Power Kite Forum

Kite Aerial Video

John Holgate - 5-4-2016 at 04:55 PM

I've tried getting video from under a kite a few times - even towing my Ultrafoil behind the buggy - but I've only had limited success with lots of unusable video. But I recently picked up a Fei Yutech wearable gimbal which does an excellent job of smoothing out the video. It only weighs 188gm so the Ultrafoil 15 can easily lift it and the gopro.

Should be good on the helmet too - you can set it to 'locS-P-A-M-L-I-N-K- mode so no matter how often you look at the kite, your helmet cam will stay pointing in the direction you set it. You can also set it to smoothly follow wear you look and you can set it to follow the tilt too. Versatile little unit although a little unwieldy when not powered on. Here's me rigging it up under the kite....

Windstruck - 5-4-2016 at 05:11 PM

Great stuff Mr. Holgate! Nice to see the vast open spaces with such stable imagery. Towards the very end of the video I think you were talking about something I was noticing in the footage, most accurately when the camera was high in the air. Fisheye effect. On my GoPro Hero4 the view settings are narrown, medium, wide, and superview. I notice the fisheye effect quite acutely in superview, to a in extent in wide mode, and not really in medium or narrow views. Assuming Hero2 has same settings, what did you have the camera set at for the hig altitude shots?

The video processor I use for my videos is the stock one I downloaded from the GoPro website and it is the only one I have any experience with. There is a "remove fisheye effect" box you can check when processing the footage and I always check it.

Fun project! much thanks for the share.

PHREERIDER - 5-4-2016 at 07:20 PM

love that , that gimble is nice! powered deluxe!

John Holgate - 5-4-2016 at 09:58 PM


Quote:

There is a "remove fisheye effect" box you can check when processing the footage and I always check it.


I will check that out, thanks Steve! My hero 2 is set to wide 720 60fps. I think there's a narrower setting on 1080 but 30fps is the highest frame rate.

soliver - 6-4-2016 at 04:51 AM

Very cool stuff John! I presume you plan to use this to tow behind the buggy like you were trying to do previously???

John Holgate - 6-4-2016 at 04:59 AM


Quote:

I presume you plan to use this to tow behind the buggy like you were trying to do previously???


Yes indeedy. plus helmet/pole mount.

Windstruck - 6-4-2016 at 05:43 AM

Quote: Originally posted by John Holgate  

Quote:

There is a "remove fisheye effect" box you can check when processing the footage and I always check it.


I will check that out, thanks Steve! My hero 2 is set to wide 720 60fps. I think there's a narrower setting on 1080 but 30fps is the highest frame rate.



I figured the logic was the same throughout the HERO series just with faster and faster processors going from HERO2 --> HERO3 --> HERO4.

On the HERO4 SILVER (the one I have) you can push 1080 at 60, 48, 30, or 24 fps. For 720 frame rates are 120, 60, and 30. There is a HERO4 BLACK that can push 1080 at 120 fps but this camera doesn't have a screen on the back. Should there ever be a HERO5 SILVER (something in doubt by the way the company botched the Cube camera and tanked their stock) I would suspect it would have a screen on the back and more or less the HERO4 BLACK specs. If you want to wait for that to happen you may need to pack a lunch.:rolleyes:

For your purposes I would think frame rate would be a non factor as things you are filming are so far away. In your shoes I'd be taking the highest resolution combined with the slowest frame rate. You might experiment with "Medium" or even "Narrow" view frames if you are tracking yourself in the buggy, assuming you can get the camera to consistently point at you. As mentioned previously I haven't really experienced the fisheye effect in medium or narrow so much, but I still reflexively click the "remove fisheye effect" button to be sure.

Good luck with the project!

John Holgate - 6-4-2016 at 02:49 PM

I like to be able to slow things down in the editor and 30fps doesn't really allow me to do so. 60fps seems to give a much smoother result and I can barely tell the difference on my screen between 720 and 1080. For the kite aerial video though, I will give the 1080 narrow a go :thumbup:

Coldsnap - 10-4-2016 at 06:53 AM

Nice work! I've been doing some still KAPing, always thought smooth video was kind of impossible, but this looks awesome. :)

Windstruck - 10-4-2016 at 06:59 AM

Quote: Originally posted by John Holgate  
I like to be able to slow things down in the editor and 30fps doesn't really allow me to do so. 60fps seems to give a much smoother result and I can barely tell the difference on my screen between 720 and 1080. For the kite aerial video though, I will give the 1080 narrow a go :thumbup:


Absolutely agree John. For ski videos of my daughter shot from my helmet cam as I chase her down the slopes I use 720p x 120 fps "medium". Slow motion only gets better and better as the fps rate increases. I realize I'm quoting HERO4 stats and you've got the HERO2. This just means you were an early adopter. :thumbup:

Everything moves so slowly I'd think from the sky cam. I'd go with hi-res low-rate narrow or medium. I look forward to living vicariously threw you once again on this project. Keep it comin! :karate:

Coldsnap - 12-4-2016 at 02:25 AM

Quote:

For ski videos of my daughter shot from my helmet cam as I chase her down the slopes I use 720p x 120 fps "medium".


A little OT, but if you're on skis I can really recommend attaching the GoPro to your ski pole. It gets you closer to your target, you can move your camera around (high/low/sideways/backwards etc), and you can actually see where your camera is pointing. :)

Back on topic... if you use any stabilizing software, you'll want the resolution as high as possible, as most stabilizers work by moving the picture around and then cropping it.

Windstruck - 12-4-2016 at 03:07 AM

Quote: Originally posted by Coldsnap  
Quote:

For ski videos of my daughter shot from my helmet cam as I chase her down the slopes I use 720p x 120 fps "medium".


A little OT, but if you're on skis I can really recommend attaching the GoPro to your ski pole. It gets you closer to your target, you can move your camera around (high/low/sideways/backwards etc), and you can actually see where your camera is pointing. :)

Back on topic... if you use any stabilizing software, you'll want the resolution as high as possible, as most stabilizers work by moving the picture around and then cropping it.


Thanks Coldsnap - I'm an absolute rookie when it comes to video and action photography.

Feyd - 12-4-2016 at 04:06 AM

That was a great video. I've been eyeing that gimbal for a while. I worry about crashing with it and the GP outside the case.
Not to mention the Go Pro dies fast in the cold as it is. Out of the cases I suspect it dies faster. :(

But the few minutes of stabil footage would be great.

Coldsnap - 12-4-2016 at 04:06 AM

Quote:

I'm an absolute rookie when it comes to video and action photography.


Same here, more or less! :D

Quote:

I've been eyeing that gimbal for a while. I worry about crashing with it and the GP outside the case.


That's what put me off as well, not only because of scratches (I've had to replace the lens on my housing once in 4 years) but also because I frequently use it on or above water. I'm on the lookout for a similar construction that lets me use the GoPro inside its housing.

John Holgate - 12-4-2016 at 09:50 PM

Yeah, I certainly wouldn't like to crash it. I don't think I'd mourn the loss of the gopro overly as it's a few years old now and doesn't owe me a cent, but replacing the gimbal would hurt the pocket for sure.

I've tried a few of the 'cheaper' stabilizer programs and a few trials of the more expensive ones and I usually end up hating the results, hence trying the gimbal. There's also the weatherproof 'SlicS-P-A-M-L-I-N-K- go pro stabilizer (wearable gimbal) - although I think that's still in the crowd funding stage.