What video camera to mount on 308?

GoPro's suction cup mount is very secure on the outside of the car at speed. Slight curvature of the mounting surface should not be a factor.

At track events, the camera assembly must be tethered to the car whether mounted inside or outside the car. I recommend the use of a tether for recreational use too.

 

Great to hear. Any fear of scratching paint when put on a painted surface?

Yup. Always do. For the 308, the camera is going to have to live outside the car since there is no back seat. Good thing there is that nice spoiler above the rear window to tie things to.

Before putting it on the track, I just want to get used to the car on autocross. I bet it's suspension doesn't load and reload like my BMW: 2009 AX5 BA Sideways Run - YouTube

Loove your F355 Challenge btw.

 

Thank you, Brian.

I've only mounted the GoPro with its suction cup mount to the upper aspect of the rear window in the 550. It's amazing how secure it is. I've seen others at track events mount their GoPros to painted exterior surfaces without any damage to the paint by the suction cup mount.

I'll be mounting the GoPro to the roll cage in the F355 Challenge.

Barry

 

Nice autocrossing, Brian.

You should think about mounting your camera to the inside of your rear window in your QV with a view out the windshield between the seat backs as I did in my 550. You'll get less wind noise and it can be better managed with something like the "Micover" I use on the GoPro...
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I'm a little concerned for mounting it inside because the suction cup would be across the defogger heat traces. Maybe I am being overly worried.

The wind fur is a good idea. Greatly reduces the attractiveness to theives too! I just started using a piece of tape over the microphone which worked surprisingly well.

I was browsing Amazon this evening looking at new camera options (yeah, yeah, I know I said I don't need more cameras). There are some which have an external microphone jack, which would be great to split to two mono mics; one near the engine and the other in the cabin. They could be mixed afterward. (I never too this, so I am probably making it more complicated than I would ever want.) A big issue is that almost none have a very wide angle lens (a 28mm equivalent gets the whole view through the windshield).

I am going to go out the garage to fiddle with my iphone to see if it might work. GoPro Hero3 is seriously cool, but $400 for a plastic camera???!!??...

 

I don't think it's going to be a problem for your defogger lines. When you take it off, use a plastic scraper (like a credit card) or fishing line to cut the foam adhesive.

Another great mount that I have is one that fits on the bar's below the passenger seat's headrest called The CruiseCam. I also gives an over-the-driver's-shoulder view, with a quick attach/detach. Works well for the GoPro Hero or *ANY* camera with a tripod mount screw hole. I've used it at many track events and for group-drive footage.

 

I often use our Sony Action Cam suction cup mount on both the inside and outside of my 308's rear window, no problem. And actually, it uses a standard tripod screw-style mount, so it can be used with whatever camera you like.

Again, full disclosure: I work for Sony in the camcorder group. So you can interpret that as 1) I know what I'm talking about, or 2) I'm a corporate shill Either way, happy to answer any questions about any of these cameras in an unbiased way.

Good luck, and try not to munch too many cones!

 

EXCELLENT tip! This is EXACTLY what I want. I had seen this type before, but forgot about them. Thank you.

... come to think of it, one of my existing mounts, made out of 3/4" square aluminum tubing, could easily be converted with a bit of drilling and a couple of U-bolts. I wouldn't hesitate to put my 60D and 24-105 L on that mount. An issue is how to keep the end of the bar from harming the driver in the case of the unthinkable (violent crash). Maybe its just by bridging all the way across the two headrests.

Great to get input from an expert. I've always wanted a suction cup mount, just because they are cool and this is a good excuse to buy one. For autocross (not so much for track) its good to have a clear view of the front wheel(s) to see how precise you are placing the car (no point penalty for touching a cone without moving it). If they don't scratch paint, a suction cup mount on the side of the car positions the camera perfectly.

I was surprised yesterday evening just how good the iPhone image looked. Apple must use extensive image processing to straighten the lines and brighten up the corners of an image made with what must be a truly crappy lens by tranitional standards. GoPro images used to be pretty awful too (huge barrel distortion) but they are looking pretty good now too.

 

The inside shots are cool but the vids taken from other cars are so much cooler. I love seeing the 308 in action from the outside. It is such a beautiful car in action.

 

My favorite is to mount the gopro down low just behind the front wheel so you can see the wheel tilt in & out with the turns. With the wide POV, you get to see other cars too.
On the rear quarter panel isn't bad either so the length of the car is captured.

On the 355 spyder, I like to stick it on the rear deck just behind the FERRARI so that it shows on playback as the camera captures the images out the front window. Though beware of male pattern baldness.

Though I'll have to admit, I'd love to do a Rendezvous-type shot.

I did just buy an external mic for it with a fuzzy wind screen. I'll try that shortly as well as running an extension cable & sticking the mic near the engine.
here's the mic and you'll need gopro's Skeleton case. They are cheap enough.

 

Brian,

Here's the GoPro suction cup mount and a detail of the cup which is very soft. No adhesive is needed. It should be OK as far as the rear window heater elements.

Barry
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Decide on the GoPro Hero3 Black edition because they have a NVG helmet mount.

Sledge have you done this on a road that you can really get into it?

 

So Chris, after all that, did you bite the bullet and buy a camera?? If so, where's all the video??????? LOL

 

Bringing this thread back.

What would be the latest camera recommendations? Anyone tried GoPro Hero 4?

Thanks in advance!

 

I have a bunch of cameras.

Nowadays, it really doesn’t matter as much as it used to; virtually all cameras from iPhone to Professional SLRs do good video.

There are several issues to think about though regarding in-car use:

1. Size: You don’t want a brick loose in cockpit should the unthinkable happen (roll-over). Small is good.

2. Lens Design: The modern “action cams” (Hero, Sony etc.) have super-wide field of view but also provide a grossly distorted image (for example, unless the horizon is exactly in the middle, it will curve horribly) (to be fair, this is considered by many to be an attractive “style”.) Regular point-and-shoot and SLRs render straight lines straight.

3. Microphones: Usually the cockpit noise doesn’t sound as cool as using a remote microphone tucked near the exhaust pipe. Some cameras allow use of an external microphone. Oddly, $5 external computer microphones work great. Some point-and-shoot cameras rattle loudly when in a vibrating automobile environment.

4. Convenience: Action Cams usually can be linked to a smart phone to view the image, start and stop recording etc.: very handy. Some point-and-shoot cameras also have that feature; not sure about SLRs.

 

I would generally stay away from SLRs if you can. They take up much more space then you expect and their mass makes a really good mount hard to keep stable, especially for any sort of real action. However, I did get a nice hefty suction grip for the side window that had no problem staying stuck (wiggles not withstanding)

FWIW, this is as good a time as any to share a time lapse drive from Houston to Santa Fe in my 993 (using an SLR taking shots ever 5 seconds)

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaWsHNNm4Do[/ame]

 

Very good advice, especially the size and microphone ones, never thought of these two. I'm looking at Hero 4 session edition. Any other suggestions from your experience?

 

Interesting frame by frame video.

 

Sorry, no real suggestions. Heros are very popular although expensive. It all comes down to personal preference; you can't go wrong.