Helmet/body/lipstick cam...any experience? at DVinfo.net

Don Marcotte · January 8th, 2006, 08:13 AM

Greetings All,
I've carved out a bit of a niche shooting bicycle videos. I am a road biker, and I go with people travelling on cycling adventure trips, and shoot vanity docs. I've got a good system in place (Canon Optura with a wide eye) but am looking to do some different angles with a lipstick cam.

Short question is...has anyone got any experience with these cameras? What's the best one to interface with a consumer DV cam? (size is important, that's why I'm using ultra consumer gear)

Anyone what has experience or ideas on how best to shoot this type of video - I'd love to hear from you.

Cheers,

don

Giroud Francois · January 8th, 2006, 01:21 PM

from the quality point of view, you can find bullet cams that give at least same result as an average DV, with the only disadvantage that you need to choose the lense (usually wide angle), because there is no zoom possible.
The biggest problem with bullet cam is not the cam, is the place where you fix it.
The picture will be most of time so shaky or subject badly framed that you will be able to use only few seconds of it.
Take for example all these reality or sport show with helmet cam.
You rarely see shots taken from these camera because they are not steady.

From the point of view of safety, it is sure that bullet cam are a lot better, when dust and water are part of the game.
Unfortunately, as you need to record usually from a DV cam with composite input, this mean that the camcorder will not be very far. So dust ,humidity and vibrations will still be a concern.

January 8th, 2006, 08:13 AM	#1
Don Marcotte Tourist Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 1	Helmet/body/lipstick cam...any experience? Greetings All, I've carved out a bit of a niche shooting bicycle videos. I am a road biker, and I go with people travelling on cycling adventure trips, and shoot vanity docs. I've got a good system in place (Canon Optura with a wide eye) but am looking to do some different angles with a lipstick cam. Short question is...has anyone got any experience with these cameras? What's the best one to interface with a consumer DV cam? (size is important, that's why I'm using ultra consumer gear) Anyone what has experience or ideas on how best to shoot this type of video - I'd love to hear from you. Cheers, don

January 8th, 2006, 01:21 PM	#2
Giroud Francois Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: switzerland Posts: 2,133	from the quality point of view, you can find bullet cams that give at least same result as an average DV, with the only disadvantage that you need to choose the lense (usually wide angle), because there is no zoom possible. The biggest problem with bullet cam is not the cam, is the place where you fix it. The picture will be most of time so shaky or subject badly framed that you will be able to use only few seconds of it. Take for example all these reality or sport show with helmet cam. You rarely see shots taken from these camera because they are not steady. From the point of view of safety, it is sure that bullet cam are a lot better, when dust and water are part of the game. Unfortunately, as you need to record usually from a DV cam with composite input, this mean that the camcorder will not be very far. So dust ,humidity and vibrations will still be a concern.