, but lets call it a long term loan. So dad, if you are looking for your toolbox, I don’t have it.
Problem with these toolbox is that most of them does not look stylish. I mean, take a look at mine. Its pretty beaten up. I wont lie, it even has a hole on it, which I promise to fix this weekend. If you take a better look at bottom right corner, you will see a gigantic whole caused by me dropping the whole toolbox. Luckily cameras and gear were undamaged.
Another downside is that toolboxes are usually bulky and heavy to carry around.
I love displaying my cameras in a toolbox, but I do not use it on a go.
Seriously? Oh come on? Are you absolutely sure you do not have one? Well, if you want to buy one, there are tons (and I mean tons) to chose from on Amazon. They come in various shapes, size and most importantly price.
I am certain that as my gears and camera collection increases, I will have to get one of those fancier, more durable ones and finally return this one to my pop.
Foam case – James Bond style
Foam cases are without any doubt the fanciest way to kill two birds with one stone. Look and functionality. The main problem with foam cases is that they are heavy and non mobile (especially the larger ones). Similar like with toolbox, they are mostly used indoors as they are too bulky to be carried around often.
Foam cases are awesome way to store cameras, but like toolboxes, they are bulky and heavy for the outdoor use. – Image Credits – Goprocases.au
Your camera and gear will look tidy and less cluttered. However, no matter how spacious these cases look, they leave plenty of room that you can not use, due to thickness of a foam. So besides their price, the biggest con is that they have lots of unusedspace.
>>> If foam case is something you would like to get here are some links to get them online :
Tool organizer – Great for storing cameras accessorizes
Tiny plastic tool organizers are probably the best way to organize plenty of base mounts, adhesive tapes, spare batteries and gazillion of screws. They are cheap, light-weight and easy to fit into a backpack if you are hiking for instance. The main disadvantage is that most of these toolbox are too small for you to fit your camera or any larger piece of gear.
This means that you will have to have a separate bag for the camera. However, if you hike and you have a camera on your chest or head, you can slide the organizer in the backpack, as they are not heavy at all.
I must admit, that like with larger toolbox, I already had this organizer. Well my father had it for his fishing gear, but I borrowed it 🙂 I promise Ill get it back dad, eventually!
Small tool organizers can be found everywhere, but if you prefer online buying :
If you have a tool store nearby, check it up, you might find some good deals there as well.
Small, plastic organizers are prefect for smaller pieces such as mounts, straps, bases and screws. However camera can not be stored in them due to their size
Action Camera Bags – Great overall
Main purpose of most action camera bags is to enable best way for you to fit both cameras and accessories in one. Since there are litterraly hundreds of types, it is very hard to classifiy them. The easiest way to somehow distinguish them is by size :
Large
Medium
Small
Larger, medium and smaller storage bags for action cameras. All have pros and cons, but are great value overall.
Larger protective bags can carry out 2-3 GoPro sized cameras and lots of additional accessories, depending how you organize them. They have foam surface, so you can cut it to suit your particular storage needs.
Medium bags can usually hold only one action camera. Like bigger sized ones, they have foamy interior so its easy to customize them according to your needs.
Smaller sized bags are so tiny that most of them can fit into your pocket. While they are the least expensive ones, they are the hardest to find. Usually you have to buy a smaller sized earphone case and put some foam to achieve the look you wish. They are made to hold one camera with waterproof case on it (or two without a waterproof housing) and only few tiny pieces of gear such as screws, etc.
These tiny fellas are best way to carry your camera in your pocket or a smaller sized handbag. You can not put much gear in them on the other hand, which is their biggest disadvantage. Also as mentioned, there are not many brands that produce smaller bags, so it usually requires some DIY work. Trust me, its worth it. I love to carry my camera in it, when I do not require any additional gear.
If you plan to use your camera under water, you should know that there are waterproof and non waterproof ones. Usually the ones that are resistant to water are more expensive and harder to find. However there are some brands that specialize in water-resistant items for GoPro, but you can fit nearly all other cameras in it. I will not pay attention to particular bag brand however. Lets leave this for some other time.
Size always matters. Smaller ones are perfect for carrying on hike, where as larger ones can hold great amount of gear and can easily be slipped into a backpack.
Summary
To sum up, obviously there are no rules when it comes to action camera storage. You can be creative and experiment. These are just my ideas and how I protect my cameras. For any questions, feel free to leave a comment bellow. I hope that I managed to throw some ideas with this post.
How do you store your GoPro or any other camera?
If you already have a method of storing your camera and gear, please share your way in the comments bellow. I will be more then happy to update this post with more ideas and organizing methods. Do not be shy, just click that post comment button and you are good to go 🙂
