This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
The GoPro HERO5 Black’s Shooting Modes
The HERO5 Black offers four video-shooting modes—Video, Video + Photo, Looping, and Time Lapse Video—each of which is useful for specific types of shooting situations. You will find, however, that you’ll use the Video shooting mode the majority of the time.
When adjusting video settings, three of the more important decisions you’ll make, based on your shooting situation, as well as your own creativity and what you’re trying to achieve, will be about the most appropriate shooting resolution, FPS rate, and FOV.
The Video shooting mode allows you to activate and adjust a series of advanced features, including Protune, Video Stabilization, Auto Low Light, and Manual Audio Control. The Protune feature offers a selection of user-adjustable settings, which are explained later in this chapter.
Video Shooting Mode
This shooting mode allows you to capture HD video, complete with audio. Whether you’re holding the camera, have it mounted on yourself or your equipment, or you position it using a mount, extension pole, stabilizer, or tripod, when you press the Shutter button, the camera begins recording and continues until you press the Shutter button a second time.
When you press the Shutter button, the camera beeps once to let you know recording has started. As you’re recording, the red status lights on the camera flash, indicating that recording is underway. When you press the Shutter button to stop recording, the camera beeps three times to indicate recording has stopped.
Following are the options you can adjust before you begin recording:
Resolution—The available Resolution options vary based on the camera you’re using. As you saw in Table 11.1, the most comprehensive selection of Resolution options is offered by the HERO5 Black camera.
Frames Per Second (FPS)—The FPS options are dependent on your choice of resolution.
Field of View (FOV)—FOV is also based on which resolution and FPS options you select. FOV determines how much you’ll take advantage of the camera’s fixed wide angle lens, and how much of what’s in front of and to the sides of the camera’s lens will be caught in the frame and recorded.
Auto Low Light—When turned on, the camera automatically compensates for low light or changing light as you’re shooting video. This is a useful feature to use when shooting in the evening or at night or when you’re indoors and minimal lighting is available. It also works well when the camera is moving between well lit and poorly lit areas while shooting video.
Protune—When turned on, this option allows you to manually adjust specific camera settings that are otherwise controlled automatically by the camera. Protune-related options for video include Color, White Balance, ISO Limit, Shutter, EV Comp, Sharpness, and Audio. When you turn on the Protune feature, the Protune submenu is displayed. From this menu, it’s possible to adjust each setting.
Turn On and Customize the Protune and Advanced Features for Video
After you’ve set the HERO5 Black to the Video shooting mode, follow these steps to access and adjust the Protune settings:
From the viewfinder screen, place your finger near the right edge of the touchscreen and swipe to the left.
Scroll through the advanced settings menu until you see the Protune option. If you want to adjust one of the other advanced settings, such as Video Stabilization, Auto Low Light, or Manual Audio Control, tap its menu screen to access that feature’s submenu.
Tap the Protune On/Off icon to turn on the feature.
From the Protune submenu screen, tap each option you want to manually adjust.
Each Protune option, including Color, White Balance, ISO Limit, Shutter, EV Comp, Sharpness, and Audio, has a separate submenu screen where you can select specific settings for the option. Shown here is the Sharpness option submenu screen.
Return to the viewfinder screen by placing your finger near the left edge of the touchscreen and swiping to the right. The viewfinder screen displays icons representing the Protune features you’ve activated or customized.
Press the Shutter button when you’re ready to begin filming (not shown).
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Video+Photo Shooting Mode
This shooting mode allows you to shoot HD video and simultaneously take digital images at a predetermined resolution and time interval. After you select the Video+Photo shooting mode, you choose your video Resolution, FPS, FOV, and Interval settings. Protune is not available with this shooting mode.
The video content files are stored separately from the photo files on your camera’s memory card, although both are created at the same time.
Looping Video Mode
This video option allows you to select a time interval, such as 5, 20, 60, or 120 minutes, and have the camera capture and record video during that time period. When the selected time period ends, if you press the Shutter button, the video recording is saved onto the microSD memory card and a new recording begins.
However, if you fail to press the Shutter button at the end of the time period, the recording will not be saved, and the camera begins recording again.
If you set the Max option on the Interval submenu for the Looping Video feature, the camera keeps recording HD video (using the settings you choose) until the microSD memory card reaches its capacity. At this point, you can either save the footage, or allow the camera to automatically erase the previously recorded footage and begin recording again until the camera’s memory card is filled.
With the Looping shooting mode, you can adjust the resolution, FPS, FOV, and interval, but Protune is not available. Compared to the Video shooting mode, your resolution and related settings are more limited.
Time Lapse Video
To access this shooting mode, you first need to choose the Time Lapse camera mode. Then, prior to shooting, you can adjust the resolution, interval, and FOV options. Protune is not available. The resolution and FOV options are more limited than what’s available for the Video shooting mode.
