New to gopro questions

[Captain Majestic]

Hi I will be leaving on monday for 7 days of diving in Tonga and am planning on buying a gopro duty free at the airport. I have a number of questions regarding the product itself and use.

1. Black or silver edition? I know this is probably a common question, but is the black really worth an extra $100?

2. Because I will buying it at the airport before I leave (I know, not ideal) I wont be able to purchase any mounts or filters for the camera and will probably be using it with my hands. What is the video quality like without a filter and using without a mount?

3. What size SD card does the gopro come with? Is the SD card it comes with sufficient or should I buy an extra one?

Thanks.

 

[Bestshooter]

1. Word on the street is black
2. Video quality will probably be shaky but without filter will be more blue probably .
3. I def know it does not come with a memory card .. That is seperate.. Also you prob want to get some extra batteries as they drain quick

 

[fbk]

Bad move buying at the airport... the Black is definitely better spec-wise but I never saw them in any of the Duty free stores (only silver). After my recent experience with 4 Hero3Black's on my trip I would hesitate to recommend anyone getting one anyway. Also I think they come with a notice saying that you must update firmware before use and that in itself can be a nightmare (read the forums) so good luck with that. If you are dead set on getting one at least get a pole that you can mount the gopro upside down to, you will get much more stable footage than trying to hold that little thing in your hand, ideally you need a 2 handled tray. You really need a filter too but if you don't get one... well you'll just have really blue footage that you can try and correct later. You also need extra batteries and a way to charge them while diving as you will go through 1 per dive. And you will also need a laptop or way to download your footage as SD cards fill up pretty quick.

If you do still get one please report back on how it went on your trip. I had one for a month before and thought I had it all sorted and it was a complete fustercluck!

---------- Post added April 13th, 2013 at 03:21 PM ----------

Oh and you better get some anti-fog strips too, as fogging will be an absolute certainty in tropical humidity.

 

[Captain Majestic]

Update: I've decided to buy the black edition and a grenade grip mount before I leave, sadly I don't think there are any stores where I live (Sydney) that would stock red gopro filters

 

[avigulf]

ahh, I would rather invest in a tray, ex. the snakeriver prototyping...and of course a red filter.

 

[Rderige]

1.) If you consider the fact that you will be using your hero3 for a long time then adding an extra 100$ is not that bad considering that you get a lot more options with its resolution capabilities. having said that, i'm using a hero2 which is more similar as the silver and i find that it's all i need.
2.) you'll have major color issues without a filter as your camera will have a hard time adjusting WB underwater. better invest in that to maximize the camera with the shots that you take.
3.) for a dive trip, i find using 32GB SD Card is enough. I bring my laptop or tablet so whenever i need space i just transfer the files into any of them.

 

[FlamboyantDiver]

Just came back from a week long dive / snorkel trip with a new Black Hero3. Other purchasing recommendations may be too late but absolutely update the firmware before diving (it can be done with a laptop as long as you have your USB cable with you). I tested my unit for a week before the trip and never had this issue... until my dive. Figures. I did some research that night and apparently with the original firmware sometimes the unit would lock up when you power on and off too frequently. I updated the firmware that same night with a laptop and it did not have one single issue since. The firmware update was not painful at all, just need to follow the instructions and you should be fine. Have fun on your trip!

 

[divingpyrate]

The latest firmware seems to have corrected the issues with the camera for the most part.
the remaining problems are with faulty sd cards
use a name brand and test the heck out of it. I have stayed away from the 64 gig cards and had good luck using the true ultra sandiscs

 

[Auburn910]

I dive off of North Carolina mostly in water 80 to 130 feet. I consider our water here to be blue with viz from 20 to over 100 feet but usually around 50 to 70 feet. I plan to make my own tray.

1) With that background, would I need a color correcting filter? Would it be of any use at those depths?

2)I have a UK 100HID light, would that be of any use to rig up for day time diving?

3) Most of my shooting will be in wide angle,do i need the LCD? I am really not worried about battery life as most of my dives are 30 min or less and i only make 2 a day. 80 more bucks for diving is cheap really, but still 80 bucks.

4) Also, any thoughts on the benefits of shooting in 60fps 1080? I am leaning toward the silver. For the depths i dive would the black be better? Appears to me from shots on youtube the silver lets in more light?

Thank you.

 

[Randy g]

I with you on this Auburn. We are NC divers as well. From what I gather we will not need a filter below 60-70'.

A flood light will only help withing 6' down to 2-3'. Beyond that it is of little use.

I got the LCD backpack to learn to frame shots but will not use it on deep dives since it uses more power.