Advice for GoPro HERO5 scuba video

[Tenurepro]

Hi Guys,
I am looking for some help in terms of a good light setup for GoPro Video for a HERO5...
I am going scuba in Mexico in March, and the Red Sea in August. I wanted to capture some video of the dives.

Was looking into the kraken Hydra lights, or possibly the Sea Dragon. Can't seem to see a lot of online reviews for these though. Was thinking of having two lights for good coverage. Any advice in terms of brands or lumen power would be highly appreciated.

I got the camera last year before a mexico scuba trip, but i got sick and couldn't dive. I still got some very decent footage snorkelling with the GoPro without any filters or lights; but 40 to 60 ft under, i recon i'll need some lights

thanks so much for your advice.

 

[MAKO Spearguns]

Two Handle Camera Tray | MAKO Spearguns

Take a look at our modular tray system which allows the use of two wide angle video lights

Thanks
Dano

 

[Tenurepro]

thanks for the tip; any suggestions about lights ?

 

[MAKO Spearguns]

We offer a pair of wide angle lights as well

 

[Sam Miller III]

I certainly appreciate your equipment and your injunity -- great stuff!

I was a charter member of the LA based UW photographic society (UPS) and co-founder or Orange County UPS (O CUPS)

To stabilize our cameras for close ups we used a 1/4 20 (as I recall) screw welded to the top of our knife --generally a WW 11 USMC K Bar, which we screwed the camera-- (Our Motto -- If costs over a dollar we made it- if it hadn't been invented we improvised and made it.)

Now my Mottos is " go see Dano" he has already invented it and it is for sale at a reasonable price".

Hombre,
Keep up the good work producing great well made products

Sam Miller, III

 

[outofofficebrb]

When I used a GoPro I had it in a Sea Life tray with handles. I added flex arms and then 2 Sea Dragons, one on each side. Get as much light as you can afford because the light falls off quickly underwater. There are a few posts where I talk about it in a bit more detail and you will find it in a search. They are quite recent.

www.instagram.com/outofofficebrb has photos taken with that set up. The underwater photos before October 2017 are with tha set up. The ones during October and later are using a camera rig.

 

[MAKO Spearguns]

Thanks Sam mounting the camera on top of a knife is a great idea for a sand spike why didn’t I think of that?

The go pro itself is so small that almost any mounting option will work. In general, if the diver wants to capture the most stable video, then a two hand tray system or even a pole held with 2 hands is best.

The addition of light arms and lights does increase the footprint of the camera, but if your primary intent is to shoot video, then it is worth the $ and the effort. The addition of lights brings back color but it also markedly improves the clarity and quality of the video itself- at least for subjects that are a few feet from the camera.

Without go too far off track, the new go pro user may not realize that the normal shooting setting for the go
Pro is pretty wide angle, so this means you can get close to a subject and it will look further away. You must use wide angle lights or you will get hot spots - areas of over exposure, if you use a normal focused dive light. The wide angle also allows you to shoot a large subject like a diver from just a few feet away.

So most people will find that a good size range of subjects will fall into the distance range of the video lights.