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What's more a video camera would make a lovely Christmas present. (email me if you want my delivery address :)
The GoPro is a lightweight waterproof Point-of-View camera with wide-angle lens. There are a range of mounts available for different surfaces, like bike handle bars, chest mount, helmet mount, and even a suction cup mount.
"Point of View" means if you film something, the angle of the video would look similar to if you were actually sitting there yourself, during the race.
Even pro's like "Opa Roozy" have one of these badboys in their kit. (but don't tell parky that he's been buying new gadgets)
The camera itself has no screen so you can't see what you are recording till after, just pop it on the kiato, point it in the general direction, and press the button. How simple is that!
The standard battery will record for 2hours, then all you do is whip out the memory card, pop it in your computer and hit upload. (Or you can edit it first if you want to add some snazzy tunes)
There is a range of different models, I opted for the Hero 960 (which is the cheapest, and comes with the least attachments). I also googled for the cheapest store, and I got this one, which at the time of writing was NZ$289 inc delivery.
http://www.bivouac.co.nz/brands/gopro/gopro-hd-hero-960-camera.html
You will also need to grab yourself a memory card or two.
I got some from Ascent. (The standard 2hr battery will run out at about 12GB of video, so a 16GB card will be ample)
http://www.ascent.co.nz/productspecification.aspx?ItemID=382737
HOW TO STICK IT TO THE WAKA
Now, you can buy all the flash mounts like the suction cup as extra, but what I found works best, is in the box. They have a cheap plastic mount for putting the camera on a display shelf. I just ripped that out of the box and used a bit of rubber strapping to chuck it on the canoe. (See pics below)
TAKING CARE OF YOUR CAMERA
Part of the lens is on the case of the camera, so it is very important not to scratch it. A easy way to do that is to store the camera in a sock when you are not using it.
Also after you have finished using it, make sure to rinse the case in fresh water to get all the salt, etc off. And also just because it is waterproof, doesn't mean condensation can't get inside. Pop the camera in the hotwater cupboard overnight to dry it out (with the case open of course).
JUST GO FOR IT
As you can see by the sample vid's below, it's not just limited to Waka either. (Just be careful, I put a crack in the case when the kite hit the dirt)
So get out there, get recording, load your vids to youtube and if you think they are good enough, flick us an email and it could wind up here.
Photo Gallery (click to enlarge)