Action Cameras for fishing

[PaFrogThrower9]

Thinking about getting an action camera for filming while fishing. What's everybody using?? I've looked at a few but seriously don't wanna spend $300-$400 on one. Just seems like something I'd like to have to document so catches and trips.

[A-Jay]

I've been using video to document my trips for several years now.

As for the cameras, you'll get what you pay for.

 I started out with a Garmin Virb; it was OK. 

Switched to Go Pros a couple of years ago. 

They over simplicity & high quality footage. 

I've been happy with them.

You'll also need some type of camera mount and a way to do at least a little editing.

This trip from May was decent.

A-Jay

 

[Scott F]

The idea of having videos to go back and look at later is very tempting. The reality that many find is that going back to look at hours of video to edit down to what amounts to a few minutes of interesting footage gets pretty tedious. Even after you’ve spent all that time editing, you may not watch the final results ever again. If you are able, like A-Jay, to capture some great catches, terrific! Just be prepared to put in a lot of time off the water making videos that others will find entertaining enough to watch. 

[jkim64]

I like to video my fishing sessions.  I use a camera either mounted to the bill of my cap or on a chest-mount.  Most recently, I've gotten a GoPro Hero 7 Black and have used it now for two fishing trips.  I like it but the camera is on the heavy side and the battery life is not very good.  Here is an example of footage shot with my Hero 7...

 

 

Before that, I used a YI 4K camera that is much more affordable than the GoPro.  You can pick one up at Amazon for less than $100.  Footage is not as good as the GoPro, especially in terms of image stabilization, but still very good, IMO.  The YI 4K, without the waterproof housing, is much lighter than the GoPro and has a 1/4"" tripod mount built-in, which makes it very easy to use on a baseball cap mount.  And the batteries last noticeably longer than the GoPro.  Here is some footage that I shot with the YI 4K as a comparison to the GoPro...

 

 

[schplurg]

I also use a Yi Action Cam, the 4K model (not 4K+).

 

It can easily be "hacked" to increase the bitrate for each resolution to well beyond a GoPro. You can also increase the bitrate for audio. Look it up if you want to try it. I think it's a must.

 

It does have probably the best sensor out of all of the budget action cams. The stabilization is usable depending on what you are doing. It's so-so. Good for pans and sometimes walking.

 

I use the "flat" color setting as the "Yi Color" setting is atrocious - so over-saturated that it's unusable to me. Flat color needs a little color correcting on the PC afterwards but it looks way better. I also find that the GoPro 7 videos, virtually all of them, are over-saturated. Not a lot but enough to look phony to me. The world isn't that vibrant! Many people tend to like that though.

 

Turn sharpness OFF on the Yi cameras (or low I forget, whatever is lowest). Add it later while editing, the camera's sharpness feature is crap. CRAP I say!  

 

You will need to do at least a little editing if you want a presentable video. I mean cutting out the boring stuff. There are some free options that are fine, or find a friend or kid to do it

 

I love having these videos! I have about 30 on YouTube. I started posting them so friends could watch and I got some subscribers along the way.

 

I let my cam run most of the time while actually fishing. Depends on the resolution I'm using (SD card space). The Yi Camera has very good battery life. They also have great support. Excellent, including the return policy. The camera's not perfect but for between $79 and $199 you can't go wrong with it. It's the best in that range.

 

I'd also recommend a used GoPro 6. Try craigslist if you wanna spend 220 or so. I'd do that instead probably. My next cam maybe.

 

A photo is cool, but there's nothing like having the cast, hookset, fight, weighing and release all on hi-def video,  especially when nobody is there to share it with. I have my PB on there (more than one), my reaction is funny. I have another video of me and a friend having a perch surf fishing contest which was a blast.

 

Video editing isn't for everyone but I love it. I wear the camera clipped to the bill of my cap. I prefer that over a chest mount, just use a good hat! I sometimes use an iPad or whatever for a second stationary cam to mix it up a bit.

 

If you think you can edit video OR if you know someone who will for you I HIGHLY recommend a video cam. I'm very happy to have it.

[PaFrogThrower9]

Thanks for all the advice so far! Very informative. I guess the biggest reason I wanna stay cheaper is just to make sure this something I even wanna do. Worth all the time and effort.

[jbsoonerfan]

I've seriously considered buying one, but all the dead footage would just make me realize how bad I am at fishing. LOL

[schplurg]

1 hour ago, jbsoonerfan said:

I've seriously considered buying one, but all the dead footage would just make me realize how bad I am at fishing. LOL

 

 

Maybe it'll pressure you to catch more?  Gotta keep your YouTube fans happy lol.

 

You can also use it for other things. According to the GoPro ads, everyone skydives and surfs! Who knew? I used a GoPro for snorkeling in Hawaii, you can use it as a dash cam. Attach it to your dog. My GoPro fell in the lake one day so I ended up buying the Yi for 1/4 the price. I've had both and I'm okay with either though I'd like the image stabilization on the GoPro 6. Other than that I'm fine with the cheapie.

 

As for not wanting the newer GoPro 7 there is a reason I decided to avoid it but I can't remember what it was. A lot of people seem to like the 6 better - there's a feature they left out of the 7 but ??? Maybe it's the color profile.

 

I like the Yi okay but do your research. There are cheaper "4k" cams but many are not true 4k or have inferior sensors.

 

Oh and I never shoot in 4k anyways, usually 2.7k @ 60 fps. 

[PaFrogThrower9]

I've glanced at a few of the cheaper ones on Amazon but not sure of their actual quality. Lots of good reviews but who knows if they are true and accurate. I was looking at a few of the Akaso's and Apeman's. Who knows on their actual quality though.

[BigTerp]

Extremely happy with the SJCAM SJ4000. Have it one for about 5 years and zero complaints. I use it waterfowl hunting, fishing and as a dash cam. Video quality is comparable to a GoPro Hero 3 Black (only GoPro I've been able to compare it to). It uses the same mounts as a GoPro, so they are readily available. Exceptional camera for the money.

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MIT658W/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[BassNJake]

Isn't there some type of setting that allows you to record in segments?

 

It records for 10 minutes and if you dont save that data, it starts recording over it.?

 

 

 

[Tennessee Boy]

13 hours ago, jbsoonerfan said:

I've seriously considered buying one, but all the dead footage would just make me realize how bad I am at fishing. LOL

LOL..  That’s what video editing is for.   You can catch a fish on every cast just like Bill Dance.

[RichF]

I've been using my GoPro Hero 3 Black since 2014 and it still works fine.  Battery life is crap and sound is horrible inside the case though.  I've shot like 300+ gbs of video, bought a new computer last year and Adobe Elements to edit, and have still yet to post a single video haha.  

[jbsoonerfan]

13 hours ago, schplurg said:

You can also use it for other things.

Yea, I talked to my wife about that.

[schplurg]

Many cheap cameras only do 1080p which is fine for a lot of people.

 

A lot of the 4k ones have inferior sensors or do not do true 4k - that is a big key to this. The Yi I have has a very good Sony sensor and has one of the best pictures, even compared to GoPro. Some say it's better.

 

Some cameras allow you to record and rerecord a single file. I thought the Yi did but it does not. Would be a nice feature in a dash cam so you don't fill up an SD card. However, at 1080p I can record for several hours on a 64GB SD card, and it also supports 128GB (unofficially). Plus it would be a bummer to record a PB then accidentally record over it. You can easily delete files from the camera if you need to.

 

It uses all the GoPro mounts. All the leftover junk from my GoPro fits on it.

 

Problems with the Yi:

 

Wind noise. I use a rubberband to hold a piece of foam over the mic holes. Works very well. Otherwise wind can be heard with just a small breeze. GoPro has noise too but not as bad.

 

Image stabilization not nearly as good as GoPro. Good for some uses, not good for others. Works okay for fishing. If you mount it to your head you will be surprised at how often you look around while you fish. Sometimes I have to remind myself to keep somewhat still so people don't get sick watching me. 

 

Sometimes I have to remove the battery to reset the camera, as it will suddenly stop working - kind of. It is rare but it does happen. GoPro froze on me a few times too.

 

Sharpness settings suck, leave them at the lowest setting and fix it later in post editing.

 

Lower mic volume to Low if you use a chest or head mount.

 

I had the camera replaced after it suddenly hailed a little one day (California hail is pretty weak). One of the mics stopped working and they replaced it. I did not tell them about the hail though

 

You need to download a few text files in order to get the bitrate as high or higher than a GoPro. Look up "Yi Action Cam bitrate hack". The difference in quality before and after is quite noticeable.

 

Like I said my first choice would be the GoPro 6 used for $220, only due to the image stabilization though. Other that the Yi 4k between $69 and $199 gets the nod.

 

Here is a video I shot with this camera. You can see how it behaves in different lighting conditions - sun glare etc.

 

 

[Chris186]

On 8/14/2019 at 5:55 AM, PaFrogThrower9 said:

I've glanced at a few of the cheaper ones on Amazon but not sure of their actual quality. Lots of good reviews but who knows if they are true and accurate. I was looking at a few of the Akaso's and Apeman's. Who knows on their actual quality though.

I mainly use a GoPro, but I did buy an Akaso from Amazon just to have a second camera angle. Its actually surprisingly good video quality, however the battery only lasts 45 minutes if you are lucky and thats on 720p. Also sometimes it just randomly shuts off. I would stick with the GoPros, they can be had cheap on the auction sites.

[HenryPF]

I use a Drift Ghost XL or X - the same cam, one has a bigger battery. 1080p is good enough for me and my 3-5 people I share it with. Editing takes a long time. I wanted something that goes on top of my baseball cap that well, doesn't look so stupid like a GoPro. Battery life is more than enough for a whole day of fishing 8+ hours on the XL version (again, its just a bigger battery).

 

Excuse the language.

 

8-11-2019 Topwater Fishing

[gilkeybr]

When it comes to buying cameras even when comparing specs not all cameras are created equal.  Just because two cameras offer "1080P" recording capability doesn't mean they'll have the same image quality. This comes down to sensor size, lens quality, processors in the camera, etc.

 

Its hard to beat Go Pro when it comes to action cams.  And, the nice thing is there is a VAST used market for them.  I had a Hero 4 Silver and wouldn't hesitate to own another one.  I think you could even drop back to a Hero 3 (Silver or Black) and get similar quality.  4K is unnecessary considering most monitors aren't capable of displaying it at this point.

 

You should be able to find a Hero 3 or 4 for well below $100, probably even closer to $50.  That would be money much better spent than getting some offbrand camera IMO.

 

PS, I would avoid the GoPro Session line of cameras, even though the price will be tempting.  These are less capable in terms of quality than the "normal" GoPros.