[JohnM]

What video cameras are people using to record boulders or climbs? I guess the issue for climbs is getting it all in the view finder if the climb is long or it is hard to set the camera very far back. I would also like to record some biking stuff. Therefore I guess the answer is GoPro but maybe there are other decent cameras out there?

I did have a Sony action cam but it output in a proprietary format that you had to pay for their software to edit so I gave up with that.

[mrjonathanr]

GoPro?

[cheque]

I imagine most people just use their phones for bouldering videos these days.

For recording bike stuff I don’t think there’s a competitor for a GoPro though.

[tomtom]

I film most of mine with a cheapo GoPro clone that I got off amazon for £30 a couple of years back. It presents fo do 4K but does 1080 at 60fps pretty well.

There’s plenty of these about that all now have better sensors/software etc.. it links to the phone via wifi so you can download to phone for editing posting And frame shots with it etc...

Lives in my climbing pack. I usually use a small usb power pack to power it - as this last hours and is less faff than the internal battery.

I prefer this over using my phone as I can leave it set up if I want to actually use my phone in between attempts etc.. and it has a much wider field of view. My phone takes much better footage and I sometimes use it if the best place for the camera is far away.

[SA Chris]

For climbing footage i have a gorillapod with a spring loaded phone mount which does OK.

Worth exploring Go Pros and clones. However, I had a mate who proudly showed me his clone version he'd got for a ski trip, only for one of the battery contacts to snap off first time he tried to use it.

Go Pros get updated every few months or so, and the previous version gets a lot cheaper, as soon as the latest version comes out so worth seeing if any of the newest features (live feed and activation via bluetooth) are of any real interest to, as well as faster photo frame rate the like to keep adding to the newer ones, which is not of any real interest if you only want to shoot video.

I went for a Session 5 a few years back, nice to be able to turn the cube around in the mount for portrait or landscape mode, and the cage seems a bit more robust than some of the plastic cases. I keep looking at new toys, but can't justify the improvements yet.

There are stacks of attachments designed around the Go Pro mounting too.

[Coops_13]

I've always used my phone on a little tripod mount thing (that consistently breaks...). I have that fancy new iPhone which is a game changer as it can record in wide angle so I don't have to trek miles away to film. With my old phone, I used this: https://www.amazon.com/Xenvo-iPhone-Camera-Lens-Clip/dp/B01A6D2JVI/
It worked unless you accidentally put it on wrong (see my video of Autobot in RMNP:   )

[SA Chris]

OT, but jealous of your present location. I had 2 great winters in CO, but never really explored in the summer, only got to Boulder Canyon and Flagstaff Mountain, rest of time there was spent out west.

[Coops_13]

OT, but jealous of your present location. I had 2 great winters in CO, but never really explored in the summer, only got to Boulder Canyon and Flagstaff Mountain, rest of time there was spent out west.

Yeah man, loving it. Just need to stop getting injured!

[CrimpyMcCrimpface]

+1 for the clip on wide angle lens. I've used a cheaper version in some footage which has done the trick. One lens is very aggressive and you get the rounding on the edges and the other is a standard wide angle. Only issue I've found is that my very old iPhone only records sound from the front camera when filming. The result being that any sound on the footage sounds like a microphone being dragged across material. Also would be nice to have a handheld gimbal to stabilise moving shots but I'm too tight for that.

[turnipturned]

I presume you are want to use it for mountain bike POV?

Sounds like an action camera is what you want. Pretty good for climbing, nice and light etc.

Got a couple of options:

GoPro
DJI OSMO action
Sony RX0

Personally I would go with DJI, looks like there in built stabilisation is a little better.

[a13c]

I bought my GoPro 4 a few years back to record bouldering stuff. My logic being I won't have to worry about it being knocked over, rained on etc. I would be much more concerned about where I could put the camera if it was fragile. Admittedly you could get more filming options (like a zoom) with a proper camera though.
I think the image stabilisation on the new GoPros looks really good for pov mountain biking.
You can also sick a GoPro on your dog which is great for a giggle!

[tomtom]

FYI if it helps - comparison between the £30 Amazon go pro clone and an iPhone 8+

[cheque]

Cool test Tom. Can you do the same but with a couple of test charts propped up against the rock please? 

[tomtom]

:D i always carry one with me to the crag so I can calibrate in post processing 😃