The Are GoPros GOOD or BAD poll

[Beasho]

DailyBread sure seems to hang with the right crowd.

Since I was enlightened and carry the GoPro with me every time I surf it has been handy to capture those ephemeral moments.

One morning I awoke, hopped on my bike and followed a rainbow that led to a wave just for me.

PS:  No joke if you zoom in you will see all the little proners at the Jetty and the 1st rainbow pointing to my spot in the saddle of the hill.  As I crested the hill the tail of the rainbow landed on my favorite take off spot.  A pot of gold devoid of surfers, sharks, stonefish, isis . . . 

[beached]

the argument seems to have gone to 'are cameras good or bad?'. of course, that's never been the question. using a Go Pro as a normal camera isn't really part of the debate. nice photos are nice photos, regardless of their origin. a Go Pro itself is not a bad thing, anymore than any camera is a bad thing; it's what you do with it. just from the previous pages alone, i think it's clear that the selfie-type photos don't 'stand up' to the others. 

[supthecreek]

beached said:
"i think it's clear that the selfie-type photos don't 'stand up' to the others"

I don't think it's clear at all....
GoPro's are the definition of "selfie" cam ----- the results speak louder than you...... 35 to 7 disagree with your definitive proclamation.
Most of us don't have the benefit of great photog's like Daily Bread in the line up with the long stick.

GoPro's film when and where you want for us schleps that have to go it alone.
They provide a reliable ability to capture special moments.... when the phantom "acceptable" beached video assistant isn't available.

and....I don't care if you like GoPros. I do 
ps.
"that's never been the question. using a Go Pro as a normal camera isn't really part of the debate"
funny... I didn't see that exclusion in the title

[stoneaxe]

GoPros were designed for selfies, certainly in the larger sense of capturing what YOU are doing. You can't divorce the two. The real poll results that count is what happens in the real world...Dean Woodman flies around in his G5 because so many people think they are good....nuff said.

[pdxmike]

Actually, if you start thinking of a GoPro as a camera, it starts looking better and better.  There's a saying that "The best camera is the one you brought with you" or something like that.  So even if the selfie or video that someone takes with one isn't that great, the fact remains that they wouldn't have been able to take anything at all pre-GoPro, because their other cameras were too fragile or bulky to bring along. You can argue that a GoPro is a much better still camera than a $5k Canon DSLR, because the Canon is going to be left at home while the GoPro comes along.  Plus it's the first camera I can think of that's sold as a piece of sports equipment rather than a camera.  People have GoPros who never would have set foot in a camera store to buy a waterproof camera.


For those reasons, you can think of a GoPro as a pretty good still camera, even though others have much better specs, just because it is rugged, light, and waterproof enough to take with you, and GoPro managed to get people to buy them who otherwise wouldn't have another camera, they'd just have no camera.  Then add that it has all kinds of mounting accessories and does video on top of that, and it starts looking even better.


Plus it always takes awhile for people to take advantage of new gear.  The videos and selfies people are doing now blow away what people were doing only a couple years ago.  DailyBread's selfies are as good or better than any I've ever seen with any camera.  Many videos here by DJ, headmount, etc. are better than ones I've seen professionals do with unlimited equipment budgets but no GoPros or similar board-mounted video cameras.

[SUPcheat]

Hey guys, don't listen the nattering nabobs of anti-selfy negativity!  Keep those vids coming, I love 'em all, they show me that guys are out there enjoying themselves.  Better than a description every time.

[cantSUPenough]

GoPros were designed for selfies, certainly in the larger sense of capturing what YOU are doing. You can't divorce the two. The real poll results that count is what happens in the real world...Dean Woodman flies around in his G5 because so many people think they are good....nuff said.

You only have to see my vids (on seabreeze) to know I don't think I am good.  Has nothing to do with it.  But I sure like re-living the fun (and checking my technique - or lack thereof).  And I like reliving other people's fun.

[stoneaxe]

I probably should have phrased that better....I meant that people think GoPros are good, not that they necessarily think they (the person) is good. All you have to do is look at my vids to know that I suck. But like you I didn't take them to impress anyone but to share a moment that I enjoyed with family and friends.

[cantSUPenough]

I probably should have phrased that better....I meant that people think GoPros are good, not that they necessarily think they (the person) is good. All you have to do is look at my vids to know that I suck. But like you I didn't take them to impress anyone but to share a moment that I enjoyed with family and friends.

Sorry - I misunderstood...

[stoneaxe]

No worries.....

[beached]

beached said:
"i think it's clear that the selfie-type photos don't 'stand up' to the others"

I don't think it's clear at all....
GoPro's are the definition of "selfie" cam ----- the results speak louder than you...... 35 to 7 disagree with your definitive proclamation.
Most of us don't have the benefit of great photog's like Daily Bread in the line up with the long stick.

GoPro's film when and where you want for us schleps that have to go it alone.
They provide a reliable ability to capture special moments.... when the phantom "acceptable" beached video assistant isn't available.

and....I don't care if you like GoPros. I do 
ps.
"that's never been the question. using a Go Pro as a normal camera isn't really part of the debate"
funny... I didn't see that exclusion in the title

you're really trying to argue a subjective point as an objective one. since there's no point in that, i'll bow out of the discussion.

[surfercook]

Greatest invention EVER!

[Beasho]

Go Pro user= kook. 

I suspect a little history is in order.

I remember a friend in High School saying "To be popular you have to have friends to be really popular you have to have enemies."

It's kind of like Apple.  Everyone loved them as the underdog and now???

From the Chief Selfie Officer himself, when GoPro won an Emmy, "You ain't seen anything yet." 

[Beasho]

GoPros are still good.  Here is some action from last week when everyone wrote it off as too windy and too small. 

I rated it an surprise 8.0/10.0 session.  A few shots taken with the 'Pono' mount.

After an hour solo 'Randy' paddled out, he's the down wave umpa-loompa but not a small guy.  I gave him the curl but it caught up with me.  I was trying to take the high line like Kelly Slater and things went from gleeful to concerning then getting tossed into the pit. 

The nose of the board clipped my right arm after I penetrated and ripped the paddle out of my grip.  Left me with quite a bruise but nothing broken and the camera was still attached to the paddle.   Great Stuff!

[headmount]

GoPros are still good.  Here is some action from last week when everyone wrote it off as too windy and too small. 

I rated it an surprise 8.0/10.0 session.  A few shots taken with the 'Pono' mount.

After an hour solo 'Randy' paddled out, he's the down wave umpa-loompa but not a small guy.  I gave him the curl but it caught up with me.  I was trying to take the high line like Kelly Slater and things went from gleeful to concerning then getting tossed into the pit. 

The nose of the board clipped my right arm after I penetrated and ripped the paddle out of my grip.  Left me with quite a bruise but nothing broken and the camera was still attached to the paddle.   Great Stuff!

Loved that Beasho.  Everything is going to hell and you're still solid with the stick... getting the shot.  My wish list for GoPro would be a focal length between 24-35mm.  Then visible distortion would be gone along with the wave flattening effect.  The wider the angle, the easier it is to reduce shake, but 24 0r 28mm I think should still be in there.  Panasonic, Nikon, Olympus and a few others all make wtrprf cams with this focal length but not quite as small and light as a Gopro... close but not as... and they don't cater to all the different mounts the way Gopro does because let's face it, it's all about the mount... oh yeah and not fogging.  Some cams run hot, like the Nikon and are prone to fogging in the water.  This pic of my pal is 35mm.  Took it with the cam dangling around my neck (not good) and gliding (difficult) but set the shutter speed at 1/250 which was apparently fast enough to not blur.  Thought it came out pretty clear.  Kahoolawe in background.  Fortunately didn't fall so no fogging but my cam will with sudden temp change.