Friday, April 1, 2011

I'm Back, and I'm Chesty

Yes, I was gone for that whole month in order to undergo Breast Enhancement. Rare for a dude, I know, but I'm not your average turnip, y'know?



OK, that was my lame attempt at an April Fool's joke. What follows is the post I really wrote for today... there's still a Chesty tie-in, so be cool.

Hey all, I'm back from my March Break. Sadly I am no more caught up with my real life than I was before I took it, but I suppose that was to be expected. I was also hoping to find new inspiration for stuff to write about, but that didn't really happen either. Ah well, no worries about that, because I can happily fill my blog pages with empty tedious ramblings until my muse returns... like talking about video cameras!

My cheap old camera broke real good, so I began looking for a weatherproof replacement. As will happen sometimes, shopping around just made me want more and better. Eventually I settled on the GoPro® HD HERO Naked, because I didn't really want the helmet version and this camera is the only one I found with a Chest Mount option, which they have dubbed the "Chesty".


My thinking was that when on the bike your chest may be one of the "quietest" places on your body in terms of motion or vibration. In addition, unlike a helmet cam, the video doesn't sweep side to side like crazy as I navigate city traffic with my head on a swivel. I have barely begun playing with the cam but I thought I would show some of the video from this morning's commute. I want your opinion on whether you like me chesty (which means my arms and hands and bars are in the shot) or would rather have the cam back on the bars where I would likely have to go back to using deshaker software to stabilize the image.

The video I'm posting today is just raw, no deshaker action or title pages or any of my usual stuff. Anyway here goes...







Those videos were shot with the cam set on 720p. It'll do 1080, but I don't see the point when 720 allows a wider viewing angle (170 degrees) and 60 fps in case I want to slow motion something.

I'm still figuring out how to work with the .mp4 files this camera creates... hopefully I will improve at making them a little easier to watch.

Please Opine. Yer Pal,


R A N T W I C K

PS - In hindsight I think I should have gotten the package that came with the helmet mount, the GoPro® HD Helmet HERO™ Camera instead of the "naked" even though I didn't think I wanted it... Check out GoPro.com for info on all the setups.

17 comments:

Skyers said...

Glad your back!
I am so jealous of the Go Pro camera. I want one too!!
I cant wait to see lots more videos.

Unknown said...

Never thought of a "chest cam".

Looks pretty good though. Better then helmet cam's or handlebar cam's!

christopheru said...

I would say go with it. It looks to work ok. Nice to see you back:)

Steve A said...

Chesty is good. So, just ride without your hands on the handlebars. Well, on second thought, just wear cool gloves.

RANTWICK said...

Skyers - Don't be jealous of rampant consumerism... I could've finished my Trek 520 tourer with that money.

Ryan - Thanks! Chesty=Besty?

ChrisU - Thanks man, nice to see everybody didn't leave!

Steve - thanks for the cool gloves suggestion. I really suck at riding no hands. I used to do it as a kid ALL THE TIME. Now, my old body is heavier on one side than the other, it would seem.

limom said...

Nice!

GreenComotion said...

Welcome back!

Cool, nice toy! I prefer the chesty. The "deshaker" reminds me of the Central Park scene from The Devil's Advocate.

Peace :)

RANTWICK said...

Thanks Chandra! I didn't like being in the shot at all at first, but it is starting to grow on me.

Peace back :)

Steve A said...

I watched that video of the bridge crossing again. This time I watched all the cars and how they passed you. All except that one white Toyota. Ride a little further left and even he will behave himself in the future.

Fraboo said...

The chest-cam thing works really well. The view of the hands is okay with me. On a more sit-upright kind of bike they might not show I figure.

RANTWICK said...

Steve - I know, I know... I still have a tendency to creep further out of the way than I should when I am slowing down a lot.

Fraboo - Thanks!

Rat Trap Press said...

Welcome back!

I like the view from the chest mount. If the mounts are affordable you should consider switching things up with differing views from a seatpost/handlebar mount and helmet mount.

I finally had the opportunity to try the syrup. It was excellent! It was much lighter than I expected.

RANTWICK said...

RTP - I also have the bar / seatpost / just about any tube mount, so I'll be messing with it for sure. No helmet mount, though I can probably rig something with what I've got.

I'm so happy you liked your syrup... extra light is hard to find and I'm pleased you appreciated the difference.

Skyers said...

This thought stuck me as I was riding to work in the rain this morning. What if the video gets you in trouble.

"Exhibit A" your honour...it is clearly shown in the "Bridge video" that "Rantwick" enters the intersection after the light has turned yellow, then turns left after the light has turned red....

I am sure if I did that in my car I would be "running the red".

I am impressed however that you cross over that bridge, I think I would try the new roundabout down the street.
:)

RANTWICK said...

Skyers - You didn't see nuthin', you hear me? Nuthin!

I would gladly go to that roundabout instead if I weren't late for work as usual...

jeff said...

I'm late to the party, but I love the new camera. My nephew got a Hero for his birthday and while we were visiting, mounted it to get a close-up of a hummingbird at the feeder. Very cool!

Apertome said...

First, welcome back!

I have the non-HD version. Mine has the head/helmet mount. It's pretty fun, though now I actually want to try the chest mount. I think it came with that too, but I can't remember. I didn't know you could do 60fps on the HD -- awesome!

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