FeiyuTech & GoPro POV Test

Having, earlier, worked out how to mount my gimbal/GoPro combo onto my backpack - in order to get a Point of View perspective in some of movies - I moved on to filming a little test using the rig.

However, one thing I had not talked about much is the backpack that I have mounted the camera and gimbal to. This is a recent addition to my equipment and is yet another attempt for my to find the 'perfect' camera bag (if such a thing actually exists...I'm on my forth attempt)!

I am trying out the Lowepro Tahoe BP150 Backpack (£50), a compact and lightweight day-pack more conducive to a minimal 'run & gun' equipment load-out. Here's the review that convinced me that this backpack was perhaps the bag I was looking for...

To be honest, I was a bit surprised just how 'compact' (small) the Tahoe was when it arrived. I'm a big bloke and this does kinda make me look like I've borrowed a kids school backpack! Still, I got it because I wanted something small and easy to tote about and the Tahoe certainly fits that bill.

Anyway, here just a reminder of what the GoPro/gimbal look like when attached to the backpack via the Stuntman Pack mount...

I sorted out the gimbal's lean to the left - caused by how the pack's straps naturally sit on your shoulders - by twisting it in it's mount, reseating it's orientation so that the camera now faces directly forward. Now, let's take it for a little walk...

Not silky smooth. But, as this is supposed to be a POV view (seeing what I am seeing) then a little movement motion is natural looking and desirable...I don't want to appear like I am floating around! :)

The Good and the Bad...
Generally I'm pleased, the set-up did what I wanted it to - it gives the viewer a view of the world as if through my eyes. And it's stabilised enough that it's not too jerky but - as I said - still gives a sense of  my walking around without being too distracting.

The backpack mount itself is rock steady and feels trustworthy - by that I mean I do not feel like it will slip or give way at all. I did think, before shooting, that perhaps the constant up and down movement of walking might eventually cause the rig to creep and droop - but it didn't.

The reason I worried about 'droop' was because once I had my GoPro/gimbal/mount rig all together, and I put the backpack on, I became aware of the not insignificant weight of the contraption. And it bothered me that I found it noticeable, because I wanted the setup to be 'invisible' and something I wouldn't be thinking about as I walked around.

Instead, I was kind of aware of the lump of tech on my left shoulder (particularly as I had no counterweight on the right), and it's weight pulled slightly on the backpack's strap and there were a couple of occasions I felt like readjusting the pack's straps. I read somewhere that to help stabilise this sort of mount you should either use a backpack that has an integral chest strap or you can buy a separate strap that can be added to your backpack to aid stability. Hmmm...

The Wisdompro Backpack Chest Strap (£10) can be attached
to any backpack. It adds stability and ensures you don't have
to constantly reseat you pack when it has a full load.

...So 'fixable', but, there was a also a slight noise as something in the setup clicked and squeaked - perhaps I hadn't tightened all of the various screws that hold my cobbled together rig? I shall check that everything is tightly screwed together before I try again. Maybe I was just hypersensitive about possible problems? Anyway...

Pros:
- It worked
- It was stable enough
- It's sturdy 

Cons:
- It's heavy enough that it's noticeable
- It's not exactly compact
- It's not discrete

If I had to give it rating - because, why wouldn't I - I'd give it a 7/10.

Maybe I will get used to the setup, I've only used it the once after all; I'll give it a chance. The other alternative would be to mount the GoPro without the gimbal, lighting the rig but at the expense of stability. I'll try that out just to compare how shakey it would be without the gimbal...

GoPro (Re)Training, Part 1

Filming with the Default Factory Settings
Well I'm back - after a huge hiatus (life stuff) - so in a way I'm starting from square one again as I've forgotten so much. Today I'm dusting off my GoPro Hero 4 Black - yes, I know, that is so 'old' now!

In 2016 this was cutting edge...

Things move so fast in the work of action cameras, GoPro has advanced to the HERO 7 and you can now even get a 'cheap' GoPro clone as good as my Hero 4 (actually better, really, as you can get in-built stabilisation) for just over £100...And if stabilisation doesn't worry you then you can get a comparable action cam for just £60.

In 2019 this EKEN H9R Ultra does everything my GoPro 4 Hero Black
does, but for the price of just £54! Technology marches on.

But, let's begin with my Hero 4 as it's still a nice wee camera. Today I'm doing some sunny day filming with the camera's default factory settings so I can create some 'control' footage. I'll be using this to compare with subsequent footage using any modified settings.

A Walk in the Park?
We took the dog out to one of the little wildlife reserve parks on the outskirts of our town, a good opportunity for me to capture my base-line footage. It was a particularly sunny day so I was already prepared for some overexposure when filming into the sun and some unpredictable levels of exposure as I went abruptly from bright sunshine to dark shade as we passed though shaded wooded areas.

Aside from this, I didn't really know what to expect, so lets see some of the raw footage...

Lessons Learned...
While it's annoying having to learn all this stuff all over again, I was glad that the few problems I came across were minor 'niggles' and easily fixable. Here's a little list of things that I think need to be 'fixed' in my next test GoPro movie:

• Stability: (Not strictly a GoPro problem, but...) The FeiyuTech G4 gimbal I used needs recalibration in order to get the horizontal axis level. There's about -3.5 degrees tilt on the left, though this can be corrected in post I suppose.
• Audio: There is very obvious wind noise (rumble) throughout this test, I didn't think it was that windy on the day but this just goes to show how sensitive the GoPro's built in mic is. The solution would either be to cobble together a windshield mod to fix over the GoPro's mic OR I could use a better quality external microphone which has a proper windshield ('dead cat').
• Colour Rendition: The GoPro's default colour and exposure settings are acceptable, but the advanced user may wish to experiment with the cameras custom settings, called 'ProTune Controls'. In future, I will be utilising these controls in order to produce 'flat' colour profile footage which I can then colour correct in post.

There are many tutorials on YouTube which suggest alternative settings which can get the best out of the GoPro, so I will try some of these out in my next test.

A 'Quick Fix'...
As a bit of a learning exercise I thought I would do some  minor post-editing to 'fix' at least a couple of the above issues using Power Director 17 (my editing software of choice) before attempting a 'hard' fix with another GoPro test.

First of all, I dealt with the offset horizon issue by rotating my clips -4 degrees to the left. Having rotated the footage, I then had to resize the clips to fill the frames. Luckily - because I shot in 2.7K (2704x1520) - I had some latitude to resize my footage without significantly affecting the final quality of my output, particularly as I eventually downsized my final output to 1080p.

Next, I experimented with colour correction in the software. After tinkering with some manual corrections, I eventually tried out Power Director 17's newly added ability to apply LUTs (colour 'Look Up Table' data files). I downloaded some free LUT profiles (.cube file format) which I imported into Power Director and tried a few different ones before settling on one called 'FG_CineCold'. This profile toned down the hot greens of my raw GoPro footage and gave the final movie an overall more subdued 'cinematic' feel (it's all a matter of personal preference, but I liked the effect).

Here's my 'corrected' movie clip...

Next: I'll try reconfiguring my GoPro with some advanced settings to see whether I can improve the quality of my raw footage.

Inventory additions - December 2016

This post is a little bit of a cheat, really. I actually bought these items at the beginning of September, however, due to my unexpected hospital stay and subsequent recovery period, I have only just gotten around to unboxing these gadgets!

GoPro Hero 4 Black Batteries

I wanted some spare batteries for my GoPro, but didn't like the idea of paying the £15 a piece price tag of the official GoPro ones. So I read a few reviews of third party batteries and plumped for the Smartree alternatives...

For the very same price as just one official GoPro battery, you get two batteries and a three battery USB charger! These 3rd party batteries come highly recommended, some user's actually claim that they are superior to the original GoPro ones.

GoPro Filter Adapter and Filters

Because I sometimes like to use my GoPro without the accompanying clear plastic protective case (for example, mounted on my gimbal), I do worry about accidently scratching the GoPro's lens.

For this reason, I sought out a means to attach a UV filter - as I have done with my full sized cameras - to give the lens an extra pain of protective glass. I found Neewer 52mm Black Metal Filter Adapter and filter set on Amazon for just £11.09...

The set comes with the circular adapter which slips on to the GoPro lens plus a wallet containing a UV filter and selection of ND filters (very useful on very sunny days).

Remote Control for the Feiyu-Tech FY-G4 Gimbal

Although I principally want to use my gimbal as intended - as a handheld stabiliser for my GoPro - as there are a couple of scenarios where I may want to operate the gimbal remotely. Feiyu-Tech produces a couple of different remote control units, there is a wireless one (£25) and a wired version (£14). I chose to buy the wired one, as I am a fan of 'low-tech' for reliability reasons...

The remote allows you all the same movement options as the normal gimbal control, but also adds the ability for you to remotely pan and raise and lower the camera by means of a 'D pad' button. How this might be useful will become clear with the next addition to my inventory...

FY-G4 Gimbal Telescopic Extention Pole/Handle

A useful technique while filming with a gimbal is to be able to raise the camera up quite high, in this way you can achieve a sort of poor man's crane effect. Indeed, the Feiyu-Tech G4 Gimbal kit comes with a pair of carbon-fibre rods, which screw together and attach to the bottom of the gimbal to allow you to raise it to greater heights.

However, carting about a couple of short poles with your camera kit and then having to stop and assemble them is a wee bit of a pain. So, I found a Neewer 28"/70cm Handheld Telescopic Extension Rod (£6.99) that gives you that extra height when you want it, but then collapses down into a convenient handle accessory when you don't...

Now, here's where the remote control comes into play...

Unfortunately, the switch to turn the G4 gimbal on is located inside the base of its handle and this is where you screw on any extension pole - making it impossible to operate with a pole attached. And so, unless you turn the gimbal on before you attach the extension (and then keep it turned on), the remote control is the only way to get full control of your gimbal, including the ability to switch it on and off, with a pole in place.

I think that, if you have an extension pole then, the remote is practically a mandatory additional purchase.

I'll be testing all of these 'new' items over the next coming weeks.

First go with a gimbal!

Because I'm interested in covering events - particularly conventions - where you will be doing a lot of floor-walking and shooting on the hoof, I have invested in a handheld gimbal (a gyro/servo-stabilised hand-held camera mount).

I went with the Feiyu FY-G4 3 Axis Handheld Gimbal Brushless Handle Steadycam Steady Camera Mount for Gopro...

Now, I was thinking about buying the cheaper Osmo all-in-one camera and gimbal - which looks fantastic - but, at the end of the day, the GoPro Hero 4 Black camera is far superior quality (and more flexible in use) that the Osmo's built in camera. For me, it was worth the extra expense so that I could then be able to detach the camera and use it for other kinds of work.

Initial tests with the FY-G4 gimbal and GoPro
I need to put a disclaimer in here to make you aware that my impatience got the better of me! There is a certain amount of preparation, learning and practise one should do before the gimbal and camera are put into use...But I couldn't wait and did some testing straight 'out the box'! So please take this into consideration.

Important note: The gimbal needs to be calibrated in order to work as intended with your GoPro - I did not do this so the camera was not exactly balanced correctly in the following test videos.

Test 1: The difference a gimbal makes...
In this test, I just wanted to see how a gimbal like the FY-G4 smooths out hand-held filming while walking around. So, in this video, the first half is shot with me just holding the GoPro camera in my hand while walking and the second half of the video is footage with the gimbal attached...

Simple Feiyu FY-G4 3 Axis Handheld Gimbal test from Stephen Beat on Vimeo.

Yes, this is a very quick and dirty experiment, but I think it demonstrates the difference between unstabilized footage and stabilised footage adequately enough. I was pleased.

Test 2: A longer example of the FY-G4 in use with added slo-mo
In this next clip, I tried some different movements - some pans and changes in height and orientation - just to see how smooth I could get the shots...

GimbalTest_002-Basic MPEG-4 from Stephen Beat on Vimeo.

After doing these initial bits of filming you soon realise that there is a knack to using a gimbal (and how important proper calibration is). My first attempts to 'float' the shots were too fast and my changes in direction too sharp at times.

You have to train yourself to glide your arm movements and you must 'dampen' the beginning and ends of your movements so that your slowly increase your momentum into a movement and then decrease your momentum towards the end of a movement. In this way, you should get a smoother transition through the camera travel/sequence.

Like most things, practise makes perfect!

That said, I'm very pleased with these initial tests.