Things People Like to Stick Go Pro’s to

How to ‘Mount and Shoot’ with your GoPro

GoPro is the leader in the small action durable camera category. We’ve all seen the rip offs and wannabes, but the name Go Pro sticks. VMP is a video production house that doesn’t always get to play with our toys outside of the professional arena. So today, we’re going to share a few quick hints about how we use our GoPros and we figure it’s a good enough excuse to trawl the internet for videos showing the things people like to stick Go Pro’s to.

The Basics:

To start off, know your mount.

If you’re going to put your Go Pro on something, make sure you do it right. Consider the angle the mount will give you, do you want a high view of what you’re doing, a ground shot or a more intimate shot? Be familiar of the camera mounts movements, a shaky mount can ruin your epic video that took hours to film.  Consider what you’re mounting it on as well; strapping a Go pro to a steering wheel is going to have a lot more bumps than one attached to a body which will absorb most of the shock. Here at VMP we’ve filmed videos and productions entirely with Go Pros to capture some hectic racing action, knowing our mounts was extremely important and paid off in the end with some great shots.

Next, plan it out:

Our mantra is “shoot for the editing room.”  That doesn’t mean you have to kill all spontaneous creativity on the day, but having planning ahead will save you a massive headache in the editing booth. For a good quality video basic planning is needed. Here are VMP we have directors, administration and producers to help with that. But that doesn’t mean you need to need an entire entourage to create your video. Know the story you want to tell, watch the transitions at the beginning and end of each shot and be aware of edit points. Maybe start your shot by zooming out on an object, and end with a pan over your key action and know what you need to film to tell your story. Being conscious of small factors while shooting will keep you happy in the editing room later.

Practice and play:

Have a look at some online tutorials to get a good feel of your camera, or check out some of the highest ranking Go Pro videos for inspiration. Get a feel for the buttons, if you have a camera strapped to your head, chances are you’ll be operating it blind so you’ll need to know your stuff. Do a couple of practice shots and hook the camera up to your smart phone to make sure you’re getting the right angles for your video before you invest your time, don’t just assume your angle is working.

Work it baby:

Have fun, play with your angles. A whole video shot and editing from one angle can get boring no matter what awesome content you have. Here at VMP, when we film with our GoPros, we like to use one main Go Pro as well as a few to play with and capture some interesting angles.  Playing with a POV perspective is always fun (pro tip: mount the camera on the side of a helmet for the most natural perspective) but it’s always fun to cut to a close up or wide time-lapse.

Speaking of time lapse, don’t dismiss it. It can be fun to watch a shoot getting set up, in progress and packing down in a short time-lapse video. One of our favourite time-lapse videos involved a media frenzy in the quiet VMP production house (check out the link below).  Another time lapse use is to film high paced action. You might take 100 photos, throw away 98, but you’ll get two really great shots without the effort.

Just get creative; you can stick that camera to anything. And as much as we hate to admit it, a selfie stick (or any long sturdy stick like object with a Go Pro taped to the end) gives you some great perspectives. Just be aware that you won’t look cool using it (unless you’re this guy).

Now for some fun, here are the top 5 things the VMP team like to see Go Pro’s stuck to:

Maybe attached to a bottle of whiskey at a wedding?

Strap it to an animal:

Some balloons…

Maybe a car wheel if you want to induce vomiting?

A hoolahoop looks pretty cool…

Superman is definitely our favourite!

Or watch a trailer for all the awesomeness.

Here’s our sneaky GoPro timelapse of the VMP media frenzy.

VMP would love to help you achieve your video production needs. Get in touch here!