GO PRO! or not?

Today I’ll review one of the most used action cameras in the world! The GoPro HERO5.

For me, the GoPro is the perfect camera to take on vacation or when I’m working. The Hero5 is relatively small and easy to take with you. It is 5.9 cm wide, 4.9 cm high, 2.9 cm depth, and weighs 145 gram. My first action camera was the GoPro Hero2 and I was used to it, I never had problems with it so I decided to buy another one because the quality of the movies from the Hero2 wasn’t enough for me much longer.

The camera has a wide-angle (170dg) lens which is great for filming and really want as much as possible on screen. This is called Super-wide option on the GoPro, mostly I use the linear option. The linear option captures a straight horizon with a more natural look.  This takes out the fish-eye effect the camera normally has by compressing the image a little. It’s just what you desire and what you want to film. In the cockpit, I do use a wider perspective to get more on the video as cockpits are not that big.

With 4K (3840 x 2160) it can capture with 30 frames per second. In other resolutions like 2,7K you can do 60 fps and the 1080P HD you can even capture up to 120fps. If I’m somewhere I mostly shoot in 2,7K with 60 frames so I can still make perfect slow-motion footage and can crop a bit of the image to use it in a 1080p video for youtube.

The Battery of the GoPro HERO5 isn’t that spectacular. It drains fast, really fast. So if you buy a GoPro Hero5 I would advise you to buy some extra batteries. Sometimes it even tells you that your battery is empty while it just came out of the charger. To fix this just switch it off and on again, 9 out of 10 times it tells you the correct battery power after this.

The GoPro is standard waterproof up to 10 meters, so good if you are going for a snorkeling trip. I bought an additional dive case because with scuba diving you go deeper than this 10 meters. The colors change on these depths as well (you lose the Red’s and contrast) so I also bought additional dive filters. (red and pink)

With your phone, you can be connected to the camera and select and change all the settings of the camera without touching the small screen on the back of the camera. I actually use the screen only to set it up somewhere and check the position. The GoPro was not made for filming still images it was originally as a point and aim shot kind of camera, so having a screen already is an improvement of 300% compared with the first few.

GoPro Karma Grip is the addition I took for the camera, it’s a stabilizer that works seamlessly with the GoPro HERO5 I have to say. The camera is pushed in a specially made socket and you use the stick as an extension of your arm. With moving shots like on a scooter or with snowboarding is its perfect, really perfect. I took it for the first time with me on a trip to Paris to check it out and I was happily surprised how stable it kept the camera. The Karma Grip has a 3 axis gimbal that stabilizes perfectly and it feels good in the hand when filming. It’s like a heavy selfie-stick. I found 2 small things that I would love to see changed in the next one. First: it’s not waterproof.  Second: if you put the camera in the socket you don’t have easy access to the screen to set something or even see what you are trying to film, but on the other hand the GoPro was made to Point aim and shoot so still worth it.

For me, this combination is perfect for what I do especially because I mostly wakeboard, snowboard, skateboard, and Dive I can use it often and when I’m in the cockpit I put the suction cup on 1 of the panels or windows and it works.

If you have any questions or remarks on this blog please feel free to comment below.

The video below was almost completely shot with the GoPro hero5 and Karma Grip made and edit by me. Don’t forget to subscribe to my YOUTUBE channel.!

This blog was not sponsored btw (I wish it was)