GoPro

The Complete Manual Series

Photography
The essential user manual to shooting amazing
photographs with your GoPro
OVER

865
GUIDES
& TIPS

OVER

140
PAGES!

100% Independent SEP 2022 EDITION

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 GoPro
The Complete Manual Series

Photography

If you love the great outdoors, sports or adventure, chances are good that
you’ve heard of the GoPro range of action cameras. What exactly is an action
camera? Well, as the name implies, it is a device that is designed to be taken
into the thick of the action and is tough enough, small enough and light
enough to withstand everything that you can throw at it. Fancy a spot of
mountain climbing and needto take some stills or video of the event? Then
the GoPro range covers this for you. Are you going scuba diving on holiday
and wish you could capture the amazing underwater vistas with a rugged,
water proof camera? Again, GoPro has what you need. The GoPro range is
as versatile as it is rugged. It has been well established with the surf and
snowboarding community for some time but there is more to it than that.
The GoPro range has been expanding and developing since around 2002.
The latest models are the best they’ve ever been and offer amazing image
quality in a very small package. You will discover over the following pages
that it has amazing creative potential not just for active sports people but
photographers and videographers as well.
Contents
The GoPro is born
8 - 11 The GoPro in action

Our Pick of The GoPro range

14 - 15 Meet the Greatest HERO
16 - 21 The rest of the GoPro range

Get to know your GoPro

26 - 27 HERO5 and HERO6 Black
28 - 29 HERO4 Black
30 - 31 HERO3 and 3+ Black
32 - 33 GoPro voice commands

Unbox and set up

36 - 38 Unboxing the GoPro
39 - 43 Setting it up
44 - 45 Firmware updates

Mount up and shoot

48 - 51 Mount up and shoot
52 - 55 Lenses and accessories

Why use a GoPro?

60 - 61 GoPro vs DSLR - the cons
62 - 65 GoPro vs DSLR - the pros

GoPro photo modes

68 - 69 Photo and time lapse modes
70 - 71 Photo mode options
72 - 77 Top tips for shooting stills

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Video and photo modes
80 - 81 Video and photo resolution
82 - 83 Video resolution and settings
84 - 85 Field of view (FOV) options
86 - 93 Top tips for shooting video

Editing your videos

96 The Quik desktop app
97 - 99 Using Quik desktop
100 - 101 The GoPro Studio video editor
102 - 105 Using GoPro Studio

Go out and be a hero

110 - 117 Having fun shooting on land
118 - 125 Waves, surf and going underwater
126 - 133 Taking to the skies

Image editing
136 - 139 High dynamic range images
140 - 143 Burst mode composites
144 - 147 Processing GoPro Raw files
148 - 149 The GoPro Glossary

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 THE GoPro
IS BORN
The GoPro story begins here

A
ll the major manufactures produce action cameras of one
sort or another. Canon has the PowerShot D30, Nikon the
Coolpix W100 and Olympus the Tough. They can all take
stills that range from around 8MP up to 16MP and can shoot HD
and Ultra HD video. Even SatNav company TomTom have an action
camera called the Bandit capable of 4K video and 16MP stills. There
is however, one brand that has become synonymous with recording
outdoor action and sports. GoPro, with its action camera range. It
would seem that it has become the daddy of them all, beloved by
anyone who likes to climb on a bike, scale a mountain and hit the
powder on a snowboard. It was the brainchild of Nick Woodman,
who on a surfing trip to Australia in 2002, was frustrated that
he couldn’t get quality up-close photos of the surfing action. He
couldn’t afford the prices of professional photographic equipment
that would allow him to do so either. His desire to have more
professional equipment and get those top-level pro shots is what
inspired him to create the name ‘GoPro’. n

“It was the brainchild of Nick Woodman,

who on a surfing trip to Australia in
2002, was frustrated that he couldn’t
get quality up-close photos of the
surfing action.”

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 THE GoPro IS BORN

The vision popular action camera. The HERO2 was Black now boast waterproofing without
At first, Nick Woodman developed a released in 2011. It had an 11MP sensor the need for a housing and has an LCD
wrist strap that was capable of securing and could shoot 1080p video at 30 frames touchscreen mounted on the back so you
an existing camera to the wrist of a surfer. per second. 2012 saw the launch of the can now view and review shots and video
This concept was tested with a number of HERO3 which came in three different without either linking it to your phone, or
35mm film cameras on trips to Australia specifications called the Black, Silver having to download it to your computer. It
and Indonesia. It was apparent that the and White. The White had a 5MP sensor, also has GPS location capture and voice
strap, camera and a waterproof housing the Silver the same 11MP sensor as the activated controls. Stills capture remains
should be sold as complete unit. Late in HERO2 and the Black used a 12MP sensor 12MP and 4K video at 30FPS for the HERO5
2002 Nick Woodman created Woodman that captured 4K video at 15FPS and 2.7K and 60FPS for the HERO6, but 1080p video
Labs which is the parent company to video at 30FPS. The HERO generation was can be captured at a frame rate of up to
GoPro. After a period of development, the updated in 2013 with the HERO3+ range 240FPS, which is great for slow motion
GoPro HERO was born. It was a 35mm with improved image quality and better action sequences.
reusable film camera with a fixed lens, and low light performance. Then, in 2014 the
although it was developed for the surfing HERO4 range was launched. The bar was The big question
community, it soon branched out into raised even higher with this iteration of If you have already invested in a digital
other areas such as snowboarding and the product line, with the HERO4 Black camera and you have a smartphone capable
other popular action sports. being able to record 4K video at a much of taking some good quality photos, the
more usable 30FPS. It still shot stills at a question is do you need an action cam?
Going digital 12MP resolution of 4000x3000 pixels, Well, we will explore some of the attributes
In 2006 the GoPro HERO went digital. and captured a burst of images at 30FPS. that have made the GoPro range so popular.
It had a camera capable of 640x480 pixel The latest versions in the range are the There are going to be pros and cons but
stills and a ten second burst of 320x240 HERO5 and the new HERO6 Black and we’ll see if we can arrive at a balanced
pixel video. Since then the range has the smaller, more compact cousin, the conclusion. First things first though, let’s
developed and become an extremely HERO5 Session. The HERO5 and HERO6 introduce you to the GoPro range.

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 The GoPro
in action
The possibilities are endless

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 THE GoPro IN ACTION

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 THE GoPro IN ACTION

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 OUR PICK OF
THE GoPro
RANGE
Take a look at the lineup

T
he GoPro range has come quite a
way since those first prototypes
14 Meet the Greatest HERO
back in 2002 and the first
commercial model in 2004. The range 16 GoPro HERO11 Creator Edition
really hit its stride with the release of
the HERO3 and HERO3+. Full HD video 16 GoPro HERO 11
and 12MP stills were now possible in a
package that measured only 41 x 59 x 17 GoPro HERO 10
30mm. The release of the HERO4 and
the HERO5, HERO6, HERO7, HERO8,
HERO 9, HERO 10 and HERO 11 has
17 GoPro HERO 9
given us some great advances in image
quality and features. But which model is 18 GoPro Max
the correct one for the beginner, which
balances price, functionality and value? 18 GoPro HERO7 Black
Over the next few pages, we’ll take a
look across our picks from the range. 19 GoPro HERO6 Black
Although many models are not to be
found on the GoPro website any more,
older models can still be purchased
20 GoPro HERO4 Black
through other vendors. See which one
is best for you, we certainly know our 21 GoPro OMNI
favourite, see page 14 for more. n

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 THE GoPro RANGE

“The GoPro range has come

quite a way since those first
prototypes back in 2002
and the first commercial
model in 2004.”

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 Meet the
Greatest HERO
A quick introduction to our pick of the best value GoPro available

GoPro HERO8 Black with the 4K video mode at 60 frames per Key features at a glance
The best ever (so far) addition to the second or capture 8MP and 12MP stills
HERO family; the GoPro HERO8 Black is with the SuperPhoto option controlled by n 12MP Photos
the most well rounded GoPro on offer. You a digital lens touch zoom feature. Benefit n 4K60 Video in Wide FOV
have design features such as an updated from automatic optimisation of your n Folding Fingers
streamlined form factor and folding fingers photos by intelligently applying HDR and n Media Mod Functionality
giving you a built in mounting system. It local tone mapping for the perfect shot n HyperSmooth 2.0 Stabilisation
also boasts features like HyperSmooth 2.0 every time. You can even shoot stills and n TimeWarp 2.0 Video
video stabilisation that delivers footage so video in portrait orientation. The HERO8 n LiveBurst Mode
smooth you would think it was shot on a Black is as rugged and waterproof, without n SuperPhoto + Improved HDR
multi-axis gimbal rig. Add TimeWarp 2.0 the need for a housing, to a depth of 10m. n Digital Lenses
and improved HDR features and you go With Mods Compatibility, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth n Raw in all Photo Modes
way beyond next level. Capture huge detail and GPS, you can get out and be a hero. n Presets + On-Screen Shortcuts
n Touch Zoom
n Portrait Orientation shooting
n Waterproof to 10m
n 8x Slo-Mo
n 100Mbps Bit Rate
n Protune
n Exposure Control
n Face, Smile, Blink and Scene Detection
n Powered by the GP1 Chip

Shown below is the HERO8 Black Media

Mod. This adds a built-in directional mic
and cold-shoe mounts for lights, mics or
LCD screens.

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 MEET THE LATEST HERO

Front Shutter Button Right Side

Status Light

Status Screen

Mode Button

Microphone

Microphone
Folding Fingers

Back Left Side

Status Light
Door
USB-C Port
Touch Screen
Battery

SD Card Slot

Door Latch

Bottom
Folding Fingers Speaker

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 The rest of the GoPro range
GoPro HERO11
Black Creator Ed
Perfect for the amateur film,
Youtuber, Vlogger and live streamer,
The HERO11 Black Creator Edition is
a great content capturing
powerhouse that's perfect for the
all-in-one user. Featuring pro-quality
5.3K video, HyperSmooth 5.0 video
stabilization, LED lighting and 4
hours of 4K recording per charge.

n Volta Hand Grip

n Light Mod
n Media Mod
n Enduro Battery
n 27.13MP + SuperPhoto with HDR
n 360 Capture
n HyperSmooth 5.0
n Horizon Leveling
n PowerPano
n Hyper View Digital Lenses
n Waterproof to 10m
n Advanced Wind-Noise Reduction
n HERO Video: 5.3K60
n TimeWarp Video 3.0

GoPro HERO11 Black

Featuring a larger image sensor that
captures more of the scene with higher
image quality, letting you instantly
share your content to social media.
With HyperSmooth 5.0 with AutoBoost
and Horizon Lock built-in, so you get
smooth shots with ease. All the HERO11
Black comes highly recommended to
advanced users.

n 27.13MP + SuperPhoto with HDR

n 360 Capture
n HyperSmooth 5.0
n Horizon Leveling
n PowerPano
n Hyper View Digital Lenses
n Waterproof to 10m
n Advanced Wind-Noise Reduction
n HERO Video: 5.3K60
n Live Streaming: 1080p

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 THE REST OF THE GoPro RANGE

GoPro HERO10 Black

The GoPro HERO10 Black is one
of the most versatile models around,
mixing speed and ease of use.
Powered by the r GP2 processor,
featuring 5.3K video, 23MP photos,
great low-light performance and
HyperSmooth 4.0 video. HERO10 is a
great addition to the range and highly
recommended by all of our team for
those buyers not on a budget.

n GP2 processor
n 5.3K60 + 4K120 video resolution
n 23MP Photos
n Waterproof 33FT (10M)
n HyperSmooth 4.0
n TimeWarp Video 3.0
n 5GHz Wi-Fi + Bluetooth
n 8 Times Slow-Motion
n Cloud Connected
n Duration Capture
n 1080P Webcam Mode
n Touch Display
n GPS location Capture
n Raw + HDR Photo Capture

GoPro HERO9 Black

The GoPro HERO9 Black brings
stunning 5K video and 20MP photos,
HyperSmooth 3.0 stabilization, a great
range of features wrapped up in a
durable, waterproof design, and you get
a very good GoPro.

n 20MP / 30 FPS Burst

n 5K 60FPS Video
n Waterproof 33FT (10M)
n Simple One Button Control
n Wi-Fi + Bluetooth
n Advanced Wind Noise Reduction
n Voice Control
n Video Stabilisation
n Touch Display
n Auto-Upload to Cloud
n GPS location Capture
n Raw + WDR Photos

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 GoPro Max
Take it to the max with a new
rugged and waterproof camera
that allows you to shoot single-
lens HERO-style video with
incredible stabilisation or capture
immersive 360 footage in 6K.
This amazing piece of kit offers Max
HyperSmooth, Max TimeWarp, Max
SuperView, as wells as a single-lens
HERO and dual-lens 360 camera.

n Traditional GoPro HERO Capture

n 360 Capture
n Max HyperSmooth Video
n Horizon Leveling
n PowerPano
n Digital Lenses
n Waterproof to 5m
n Advanced Wind-Noise Reduction
n HERO Video: 1440p, 1080p
n 360 Video: 6K Source
n 5.6K Stitched
n Spherical Photos: 18MP Source
n HERO Photo: 5.5MP
n PowerPano: 6.2MP 270°

GoPro HERO7 Black

Powered by the GP1 chip, you have
next level features like HyperSmooth
stabilisation that delivers footage so
smooth you would think it was shot on
a multi-axis gimbal rig. Capture huge
detail with the 4K video mode at 60
frames per second or capture 12MP
stills with the SuperPhoto option.

n 12MP / 30 FPS Burst

n 5.2K max resolution at 30FPS
n 4K 60FPS / 2.7K 120FPS /
1080P 240FPS
n 8x Slo-Mo mode
n Waterproof 33FT (10M)
n 5GHz Wi-Fi + Bluetooth
n GP1 processor
n Raw Photo Capture
n HyperSmooth Video Stabilisation
n SuperPhoto Optimisation

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 THE REST OF THE GoPro RANGE

GoPro HERO6 Black

The HERO6 Black is one of the most
powerful GoPros in the range with
twice the performance. It shoots 4K
video at 60FPS, 12MP photos, voice
control and Raw format, producing
quality stills and amazing video. It also
has GoPro’s most advanced image
stabilisation to date. It can deliver
smooth video without the need for a
3-axis gimbal.

n 12MP / 30 FPS Burst

n 4K 60FPS / 2.7K 120FPS /
1080P 240FPS
n Waterproof 33FT (10M)
n Simple One Button Control
n Touch Zoom
n 5GHz Wi-Fi + Bluetooth
n New GP1 processor
n Improved dynamic range
n Improved Voice Control
n Advanced Video Stabilisation
n Touch Display
n GPS location Capture
n Raw + HDR Photo Capture

GoPro HERO5 Black

This is a decent budget but powerful
action camera in the GoPro lineup. It
boasts 4K video, 12MP photos, voice
control and is finally able to shoot in
Raw format, producing quality stills and
amazing video.

n 12MP / 30 FPS Burst

n 4K 30FPS / 1440P 80FPS /
1080P 120FPS
n Waterproof 33FT (10M)
n Simple One Button Control
n Wi-Fi + Bluetooth
n Advanced Wind Noise Reduction
n Voice Control
n Video Stabilisation
n Touch Display
n Auto-Upload to Cloud
n GPS location Capture
n Raw + WDR Photos

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 GoPro HERO4 Black
An Emmy Award-Winning GoPro
with a powerful processor that is able
to shoot super slow motion at up to
240FPS. Although superseded by the
HERO5 and the new HERO6 Black it
is still a great option for pro quality
photos and video.

n 12MP / 30 FPS Burst

n 4K 30FPS / 2.7K 60FPS /
1080P 120FPS
n Waterproof Housing 131FT (40M)
n Superview
n Auto Low Light
n Wi-Fi + Bluetooth
n Protune Photo and Video

GoPro HERO4 Silver

The HERO4 Silver was the first
GoPro to ever feature a built-in LCD
touch display. This makes it a versatile
and pro level capture device with the
convenience of a touch display.

n 12MP / 30 FPS Burst

n 2.7K 30FPS / 1080P 60FPS /
720P 120FPS
n Waterproof Housing 131FT (40M)
n Superview
n Auto Low Light
n Wi-Fi + Bluetooth
n Built-in Touch Display
n Protune Photo and Video

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 THE REST OF THE GoPro RANGE

GoPro HERO3+ Black

The HERO9 Black is marks a
progression in hardware but the leap
is not as great as its predecessors.
A fantastic second or upgraded
purchase for the more experienced
owner only.

n 120MP / 10 FPS Burst

n 15K 30FPS / 4K 60FPS
n 11080P Live Streaming
n 1Waterproof 33FT (10M)
n 1Hypersmooth 3.0
n 1Voice Control
n 1Wi-Fi + Bluetooth / GPS
n 1HDR + RAW photos

GoPro OMNI
When it comes to capturing and
creating immersive content and
virtual reality environments, OMNI
has all you need. This spherical rig
holds six HERO4 black cameras
and with the aid of the supplied
stitching software can output
8K resolution 360° spherical
video content.

n Omni Rig
n Hi-Hat Tripod
n Bubble Level
n Super Clamp
n Monopod
n Mini Tripod
n Short Extension
n Power Adapter for Omni
n Compact Form Factor
n Pixel-Level Camera Syncing

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 THE GoPro IN ACTION

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 GET TO KNOW
YOUR GoPro
A guide to all the main aspects of your camera

Y
ou’ve unboxed your GoPro camera, set it all up and you’re ready to get started.
Before you dive in, it’s a good idea to make sure you are familiar with all the
main parts of your camera. The main form factor of the camera has not really
changed over the years. The lens is placed in the top right corner of the front of the
camera body and the status screen sits on the left. With each new version of the
camera, the placement of things such as the battery compartment has altered and
with the advent of the latest generation of HERO cameras, the back panel now sports
a built-in LCD touchscreen. We’re going to take you through the design of the HERO
models and tell you a little about the menu layouts as these are probably the things
that change the most from version to version. You might wonder why we’ve included
the HERO4 Black and the HERO3 Black as they are two older models. Well, the way we
see it, these action cameras represent the best of what action cameras are all about.
You might be tempted to just go for the latest model but the truth is that you could get
any one of them and start capturing awesome video and stills straight away. So here’s a
detailed breakdown of the most popular GoPro models from the last decade. n

26 - 27 HERO Range (2016 - 2022)

28 - 29 HERO Range (2014 - 2016)
30 - 31 HERO Range (2007 - 2014)
32 - 33 GoPro voice commands

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 GET TO KNOW YOUR GoPro

“We’re going to take you through the

design of the HERO models and tell you
a little about the menu layouts as these
are probably the things that change the
most from version to version.”

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 HERO Range (2016 - 2022)
HERO and HERO Black main layout
01

02
04

02

03
04
05

06

04

01 Shutter Button 05 Touch Display

02 Status Lights 06 Mode Button

03 Camera Status Screen 07 MicroSD Card Slot

07
04 Microphones 08 Battery

08 09 Battery Door
04
12 10 Latch Release Button
14 11 Speaker
10 13
11
12 Micro HDMI Port

09 13 USB-C Port

14 Side Door

HERO and HERO Black status screen

01 In normal operation, you will access the modes and settings for the camera via
the touch screen on the back of the camera. If the camera is underwater or in its dive
02 housing, you can navigate the modes and settings via the buttons. Press and hold
the Mode button and then press the Shutter button. You can then press the Mode
button to cycle through the settings and press the Shutter button to alter the currently
03
highlighted setting.

01 Camera Mode 03 Files Captured 05 Battery Status

04 05
02 Settings 04 Remaining Storage

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 HERO5 AND HERO6 BLACK

02 03 04
HERO and HERO Black touch display 01

01 Wireless Status 05 Camera Mode

08 07
02 GPS Status 06 Settings

03 Time Remaining/Photos 07 Advanced Settings

05
04 Battery Status 08 Main touch display
06

Touch display gestures

Tap Tap to select something or turn settings on and off

Press and Hold Access Exposure Control Settings

Swipe Left To access available advanced controls for the current mode

Swipe Right View the photos and videos stored on your GoPro

Swipe Down Open preferences on main screen or return to main screen

Menu map

Video and Photo

HERO5 Black only Note: features specific to the HERO6 Black are shown as pale blue icons:

Guide to symbols
Auto Low Light Night Photo Time Lapse Mode

Burst Night Lapse Photo Time Lapse Photo

Field Of View Photo Mode/Photo Time Lapse Video

Frames Per Second Protune Video Mode/Video

High Dynamic range Rate Video + Photo

Interval Raw Video Stabilisation

Looping Resolution Wide Dynamic Range

Manual Audio Control Shutter

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 HERO Range (2014 - 2016)
HERO4 Black main layout

01 02
10

03 01

04
01
11

06
05
12
07

08

01 Camera Status Lights 08 Mini-USB Port

09 02 Shutter/Select Button 09 Audio Alert

14
03 Wireless Status 10 Microphone

04 Camera Status Screen 11 HERO Port

01 05 Power/Mode Button 12 Settings/Tag Button

13
06 Micro HDMI Port 13 Battery Door

07 MicroSD Card Slot 14 Battery

HERO4 Black status screen

To access the various modes available to the HERO4, press the Mode button to cycle
01 02 through each mode. Once in the required capture mode, you can press the Settings
button to open the settings for that particular mode. Press the Mode button to cycle
03
through the settings and then press the Shutter button to alter the values for the
04 currently highlighted settings. To exit hold the Shutter button for two seconds or cycle
through to the Exit option and press the Shutter button.
05

01 Camera Modes/FOV 04 Protune 07 Battery Life

06
02 Camera Settings 05 Files Captured 08 Wireless
07 08
03 Resolution/FPS 06 Time/Storage/Files

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 HERO4 BLACK

Menu map

Guide to symbols

Auto Low light Language Setup Mode

Auto Off LEDs Sharpness

Beeps Looping Shutter

Burst Photos Megapixels Single Photo

Colour Multi-Shot Mode Spot Meter

Continuous Photos Night Lapse Time Lapse

Date/Time Night Photo Touch Display

Default Mode On-Screen Display Video

Delete Orientation Video + Photo

Exposure Compensation Photo Mode Video Format

Field Of View Playback Mode Video Mode

Frames Per Second Protune Video Resolution

Interval QuikCapture White Balance

ISO Limit Rate Wireless

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 HERO Range (2012 - 2014)
HERO3 Black main layout
01
02

01

03

09 11

10
05 04
12

01

13

01 Status Light (Red) 08 MicroSD Card Slot

06
02 Shutter/Select Button 09 HERO Port

07 03 LCD Status Screen 10 Battery Door

08 04 Wi-Fi Status (Blue) 11 Microphone

01 05 Power/Mode Button 12 Audio Alert

06 Micro HDMI Port 13 Wi-Fi On/Off Button

07 Mini-USB Port

HERO3 Black status screen

To access the modes available to the HERO3, press the Mode button until it displays the
Setting icon (Spanner). Then press the Shutter button to enter the Settings menu. You can
01 02
then use the Mode button to cycle through all the various Settings options available. Press
the Shutter button when you reach the setting you want to change. Use the Mode button
03 04 to scroll through the settings options in that menu and the Shutter button to alter/select
a new value. To exit hold the Shutter button for two seconds or cycle through to the Exit
option and press the Shutter button.
05

01 Camera Modes/FOV 04 Time Interval Settings 07 Battery Life

06 02 Camera Settings 05 Counter 08 Wireless

03 Resolution/FPS 06 Time/Storage/Files
07 08

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 HERO3 AND 3+ BLACK

Menu map

Guide to symbols

Video Mode Wireless Controls Wi-Fi

Photo Mode Delete/Format Defaults

Photo Burst Mode Exit One Button Operation

Time Lapse Mode Screen Orientation Video Format

Playback Spot Meter On-Screen Display

Video Resolution Video + Photo Beeps

Photo Resolution Looping LED Brightness

Continuous Photo Protune Power Off

Capture Settings White Balance Date/Time

Setup Mode

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 GoPro voice
commands
Another method to control your camera

A
new feature for the latest as wind that might smother your voice. If
generations of HERO cameras is needs be, you can use the Remo, which
the addition of voice control. This is the GoPro Voice Activated Remote
is a newly implemented feature for the to activate the camera from a greater
GoPro range and it is another method distance of up to 10m by speaking into
that allows you to control the camera the Remo itself. There are two main types
without the need to actually touch any of command. First is an action command
of its buttons or touchscreen. By default that lets you start capturing video or
the Voice Control option is not enabled. photos straight away. If you want to select
To activate it, you’ll need to swipe down a different mode quickly, then using a
from the top of the touchscreen to open Mode Command will switch modes leaving
the utility drawer, scroll down to the Voice you free to manually take the shot or start
Control section, and then tap on the capturing video by pressing the Shutter
On Camera Voice Control tab. Once the button when you choose. You can change
voice command option is active, you can your voice control language by tapping
speak a number of commands that are all Preferences > Language in the Voice
prefaced by the word ‘GoPro’. Even if the Control section. If you want to remind
camera is in standby, it will still respond to yourself of the available commands, you
your commands. This is a useful feature can tap Preferences > List of Commands
hampered only by noisy conditions such in the Voice Control section. n

Swipe down from the top of the screen to open the utility drawer. Scroll down the list of available preferences until you reach the
You can tap the voice icon on the top right of the screen to activate Voice Control section. Tap on the On Camera Voice Control tab to
it, or tap on the Preferences button to proceed. turn voice control on. You can tap on Language to set your preferred
language options.

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 GoPro VOICE COMMANDS

“Once the voice command option is active,

you can speak a number of commands that
are all prefaced by the word ‘GoPro’.”

In the Voice Control Language section, you can scroll through the Back in the main menu, if you want to view the list of available
list of supported languages for GoPro voice control. Tap the arrow in commands, tap on the List Of Commands tab to view them.
the lower left of the screen to return to the main menu.

Action Command Description

GoPro start recording Starts capturing video

GoPro HiLight Adds a HiLight Tag to video during recording

That was sick Adds a HiLight Tag to video during recording

GoPro stop recording Stops capturing video

GoPro take a photo Captures a single photo

GoPro shoot burst Captures a burst of photos

GoPro start time lapse Starts capturing time lapse

GoPro stop time lapse Stops capturing time lapse

GoPro turn off Powers off the camera

Mode Command Description

GoPro Video mode Changes the camera mode to Video

GoPro Photo mode Changes the camera mode to Photo mode

GoPro Burst mode Changes the camera mode to Burst mode

GoPro Time Lapse mode Changes the camera mode to Time Lapse

Note: Mode Commands only switch modes. No video or stills will be captured until you press the Shutter button.

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 UNBOX AND
SET UP
This is how you get your GoPro up and running

I
f you’ve never used a GoPro before, the set up procedure is pretty straightforward. As
an example, we have a new GoPro HERO5 Black which we’ll use to walk you through
the unboxing process. We’ll show you what’s in the box and how to get the camera set
up and ready for the big switch on. Then we’ll give you a quick overview of the main set up
procedure, app installation on your mobile device and how to connect it to your camera.
There’s also a quick guide to making sure your firmware is up to date. Most recent
versions of the GoPro range can all be updated wirelessly using the latest GoPro App from
GoPro which makes the process that much easier. n

36 - 38 Unboxing the GoPro

39 - 43 Setting it up
44 - 45 Firmware updates

“As an example, we have

a new GoPro HERO5
Black which we’ll use
to walk you through the
unboxing process.”

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 UNBOX AND SET UP

www.pclpublications.com 35
 Unboxing the GoPro

The box for the HERO5 Black can be opened at the Inside the main compartment of the box you’ll find the battery,
01
bottom and the entire package with the camera on its
02 USB-C cable and two adhesive mounts for the camera.
mount can be slid out of the outer display box.

Set these to one side for the moment. You’ll need the On the other side of the packaging is a smaller
03 04
battery in a short while. compartment that contains a quick start manual, safety
instructions and some GoPro stickers.

Let’s take a look at the camera itself. The camera can You can then squeeze the two mounting clips together and
05 be removed from the display box mount by lifting the
06 then slide the GoPro off the mount.
rubber stop.

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 UNBOXING THE GoPro

There is a small plastic tab that keeps the camera from You can then put the thumbscrew back in and tighten it up.
07 tipping whilst in the display box. This can be removed by
08 The thumbscrew holds the GoPro frame to the mount.
unscrewing the thumbscrew.

To remove the camera from the frame, you need to release Now you can simply slide the camera out of its frame. There is
09 10
the securing clip on the top. This lets you swing the back of a plastic screen cover on the LCD, you can peel this off.
the frame down to remove the camera.

Now you can have a look at the two camera Underneath the camera is the battery compartment and
11 compartments. The first, on the side by the lens, contains
12 the slot to house the Micro SD memory card.
the HDMI and USB-C slots.

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 The battery simply slides into the compartment. Make Next, take your Micro SD card and slide it into the memory
13 sure it is pushed down firmly into the slot.
14 card slot. This can be a little bit fiddly.

You can use your fingernail to make sure it is firmly seated Once battery and memory card are in place, you can
15 16
by pressing it down into the slot until it locks into place. close the compartment lid so it slides and locks into
place. Your camera is ready to switch on.

You can put the camera back in its protective frame and Now, that is the camera unboxing. Next, it is time to switch it
17 snap the securing clip shut.
18 on and sort out settings.

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 SETTING IT UP

Setting it up

When you switch on your camera for the first time, you You will then be prompted to choose your language from
01 will be presented with the GoPro logo and then the
02 the list of supported languages. Simply tap the correct one
welcome screen. for you.

Next, you’ll need to set the date. All you do is slide the You can then set the correct time by sliding the numbers up
03 04
numbers up or down until you have the date set in MM/DD/ or down as you did with the date. You can also choose a 24hr
YY format. Press the tick in the top right. format. Press the tick to proceed.

Your camera will ask you if you want to turn the GPS At this point the camera will ask if you want to take a
05 function on in order to capture location data where your
06 quick tour of the main functions of your GoPro camera.
photos and videos were taken. Press START to begin.

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 There will be an overview of the functions provided by the It will then show that the MODE button switches between
07 MODE button including how to power on and off. Press
08 photo and video modes. Press NEXT to proceed.
NEXT to proceed.

The last MODE function is your ability to add HiLight tags of The SHUTTER button functions will be displayed next.
09 10
favourite moments during recordings to make it easy to find The main usage will be to start or stop video capture and
later. Press NEXT to proceed. take photos.

You also have the QUIKCAPTURE function which is a short You can also turn the camera on using the SHUTTER button
11 press for video and a long press for time lapse photos.
12 and instantly start shooting video.

40 www.pclpublications.com
 SETTING IT UP

The tour will then walk you through the basic modes There will be a short introduction to the apps you can use
13 and settings by asking you to tap and swipe areas of the
14 with your camera, including the GoPro app (formerly called
screen to access the various settings. Capture) to use your phone to control the camera.

Quik is an editing app that lets you make fast, easy edits PLUS is a paid for cloud storage service that you can access
15 16
to your videos. It comes as a desktop version or a mobile anywhere on your mobile device.
device version.

If you want to take the tour again, you can access it via The next stage will be to download the GoPro and Quik
17 the Preferences menu. Press DONE and your camera is
18 apps onto your phone. There are versions for both iOS
fully active. and Android.

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 Once installed on your phone, you will need to run the From the main screen you will be prompted to either create
19 GoPro app to pair it to your camera.
20 a new GoPro account, if you don’t have one, or sign in to
an existing one.

Next you will see the camera connection screen. Click You will be presented with a list of cameras. Choose your
21 22
on the CONNECT A CAMERA button to start the camera from the list by tapping on its picture.
connection process.

You will be asked to turn your camera on so you can If Wi -Fi isn’t activated on your camera, the app will show
23 connect to it using the app on your phone. If it is on already,
24 you how to turn it on with a short tutorial. Follow the steps to
tap the MY CAMERA IS ON button to proceed. turn Wi-Fi on.

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 SETTING IT UP

Once Wi-Fi is enabled, the phone and the camera will The small Wi-Fi icon in the top right next to the picture of
25 begin the connection process. It will display the camera
26 your camera will turn blue to indicate they are connected.
ID on your phone. Tap the camera icon to proceed.

Your phone will display a real-time view of what the camera Tap the camera-shaped Mode button in the bottom right of
27 28
is seeing. Be aware that there may be a slight lag in the the screen and you will be able to choose which video or
screen update of the view. photo mode you will be using.

Tap the settings icon, shaped like a spanner, and you can You will also be able to preview all the content currently
29 access all of the camera’s settings and change values such
30 stored on your camera as a series of thumbnails. You’re now
as video resolution, field of view (FOV) settings and much more. ready to shoot.

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 Firmware
updates
Make sure your GoPro is up to date

M
any of the devices and you have installed the GoPro and Quik
technology we use today has apps on your phone, tablet or desktop,
the ability to be improved with then you may receive notifications that
firmware updates. Firmware updates there are camera updates available for
are the in-built programs that run our your particular version.
devices such as phones cameras and The HERO6, HERO5, HERO4 and
tablets. Every so often, a manufacturer HERO3+ models can be updated
will make a number of improvements to wirelessly using the GoPro App to
the firmware for a particular device and perform the procedure for you. It is a
make it available to the end user as an relatively simple task that just requires
update. In some cases it can eradicate the GoPro app to be installed on a
certain bugs or glitches but more often mobile device with available access to
it can actually increase the speed of the the Internet. You’ll also need to make
device or make new features available. sure that you have a Micro SD card in
When your GoPro camera is set up and your camera. n

“Every so often, a manufacturer will make a

number of improvements to the firmware for a
particular device and make it available to the end
user as an update.”

Make sure your mobile device has access to the Internet. Make sure that your camera’s Wi-Fi connection is turned
01Bear in mind that the firmware update package is around
02 on. Start up the GoPro App on your phone. Tap the three
25MB. Download times will vary based on your connection speed. horizontal lines in the top left of the screen.

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 FIRMWARE UPDATES

Choose the Camera option from the main screen menu Your phone will connect to your camera. If your camera’s
03 by tapping on the camera icon. The camera screen will
04 Wi-Fi is not on, you will be asked to enable it. If a firmware
appear. You can tap the camera control button at the bottom of update is available, you will be notified and prompted to update
the screen or wait for the connection to establish. your camera.

Any new features or improvements will be presented to There will be a legal disclaimer where you will need to tap
05 06
you. You can choose Later if you want to abort the update Accept and Continue. Then the app will download and
or tap Update to continue. transfer the update to the camera.

Your camera will power off and on a number of times during Once the update is complete and the connections are re-
07 the update procedure. It may also disconnect and reconnect
08 established, you’ll then be notified that the current update
to the Wi-Fi. was successful.

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 MOUNT UP
AND SHOOT
Some great mounting and accessories options

A
s the GoPro range of cameras
became more popular and
established themselves as
the main device for action and sports
capture, the market for different
mounting options and accessories
exploded. Apart from those
manufactured and sold by GoPro
themselves, there is also a huge third
party market for accessories and
mounts. You can get everything from a
good old selfie stick, to a dog-mounted
camera harness. A good action camera
system is defined by how good its
accessories are. In the case of the GoPro
range, the possibilities afforded by its
range of accessories and mounting
options are endless.
Also, just like any DSLR, the GoPro can
also make use of accessories, filters and
additional lenses, to extend the range of
its capabilities. From colour correction
filters for shooting underwater and
circular polarisers to reduce glare and
reflections to dive housings that get
you into the blue depths, there is a wide
choice of options that can keep you
shooting; plenty to get creative with. n

48 - 51 Mount up and shoot

52 - 55 Lenses and accessories

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 MOUNT UP AND SHOOT

“A good action camera system is defined by

how good its accessories are. In the case of
the GoPro range, the possibilities afforded
by its range of accessories and mounting
options are endless.”

www.pclpublications.com 47
 Mount up and shoot

Pro Handlebar / Seatpost Mount Helmet Front and Side Mount

Compatibility: All Cameras Compatibility: All Cameras
n Light and durable aluminium construction n Versatile front and side helmet-mounting solution
n Lets you rotate your GoPro camera 360° n Maximum adjustability for a variety of shots and
n Ultra compact footprint for mounting in tight spaces capture angles
n Secures to 22.2 to 35mm diameter tubes n Includes easier-to-use integrated mounting buckle

3-Way Extension Arm Wrist Housing

Compatibility: All Cameras Compatibility: HERO4 Black, HERO4 Silver,
n Use as a camera grip, extension arm or tripod HERO3+, HERO3
n Handle can be used as a camera grip n Secures camera flat against your wrist
n Removable tripod stores inside the handle n Pivot camera upright to capture video and photos
n Waterproof construction n Fits over ski gloves and jackets
n Waterproof to 197’ (60m)

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 MOUNT UP AND SHOOT

Chest Harness Suction Cup

Compatibility: All Cameras Compatibility: All Cameras
n Provides an ultra immersive perspective n Attach to cars, boats, motorcycles and more
n Perfect for skiing, cycling or paddle sports n Industrial-strength suction cup proven at speeds of
n Fits a wide range of adult sizes 150+ mph
n Provides a broad range of motion and stability
n Quick release base for convenience

Tripod Mounts
Compatibility: All Cameras
n Mount your GoPro to any standard tripod
n Includes Tripod Mount plus a Quick Release
n Includes lightweight Mini Tripod

Dog Harness
Compatibility: All Cameras
n Two mounting locations (back and chest)
n Fully adjustable to fit most dogs
n Washable, water-friendly material
n Camera tether to further secure your GoPro

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 Floating Hand Grip 38” Extension Pole
Compatibility: All Cameras Compatibility: All Cameras
n Shooting in or around water and keeps your GoPro afloat n Integrated ball and socket design
n Easy to aim and lets you capture different angles n Twist lock action for quick and easy use
n Perfect for all water sports such as surfing n Premium oversized grip
n Waterproof to 33’ (10m) n Durable and waterproof

Gooseneck Head Strap and QuickClip

Compatibility: All Cameras Compatibility: All Cameras
n Attach to any quick release base mount n Strap fully adjustable to fit all
n Elevate the camera for a higher perspective n QuickClip allows low-profile mounting
n Join multiple goosenecks together n Allows a variety of head mount options
n Wide range of adjustability n QuickClip lets you mount to belts, caps and more

50 www.pclpublications.com
 MOUNT UP AND SHOOT

The Arm Surfboard Mounts

Compatibility: All Cameras Compatibility: All Cameras
n Low impact articulating arm n Great for surfboards and boat decks
n Adjustable cushioned clamp n Designed for maximum holding strength
n Wide range of adjustability n Adhesive anchors and tethers supplied
n Light and slim design n Includes centre fin socket mount

Mic Stand Mount Flex Clamp Jaws

Compatibility: All Cameras Compatibility: All Cameras
n Mount your GoPro to a mic stand n Clamp your GoPro to objects from 0.6 to
n Quick release base for easy mounting 5cm in size
n Compatible with standard mic stands n Easy to move to new mounting positions
n Includes European adaptor n Quick release base
n Very secure mounting jaws

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 Lenses and accessories

Karma Grip Dive Filters

Compatibility: Versions for HERO5 + 6 Black, Compatibility: Versions for HERO5 + 6 Black,
HERO4 (using optional harness) HERO4, HERO3+
n Handheld or wearable stabiliser n Provides colour correction in blue water
n Use it to capture incredibly smooth video n Scratch-resistant, optical-grade glass
n Battery life of 1 hour 45 minutes n Quick, tool-free installation
n Comes with Grip handle, Stabiliser and mounting ring n Includes a tether and a microfibre bag
n For use with Dive Housings

Filters Macro Lens

Compatibility: Versions for HERO5 + 6 Black, Compatibility: Versions for HERO5 + 6 Black,
HERO4, HERO3+ HERO4, HERO3+
n ND8, ND16, ND32, ND8/PL, ND16/PL n Glass lens for razor sharp close-ups
n Only 4.7-6.7 grams for gimbal use n Reduces camera’s focal point
n HD glass ensures image clarity n Secure push-on design
n Secure slide-on design n Lifetime warranty

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 LENSES AND ACCESSORIES

Dive Housing SD Cards

Compatibility: HERO4, HERO3+ Compatibility: All Cameras
n Waterproof to 196ft (60m) n UHS Speed Class 3 and Class 10 to record 4K video
n Two Waterproof Backdoors n Transfer speeds up to 45MB/s
n One Skeleton Backdoor for audio capture2 n Designed to withstand water, temperature, shock
n Flat glass lens for maximum image sharpness n Lifetime limited warranty
n Verified compatible by GoPro

Rechargeable Battery
Compatibility: HERO5 + 6 Black
n A spare or replacement battery
n 1220mAh lithium-ion rechargeable battery

Mobile microSD Card Reader

Compatibility: micro SD Cards
n Fast and easy plug-and-play
n Access GoPro footage on your microSD
n Carabiner-style clip and weather resistant cover
n Compatible with all GoPro cameras

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 Smart Remote 3.5mm Mic Adaptor
Compatibility: All cameras Compatibility: HERO5 + 6 Black, Hero5 Session
(older models have reduced function) n Connect pro level external mics
n Full control of all camera functions n Enables high quality audio recording
n Works up to 180m away n Stereo analog to digital converter
n Rugged, wearable and waterproof to 33m n USB-C power and data extension
n LCD mirrors your camera status screen

The Frame Voice Activated Remote

Compatibility: HERO5 + 6 Black Compatibility: HERO5 + 6 Black, Hero5 Session
n Small, light replacement frame n 13 commands allows for voice control
n Minimalist design for low-profile mounting n Clip to your clothes or strap to your wrist
n Allows for low-speed audio capture n Works up to 10m range
n Access to USB-C and HDMI ports n One-button shutter activation

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 LENSES AND ACCESSORIES

Seeker Sportpack Power Pack

Compatibility: All cameras and Karma Drone Compatibility: All cameras
n Lightweight and weather resistant n Portable pack charges GoPro up to four times
n Main compartment fits Karma Drone, mounts n 6000mAh capacity for endurance power
and accessories n Dual USB ports charges two devices
n Soft-lined compartment stores five GoPro cameras n 4 - 6 hour power pack recharge time
n Integrated chest mount

Super Suit Dive Housing

Compatibility: HERO5 + 6 Black
n Flat glass delivers maximum image sharpness
n Waterproof down to 60m
n Protect against dirt and small rocks
n Perfect for deep water diving
n Includes waterproof Backdoors

Floaty
Compatibility: The Frame for HERO5 + 6 Black
or standard housings for HERO4, HERO3+
n High visibility flotation device
n Includes adhesive anchor and tether
n Great for surface water activities

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56 www.pclpublications.com
LENSES AND ACCESSORIES

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 WHY USE
A GoPro?
We look at the arguments for and against

I
f you are a beginner, enthusiast photographer or videographer, the question about
whether you could possibly choose to go out and shoot with an action camera like a
GoPro rather than a DSLR is not cut and dried. If you are going to be shooting in the
great outdoors, are you better off leaving your bigger, traditional digital camera at home
and just gear up with a GoPro? There is no denying that GoPros and their action camera
siblings have a lot going for them. For one thing, they are small enough to fit in your
pocket, for another they are certainly robust; and the latest versions of the GoPro, the
HERO5 and HERO 6, are waterproof without the need for a protective case. They aren’t
that difficult to use and their image quality has improved dramatically over the past few
years. If, on the other hand, you are a professional photographer and are shooting for a
client who is going to demand the best you can deliver, the question whether you leave
your DSLR at home has a more obvious answer: no. Let’s quickly outline the aspects that
a pro shooter would find difficult to live with. n

60 - 61 GoPro vs DSLR - the cons

62 - 65 GoPro vs DSLR - the pros

“If you are going to be

shooting in the great
outdoors, are you better
off leaving your bigger,
traditional digital camera
at home and just gear up
with a GoPro?”

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 WHY USE A GoPro?

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 GoPro vs DSLR - the cons

The cons more and more DSLR models now offer 4K

First and foremost is the quality of the video capture along with their other usual
image you are able to shoot. Compare a photographic capabilities. In fact, certain TV
shot taken with a GoPro and a mid-level shows will often shoot using DSLRs. Not so
DSLR and there is not really any argument. long ago, an entire episode of the American
The DSLR should win with its larger sensor medical drama House was shot entirely with
and lenses. Action cameras are fixed lens DSLRs. The very thing that gives a DSLR its
devices with a very wide field of view. The edge in quality, its lenses, is also a huge draw
GoPro does offer modes that give you for videographers. A few good lenses give
a narrower field of view but this is done you huge creative scope when it comes to
digitally, not optically. Essentially, the image shooting your next production. The GoPro,
is just cropped. The HERO3 and HERO4 although capable of excellent 4K video, is
cannot shoot in Raw format and you will lose still limited to its view of the world through
additional quality when you try to process that fixed focal length lens.
DSLRs will always have the your images taken with these two models.
advantage over the GoPro,
with their wide choice of Battery life
lenses offering vast creative Video files Battery life is also a big issue. You are
control when it comes to A lot of new DSLR cameras have been likely only to get 2-3 hours out of your action
composition. The size of
the lenses also ensures able to shoot HD video for some time now camera versus being able to shoot all day
maximum optical quality. and their quality is nothing short of amazing; with a DSLR, particularly if it uses a battery

60 www.pclpublications.com
 GoPro VS DSLR - THE CONS

Often quoted as its Achilles The GoPro’s origins can be

heel is battery life. You can traced back to surf culture
reasonably expect around 2 and the founders desire to
hours of shooting time from get close up action shots of
a standard GoPro battery. the sport. Initially the action
Third party batteries are camera was regarded as
available but they can be of a toy and not suited for
poor quality. quality images and video.

grip to double its battery holding capability. then this sluggish feel can be exacerbated. that frame rate. Shooting at 30fps would
You do have the option to purchase more The GoPro is also known to lock up from mean using at least 1/30th shutter speed.
batteries of course and to be honest, we time to time and the usual fix has been to
would recommend you do. Nothing is more remove the battery to do a hard rest and Perception
frustrating than having to curtail your start again; so far it’s not looking good for This is little more abstract to describe
shooting activities because the battery has the GoPro. but essentially people might regard the
run flat in a short time. There is also the GoPro range as mere toys to strap to your
option to purchase a GoPro portable power Manual Control cycle helmet or surf board and snap some
pack which can recharge your cameras up A DSLR is probably most well defined poor quality images. There is an old adage
to four times. As you might imagine, this is by its ability to let you take over control of about not knocking what you haven’t tried.
not necessarily a cheap option. all its functions and settings. Here you can GoPro obviously built their name around the
decide exactly how you want to shoot in full surf community and although their video
Lag time manual mode and although you are able capabilities have been lauded, people may
If you’re shooting video rather than taking to alter basic settings, such as locking ISO regard their ability as a photo capture device
stills at key moments, the issue of response sensitivity and shutter speeds, manually with less enthusiasm. Indeed, many would
time and shutter lag isn’t so obvious. If you on the HERO6 Black, HERO5 Black and the argue that if you have a mobile phone with a
are using it more like a traditional point and HERO4 Black via a firmware update, you will half decent camera built in, why would you
shoot, then you may encounter the rather be limited to choosing an inverse shutter need something like a GoPro action camera
slow response you get when shooting. If you speed that is at least equal to the frame rate anyway? Next up are some arguments as to
opt to use your smartphone to control it, you are shooting at or higher in multiples of why you should consider having a GoPro. n

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 GoPro vs DSLR - the pros

The pros that you would expect from a DSLR, which shows and documentaries when GoPro
So your average pro shooter is not has counted against it when we listed the footage has been used. In fact Peter
necessarily going to use a GoPro but the negative aspects of action camera versus Jackson used some GoPro footage in an
action camera does have its strengths. If DSLR, but the HERO5 Black does offer some action sequence from his second Hobbit
you gear your shooting experiences to that, control, as mentioned before. Any form of movie where the characters are tumbling
then you will be very happy with the results. manual control is a welcome addition and down a river in barrels. This go anywhere
However, as we mentioned earlier, the HERO3 it is something that GoPro fans have been ability is crucial when you need to place a
and HERO4 models are not able to shoot in calling out for now for some time. True, it camera in the thick of the action without
a Raw format; that has all changed now with is limited to locking out the ISO settings to the bulk and weight of traditional movie
the latest HERO5 Black. It is the first GoPro your preferred value and dialling in your cameras or DSLRs.
model to support a Raw format and it also preferred shutter speeds from a limited
features WDR, which is a Wide Dynamic menu of choice, but it’s a start. Field of view
Range feature; two functions that are a very GoPros have a very wide angle fixed lens
welcome addition to its various features. 4K Video with pronounced fisheye effect distortion.
Photos captured in GoPro Raw format will The latest HERO5 Black can shoot Now they would never be any good for
have a .GPR extension, which is based on the impressive video up to 4K quality, up to a safari shoot where you would need an
DNG format. 30FPS. Its video capabilities have always 800mm super telephoto lens, but they are
been a popular draw. Couple that to its tiny excellent for very close up action whilst
Manual Control form factor and lightweight construction being able to capture of lot of the scene.
It is not the kind of full manual control and chances are you’ve seen movies or TV Shooting in a confined space is no problem

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 GoPro VS DSLR - THE PROS

The wide angle field of view that the GoPro is

capable of means you can get a lot in your shot
even when you have very close foreground
subjects. Images of a person’s point of view from
a surfboard or mountain bike, makes the shot that
much more immersive.

for a GoPro because of its very wide angle The GoPro has the ability
to shoot high quality 4K
lens. Similarly, if you wanted to capture the
video which is a resolution
grandeur of a landscape, the vaulted ceilings of 3840 pixels wide by 2160
of a local church, or a shot of your friends pixels high. The HERO5
can shoot at 30fps and the
piled in the back of someone’s car, then the
new HERO6 can shoot at an
GoPro can handle it well. Most recently, the incredible 60fps.
HERO5 has been given distortion correction
that is built in to the camera and is a
selectable option. Even older models such
as the HERO4 Black can be given a firmware
update that makes the distortion correction mere mortals who want a good record of
option available. Usable at lower resolutions, the location we were at. They also have
it can eliminate the barrel distortion that is the enviable ability to shoot at a maximum
the trademark of an ultra wide lens. of 30FPS (frames per second) making
the sequential capture of a sporting or
Image Quality action-based event a piece of cake. You
Image quality is not to DSLR standard never have to miss the key shot when
but if you shoot in bright conditions, with you shoot a burst of images at this
lower ISO settings, the images you capture very high frame rate. Even the best
will be great; certainly good enough for us DSLR’s can’t manage that.

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64 www.pclpublications.com
 GoPro VS DSLR - THE PROS

well in most shooting conditions. The latest GoPro to your surfboard, or you can mount
models boast much improved low light it atop your dog using a canine camera
performance, so dusk and night time shots harness. Let’s face it, it is going to be more
are quite possible too. comfortable mounting a 150g GoPro to your
climbing helmet, than a 1kg DSLR.
Mounts and accessories
If one aspect of the GoPro stands out Summing up
above the others, it is its mounting options. To be honest, given its small size, the
Since the earliest days of Nick Woodman’s answer to our original question seems more
prototypes, it became clear that a camera of thought out now. Should you shoot only with
this nature was only going to work if it could a GoPro versus a DSLR? Why not take both?
go anywhere and be attached to anyone or Suddenly your shooting options become
any thing. The variety of mounting options is much more varied and exciting, and whilst
vast, especially since the third party market you won’t be outputting exhibition grade
exploded onto the scene as well. There is prints from your GoPro, it will have been able
Small and mighty no place, thing or person that you cannot to go and shoot where DSLR’s fear to tread.
Their small size is also one of their attach a GoPro to using one of the many The two, working together will open up new
strengths. Small also equals light. They accessories available. You can attach the avenues of creativity and possibility. n
can go anywhere, even in your coat pocket;
and because they are rugged, then can
take some punishment. We actually had an
older HERO slung underneath a drone (See
above). It was filming at about 200ft altitude
when one of the four props sheared off and
it crashed heavily to the ground. The drone
was a write-off but the GoPro survived, still
shooting images as it hit the ground, and is
still in service today.

Manual or auto?
We mentioned previously that GoPros are
easy to use and even if you keep them on
their default automatic settings they work

The choice of mounts for

the entire range of GoPro
products is huge and one of
its greatest strengths. From a
helmet mount or chest mount
to selfie sticks, surfboard
mounts and suction cups, the
options go on and on.

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 GoPro PHOTO
MODES
You have some cool options when shooting stills

I
t can be argued that the GoPro range of cameras are video capture devices first
and stills photography devices second. That could certainly be seen as the case
with the range up to, and including, the HERO4 Black. The quality of stills images
were considered on a par with cameraphones. It was a useful feature but for many it
was never going to match DSLR quality. In fact many were happy to only shoot video
and grab stills off the video footage instead, since they were only likely to be shared
on social media where resolution and quality were not so important. Now though,
with the advent of the GoPro HERO5 Black and the new HERO6 Black, the quality of
stills capture has taken an important step forward with its ability to shoot stills in
Raw format. Raw format is a data readout off the camera sensor with no compression
and processing applied. It gives you its maximum image quality and a fair amount of
leeway when it comes to working with the images in programs like Lightroom or other
Raw editing programs. Suddenly the quality of the images is good enough to consider
having it as another option in your camera bag, for those tricky shots where a DSLR is
just not able to go. With that in mind, let’s go and take a look at the options available
and also pass on some tips on how to use your GoPro like a pro photographer. n

68 - 69 Photo and time lapse modes

70 - 71 Photo mode options
72 - 77 Top tips for shooting stills

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 GoPro PHOTO MODES

“Suddenly the quality of the images

is good enough to consider having
it as another option in your camera
bag, for those tricky shots where a
DSLR is just not able to go.”

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 Photo and time
lapse modes
Your options for capturing stills and image sequences

P
hoto modes is broken down into three capture options: Photo, Night and Burst
modes. The three modes each have their own settings which can be altered.
On older models of camera, the various modes and field of view settings
often meant a drop in maximum resolution from 12MP to 7MP or even 5MP. The
HERO5 Black and HERO6 Black shoot everything in its maximum resolution of 12MP
(4000x3000 pixels). n

The image above was taken by a HERO5 Black

from a suction cup attached to the passenger Photo Mode
window. Night Photo was used with a 2s exposure This mode allows you to capture stills as a single shot
to get the traffic trails outside the windscreen.
or continuous capture. Press the shutter button once
to take a single still or hold the shutter button down
to capture up to 30 photos at 4 photos per second. Like its video
counterpart, Photo mode has a number of field of view options (FOV).
Wide is its largest FOV, behaving a bit like a fisheye lens. You also have
Medium, Linear and Narrow FOV options just like in Video mode.
Photo mode has the option to use the following advanced settings:

“The three modes each have their FOV, Wide Dynamic Range (WDR), Raw Format and Protune. Some
settings are only available in certain FOVs and Raw Format and WDR
own settings which can be altered. cannot be used at the same time.

On older models of camera, the Night Photo

various modes and field of view This mode enables the capture of images in low light
conditions from dusk to night. As in conventional

settings often meant a drop in DSLR photography, the shutter is left open for
longer durations to gather more light on the sensor. Given the
maximum resolution from 12MP to long exposures required, mounting your camera on a tripod is

7MP or even 5MP.”

recommended. Handheld shots are going to be very blurry due to
unwanted camera shake. The choice of settings is: FOV, Shutter, Raw
Format and Protune. Some settings are only available in certain FOVs.

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 PHOTO AND TIME LAPSE MODES

Burst mode is great for

capturing a sequence of
shots where something
happens very rapidly such
as a water balloon popping.
30 shots were taken over a
1s duration to capture the
decisive moment.

Time Lapse Video

This mode captures stills at a default rate of one still
every 0.5 seconds. These are then combined and
converted into a video file at the default resolution of
Burst Mode 4K. You can alter settings for: Video Resolution, FOV and Interval.
The Burst capture mode is great for capturing fast
action events. It works a little like the burst mode on a Time Lapse Photo
DSLR. You can capture at a rate of up to 30 photos in Like the Video option, Time Lapse Photo captures a
one second and this is its default setting but you can alter settings series of stills at specified intervals. This can be used
for: FOV, Rate and Protune. Some settings are only available in to capture an activity or event over a period of time.
certain FOVs and Frame Rates. You can pick out your favourite shots or you can manually combine
them to make a time lapse video, using video editing software such
Time Lapse Modes as GoPro Studio or Premiere Pro. Editable settings for Time Lapse
The Time Lapse modes are also broken down into Mode are: Interval, Raw Format, FOV and Protune. Options like Raw
three options: Time Lapse Video, Time Lapse Photo Format are settings dependent.
and Night Lapse Photo. A time lapse is an event that
is captured over a period of time at a specific rate. For instance, you Night Lapse Photo
could shoot a time lapse sequence of the sunrise where you take one In this mode, it behaves similar to Time Lapse Photo
still photo every 30 seconds for an hour. You can pick out favourite but the shutter remains open for longer in order to
stills or combine them to make a high-speed motion video of the capture more light in dark environments. The editable
sunrise. Just like the Photo modes, the Time Lapse modes have their settings for Night Lapse Photo are: Shutter, Raw Format FOV and
own settings. Protune. Options like Raw Format are settings dependent.

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 Photo mode options
Here’s a quick breakdown of the settings available

This sunrise harbour image was shot using the

GoPro HERO5 Black in Wide Dynamic Range
mode (WDR). More tonal detail is maintained in
highlights and shadows for higher contrast shots.

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 PHOTO MODE OPTIONS

Field Of View only in the Photo mode, it cannot be used ISO

(FOV) Options in conjunction with Raw mode, which will This determines how
There are several FOV options have to be turned off to enable its use. sensitive your camera is
available to you. to light. It allows you to
Advanced: Raw shoot high ISO in darker situations with
Wide Format (RAW) greater image noise, or with low ISO in
Good for action shots to capture as much When this option is enabled, brighter areas with less image noise. In
as possible within the frame. Does have the images are captured in video the range is ISO 400-6400, for
look of a fisheye lens but can be corrected 12MP in the GPR format which is a version Photo modes it is ISO100-1600. In Photo
in post-production. Captured at 12MP. of Adobe’s DNG format. A JPG file is mode you can specify a maximum and
also created at the same time to allow minimum ISO used by the camera.
Medium immediate viewing on your camera. The
A form of digital zoom that enlarges the GPR files can be opened and post-worked Shutter
view to fill the frame slightly more. Creates in Adobe Camera Raw (ACR) v9.7 onwards This allows you to manually
a mid-range field of view. Captured at 12MP and Lightroom 6.7 onwards. Raw format is choose a shutter speed
available in certain Photo modes in Wide from the available list.
Linear FOV and Time Lapse Photo mode where Values such as 1/30 for video and 1/125
The same as Medium FOV but corrects the interval is set 5 seconds or longer. If for photos mean the shutter is open for
any fisheye distortion. Good for shots Raw is enabled, WDR cannot be turned longer than values such as 1/240 for
where there are strong vertical or on. Raw is not available when shooting video and 1/2000 for photos.
horizontal lines and you want to remove the continuous photos.
curved distortion. Captured at 12MP. Exposure
Advanced: Compensation
Narrow Protune (PT) (EV Comp)
The narrowest field of view with minimal When turned on, Protune This affects the brightest
distortion. Good for bringing more distant enables you to access more of your video or photo. The default EV
subjects closer to the viewer. Zooms into manual control of certain settings, to Comp is 0 EV but you can make negative
the centre of the shot. Captured at 12MP. optimise your images. adjustments down to -2.0 to make the
image darker, or up to +2.0 to make the
RATE Colour image brighter.
The Rate settings apply to the Allows you to access and
Burst mode and controls how alter the colour profile of Sharpness
many shots are taken over a your captures. You can Sharpness is set to
specific period of time. choose either the GoPro Colour default or High by default, but you
Flat which keeps all colours neutral and can change it to Low or
30/1 Shoots 30 stills in 1 second captures more detail particularly in the Medium. This adds pre-sharpening to
30/2 Shoots 30 stills in 2 seconds shadow areas. your photos or video and can control the
30/3 Shoots 30 stills in 3 seconds sharpness of details in the scene. If you
30/6 Shoots 30 stills in 6 seconds White Balance are keen to edit your photos in post-
10/1 Shoots 10 stills in 1 second Change the colour production, then it is better to keep the
10/2 Shoots 10 stills in 2 seconds temperature of your video value set at Low.
10/3 Shoots 10 stills in 3 seconds and photos. Lower values
5/1 Shoots 5 stills in 1 second such as 3000K will give your shots a much
3/1 Shoots 3 stills in 1 second warmer tone. Higher values like 6500K
will give cooler tones.
Advanced: Wide
Dynamic Range
(WDR)
WDR allows for a greater level
of tonal detail to be captured. It retains
detail in the brighter highlights and darker
shadows of a high contrast image. Available

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 Top tips for shooting stills
Getting the most out of your GoPro’s photo mode

01

Near or far?
As we’ve mentioned, the lens on
a GoPro camera behaves a lot like a
fisheye lens with a lot of distortion
making horizons curve and straight
verticals appear to bend outwards.
It also means that its wide field of
view makes objects appear small in
the frame. If you are shooting a large
landscape and want to get as much
detail in as possible, this is not such a
concern; but if you have a subject that
is your point of interest in the shot, then
unless you get in close, they will appear
very small and insignificant in the final
composition. That’s when you need to
get in closer to your subject. Even from
a short distance, you’ll be surprised just
how much background you can still get
in the shot.

02
Use the GoPro app
Good photography is all about
framing and composition. If you are
using an older Hero3 Black or Hero4
Black, then you won’t have an LCD
screen that you can use as an aid to
composing your shot. Just pointing
roughly in the direction you’re trying
to capture is likely to result in badly
framed shots. This is where the GoPro
app comes in very handy. It lets you
tether your camera to your phone via a
Bluetooth connection and can show you
a live view of what the camera sees. This
is invaluable to nailing that shot and not
chopping the top of your subject’s head
off or missing them entirely.

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 TOP TIPS FOR SHOOTING STILLS

03

LCD touch display

Whilst we are talking about framing
and composition, there may be
situations where tethering your phone
to your camera may prove tricky. If you
are scaling a steep hill and want to take
some shots or you’re on your surfboard
without your phone etc. That’s where
having a LCD display on your GoPro is
a bonus. The Hero5 Black comes with
a touch screen built in as standard,
as does the older Hero4 Silver. Other
models like the Hero3 and Hero4 Black
do not have one, but you can purchase
a touch display that will let you see
what the camera sees and frame your
shots with confidence. You can even
review and play back photos and videos.
Adjusting camera settings is also a lot
easier using the screen interface.

04
Battery life again
At the risk of repeating ourselves,
we’re going to mention battery life again
seeing as we’ve just mentioned the
GoPro app, Bluetooth connections and
LCD touchscreen. All these features
and tools will make the framing and
composition of your shots so much
easier, but it will place a higher drain on
your battery. Given that battery life is
a bit of an Achilles heel for the camera,
you need to shoot smart to avoid
running out of juice at a key moment.
Keep checking your battery indicator to
see how it’s doing and always turn the
camera off when you’re not using it. If
you are using a touch screen rather than
the GoPro app, make sure the wireless
connection is switched off.

www.pclpublications.com 73
 05

Highest quality
When shooting stills, keep in mind
how they will eventually be used. This
can dictate what settings you use for the
camera’s Photo mode. If you are only
going to be sharing at low resolutions
on social media sites, then the camera’s
default Photo mode settings will be
perfect. If you want more control and the
highest possible image quality for post
work and editing back on your computer,
then depending on your model of camera
you have some options. On the Hero4
model, you have the Protune option
that lets you control settings such as
white balance, ISO limit, sharpness and
exposure compensation. It also means
your jpeg files will have less compression
on them. Try to avoid FOV options that
limit your megapixel size and always shoot
at the maximum 12MP.

06
Raw mode
The GoPro Hero5 Black and HERO6
Black also uses Protune to let you
access and customise your Photo
capture settings. In addition, it also
lets you shoot in Raw mode. This is
a big deal as it lets you capture data
straight off the camera’s sensor with
no compression or processing done
to the image. DLSR photographers
have had this option for a long time and
now you have it on your Hero5 Black
too. Raw mode is for those a bit more
serious about editing their photos to get
as much detail out of them as possible,
using programs such as Adobe Camera
Raw and Lightroom. Raw files contain
more data and give you the chance to
recover detail in the bright highlights
and dark shadows of your shots.

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 TOP TIPS FOR SHOOTING STILLS

07

A new angle
The size of the GoPro means it has
an edge over larger, bulkier, DSLR
cameras in that it can fit in places that
its larger DSLR cousins can’t. This
opens up a whole new set of creative
possibilities. The GoPro is small enough
and light enough to be placed or
mounted at some extreme angles to get
perspectives that you couldn’t match
with anything else. Rather than shooting
from the usual eye level, get the camera
down low or up high to change up the
viewing angle a little. From the end
of your ski pole as you glide down
powdered slopes, getting an unusual
angle of your dog, to the headstock
of your guitar as you chock out some
power chords at a local gig, the GoPro
assists you in new and interesting ways.

08
Exposure control
For the most part, your GoPro camera
can automatically meter the scene and
come up with the correct exposure so
Correct exposure for outside
your shots are bright and well exposed.
There may be times however, when you
need a little more control. This is where
exposure control comes in. Press and
hold the screen and the exposure control
reticule will appear as a small white box.
Whatever part of your scene is under this
box is what the camera will use to attain a
meter reading. As an example, if you are
shooting inside a car and want the outside
to be correctly exposed, move the move
to a part of the image containing the view
outside. If you want the inside of the car to
be correctly exposed, then move the box
over an area that is inside the car and it will
mater that area and adjust the exposure Correct exposure for inside
so the interior is correctly lit.

www.pclpublications.com 75
 09

Using filters
As the GoPro has rocketed in
popularity, third party manufacturers
have been busy creating various
photographic accessories that give you
some creative options when shooting
your stills and videos. Using filters to
affect the nature of the light falling on
the camera sensor has been employed
by DSLR photographers for a long time.
Now, you can do the same. You can use
neutral density filters that block the light
and let you use slower shutter speeds in
bright conditions, as well as graduated
neutral density filters that can help
balance the overexposure issues of a
bright sky and a darker foreground.
The filter is dark at the top and fades
to transparent near the middle so the
sky is darkened, but your foreground
remains unaffected.

10
Exposure
compensation
On very bright days, you need to
be aware that the GoPro can easily be
overwhelmed and overexpose images
to the point of being rendered useless.
If the scene is evenly lit from the sun
behind you, this is less of a problem,
but if you are shooting and the sun is
ether in the frame or very close, you
are likely to blow all detail in the sky.
To keep the sky properly exposed, use
the Flat colour mode and Exposure
Compensation in the Protune settings
of your camera and dial in at least -1.0
EV to darken the shot overall. Be aware
that your foreground will be darker too
but the Flat colour mode helps prevent
it from being solid black.

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 TOP TIPS FOR SHOOTING STILLS

11

Tripod trick
It might look a little silly attaching
your tiny GoPro to a large tripod but
if you want to try and shoot some
rock steady photos, then a tripod is
essential. It also gives you a chance
to explore some very creative options
like HDR photography. Using the
Exposure Compensation option from
the Protune menu, you can shoot a 1
or 2 stop underexposed image, a 1 or
2 stop overexposed image and one
middle exposure, and blend them
in Photoshop or HDR program to
produce an image that has a much
great range of tones than if you’d just
shot one photo on its own.

12
Sunrise, sunset
Most photographers will tell you that
the best times to take photos are around
sunrise (the golden hour) or sunset (the
blue hour), when the sun is obviously less
intense; long shadows reveal detail in the
land that is lost when the sun is high in
the sky and the colours can be amazing.
One of the easiest things you can do to
improve your photos, is to shoot during
these times. Keep the previous tip in mind
though and make sure you either have
some solid mounting options for those
slower shutter speeds or use a tripod
to avoid shaky photos. One tip if you are
shooting wide landscapes is to put the
horizon in the middle of the frame to avoid
the pronounced fisheye curvature and
then crop it using your favourite editing
program to adhere to the rule of thirds as
mentioned previously.

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 VIDEO AND
PHOTO MODES
Here are the various capture modes available to you

T
he GoPro range has come a long way in its lifetime. This popular action camera is
now in its 6th generation. The HERO6 Black, the HERO5 Black and it’s compact
sibling, the HERO5 Session still share a lot of DNA with their older counterparts;
chief among which is the option for capturing video or stills, or indeed both at the
same time. The HERO3 Black could shoot 4K ultra HD video but it could only manage
15 frames per second (FPS) which meant footage was not as smooth as that available
to the HERO4 Black and the HERO5 Black which can capture 4K at 30FPS, with the
HERO6 Black able to shoot at 60FPS. On the stills capture front, the HERO3, 4 could
capture photos at a maximum resolution of 12MP depending on the field of view (FOV)
you were using. The HERO5 Black and HERO6 Black can now shoot stills at 12MP at any
FOV, and it can also shoot in Raw format in certain modes. Raw format is essentially
a data readout, straight from the camera’s sensor with no processing applied, giving
maximum image quality when it comes to processing your shots in image editing
software such as Lightroom or Photoshop. The HERO3 and 4 are only able to shoot
in jpeg format but you can still use settings that will give you as much image data as
possible, if you wish to process the images further once shot. With that in mind, let’s
delve a little more into the various modes available to you. n

80 - 81 Video and photo resolution

82 - 83 Video resolution and settings
84 - 85 Field of view (FOV) options
86 - 93 Top tips for shooting video

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 VIDEO AND PHOTO MODES

“...footage was not as smooth as that

available to the HERO4 Black and the
HERO5 Black which can capture 4K at
30FPS, with the HERO6 Black able to
shoot at 60FPS.”

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 Video and
photo resolution
A little cheat sheet to get you up to speed

2.7K 16:9 2704 x 2028

1440p 1920 x 1440

960p 1280 x 960 1080p 1920 x 1080

720p 1280 x 720

480p 848 x 480

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 VIDEO AND PHOTO RESOLUTION

W
hen you start using your GoPro to shoot video or take stills, you will become
aware that there are a lot of references to either ‘megapixels’ (MP) or things
like ‘4K’ or ‘720p’. These are various units of measurement that describe how
large a frame of video or a photo is in lines of pixels. As an example, a frame of 720p video
measures 1280 pixels wide by 720 lines deep. This equates to a total of 921,600 pixels or
0.9 megapixels. The latest GoPro HERO5 Black and HERO6 Black can shoot in a number
of video resolutions as well as capturing 12MP still photos. If you’ve never encountered
certain video and stills terminology before, you might wonder what it’s all about. To help
you sort out your megapixels from your 4Ks, we’ve put together a little reference cheat
sheet to show you how the various resolutions available on the HERO5 black compare to
each other. n

12MP 4000 x 3000

The p that you see in resolutions
such as 1080p or 1440p stands for
progressive scan. This means that
4K 3840 x 2160 (2160p) if you are shooting a video in 1080p
resolution for example, all of the
1080 lines of pixels are captured/
displayed at the same time. This
differs to 1080i where only the odd
numbered lines are displayed first,
then the even numbered lines; and
they are interlaced very quickly to
fool your eye into believing you’re
seeing an entire picture in one go.
You might also be aware that
there are two broadcast video
standards available to you. You
have the choice of PAL or NTSC
2.7K 4:3 2704 x 1520 video. PAL is the main standard
used where 25 frames are
displayed each second. NTSC,
used predominantly in the USA,
displays 30 frames of video during
each second.
In addition to all the resolutions
and video standards on offer, you
also have the choice to shoot in
different aspect ratios. The aspect
ratio is simply the proportional
relationship between the width
and the height of an image.
“If you’ve never Modern televisions display images
in widescreen format 16:9 and
encountered certain video you can capture video in the

and stills terminology same aspect ratio and in various

resolutions. You can also capture
before, you might wonder images and video in 4:3 format
which is 33% taller than a 16:9
what it’s all about.” ratio. Video is often captured in
this aspect ratio as it provides
greater scope for cropping or
applying image stabilisation during
the editing process before being
output to the more common 16:9
broadcast format. n

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 Video resolution
and settings
A rundown of video modes and settings

T
he GoPro’s ability to shoot great quality video has always new GP1 image processing chip, allows the capture of 4K
been one of its strengths and although 4K video capture video at a frame rate of 60fps. All the cameras in the GoPro
was possible on the HERO3 Black, it was only at 15 frames range allow you the choice of using multiple resolutions. We
per second (fps), which made for quite choppy video if there was list some of the common uses for the various resolutions
anything moving quickly in the frame. The HERO4 Black was the below. There is also a handy guide so you know what frame
first action camera from GoPro to give us the ability to shoot up rate/shutter speeds are available when you opt to take the
to 4K resolution at a much more acceptable 30fps. The HERO5 camera out of Auto and use Protune to take more control of
Black continued the trend and now the HERO6 Black with its your shutter speeds. n

Resolution Best Use

4K High-resolution, low-light performance. 8MP stills from video.

2.7K 16:9 Video can be scaled down for cinema quality results.

2.7K 4:3 For body-mounted, ski-mounted or surfboard-mounted shots. Larger vertical viewing area.

1440p 4:3 captures larger vertical viewing area. High frame rate. Great for social media.

1080p Popular and widely used. High resolution and high frame rates. Available in all FOVs.

960p Good for slow motion. 4:3 ratio provides a large viewing area.

720p Good for handheld shots. 240fps for super slow motion. Only in Narrow FOV.

480p Standard definition for super slow motion and Wide FOV.

Frame rate Shutter speed multiples available

24fps Auto. 1/24th, 1/48th, 1/96th, 1/192th.

30fps Auto, 1/30th, 1/60th, 1/120th, 1/240th.

48fps Auto, 1/48th, 1/96th, 1/192th.

60fps Auto, 1/60th, 1/120th, 1/240th, 1/480th.

80fps Auto, 1/80th, 1/160th, 1/320th, 1/640th.

90fps Auto, 1/90th, 1/180th, 1/360th, 1/720th.

100fps Auto, 1/100th, 1/200th, 1/400th, 1/800th.

120fps Auto, 1/120th, 1/240th, 1/480th, 1/960th.

240fps Auto, 1/240th, 1/480th, 1/960th, 1/1920th.

82 www.pclpublications.com
 VIDEO RESOLUTION AND SETTINGS

Video Auto Low Light shadow areas of the scene. If you’re keen
Each mode can be broken This feature allows you to to edit your stills and video, then turning
down into additional shoot in low light conditions Protune on is the way to go. If you are more
capture modes. Video is for by automatically adjusting interested in just shooting and sharing,
conventional video capture. When you frame rates and shutter speeds for the then keep Protune turned off.
use it for the first time, the camera will best exposure.
use a default setting of 1080p resolution Manual Audio
shooting at 60 frames per second with the Video Control
Wide FOV set. Video Stabilisation and its Stabilisation The default setting for this is
Auto Low Light feature are turned on. Video Stabilisation adjusts off and it can automatically
the footage being captured switch between stereo audio capture
Video + Photo to account for motion present during the and wind noise filtering to attain the best
This allows you to shoot recording. The image is shifted to counter balance of sound. You can choose Stereo
video but also capture a set the motion of the camera to reduce Only if you are not out on a windy day and
of stills whilst you are filming camera shake in the captured footage. the stereo audio is of a consistent nature.
at an interval you can set. The default Extreme movement cannot be reduced If you are out in windy conditions, you can
settings for Video and Photo are 1080p effectively but smaller movements can be select Wind Only to filter out as much wind
at 30 frames per second with a Wide FOV. evened out by turning this feature on. noise as possible.
The stills are captured at 12MP with a
photo taken every 5 seconds. What is Protune? RAW Audio
Protune gives you more A video only option, this
Looping control over your video. It allows you to create a
Looping lets you decreases the compression separate audio file in WAV
continuously capture video used on your video, giving you the chance in addition to the default MP4 audio track
but only save the footage to capture higher quality footage. You on the video. You can choose from Low,
that you want. Looping defaults are 1080p can also adjust white balance, ISO and Medium or High processing of the audio.
at 60 frames per second with a Wide FOV. Exposure Compensation. The images Keep the value at Low if you are going to
The video will record in 5 minute intervals are also more neutral allowing you to edit your audio track in post-production
over each previous 5 minute capture and capture more detail in the highlight and and need the highest quality.
saves the last 5 minute segment when
you press the shutter button to stop the
current recording.

“The HERO4 Black was

the first action camera
from GoPro to give us
the ability to shoot
up to 4K resolution
at a much more
acceptable 30fps.”

Take control of your video capture

options by enabling Protune. This lets
you get more hands on with the major
settings such as Shutter Speed, ISO,
Colour and White Balance.

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 Field of view
(FOV) options
Control how much scene is visible to your camera

F
OV refers to how much of
the scene you are shooting
can be seen by the camera
via the lens. FOV is measured in
degrees. The greater the angle
in degrees, the wider the view
and hence more of the scene is
captured. You FOV options are
based upon what resolution and
frames per second video settings
you are using. n

SuperView
This offers the widest view
possible. It shoots a 4:3 format wide
shot and dynamically compresses
it vertically to fit the standard
widescreen format. You can be
shooting in cramped conditions,
but you’ll still be able to see a lot of
the scene. The downside is that you
will see the fisheye distortion effect.
SuperView is available in most
resolutions and a range of frame
rates depending on model.

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 FIELD OF VIEW (FOV) OPTIONS

Wide
Probably the most used FOV
setting for a lot of people. It offers
a large field of view and is great for
capturing close up action whilst
still having a lot of the scene on
view. The fisheye effect is also
quite apparent in Wide FOV,
being the most pronounced at
the edges of the frame. Wide is a
popular choice, not least because
it is available in all resolutions and
most frame rates.

Medium
The Medium FOV setting
is equivalent to zooming in
slightly with a normal lens on a
DSLR to fill the frame more with
whatever is in the centre of the
shot. In this case though, the
zoom is done digitally as the
camera’s lens is fixed. Medium
is available in 2.7K, 1080p and
720p in frame rates ranging
from 120fps down to 24fps
depending on resolution.

Linear
This option takes the Medium
FOV and applies distortion
reduction to remove the fisheye
effect seen in the Wide FOV.
This is very effective for aerial
or high perspectives to cancel
out the ballooning effect of the
horizon or the strong uprights of
buildings and other structures.
Linear is available in 2.7K and
1080p at most frame rates.

Narrow
Is a more pronounced zoom
effect than the Medium setting
with less fisheye distortion. It
is available at 1080p or lower
resolutions with frame rates
ranging from 120fps down to
25fps.

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 Top tips for shooting video
Here’s how to up your game when shooting video with a GoPro

01

The selfie stick

The selfie has become something of
an online phenomenon and the advent
of the selfie stick has taken them to new
heights. Love it or hate it, the arrival of
the selfie stick does offer some useful
filming opportunities over and above
a simple shot of you and your grinning
buddies. When used in conjunction
with your camera it allows you to get
great perspectives of yourself; or can
be flipped around to get shots of others
whilst you ski down a slope or just walk
along a favourite clifftop path. The
length of the selfie stick also acts as
a damper to smooth out your video,
because you are holding the stick, your
own muscles actually work a little bit like
a Steadicam.

02
Spare batteries
It’s always been an issue that GoPro
Hero cameras do like to chew through
their batteries at an alarming rate so
always make sure you carry a couple of
spares with you. There can be nothing
worse than arriving at some picture-
perfect location and having your only
battery discharge in less than an hour.
Cold conditions are particularly tough
on battery life; keep your spare batteries
on you so they stay warm through your
body heat, otherwise you may find that
your spares last even shorter durations
than your main one. Another option is
to take a portable power pack with you
that can recharge your GoPro camera
up to four times.

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 TOP TIPS FOR SHOOTING VIDEO

03

Smooth video
If you are shooting video but without
the need for any fancy post-production
and editing, then you can keep your
video frame rates down to 24 or 30
frames per second. This will still
produce good quality footage but it will
keep the file size of your videos down
if memory card storage is a factor.
However, if you are looking to possibly
do some slow motion video editing
when you get back to your computer,
then you will need to be shooting at
60-120 frames per second. This means
that if you play back a 60fps video at
30fps, it will appear to be going at half
the speed of the original. 120fps footage
played at 30fps will appear to be four
times slower than the original but still
play back smoothly without stuttering.

04
Different angles
If you’ve ever had to sit through
someone’s old holiday videos, your
abiding memory may well be that it is
always shot from the same perspective
and drags on for way too long and does
not hold your interest. When you shoot
your video, keep that in mind. Shorter
duration shots edited together with
different angles and perspectives,
interspersed within the narrative
make for a much more interesting
video for your viewers. Endless selfie
closeup shots of your grinning face
can be replaced with close, medium
and wide shots of the action and the
surroundings. You may not be the next
Steven Spielberg but your friends and
family will thank you for the variety in
your footage.

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 05

Sound issues
To be fair, the microphone built into the
GoPro is never going to be able to rival
the quality of a good external one. This
issue is exacerbated if the camera is in
its protective housing, which effectively
muffles the recording to the point of
not being recognisable. If you want to
capture good quality audio that you can
then sync up with your footage during the
post-production phase, then it’s worth
investing in a good quality external mic
and a protective housing that is designed
to be microphone friendly so you can
connect the two. To protect your gear
still further, microphone manufacturer
Sennheiser have taken that a step further
with the MKE 2 Elements, which is actually
waterproof and comes with a bespoke
backdoor that can attach to your current
waterproof camera housing.

06
Get close
The GoPro range has a fixed focal
length lens that behaves a lot like a
fisheye lens. It has a very wide angle
of view, which is great for capturing
expansive views of big environments
but is not so great if you are filming
subjects at long range. They will appear
tiny in the frame and that won’t make
for compelling video. You will need to
get in close to your subjects so they fill
the frame as much as possible. Bear in
mind that if you get too close (around
200mm) the subjects will start to go
out of focus. If you really want some
extreme closeups, then you’ll need to
invest in a macro lens attachment that
alters the minimum focusing distance
and brings close objects into sharp
focus and blurs the background.

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 TOP TIPS FOR SHOOTING VIDEO

07

Helmet mounted
footage
The helmet mount is a great asset if
you want to film a scene from your own
point of view and your hands are not free
to hold the camera. The problem with
this is that the footage that is captured
is going to be shaky as vibrations travel
through your body; and every time
you turn your head to look this way
and that as you move, it creates very
disorienting video. This can actually be
uncomfortable for the people watching
and can even make some feel motion
sick. The new GoPro 5 and 6 has built in
electronic image stabilisation that can
even out some of the less extreme lumps
and bumps but be aware that head cam
footage of any great duration might be
uncomfortable for some to watch.

08
Keep it clean
This one might sound a little obvious
but one issue with video capture is if
there is dirt on the lens and the entire
segment you’ve shot is ruined because
of a big spot of dirt in the middle of
the frame. If it were a still, you could
Photoshop the offending dirt out of the
picture, but with video, that becomes
an issue. Keep a clean microfibre cloth
with you and always check the lens in
between shots, particularly if you are
shooting in wet or dirty environments.
If you are shooting in snow and take a
tumble, then check the lens after every
spill and if you are quickly transitioning
from very cold places to warmer ones,
check for condensation on the lens or
on its protective housing and any filters
you might be using.

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 09
Lens aimed at head Lens aimed at waist

Composition
As mentioned elsewhere, the GoPro
fixed focal length lens acts like an
extremely wide angle fisheye lens on
conventional DSLR cameras. This can
sometimes make framing your shots
a little more challenging, particularly
if you are using an older model that
doesn’t have an LCD screen. When
tracking a subject and wanting them
to be captured full body, the urge may
be to aim the lens at their head. The
extreme wide angle of view will result
in a large amount of sky to be visible
in the shot and you run the risk of your
subject’s feet not being in shot. Aim
your camera lens at your subject’s
waist rather than their head and you will
capture more of your subject centred in
the frame.

10
Be selective
When shooting your videos, try to
avoid overly long capture durations.
You may have the urge to just turn the
camera on and let it run in one long
sequence. This will result in a massive
video file to trawl through in order to
find the exact bit you want for your
edit. You’re better off shooting more
frequent segments but of much shorter
durations. When capturing a sequence,
hold the shot and let it run on a few
more seconds before you stop the video
capture. This gives you some buffer
space when you are editing segments
together and time to do transitions from
one segment to another without a single
frame jump-cut.

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 TOP TIPS FOR SHOOTING VIDEO

11

Shutter speed and fps

The frame rate (number of
frames captured in a second) and its
corresponding shutter speed dictates
how crisp or blurry your action footage
will be. With the auto shutter speed
settings, action captured at 30fps may
look ‘mushy’ due to motion blur because
the shutter speed can be as slow as
1/30th of a second depending on light
levels. If you want sharper video, then
you can opt to choose settings that give
you video captured at 60fps minimum;
this means that the shutter speed can
never be slower than 1/60th of a second.
You can also use the Protune settings to
dial in an inverse multiple of the frame
rate. At 30fps for example, you can
use shutter speeds of 1/30th, 1/60th,
1/120th and 1/240th of a second.

12
Protune
If you are after the best video quality
you can get from your GoPro, then the first
thing you’ll want to do is turn on the Protune
option. Protune unlocks certain advanced
features within the camera. Even if you
don’t necessarily want to explore the
advanced features, the first thing Protune
does is increase the bitrate of the video,
whereby the video file has less compression
applied and offers greater image quality.
If you want to though, you can alter the
major settings such as white balance, ISO,
colour profile, exposure compensation
and sharpness. It also offers Flat Mode
where the shadows and midtones are
brightened, revealing more detail. Be aware
that the highlights are not altered and you’ll
need to dial in some negative exposure
compensation to darken the image and
retain detail in the highlights.

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 13

ISO and noise

If you are shooting your video out
in bright daytime conditions and are
looking for a good quality capture, then
it might be worth setting your ISO limit
so it never exceeds the minimum. ISO is
a measure of how sensitive your camera
sensor is to light. The smaller the ISO
number, the less sensitive it is to light
and the cleaner the image will be. As you
increase the ISO value to make it more
sensitive to light, the video will start to
become grainy due to sensor noise. You
can shoot in low light conditions and
attain brighter images but this is offset
by image degradation. In video mode,
the minimum ISO value is 400. Set this
as your minimum and it will keep your
footage crisp and clean.
Low ISO High ISO

14
Why not 4K?
You would imagine that shooting your
videos at the maximum resolution would
be a no-brainer. Whilst the ultra-high
resolution is certainly appealing, it does
have some drawbacks that are worth
noting. First and foremost, you are going to
be dealing with extremely large video files.
A 64GB memory card can hold about 3
hours of video shot at 1080p/30fps. Switch
to 4K/30fps and you will only get about
2 hours of video on the same 64GB card.
It’s also worth noting that at 30fps, your
4K video might start looking a bit ‘choppy’
if there is any fast action going on in the
frame. You would need the 60fps ability
of the new HERO6 Black. You’re better off
dropping down to 2.7K/60fps for smoother
action sequences. In 4K, a number of FOV
features are not available such as Medium
and Linear FOV modes.

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 TOP TIPS FOR SHOOTING VIDEO

15

Be flexible
If you are looking to edit and export your
video and make it available on social media
or other video streaming sites, you are
likely to be creating videos in 1080p format
(1920x1080 pixels). If you shoot your raw
footage in the larger 2.7K 4:3 format (2704
x 2028 pixels), this actually gives you the
flexibility to crop your video if needed to
enlarge areas of the frame. It also enables
you to add image stabilisation during post-
production without the loss of resolution
that you would get if you tried to stabilise the
1080p footage. Certain programs enlarge
the footage slightly to be able to offset any
movement in the footage. If you’re starting
with higher resolution footage, then this is
not a problem. The 4:3 format also means
you have more image area top and bottom
of frame to play with, within the 1920x1080
pixel frame of your final resolution.

16
Underwater
If you are shooting underwater, there
are a couple of tips to help you get the best
footage. The first one is to keep the sun
at your back when you shoot, this helps
illuminate your subjects and make the most
of the underwater colours. Try also to get
down to the level of your subjects rather
than shooting from above them. If you are
shooting underwater with slow or static
subjects and there is less light available,
drop your frame rate down to 24/30 frames
per second; the shutter speed will be
slower, allowing more light to hit the sensor.
In brighter conditions with faster moving
subjects, use higher frame rates such as
60 frames per second for smoother action.
Make sure you have the latest firmware on
your Hero 5 or 6 as it lets you alter settings
underwater, whilst it is in its dive housing, by
pressing the Mode and Record buttons.

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 EDITING
YOUR VIDEOS
A quick guide to editing

I
f you fancy yourself as the next Stephen Spielberg or just want to have a go at
assembling your video footage into a more concise and cohesive story, then
you have a few options to enable you to turn your assortment of video clips into
something altogether more interesting for the end viewer. The video files created by
your GoPro are saved in MP4 format and these can be used in any number of video
editing programs such as Final Cut Pro, Adobe Premiere Pro, Corel VideoStudio and
Cyberlink PowerDirector to name a few. Whilst the more top end programs like Final
Cut and Premiere offer a host of powerful editing possibilities, they are not free. If you
want to dip your toe into the world of video editing, then GoPro offer some choices free
of charge. Originally, GoPro offered GoPro Studio for your computer which is a video
editing package that lets you import your files and edit them together, add effects and
music and then export the finished result. Now you can also use a more automated editor
called Quik. Quik lets you import and organise your files and then select a few that can
be automatically turned into a ready-made video with edits and music. There is also a
mobile based version called Quik Stories that operates in the same way and lets you
upload your video from your GoPro camera to your mobile device and assemble it into a
short, ready to go sequence with little input needed from you (more on that later). These
can be uploaded directly to social media sites from your phone or tablet. It is pretty
simple to use but we’ll show you the GoPro Quik and GoPro Studio options, that are your
desktop-based solution, letting you get a little more hands on with your footage. n

96 The Quik desktop app

97 - 99 Using Quik desktop
100 - 101 The GoPro Studio video editor
102 - 105 Using GoPro Studio

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 EDITING YOUR VIDEOS

“The video files created by your

GoPro are saved in MP4 format and
these can be used in any number of
video editing programs...”

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 The Quik desktop app
The GoPro Quik application views

T
he application has been designed to be as intuitive and as simple to use as possible. It can import your
files from your GoPro camera automatically as soon as you plug in the memory card and it can scan your
hard drive for any GoPro media from a GoPro device and list it all as a series of thumbnails. You can then
move to the Create window where you can mark a number of your clips with a blue highlight dot that tells Quik
to use the marked spots as part of its automatically edited video sequence. n

The Media view

05 06 01 Add new media tab
01
02 Media, Recent and Edits windows
02

03 Connected device
04
03
04 Media listings

05 Media view indicator

06 Create Mode button options

07 Share media button

08 09 08 Notifications

09 Settings

07 10 11 10 Delete media

11 Thumbnail scale slider

The Create view

01 Chosen media display thumbnails

02 Clip highlight markers

03 Music currently selected

07
01
04 Quik highlight sequence timeline

02
05 Music and edit timing markers

06 Outro sequence

07 Main preview window

08 Pause and play button

08
03 06 09 Individual movable sequences

09
04 10 Change music button
05

11 Select Outro
10 11

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 USING QUIK DESKTOP

Using Quik desktop

Insert your memory card into a card reader on your computer. You can specify a new directory if you wish as the destination
01 The installed Quik app will open when it detects GoPro media.
02 for your media. You can simply click on the Camera Import
A screen will appear where you can import your files to a directory on Location tab and specify a new location and folder name. Click
your computer. We have a number of scenes to choose. Import Files to begin transferring files to your preferred destination.

The files on your GoPro’s memory card will begin to transfer. If you already have video files stored somewhere on your
03 04
Depending on the quantity and size of files, this can take computer, you can also specify folders for the Quik app to
some time. The process of the import will be displayed on the screen. look in and find additional files. Click Add Media to start the process.
It will inform you when the import is complete.

You can now browse video clips and other media and click If you click on the Media tab in the top left of the screen, it
05 Open to add that folder to the list where it knows GoPro
06 will display the media currently loaded on your computer. If
media is kept. When you click Save, any new media will be added to it’s a video, it will have a small video camera icon and the running
the Media View window. The new videos are a of motorsport event. time of the clip displayed in the bottom left corner.

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 You can choose which editing method you are going to use. When you open the Create Mode, the media will be added to
07 You can either highlight your preferred files, then right-click
08 the Create view as a series of clip thumbnails ranged on the
on the media and choose Open In Studio or choose Open In Create left side that you can run your cursor over to shuttle playback of the
Mode. We will deal with Create Mode, which is the simpler of the two. clip back and forth.

At the bottom of the screen is the Highlights Media Timeline. You simply click on the timeline of each clip you want to use
09 10
This is where you can make a 15s video of 6 clips, a 30s at the point you want the edit to show. Each time you click, a
video of 10 clips or a 60s video of 20 automatically edited video clips. blue dot shows the selection you’ve made and how many clips are
left to populate the sequence.

Once in place, you can add some music. Click the music You can also add an Outro, which is a final end sequence
11 icon and select an audio file appropriate for your content.
12 that concludes the video. In this case, it is the GoPro Quik
Click a sample and it plays the audio and shows your video so you logo in a short animation.
can compare. Click Add To Video when ready.

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 USING QUIK DESKTOP

You also have the option to edit the clips on your Quik You can adjust the colour of your video. Click on the Adjust
13 timeline. Click the edit button shaped like a pencil and you
14 Colour icon to alter brightness, saturation, contrast, warmth
can add a number of adjustments to your clips. You can reposition and shadows by moving the sliders. Click the Adjust Volume icon to
the clip so it plays a different part of that sequence. alter the music and source volume.

If your GoPro Hero 5 Black was used with the GPS turned on, When you are happy with your preview, you can choose the
15 16
it can also display a number of gauges on screen including Save button and begin the process of exporting the Quik
speed, GPS position and g-force. It can also show you a display video sequence. It will ask you to name the clip and choose the
cluster with Altitude, Distance travelled and Elevation Gain. Quality of the video. When ready, press Save.

The sequence will be saved with the parameters you set. You can save a selected portion of your clip, rotate it through
17 When complete, it will appear in the Edits section of your
18 90° at a time, capture a still photo from the sequence or
Quik application. From here you can edit it again if you wish or make adjust the gauges, if any, on the clip. You can then click Share to
some adjustments to the clip as it stands, by double-clicking it. upload it to social media.

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 The GoPro Studio G oPro Studio is a more
traditional video editor in
that it relies on more of
your input to choose, trim, edit and

video editor colour grade the sequences you

want to use as part of your final clip.
There is little that is automated and
it does require some skill to learn.
Make your own epic video productions The editing process is broken down

05 06
01 02

08
03

09 10 11 12 13

15

16
04
17

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 THE GoPro STUDIO VIDEO EDITOR

into three stages. Stage 1 is where 01 Add Media button 08 Main preview window 14 Rewind, Play,
you pick your images and convert Fast forward
02 Generate Title button 09 Clip split tool
them ready for final editing. Stage 2
is where the main editing is done on 03 Selected Media list 10 Jump to previous 15 Video clip timeline
a simple audio and video timeline. edit point
04 Remove Clip or Clear All 16 Title timeline
You can add effects and alter video,
05 View and Trim panel 11 Jump to next edit point 17 Audio timeline
framing and image parameters.
Stage 3 is where you export the final 06 Main Edit panel 12 Mark In point 18 Video adjustment panel
assembled video sequence.
07 Export video options 13 Mark Out point 19 Effects presets panel

07

18

19

14

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 Using GoPro Studio

In the Quik Media view, select the video and other media you Your selected files will be loaded into GoPro Studio and
01 want to consider to use as part of your final clip. Highlight all
02 they will all be displayed in the media import panel on the
the elements you’re going to need and then right-click their thumbnail left of the screen.
and choose Open In Studio from the menu that appears.

At the top of the screen, you will see that currently, the app is Click on any of your clips and it will be previewed in the main
03 04
in its Step 1 View & Trim mode. This section allows you to sort window. Here you can trim the clip by using Mark In and Mark
through your clips and pick out the ones you want to put into your Out points to create a custom edit with start and end points defined
final edited sequence. by you.

If your clip was shot using the Wide FOV, then it will have Once you have the clip trimmed with Mark In and Mark Out
05 the pronounced fisheye effect. If you click on the Advanced
06 points, so you have the duration as you want it, click on
Settings button, you can choose the Remove Fisheye option. Click the Add Clip to Conversion List button. This will put a copy in the
OK to apply the preference. conversion list on the right panel.

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 USING GoPro STUDIO

Go back and choose how ever many clips you want to At the bottom right, there is a Convert button. When you click
07 trim down to alter their duration. For each one you choose,
08 this, each item of trimmed footage in the list will be converted.
add the clip to the Conversion List on the right as you did with the A small progress bar in each clip shows you how the conversion is
first one. doing. When done, you can proceed to the Edit window.

Firstly, you will be asked to choose an edit template. You Now that you are in the Edit window, clicking on each clip
09 10
can pick a preset or download more examples of GoPro Edit allows you to make adjustments to the clip. On the right of the
Templates. We’ve chosen Blank Template so we have a completely screen are a number of adjustment options for Video, Audio, White
clean starting point. Click Create to start. Balance, Image and Framing. These can be altered at any time.

There are also a number of effects presets that apply a If you click on the Title button, you can generate your own
11 particular look to your clips. Clicking on Candy Colour for
12 titles to appear in your clip. You can type in the text you want
instance, will add a lot of saturation to your clip. Click on any preset and alter the font style as well as things like its opacity and making it
to change it or click None to remove it. fade in and out over a specified duration.

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 Here we’ve kept the Opacity at 100 per cent and made a 1s We’ve also added an MP3 music file which we can use as
13 Fade In and 1s Fade Out. The duration of the clip is to 4s in
14 our background music. Just click on the Media button and
total by using the slider bar beneath the title preview window. The title browse to where your music files are kept and choose one to add to
will also appear in the listing on the left of the screen. your clip. Now you can begin to assemble the video.

You can start by clicking and dragging the title onto the Title Drag one of your clips onto the Video timeline, denoted by the
15 16
timeline. A blue band will appear on the timeline to show you small video camera icon. When placed, the clip will be displayed
have a title positioned there. as a thumbnail so you can identify which clips you’ve used. The clip
filename will also be displayed along with its size and duration.

Our 4s title and 3s video clip are now in place. If you click on Click on the clip in the video timeline to highlight it. You can
17 the yellow play bar, you can drag it back and forth over your
18 make adjustments by altering various parameters on the
timeline to view how it’s looking at the moment. right of the screen. We’ve adjusted the Framing of the larger 4:3 clip
to sit lower in the narrower 16:9 video clip we created.

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 USING GoPro STUDIO

You can continue to add your clips to the video timeline to We’ve also added the MP3 music track to the Audio timeline.
19 created your edited video. Each clip’s adjustment parameters
20 You can adjust the music parameters to change the volume
can be altered at any time to get the look you want. We’ve added 5 and to add Fade In and Fade Out points so the music blends in at the
clips of a motorsport event. beginning and fades at the end.

When you’re happy you have the video, the title and the The Export panel will prompt you to name your exported clip.
21 22
music as you want it, it’s time to think about exporting it. Click It exports movies in MOV format. MOV is an MPEG-4 video
on the Export button at the top of the screen and it will provide you file and common multimedia format that was developed by Apple.
with some export options.

Click on the Preset tab and you can choose from a number When you click Export, the video will be saved to the
23 of options that affect the size and quality of your video. You
24 destination you specified and is ready for its grand premiere.
can go for small, compressed video for Mobile devices or use a
higher quality option such as HD 1080p.

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 THE GoPro IN ACTION

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 GO OUT AND
BE A HERO
Having fun with the GoPro

W
hat can you do with a GoPro? Perhaps the question should be: what can’t
you do? The action camera for anyone who enjoys outdoor activities is tough
enough to go anywhere with you and record those moments as stills or video.
As we’ve pointed out before, it can go where DSLRs fear to tread and because it is so
versatile, we thought we should compile a little list of some of the many ways you can use
your GoPro outdoors. We’ll show you some great ideas on how to use it on land, in water
and in the air. One thing the GoPro has going for it, is that it can take the visually ordinary
things we take for granted in our everyday life and elevate them into something more
special. This is done by just by being able to alter the perspective from which it’s shot. n

110 - 117 Having fun shooting on land

118 - 125 Waves, surf and going underwater
126 - 133 Taking to the skies

“One thing the GoPro has

going for it, is that it can take
the visually ordinary things
we take for granted in our
everyday life and elevate them
into something more special.”

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GO OUT AND BE A HERO

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 Having fun
shooting on land
This is where the action cam is right at home

F
rom snowy slopes, vertiginous cliff faces and muddy woodland bike
trails to just taking the dog for a walk on the beach, the GoPro is at home
in any of these environments. For day to day outdoor capture of video
and stills, the GoPro range is unparalleled. Their portability, weight and the
range of accessories that you can use to put your camera in places and achieve
compositions, means that you can get the most visual impact from almost
any land-based activity you can think of. It’s certain that if you wanted a riders
point of view on a mountain bike caroming down a hill, you’re going to want
something light and tough but with good enough quality to get great shots
for sharing later. Moreover, if you want stunning 4K video, the GoPro action
camera delivers and in a package that weighs a substantial amount less than a
DSLR. In any outdoor activity where you need a camera to hand, a DSLR has the
quality that’s for sure but the GoPro is built for action and makes it your perfect
partner for your adventures. n

“Their portability, weight and

the range of accessories
that you can use to put your
camera in places and achieve
compositions, means that you
can get the most visual impact
from almost any land-based
activity you can think of.”

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HAVING FUN SHOOTING ON LAND

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 There are plenty of bicycle
mounting options to get your
GoPro capturing your mountain
bike adventures. A simple seat
post or handlebar mount attaches
quickly to the bike. An extension
arm gets the camera out over the
rear mudguard.

On your bike
Probably one of the staples of GoPro
photo and video are shots captured while
the camera is attached to a bike. Whether it
is your mountain bike and you are plunging
down some muddy slope or dashing in
between trees or it is your motorcycle and
you are powering along your favourite
stretch of road, it’s not a problem. The
various mounting options available give
you so many choices as to where to place
your camera. One of the most common is to
mount it on the handlebars, either looking
forward over the front tyre, or back up at the

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 HAVING FUN SHOOTING ON LAND

You can create impressive car rig shots (above) that

emulate the cool automotive advertising images
you see in glossy magazines. Using a GoPro out on a
boom arm or just attached via a suction cup and set to
shoot at a 2 second shutter speed. The car only moves
at walking pace but the result is the illusion of high
speed motion blur. Unless you have some very dark
neutral density filters for your GoPro, you’ll need to
do this at dusk with low light levels.

Record the world from your dog’s point of view

(right) with a canine harness mount. You can
attach it for an above the head view or suspend it
from their chest for your very own ‘dog cam’.

rider. You can also mount it on your cycling bike will remain sharp but the world around Fetch mount and get a particularly ‘doggy’
helmet for a full-on rider’s point of view. you will transform into light trails and motion view of the world. The harness will fit quite
Beyond that, you can mount the camera blur for an extra sense of speed. Of course, comfortably over your dog and not give
low on the front forks so the camera has you can also do something similar either them any discomfort. It’s a bit like the chest
a very low down perspective, with just the inside or outside your car. There is a suction mount harness version for humans. The
front wheel perhaps appearing in one side cup mount that can hold your camera camera can be mounted on the top of the
of the shot to give it some scale and sense in place while you drive around. If you’re harness for an ‘over the shoulder’ look at the
of speed with the wheel spinning. You could worried it will fall off, they are apparently world of your dog or you can mount it across
mount one on the back of the frame looking rated to remain stuck on your car up to their chest, for a lower forward-looking view.
forward for another cool perspective. You speeds of 150 MPH. This one is particularly interesting if your
could mount one on your motorcycle and dog is in a group of other canines and they
go for a ride at dusk, the low light setting will Dog’s eye view are all having a social moment; perhaps
mean you’re using longer shutter speeds If you have a canine friend who is medium your dog is gnawing on his favourite bone or
and if the camera is solidly mounted, the build or larger, you can use the GoPro just doing what dogs do, digging their way

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 Did you know?
You can turn to page 144 for a
Photoshop tutorial that shows you how
this image was created.

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 HAVING FUN SHOOTING ON LAND

A Hero5 Black, mounted on a tripod, takes a

burst sequence of 30 shots over 6 seconds.
The results can be combined in Photoshop
to create a burst mode photo.

to some secret dog treat or just heading for Horsing around Setting up a camera low down and looking
the earth’s core. The top-mounted option Mounting a GoPro to your riding helmet up at a horse jumping a fence can give an
is great for capturing running, jumping and and taking stills and video whilst cantering amazing perspective as the horse clears the
fetching of a favourite ball, stick, or Frisbee over some beautiful moorland terrain can obstacle. Burst Mode is such a great choice
The harness is waterproof and the camera is result in some amazing riders point of view to use in action photography as it ensures
too, so jumping into rivers and the sea is no shots. You could also set your camera up you never miss the shot. You can pick out the
problem. For another perspective, why not on a tripod, put it in Burst Mode to take 30 best image from the sequence and because
try mounting the camera to a stick and see shots over 1, 2 or 3 seconds and capture a of the rapid-fire ability of the Burst Mode
your dog from the stick’s point of view. This sequence of shots as the horse gallops by. setting, you’ll have plenty to choose from so
is the great thing with a camera this small Later you can edit these in Photoshop to you always get the shot you want.
and light. It can go anywhere. create a single combined Burst Mode shot.
Bursting with ideas
The Burst Mode feature can also be
employed as a kind of slow motion capture
device. Set your camera up to capture 30
frames in 1 second and point it a balloon full
of water. If you time it just right, you can fire
the GoPro and start the 30 frame capture
and pop the balloon at the same time. Do it
in bright conditions to ensure a decently fast
shutter speed and you will stand an excellent
chance of catching the elusive moment as
the latex of the balloon bursts and leaves the
liquid inside suspended for the briefest of
moments before gravity wins over. Many high
speed sequences can be shot like this. You
could try a classic egg drop onto concrete
and nab the glorious spatter of egg yolk.

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 World of sports
If you live in a cold country, one that
gets regular snowfall, then you have lots
of opportunities to capture snow-based
sporting activities. The basic premise is
the same as warm weather sport. Skiing,
snow-boarding, sledding, snowmobiling.
They can all be documented in more
exciting ways, and points of view, than
could be done with a DSLR. With skiing,
you can mount the camera to one of your
ski poles, either facing up at you or at the
ground. If snowboarding is more your
thing, mount it to the tip of your board
and either face it forward for a very low
perspective or turn it round and angle it
up at you for the ultimate, action selfie.
The same goes for sledding. Track and
field sports can also be captured in close
up detail thanks to the small size of the
camera. In a similar manner to the horse
jumping a fence, you can mount a camera
to a hurdle and capture the moment as the
athlete jumps over.

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 HAVING FUN SHOOTING ON LAND

Making music
If you are shooting stills or video
of your favourite local band, why not
consider getting up close and personal
with your GoPro. Because of its small
size and weight, it can easily be attached
to the headstock of a guitar with a set
of jaws or suction cup and positioned to
look down the fretboard. This produces
a very distinctive perspective and can
create some lovely candid shots of the
musician as they play. If you are working
in low light conditions, the resulting
motion blur as the guitarist moves can
also create some memorable shots.
Because the camera is attached directly
to the guitar, it always stays sharp, whilst
the world around it swirls and twists.

A jaw clamp (left) or a suction

cup (right) gets your GoPro into
the heart of the gig for great
new perspectives.

very wide field of view is quite handy here,

especially if you hold the camera down low
and angle it up slightly for some cool shots.

and most importantly, it is a candid Tip of the iceberg

Street photography snapshot of the people around you. The These are only a few suggestions as to
This is where the camera’s small size GoPro is so small, that if you had it strapped how you can enjoy using a GoPro outdoors.
and all those mounting options come in to your chest with a chest mount or perhaps There are so many things you can do,
handy once more. Street photography is a on your wrist, it’s small dimensions mean it boggles the mind, but now that we’ve
particular genre where you capture life on it could go unnoticed as you walk through a covered some things to do on land, let’s turn
the streets. It’s all about culture, humanity crowd of people, merrily snapping away. The our attention to the water. n

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 Waves, surf and
going underwater
We dip our toe into water-based action

W
hether you are having fun at the housing that meant they could be taken you trace the origins of the GoPro range,
water’s edge, at a swimming to depths of 196ft (60m). The new HERO5 water-based sports is where it all started.
pool, mucking around in a and HERO6 don’t need a housing. They Nick Woodman, the creator of GoPro, was
stream or doing some serious sport on are waterproof right out of the box to a a keen surfer and it was his desire to get
or below the water’s surface, then you depth of 33ft (10m). If you are feeling an affordable camera, that was small and
know you have a camera that can follow adventurous and want to go deeper with lightweight into the thick of the action,
you every step of the way. Older HERO3 it, there is the HERO5 and 6 compatible that brings us to where we are now. n
and HERO4 models are not waterproof Super Suit dive Housing to get your
but they did come with a protective camera safely down to 196ft (60m). If

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 WAVES, SURF AND GOING UNDERWATER

“Older HERO3 and HERO4

models are not waterproof
but they did come with a
protective housing that meant
they could be taken to depths
of 196ft (60m). ”

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 Whether you are above the waves, on
its surface or in its depths, the GoPro
can handle it all. Amazing water-based
footage and stills are yours for the taking.

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 WAVES, SURF AND GOING UNDERWATER

In their waterproof housings,

the cameras are capable
of reaching depths of 196ft
(60m). This makes them
not only perfect for surface
water sports but at scuba
diving depths too.

Surf’s up Wave action the weather is more overcast, then you

Take a casual glance through Pinterest or That amazing surf and crashing of waves might need to bump the ISO up to 400-800.
Flickr on the subject of surfing and you will is often captured on its own without people Generally speaking, settings such as White
see a huge variety of shots taken of surfers around. A lot of people will forego shooting Balance can be kept on Auto because it
doing their thing. A large percentage of them actual stills with a GoPro and instead actually does a really good job. Turning on
will no doubt have been taken with a GoPro opt to shoot 4K video at 30fps (frames the Protune option will let you capture the
camera. Once again, their size, weight and per second) and extract stills from the highest quality possible from your camera.
waterproofing, allow them to ride along with video footage. A still extracted from a 4K
the surfer, either mounted to themselves frame of video is equivalent to about 8MP, Deeper still
or to their board for intense close up action which still makes it quite usable for a lot of The ability to take the camera down to
shots. There are also third person views applications. There are also photographers 196ft means that it is a perfect companion
taken by a another camera person who was who will mount two cameras together, one for anyone who scuba dives. To take a
in the water with them and taking shots will shoot 4K video as mentioned above DSLR down to those depths would mean
as they sped through the waves. Then, and the other will shoot Burst Mode stills at purchasing a pressure housing, with costs
because of the water capabilities, there are either 15fps (30 frames across 2 seconds) that can run into the thousands. The deeper
also some amazing shots taken beneath or 30fps. If the weather is bright and sunny, you go, the darker it will get, so unless you
the waves, looking up as the board goes by, you can keep the ISO at its lowest setting are filming in the crystal clear seas of the
leaving a sparkling wake. of 100 and still get fast shutter speeds. If Caribbean you may want to make sure

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 WAVES, SURF AND GOING UNDERWATER

Protune is turned on and that your ISO limit skimming the camera just
is set to its max limit, in case you need it to above the surface in front
maintain a decent shutter speed. On the of your dog as it splashes
latest HERO5 and HERO 6 , keeping your through the water. If you’re
Manual Exposure setting above 1/120, at your local pond or
will ensure that the images do not contain beach area, and your dog
motion blur. This is further helped by turning happens to be one of those
on the Electronic Image Stabiliser. that loves to jump into the
water, you can get yourself
Wet dog in position, submerge
Not everyone is a surfer but that doesn’t the camera just below
mean there aren’t other photo opportunities the surface looking up and catch that
nearer the shore, a pool, or just in a local moment as the dog plunges in.
pond in the park. We love our canine friends
If you find you are keen to explore
and using the GoPro means we can capture At the beach underwater filming in more detail, it is a
some very unique perspectives of our dogs The GoPro is also an excellent method good idea to invest in a set of colour filters
to correct the colour cast encountered at
and other animals in water. The use of a to document your day at the beach with
depths between 15ft and 70ft.
waterproof camera enables us to submerge the kids. Now, you can take the camera
it in a stream and get very cool shots of into the water and capture them as they
dogs dipping their heads underwater to play in the surf. You can actually set your
fetch a ball or stick that has just landed in camera to record video and take stills at dive housing is that it stays protected from
the stream. You could use an extension arm the same time, so you have video of the the salt water and also the sand. If you
and mount your camera to the end of that event and access to 12MP stills if you need scratch the dive housing lens panel, it can
and run with your dog through the water, them. A bonus of using the camera in its be replaced.

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 The dome port can create some very fascinating
images. Obviously the clearer the water, the better
the shots will be. Compare a lake in the UK (above),
with a tropical sea (below).

Over and under

There is one form of water photography
that is very popular and also one of the
most visually pleasing kinds of image you
can capture: the over and under shot. Over
and under shots show half the frame as
seen above the waterline and the other half
shows the scene underwater. There’s no
camera trickery involved, it’s just a case of
getting the camera into position to get the
waterline through the middle of the shot.

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 WAVES, SURF AND GOING UNDERWATER

Even if you are only using the GoPro above the

water’s surface, it’s nice to know that if you drop it,
there’s no chance of damage from water ingress.
Just make sure it has a buoyancy aid attached.

Be aware though, that a standard GoPro in paddle upstream on a sunny evening, then
its dive housing cannot produce the shot why not take a GoPro with you to record
you are looking for. You will need what the event. With a simple jaw clamp, you
is called a Dome Port. It is essentially can attach your camera to the hull of the
an acrylic hemispherical dome, canoe and record either yourself as you
usually around 6” across that row your canoe or you can face the way
your GoPro slots onto. There you’re going and capture some footage of
is an aperture on the flat side your friend at the bow as you glide through
of the dome for the lens of the water to your destination. Even if you
the camera to look through. are using the HERO5 or HERO6 Black,
Think of it as a domed diving it might be wise to put it in a waterproof
helmet for your camera. housing to be on the safe side, even
The dome gives you more though they waterproof to 3m without
surface area for the water line their SuperSuit housing. You never know.
to interact with and makes the Putting the camera on a selfie stick is
split shot easier to manage; set a great way to capture yourselves and
your camera up to Wide. Bright friends in a small canoe huddle from a
conditions, with the sun either high more elevated perspective. You can also
in the sky or at your back is preferable, drop the camera low to the water and get
just so the darker water is as well-lit as it a lovely perspective of the paddle cutting
can be. Clarity of water will also be a factor. into the water as it propels you along.
Once you get used to shooting with a dome,
the images you capture will have definite Moving on
wow factor. Now that we’ve covered land and sea,
there is one more place to go. Let’s move
The dome port comes in a number of models that
can accommodate the form factor of the HERO5
Out for a paddle on and consider GoPro photography that
and HERO6 Black, as well as older models like the Rather than hitting the surf, if you are is a little more vertical, as we look up and
HERO3+ and HERO4 Black. more at home in a canoe and happy just to take to the skies. n

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 Taking to
the skies
Get your GoPro airborne for a unique view of the world

F
or many years, if you wanted to indulge in aerial photography, you had no choice
but hire an aircraft of some description to get you, and your expensive camera
gear, aloft. Helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft are hideously expensive to hire.
There are also all the complex and time-consuming issues of permissions, flight
plans, regulations, safety, weather and certification. Only the most highly-trained,
well-paid professionals with a big budget client were able to explore this unique area
of photography. Essentially, aerial photography was strictly off-limits to your average
casual photographer. This was a shame, as aerial work provides such a rare view of the
landscape. With the advent of very small, lightweight cameras like the GoPro range,
getting you own camera airborne has become a much easier prospect. There are a
number of ways to get your camera aloft, and we can show you how. With altitudes
ranging from just a few feet above your head to 400ft, you can get some unique
perspectives on the world. Here are some options you can explore. n

“With the advent of very small,

lightweight cameras like the
GoPro range, getting you own
camera airborne has become
a much easier prospect. There
are a number of ways to get
your camera aloft... ”

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TAKING TO THE SKIES

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 The selfie stick
Love it or loathe it, the selfie stick has
become synonymous with camera phones
and action cameras. Simply mount your
GoPro to one end and hold it by the handle
at the other. You can have the camera
positioned so it’s looking back down at you,
or you can simply use the stick to elevate it
above a crowd, or capture a slightly higher
point of view. The issue here becomes one
of how you frame your shots. Even with the
new HERO5 and its LCD monitor on the
back, is of no help when it is at the end of
a pole 4 or 5ft away from you. Luckily, you
have the option to pair your GoPro via a
Wi-Fi connection to your phone and use the
GoPro app as a live view monitor and also be

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 TAKING TO THE SKIES

Mounted safe inside the

AER’s frame, your GoPro can
capture some lovely aerial
perspectives once thrown
in the air.

The line mount is a simple

and stable method of getting
a GoPro attached to your
kitesurfing rig for some
amazing birds-eye views.

able to fire the camera when you choose. get your aerial shots. AER is essentially a camera airborne. You can also achieve some
Otherwise you’ll have to set your camera to large foam dart with your GoPro mounted good height with it too. You could suspend
Continuous shooting mode and you’ll have inside its protective casing that still leaves the camera beneath the kite but it will be
to hope you can frame the shot required the camera’s wide angle view unobstructed. extremely unstable unless you use what
while it’s taking photos. Some prefer just to It is very stable and yet lightweight enough is known as a picavet. This is a cradle that
shoot 4K video and later review the footage to be thrown over a good distance. It is very keeps the camera steady. Better to mount
and take ‘grabs’ of frames where the easy to put together and has the benefit it securely to the kite’s frame or use a line
composition suits their needs. of being crash proof and it also floats. For mount. You can also use helium balloons.
the ultimate aerial selfie, set your GoPro to These are not the kid’s party variety. For a
Just throw it! Burst Mode and just throw it vertically in quality balloon lifting system that could carry
Okay, that may sound like a daft thing the air, and as it rolls over at its zenith and a GoPro, you would need a latex balloon up
to do. Why would you risk your shiny new returns to you, you have some great shots to 6 feet in diameter, filled with helium and
GoPro camera by just throwing it in the being captured. secured with a strong tether to keep your
air and hoping to catch a couple of good rig from heading for the stratosphere and
shots as it tumbles through the sky. Well, Kites and balloons becoming a menace to aircraft. A fishing reel
there is actually a product available that Using a kite, particularly a controllable with very strong monofilament is a good way
requires you to do exactly that in order to stunt kite is a cheap method to get your to keep your balloon under control.

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 The DJI Phantom is one of the most
popular aerial vehicles used for getting
GoPros in the air. Their 3-axis gimbal
stabilises the motion of the camera to
produce silky smooth video.

Flying high
Next up, and probably one of the most
popular choices for getting your GoPro
airborne are the quadcopters. The market
for radio controlled quadcopters has
exploded over the past few years and
ready-to-fly models are in abundance. The
DJI Phantom 2 is one such model and it was
designed with the use of a GoPro HERO
3 or HERO4 in mind. You can purchase a
version which has a 3-axis stabilised cradle
slung beneath into which the GoPro neatly
slots. With a flight time of around 25min,
you are assured plenty of time to shoot your
airborne outdoor sessions. The Phantom is
ultra stable and very easy to fly. It even has
a ‘return home’ function that, at the touch of

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 TAKING TO THE SKIES

The Karma is GoPro’s own aerial vehicle

that can carry a HERO5 or HERO6. The
stabilising unit can be taken out and used
hand-held if required. There are also
adapters to use older HERO models.

a button, will fly itself back to base and land equipment and wanted to extend their in use. When you are finished, you can
for you. The GoPro isn’t directly controllable shooting and capture capabilities by adding actually take the stabiliser out and use it as
when it is in flight, you absolutely must keep airborne footage to the roster. The Karma a handheld camera stabiliser instead. The
its Wi-Fi function disabled because it can is a quadcopter with a couple of great range of the quad is limited by the fact it
interfere with the signal from the controller. selling points. It is not as feature rich as the uses a Wi-Fi signal to control it and stream
You can use a 5.8Ghz transmitter to relay Phantom range of quadcopters but is a very video, but you can still reach altitudes of
pictures of what the camera is seeing to a capable quad for getting your GoPro aloft 200ft. The Karma’s controller is a game-
monitor attached to your controller. That and shooting great new perspectives. The style control system with a flip up screen so
way you can jockey the drone into the whole ethos of GoPro has been its simplicity you can monitor the action. You can even
perfect position for the shot you want. and portability and that has been carried tell the craft to perform preset movements
over into the Karma. For one thing, the such as orbiting a point of interest.
Karma Karma can actually fold away, so it easily
Seeing the potential in the aerial image fits in a small backpack. The interesting Going solo
capture market, GoPro themselves aspect of the Karma is its stabilisation The Solo, made by 3DR is one of a number
developed a drone of their own called system. Rather than using a 3-axis gimbal of drones made specifically for professional
the Karma. It was aimed squarely at slung beneath the craft, it uses a standalone aerial camerawork and photography using
those people who already owned GoPro device that just slots into the Karma whilst the GoPro. The Solo can stream full HD

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 TAKING TO THE SKIES

There are now a number of quadcopters on

the market that can lift a GoPro. The 3DR
Solo is a solid performer and easy to fly. It’s
not in production but still worth a look for a
bargain price. There are also any number
of cheap alternatives that may prove an
easy way to try out aerial filming.

video to your tablet or phone. It does

not require additional kit to transmit
the video signal back to you and it
boasts long flight times and advanced
flight features that make it an aerial
cinematographer’s dream. Production of
the Solo has ended but there is plenty of
stock out there and bargains to be had.

Going into freefall Helmet mounts are readily available for all aspects
Not many of us are certified skydiving of sport. In fact, many helmet manufacturers
enthusiasts but if you are doing a charity produce models with GoPro mounting brackets built
in. Otherwise there are some very durable adhesive
tandem jump or just taking a trip in a hot
pad mounting options too.
air balloon, keep a GoPro with you. You
could hold your camera out over the edge
of the balloon’s basket on a selfie stick for
some heart-stopping aerial perspectives.
You could even just press your camera
up against an aircraft window and get
some great shots of the wing and the
terrain far below. A skydive is even more
memorable if you can capture images
of the entire dive from going out the
aircraft’s hatch, the thrill of freefall,
hanging beneath the canopy when it
deploys, to final touchdown.

Go outside and GoPro

So there you have it. If you are on land,
sea or air, the GoPro action camera is
a serious option for capturing those
moments that might defy a DSLR. To be
honest, you’re never going to use a GoPro
for a serious portrait shoot or detailed
HDR landscape shots but the action
camera deserves a place in your kit bag.
Its go anywhere, do anything, mount to
everything capability, makes it worthy of
being called indispensable. n

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 IMAGE
EDITING
Learn how to get the most from your stills

W
e’ve covered video editing already, so now it’s time to have a
look at image editing. We’ve mentioned a number of times
that the GoPro HERO5 and 6 Black can now shoot stills in
Raw mode. We think that’s actually a big deal, since it means there is
much greater image quality. When used in your favourite Raw editing
software, the possibilities in bringing out detail and recovering parts
of the image lost to shadow or highlight are very much improved.
We thought we’d show you a couple of techniques to get the most
out of your GoPro HERO stills and hopefully elevate them from
simple snaps, to images that just took a step closer to emulating a
dedicated digital camera. n

136 - 139 High dynamic range images

140 - 143 Burst mode composites
144 - 147 Processing GoPro Raw files

“We thought we’d show you a couple of

techniques to get the most out of your
GoPro HERO stills and hopefully elevate
them from simple snaps, to images that just
took a step closer to emulating a dedicated
digital camera.”

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 IMAGE EDITING

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 High dynamic AFTER

range images
Capture more tone and detail
BEFORE

T
he capture of stills in Raw format is great news if you want to use your
GoPro more as a camera rather than a video capture device but there will
always be occasions when the lighting conditions are too extreme for
even the best digital cameras. That’s where High Dynamic Range, or HDR, comes
in. Essentially, it requires the capture of several frames where the exposure
has been altered on each one. There is one base exposure, and then you shoot
a frame that is underexposed to keep the bright highlights from blowing out,
and another that is overexposed to make sure you can see detail in the darkest
shadows. These three different exposures are then merged to create an image
that contains more tonal data than one on its own. You can then process that file
to reveal more detail and tonal range than you could with just one shot. n

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 HIGH DYNAMIC RANGE IMAGES

Out on location, we shot an example that could benefit from The camera was placed on a tripod and a base exposure was
01 being turned into an HDR image. This sunrise has a lot of
02 taken. Then under the Protune settings, the EV Compensation
tonal variation that would be difficult to shoot without the use of was reduced to -2.0 to underexpose the scene and the next shot
fancy filters. taken. Then it was set to +2.0 to overexpose the scene.

This gave us three 12MP Raw files that in combination would With your shots downloaded you are able to review them
03 04
reveal more tones than one shot on its own. This is the basic using Adobe Bridge CC 2017. Pick out the shot you want to
concept behind how HDR works. Now the shots needed to be back work on and click the three different exposures that were taken of the
on the computer. same scene and highlight them.

With the three exposures highlighted, a right-click on their ACR will open and display the images in the filmstrip on the
05 thumbnails opens a sub menu where you can choose the
06 left of the screen. Click one to highlight it; then if you right-
option to Open In Camera Raw. Clicking this commands Adobe click, you can choose Select All to highlight all three images.
Camera Raw (ACR) to open the three files.

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 You want all three processed at the same time. This is With all three raw files highlighted, go to the Lens Corrections
07 important as you want to apply the same adjustments, some
08 tab at the top right of the screen. Here you can enable Profile
of which affect the distortion in the images, so they don’t misalign Corrections to remove some or all of the distortion created by the
when you merge them later. GoPro wide angle lens.

By default, ACR will remove all fisheye distortion but it will Next comes the merging process. With the three files still
09 10
stretch the image somewhat as it does so. If you want, you highlighted, right-click them and choose Merge To HDR from
can alter the Correction Amount and dial it back from 100 to about the list.
75, or until it looks how you want it.

This will bring up the HDR Merge Preview panel. Under The clouds have moved between each exposure, so clicking
11 Options, make sure Align Images is ticked. Even if shot on a
12 on the Deghost option will eliminate a lot of the ghosting you
tripod, they could still move a tiny amount; this makes sure they are might see when they are finally combined. The Show Overlay button
as well aligned as possible. reveals which areas require you to apply the most deghosting.

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 HIGH DYNAMIC RANGE IMAGES

The Auto Tone button is down to personal taste. Clicking Click Merge to begin the process. It will ask for a Merge
13 this will apply a basic set of tonal adjustments to get you
14 Result filename and then you can Save the result. It will then
started. You can leave it unchecked so you can work on your image merge the shots and create a new DNG file which appears in the
adjustments from scratch. filmstrip below your original shots.

Now you can work on the DNG file and add whatever When you have the DNG looking how you want it, you can
15 16
adjustments you want to get the most out of the image. click Done to apply the adjustments non-destructively and
We tweaked Contrast, Highlights and Shadows as well as boosting return to Adobe Bridge.
Clarity (midtone contrast) and saturation.

Here you will see the new DNG file with all the adjustments in You can also open it into Photoshop and make any further
17 place. You can reopen it in ACR for further editing if you wish.
18 pixel-based manipulations as you require. You can then
Note, there are small icons in the top right of the thumbnail indicating save the final image as a high quality Jpeg or Tiff and call your HDR
that edits have been applied. project complete.

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 Burst mode AFTER

composites
Combine an action sequence into one cool image
BEFORE

W
ith its ability to capture stills at up to 30 frames per second,
shooting an action sequence and firing off a burst means you
are more likely to get that one frame where the action is perfect
for your needs. Before you decide to throw the rest of the sequence away,
why not combine all the shots in that sequence into one image. It is a great
way to show action and movement over time. We have a sequence of a
horse riding by. It was shot in burst mode at a rate of 30 frames over 6
seconds. The camera was mounted on a tripod to keep it stationary during
the capture. Back on the computer, we then picked out the best shots and
were ready to make our finished composite. n

In adobe Bridge, you can see the 14 shots that will Even though these are Jpeg files, you can still open them
01 comprise your burst mode composite. One shot is just an
02 in Adobe Camera Raw (ACR) and process them a little to
empty reference shot with no horse and rider in it. improve the contrast and colour. Select all the shots and right-click
them and choose Open In Camera Raw to start.

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 BURST MODE COMPOSITES

All the photos will open in ACR. The first thing to do is Under the Basic adjustments tab, we boosted Contrast
03 04
right-click the top thumbnail and choose Select All from the and Highlights. We also increased Clarity, which is midtone
menu. All the shots will be highlighted and you can apply all amends contrast. Vibrance and Saturation have also been boosted to add
collectively, so they all look the same. more density of colour to the shots.

Next, we’re going to darken the sky. Go to Graduated Filter in Click and drag from the top of the screen down to the
05 the top menu bar. The properties for the Graduated Filter can
06 horizon. The Graduated Filter effect will darken the sky. Right-
be altered in the panel on the right. Exposure is -1, Contrast is +25 click your highlighted thumbnails and choose Sync Settings. Click
and Clarity +20. Check All and hit OK to apply this grad to all your images.

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 If you want, you can add another Graduated Filter coming Your images are now much more punchy. You can also do
07 from the ground up, to make the foreground a little darker and
08 a Batch Rename to make their filenames run in sequence.
Sync All to apply that to all shots. When you’re ready, click Done in Now you can go to Tools > Photoshop > Load Files Into Photoshop
the bottom right to proceed. Layers. This will open your sequence in a Photoshop document.

You have your shots in one layered document with ‘shot 01’ Click ‘shot 01’ to make it active and go to the toolbar and
09 10
at the top. ‘Shot 14’ at the bottom of the stack is the empty select the Lasso Tool (L). Click and drag to draw carefully
reference layer which will become useful as we proceed. Make sure around the outline of the distant horse and rider when you join back
all the layers are visible. up to the start point you drew and let go, a selection will be created.

With the selection active, click on the Add Layer Mask icon Click on each layer and draw around the horse and rider
11 under your layers palette. The mask will isolate the horse and
12 and add a layer mask to each one. You will see that you
rider on the ‘shot 01’ layer. ‘Shot 02’ will also now be visible. Make are progressing across the screen with each one being revealed
this layer active and repeat the process started in step 10. in sequence.

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 BURST MODE COMPOSITES

Once you get to ’shot 12’ and ‘shot 13’, where the horses’ tail If you look closely, you will notice that ‘shot 12’ has a visible
13 is disappearing off to the left, each layer will have a mask on it.
14 edge to it. The colour is very slightly different and it shows up.
Only ‘shot 14’ doesn’t need one as there is no horse and rider. All the You can eliminate the hard edge of the mask quite easily.
masked layers have ‘shot 14’ as their background.

Click on the ‘shot 12’ layer mask to activate it and then This softens and blurs the mask by a small amount and
15 16
from its Properties panel adjust the Feather value to about therefore softens the transition of the masked image on the
14 pixels. ‘shot 12’ layer above ‘shot 14’ background layer.

You can do the same to any of the masks where you feel With that, you are done. You can save the layered document
17 there is a hard edge visible and where the colour or exposure
18 as a PSD file and then Save As to either a Jpeg or Tiff,
doesn’t quite match between that layer and the empty ‘shot 14’ whichever is your preference.
reference layer at the bottom of the stack.

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 Processing GoPro AFTER

Raw files
Get the most from your GoPro images
BEFORE

U
p until the release of the HERO5 Black, any still images you captured
were in Jpeg format. You could shoot some decent photos if the light
was good but as soon as the light conditions became tricky, then the
images would soon start to show their weaknesses relative to the kind of shots
you’d get from a DSLR. The HERO5 has changed that with its ability to shoot in
Raw format, which is a data readout of the sensor with no processing applied
to it. You can squeeze more image data from a Raw file than you can from an
already processed Jpeg file. This means that suddenly, you can shoot in more
demanding situations and have a chance of recovering more data and having a
usable image. We have such an example to show you next. It outlines how much
you can recover an image with a non-destructive workflow. n

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 PROCESSING GoPro RAW FILES

We have an image of a harbour sunrise that was shot on We are viewing the file in Adobe Bridge. The foreground
01 a HERO5 Black in Raw format. The file it creates is given a
02 is quite underexposed but the bright sky has come out
.GPR file extension. A GPR file is based on Adobe’s Digital Negative reasonably well. We just need to be able to balance the tones out a
lossless image format. little better.

If you right-click on the image, a menu will appear. Choose You can use other Raw processing software such as
03 04
Open In Camera Raw and it will open Adobe Camera Raw Lightroom which has a lot of similarities with ACR. The
(ACR) which comes with Photoshop. You’ll need to make sure you basic adjustments you need to make are common to most of the
have an up to date version that can read GPR files. mainstream Raw editing packages.

The first thing to do is to click on the Lens Corrections tab on You can control how much of the distortion is removed by
05 the right of the screen. This allows you to tick the Remove
06 moving the Distortion slider between 0 and 100, until you
Chromatic Aberration and Enable Profile Correction buttons that will have it how you want it.
remove any unwanted fisheye distortion.

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 Next you can click on the Straighten Tool (A) and drag your This will crop the image in such a way as to make that harbour
07 cursor over a part of the shot you know you want to be level.
08 wall level. You can drag the corner control points of the crop
In this case, we’ve dragged a line across the harbour wall on the right in order to crop more of the image if you should wish. We’ve cropped
of the scene. out some empty foreground.

Click on the Basics tab and here you can start to adjust We lightened the shadows in the shot by a large margin as
09 10
parameters such as Exposure, Contrast, Shadows and well as boosting Vibrance and Saturation. Now the image is
Highlights to begin to get the image more tonally balanced. starting to look much better already. One thing you may want to do is
clean up the water in the foreground.

Zoom in on the foreground and click on the Spot Removal Next, click on the Graduated Filter button (G). You are
11 button (B). This gives you a virtual brush that lets you clone
12 going to use it to create a digital version of a filter that
out unwanted blemishes. Click on an area you want to remove and it darkens the sky. Set the filters properties to underexpose the
will fill it with a nearby area of water. image by -1.75.

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 PROCESSING GoPro RAW FILES

Click and drag on the top of the image down to the horizon. You’re also going to make a more targeted adjustment
13 The sky will become darker. If you alter the Temperature of
14 using an Adjustment Brush (K). This should also be set to
the filter’s properties, you can make the warmth of the clouds really underexpose and to be a much cooler Temperature. By brushing the
stand out. blue sky only, you can make it darker and more saturated.

Finally, you’re going to add a new adjustment brush which Back in the Basic tab, we made a few more tweaks to make
15 16
is set to overexposure by +1.50. Now you can make the it more vibrant by boosting Exposure slightly and increasing
foreground boats and water a little brighter so they stand out. the Vibrance.

When you are happy with your adjustments, you can click Your GPR file is now amended with your adjustments.
17 on the Done button at the bottom right of the screen. All the
18 The top right of the thumbnail indicates you have made
adjustments you’ve added will be saved with the image and you can adjustments. You can open this in Photoshop and work on it further
come back and alter them at any time. if you wish or just save it as a Jpeg of Tiff straight from ACR.

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 The GoPro Glossary
A list of some terms you may encounter

.GPR file Anti-Fog inserts FPS

A raw file format based on the Adobe DNG Small strips of material that absorb Refers to how many frames are captured
format. HERO5 Black cameras can shoot moisture to prevent condensation. in one second in either video or stills
stills in this format. mode.
BacPac
.LRV file An attachment that fits onto the back of FOV
This stands for Low Resolution Video a GoPro camera such as and LCD screen Stands for Field Of View. FOV is a measure
which is created for use in the GoPro app or battery. of how much of a scene is visible in a shot.

1080p Body Mount Floaty

Refers to 1920x1080 GoPro mounts that attach to you A floatation device to keep your GoPro
resolution used in directly, such as a helmet or chest afloat if dropped in water.
“Full HD” images mount
and footage. Gimbal
Burst Mode An electronic device used on handheld
16:9 A stills capture mode that allows for up equipment or UAV’s to stabilise the
An aspect ratio to 30 shots to be taken in 1 second. camera’s movement.
for widescreen
format. Most Codec GoPro Studio
GoPro video A computer program that can encode or A video editing program for GoPro video
formats shoot in decode a stream of digital data such as footage.
this aspect ratio. a video file.
Housing
2.7k Drone A waterproof acrylic shell used to protect
Refers to an ultra- The name given to unmanned aerial the camera when diving.
high resolution vehicles capable of lifting a GoPro aloft.
video mode that HiLight Tag
is 2716x1440 Export This is where you mark a key moment in a
An edited video sequence can be video clip.
4:3 exported as a single file suitable for
A more square aspect playback on computer or video based KAP
ratio. GoPro stills and players. Refers to Kite Aerial Photography. Using
certain video modes shoot in this kites to lift cameras aloft.
aspect ratio. Evaluative Metering
The entire frame of the image is LCD BacPac
4k analysed to calculate the best exposure. An LCD monitor screen that attaches to
Refers to the UHD resolution video the back of a GoPro to preview shots and
mode that is 3840x2160. File Chapter play back files.
The splitting of large video files.
720p Loop Mode
Refers to 1280x720 resolution. The base Fish-eye Automatically and continuously records
standard of High Definition by YouTube. Seen in very wide-angle lenses. It is a for a set time, then records over it until you
spherical distortion often called barrel press the stop button.
Anamorphic distortion.
When black bars are added to videos to
help achieve a cinematic look.

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 THE GoPro GLOSSARY

MicroSD Wasabi
A very small memory card form factor A third party
used by GoPro cameras. manufacturer of
GoPro batteries.
MP
Stands for Megapixels. This is the GPS low light conditions at the cost of increased
standard measure for the size of a video Global Positioning System. The method image noise.
or photo in pixels. used by many devices to receive data from
satellites to triangulate their position on the White Balance
Protune globe to within a few metres. This lets you adjust the colour balance of
A method of optimising your footage and your stills and video. Measured in Kelvins,
stills for further editing on a computer. NTSC lower values are warmer in tone. Higher
The North American television display values are colder in tone.
Quadcopter frame rate. Selecting the correct frame rate
A type of radio controlled helicopter with can eliminate flicker when played back on a WDR
four rotors such as the DJI Phantom. TV in this region. Stands for Wide Dynamic Range. This
setting is useful when trying to capture
Quik PAL images with a wide range of bright and dark
Lets you quickly import, edit and share The television display frame rate for most tones. It is a Photo Mode only option and
your footage. There are desktop and televisions outside of North America. cannot be used when Raw is turned on.
mobile device versions. Selecting the correct frame rate can
eliminate flicker when played back on a TV ACR
Resolution in these regions. A shortened term for Adobe Camera Raw.
Resolution refers to how large an image or ACR is a Raw processing application that
video is. Higher resolution means bigger Raw comes as part of Photoshop. It can be used
files but increased detail is visible. When applied to either images or audio, Raw to process GoPro Raw files.
is a minimally processed file that maintains
Spot Meter maximum quality. Karma
Using a single point in the centre of the The name given to the unmanned aerial
frame to measure exposure. NTSC vehicle developed at GoPro. It is capable of
The North American television display lifting a GoPro HERO5 or 6 aloft for amazing
SuperView frame rate. Selecting the correct frame rate aerial footage. There are cage adapters for
Footage captured in 4:3 ratio is can eliminate flicker when played back on a the HERO4 Black too.
dynamically manipulated to fit the TV in this region.
widescreen 16:9 format. Dome Port
EV Compensation An acrylic dome with an aperture in its
Skeleton Adjusting this setting on your GoPro allows centre that can house a GoPro camera. It
A camera housing that has open sides for you to either underexpose or overexpose can be used to shoot underwater images
access to USB and HDMI ports. your stills and video to accommodate and video as well as over and under split
lighting conditions. shots at the surface.
Timelapse
The capture of multiple images over a long ISO Super Suit
period of time which when played back ISO determines how sensitive the camera The name given to the underwater dive
shows an accelerated passage of time. is to light. Low ISO values are less sensitive housing for the GoPro HERO5 and 6. It
and give better image quality. High ISO protects the cameras down to a depth of
values make the camera more sensitive in 60m (196ft).

www.pclpublications.com 149
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