So my wife and I are going to Hawaii for our 10 year anniversary and I recently bought a GoPro HD Hero 2 to capture footage mainly of our diving and snorkeling. Now I'm worried because of all I've read about the soft images.
I've looked at the solutions sold by:
-Sartek Industries
-Snake River Prototyping
-Backscatter
-Eye of Mine
-and many others
I'm more confused than ever. I want something that
1)allows me to shoot above and below water(switching housings is an option)
2)takes good quality video
3)protects the investment I've made in the GoPro
Any advice? Also, in order to get the best video do I need a filter? and if so, what kind?
I appreciate any advice you veterans could give this newbie.
Hey Cardfan!
Welcome to the forum... sorting through all of the choices for the GoPro can be dizzying, but pretty much any of the choices available will give you decent results and will improve the soft images the GoPro camera produces underwater. So the good news is that your trip video memories won't be ruined. Even with the stock lens you will have good video, just not as sharp-focused as you would with a flat lens.
Marty pretty much covered all the basis so I won't repeat what he said, but I'll ask a question instead.
1. What do you foresee shooting above water? Do you just want a video camera for above water or are you planning on mounting the camera above water. If you plan on mounting the camera then yes the GoPro is the way to go. If you just want a camera most still pictures cameras produce similar or better video above the water than the GoPro so if you have a still camera I'd dedicate the GoPro for underwater use and not worry about it having to switch housings, etc. If you don't have a decent still camera that shoots video and are set on using the GoPro then your choices are not as broad.
2. Again, most solutions will provide good quality video below water, but plastic lenses degrade over time with scratches. Choosing a glass lens fix over plastic, or very durable scratch resistant material will provide the best results over time.
3. The stock housing of the GoPro is rated to well beyond recreational diving depths so choosing a fix that does not mess with the original housing seal means that even if your fix breaks your camera still is protected.
My personal choice is the SRP BlurFix, but any fix that approaches the soft images in similar fashion would be good in my opinion.
Filters are another issue all together, as you know the sunlight is filtered as it enters the water and the deeper you go the worse it gets, so adding color filters to compensate for the loss of color makes your video look better. The problem is that a filter made for shallow blue water will do you no good in green water or deeper blue water and vice versa. So you need to use the best filter for the depth and color water you're planning to dive. Some are better than others at compensating and some can be changed underwater while others can't but this is mainly determined by the fix you choose to buy. If you don't use a filter or add lights you're videos will look mostly bluish or greenish depending on the water itself unless it's very shallow and there's plenty of sunlight.
I hope this helps you.