Camera Equipment???

[tekweezle]

btw, anyone looking for a cheap youtube quality video camcorder (640x280 resolution)

Amazon has a RCA EZ201 which is basically the same unit Flip Video camera for 92$. the RCA version allows you to use removable SD card and according to the specs, runs on AA batteries.

 

[X-Linked]

Really I am just looking for a proper tripod or way to secure my camera to my jacket or head comfortably. I'll probably just use a series of straps with a wind guard for the mic.

 

[dmc]

I keep my Bulletcam microphone in my jacket.. - eliminates needed to keep it external and acts like a windscreen.. beside.. who wants to hear me constantly scraping...?

 

[X-Linked]

I keep my Bulletcam microphone in my jacket.. - eliminates needed to keep it external and acts like a windscreen.. beside.. who wants to hear me constantly scraping...?

Well that is definitely one of the great advantages of having a camera setup with an external mic. Do you think getting a second camera sleeve and cutting holes for the opt lens and view screen would be good enough?

 

[Greg]

Panasonic DSR-S10P1

I've been using a Panasonic DSR-S10P1 video camera.

Likes:

• 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio
• Water-resistant
• Shock-proof to 4 feet
• 720 pixel, DVD quality resolution
• Small
• Lightweight (0.4 lbs.)
• Saves data to SD card = easy transfer to PC. No encoding or anything...
• Excellent image stabilization

Dislikes:

• Not very ergonomic
• No lens protection
• Zoom is tough to control - seems like it has two speeds. Best approach is to zoom in/out in one motion, rather than several times during any given clip.
• Saves video as a .MOV so you need to rename all the extensions to .MPG so Windows Movie Maker can use them. Minor annoyance only.

Circuity City has them for $250. It's basically the same as the Panasonic DSR-S10 but doesn't come with an SD card. Great option if you already have one.

Here are two videos I made using this camera:

Sundown: 12/28
Sundown: 12/31

I'm very happy with it so far. It does everything I need at this point.

 

[tekweezle]

Really I am just looking for a proper tripod or way to secure my camera to my jacket or head comfortably. I'll probably just use a series of straps with a wind guard for the mic.

i secured my bulletcam to my helmet using zip ties and velcro straps.

i also run the mic behind my helmet, electrical taped. sort of cuts down on the wind noise.

 

[X-Linked]

i secured my bulletcam to my helmet using zip ties and velcro straps.

i also run the mic behind my helmet, electrical taped. sort of cuts down on the wind noise.

Awesome. Thanks. Damn windnoise makes shooting audio basically pointless.

 

[hammer]

I've been using a Panasonic DSR-S10P1 video camera.
...
Saves data to SD card = easy transfer to PC. No encoding or anything...
...

This looks like a good camera for outdoor activities...

How big of an SD card do you use? How much video have you been able to fit on it?

 

[X-Linked]

Good question. Usually you can get anywhere from 30 minutes to 1.5hours on a 1 gig card. So you do the math.

 

[David Metsky]

You can get a 16 G SDHC card (may not work in all cameras that take SD) for $75 now.

 

[billski]

You can get a 16 G SDHC card (may not work in all cameras that take SD) for $75 now.

just make sure you get the card with the fastest speed. there are slower versions for sale that will disappoint. It's not always clear from the way they mark or market the cards (i.e., the speed rating isn't always numerically given.) Sometimes they'll have two cards, "super" and "ultra" and it's up to you to discern reality....

 

[MichaelJ]

Greg - you said it saves as a .mov file ... do you know what codec it's using inside the file? I'm curious if it's an mpeg-2 or something else.

 

[Greg]

Greg - you said it saves as a .mov file ... do you know what codec it's using inside the file? I'm curious if it's an mpeg-2 or something else.

It is MPEG-2. Simply changing the extension to MPG makes it usable in WMP and WMM...

 

[Greg]

This looks like a good camera for outdoor activities...

How big of an SD card do you use? How much video have you been able to fit on it?

Good question. Usually you can get anywhere from 30 minutes to 1.5hours on a 1 gig card. So you do the math.

I use a 2GB SanDisk UltraII and can get ~25 minutes at the highest resolution.

You can get a 16 G SDHC card (may not work in all cameras that take SD) for $75 now.

Wow! This camera does support SDHC cards so it should work.

 

[bvibert]

just make sure you get the card with the fastest speed. there are slower versions for sale that will disappoint. It's not always clear from the way they mark or market the cards (i.e., the speed rating isn't always numerically given.) Sometimes they'll have two cards, "super" and "ultra" and it's up to you to discern reality....

Also be on the watch for counterfeit cards. Apparently there are tons of them out there that look like the real thing, but are made with inferior components. Do a little searching through Google and you'll find tons of info. If you buy from a big box store you're probably alright, it's the ones you find online you need to watch out for.

 

[David Metsky]

just make sure you get the card with the fastest speed. there are slower versions for sale that will disappoint. It's not always clear from the way they mark or market the cards (i.e., the speed rating isn't always numerically given.) Sometimes they'll have two cards, "super" and "ultra" and it's up to you to discern reality....

Actually, the fastest cards are pretty much wasted on all but the fastest cameras, namely dSLRs. Pretty much all P&S cameras can only write out so fast, they won't even max out a 60x SD or Class 4 SDHC card. And that is for full sized burst mode -- video isn't as demanding as continuous shooting still frames.

Buy as fast a card as you need, but don't waste your money on the fastest available.

As for where to buy, newegg.com has very good prices and they are extremely reliable. I'd stay away from eBay, it's not worth it to attempt to save $3.

 

[tekweezle]

any of you guys want to go the bullet cam approach without a regular tape based camcorder, Tigerdirect is closing out their inventory of the Mustek PVR-H140 for 119$. usual price is about $300.

it;s a 40 GB hard drive based PVR like an Archos that accepts RCA jacks. can;t vouch for the company or the product. they don;t even list it on their website anymore so buyer beware. I have an even older more obselete PVR-A1 which uses SD cards. the software and interface sucks but it works.

I;ve never been comfortable about rotating magnetic media in extreme conditions/weather but worse case scenerio if it doesn;t work out, you could always use this to record tv shows. i saw a user review somewhere that someone mounted this to their motorcycle.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=1964080&sku=M222-2032

 

[ComeBackMudPuddles]

If you are serious about skiing, leave the camera at home.

I can't say I agree with this statement though. Why can't someone take pics/vid and still be serious about skiing?

I agree with Greg. Taking an occasional pic doesn't hurt anyone.

For example, I'm very happy I had my camera on December 26 at Whiteface to take this picture:

(Shot taken from the top of Little Whiteface with a four-year old Exilim ZX-4U that's super thin and takes decent enough shots for a "throw in the ski jacket" camera.)

 

[Greg]

Nice shot! Shoot me a high res version of that. I'd like to do some color correction and see if I can clean it up a bit... contact@alpinezone.com

 

[David Metsky]

Forget video; if you really want to analyze your skiing try the Casio Exlim Pro EX-F1. It takes full sized still images at 60 FPS! You can take small video at up to 1200 FPS.