What will I be disappointed with a GoPro 3?

[Mike]

I ready to make the jump to video from stills and I see so many great videos from GoPro cameras. Now they have the 3 which looks like it solves a lot of work arounds and such from the previous models. I'm totally excited to start making my own videos like those I see online made with these cameras.

Before I take the plunge, what do I need to know in regard to what you can't do or what are the limitations of the Gopro? What might I be surprised by?

 

[Interceptor121]

What still camera have you got?
Does it take hd video and has custom white balance? If yes I would wait to ditch it

The key limitations of gopro are
No custom WB
Minimum focus distance 20+ cm hence no macro
No exposure control of any kind
Small sensor and poor performance in low light compared to more expensive set up
The gopro is best suited to shooting in blue water to a depth of 60 feet in ambient light using a filter it can if course do other things but I will show its limits
On the other side there is no equivalent set up using a still until $950 so it is the best starter video kit on the marke

 

[flareside]

What might I be surprised by?

Short battery life. With the Hero3 Black, assume 1 dive per battery. Depending on mode, battery life varies from around 60 to 90 minutes and will be even less with the LCD attached.

 

[Mike]

The gopro is best suited to shooting in blue water to a depth of 60 feet in ambient light using a filter it can if course do other things but I will show its limits

Would adding a single Sola 4000 or 2000 to the GoPro, or a couple of them, extend it's limitations at further depth with a no-brainer type usage and produce some awesome results?

At my stage in life I'm really just looking to simplfy things now, travel light and easy, plug it together, shoot and enjoy, not continuously messing, tweaking, fiddling, worry about something delicate and easy to break, keep the rig small as possible, and easy to use, but of course want some nice sweet results from to go wow.

 

[Interceptor121]

What kind of shots do you want to take?
Two sola 1200 are good up to 3 feet
The 4000 scare fish away so are only good for wrecks and reef
If you think of spending that amount of money there are plenty of options using a compact that does HD video had custom white balance and can focus at 1" from the port
You can even squeeze in a so single light to do macro and very close range work and it is as easy as a gopro to operate, some cameras last up to 3 dives as well

Two proper video lights start to be worth when you have a device that has full exposure control

Think of a gopro like you would think of a Nissan micra, you can buy accessories eventually modify something but it is still a little run around car good to go from a to b an cheap but definitely not luxurious

 

[scubamarketing]

What I do regarding lights (in clear water): No light down to 5-10', filter 10'-30', lights after that. Right now I'm sporting the new UK video light because it's insanely small and has an incredible beam spread (better I think than the Sola, but the Sola penetrates farther). For travel, ease of use and quality, it's great. The Black edition has a larger sensor, so it performs better in low light.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

Does not the new GP-3 Black have a manual white balance option? I've shot lots of decent video deeper than 30 feet with no lights in clear water.

 

[Mike]

What kind of shots do you want to take?

Everything. More versatile but with simplicity the better.

What still camera have you got?
Does it take hd video and has custom white balance? If yes I would wait to ditch it

Right now I have a sea and sea dx1200 with 2 ys110 strobes.

Have had the full digital Nikon with Ikelite housing and sunstrobe 200 strobes etc... moved to the sea & sea to simplify and reduce the size of such a ridiculous camera that I used to have, but am disappointed with the quality, especially the video I can currently shoot.

Here is a link to the last video I shot with it.

 

[Interceptor121]

The sea and sea you have has got custom white balance but a rather narrow lens it shoots at 720p
You would need a wide angle with it to do anything decent
Your video looks like it has not been white balanced and looks similar to some gopro videos that kick around
You seem to be pretty stable which is good
How much money do you want to spend?

 

[Mike]

Correct on the WB. I WB off my hand once or twice but don't do much in regard to WB because I'm not excited by the quality of the video it takes.

Actually have the Sea and Sea wide angle lens on the camera during that video.

Don't want to say money is no object, but I've spent stupid in the past and I'm sure I won't be scared to do it again.