It’s Christmas, and you’ve just unwrapped a brand new sparkling GoPro Hero10 Black, but what next? A quick run through the set-up, a charge of the battery and then you’re free to let your creativity run wild.
When GoPro first launched it was aimed directly at extreme sports enthusiasts, today, however, the small go-anywhere camera is equally at home for all types of video fun.
Unlike using your DSLR, mirrorless or a dedicated camcorder to shoot video, the GoPro is quick and easy to use. Even more so with a direct connection to your mobile phone, so capturing engaging and fun memories over the Christmas season has never been easier.
Ok, it’s easy to use, but what can you film over Christmas to get you started. Here at Camerajabber HQ we’ve had a think and come up with a few festive GoPro ideas for you to try.
Create a Christmas timelapse
Probably the most obvious of all GoPro projects for Christmas day is to film a timelapse. Everything from present opening to eating the main Christmas meal of the day, there’s plenty of GoPro Christmas opportunity.
If you haven’t created a timelapse before on a GoPro, then the technique is fast and straight forward especially using the preset mode to get started.
01 Swipe right
To get started all you need to do is swipe right on the rear touch screen, and you’ll put the GoPro into Timelapse mode.
02 Adjust Timelapse settings
At the bottom of the screen tap the info bar to access the modes settings, select from one of the presets listed such as Timelapse 1080 | 0.5s | Wide.
03 Get filming
Now pop your GoPro onto a small tripod such as the Vanguard Vesta and push the shutter button to start filming, to stop, push the shutter button again.
04 Advanced options
If you want to adjust the resolution or duration, tap the info bar and then tap the small pencil to the preset’s right. You can now access all the advanced settings.
05 GoPro 4K Timelapse
To adjust the resolution, tap the info bar, tap the pencil to the right. On the next screen tap Resolution then 4k. Once done tap the arrow at the top to return to the menu.
Create a Christmas speech
As many of us cannot leave our houses, this Christmas why not create your very own speech for friends, family and subjects to enjoy.
A message of goodwill, hope for the future or to simply boast about your new GoPro this Christmas.
To get started, position the camera on a tripod, or box and think about the composition, you’ll need to fill most of the screen.
Make sure you’ve got some decent lighting and then record your piece. If you’re lucky enough to receive the MediaMod and Light with your GoPro, then you can use these to boost the quality of your piece greatly.
GoPro primed and ready, let’s film our very own Christmas message.
01 Set-up the GoPro for a piece to camera
As a basic set-up, set your camera on top of a box with a nice looking background, Christmas tree, fireplace or table that’s set for dinner.
02 Add lighting
If you have the MediaMod and light, you’re all set, if not don’t worry, try to add some additional light to illuminate your face.
03 Connect to your phone
As you’ll present your piece to the camera, use the front GoPro screen to compose. Alternatively, it’s worth using the GoPro app to connect to the GoPro. You can use this as a live view to check the composition and start and stop recording.
04 Speak Slowly and Clearly
Start your recording, but remember this is your message, don’t rush it speak slowly, and if it helps write down the key points on a piece of paper, you can edit out the stumbles later.
05 Edit your speach
Finally, all you need to do is edit your speech; this can be done quickly using the GoPro player app for PC, Mac, iOS and Android and once done share on whatever platform you want.
A very Multicam Christmas
Most GoPro owners will either already have a GoPro or know someone else who owns one. If this is the case, you can use the footage from several GoPro’s all filming at the same time to create some really dramatic Christmas footage.
Be it out on a walk or for a new years bike ride with mates, multi coming is great fun and easy. However, there are a few simple techniques that can make syncing the multiple cameras that much easier. Let’s take a look.
01 Setting up the cameras
If it’s just you, then think about the camera positions. If on a bike then mount one front, one back, or one on the bars and one on the axle, the different points of view all help to add interest.
02 Multiple camera positions
Where multi-caming becomes real fun, is when there are a few people involved. Attach one camera to each bike, for instance, and then you get multiple perspectives of the same time frame.
03 Shout to start
With all cameras attached take the lead and ask everyone to power on, then start recording. When everyone confirms cameras are ready, clap once as loudly as possible, you can use this clap to sync the footage later.
04 Start and stop recording.
At each point you stop and restart recording, make sure that everyone with cameras follows suit. Get them to shout rolling when they start, and then clap, once everyone is recording. When you want everyone to stop shout Cut.
05 Syncing the Multicam footage.
Upon arriving home, load the footage into iMovie, DaVinci Resolve or a video editor able to handle multiple channels. Use the audio track to sync the clips and then switch between each. If using Final Cut Pro X or Premiere Pro, both applications have an easy Multicam feature.
Timewarp the Christmas street
One of the many incredible features of the latest GoPro is Timewarp. This is essentially a stabilised timelapse video which sees the footage glide smoothly.
Timewarp is part of the Timelapse feature of the GoPro and is accessed in the same way. Like Timelapse, once activated, you have a series of options that can be adjusted to affect the video’s look and feel.
Let’s take a look at how to set-up Timewarp on the GoPro Hero 9 Black.
01 Swipe right for Hyperlapse
The GoPro switched on swipe right to active the Timelapse mode, the info bar at the bottom tap.
02 Select Timewarp
Alongside the Timelapse presents you’ll see Timewarp, click to select. Once selected, you’re ready to use in the same way as Timelapse.
03 Glide through the streets
To get the Timewarp effect, simply attach your GoPro to a handle, hit record and start walking. The effect is instant and dramatic.
Get creative with GoPro shutter speeds
Manual shutter speed adjustment is a powerful tool that was added to GoPro a model or two back. It enables you to essentially force the GoPro to break the 180º shutter rule to create drama in-camera effects.
Boosting the shutter speed to 1/480 is a great way to add impact to your video as that shutter speed removes any motion blur that usually helps with the persistence of vision and the illusion of movement.
While the eye can still pick out the video’s frames, your brain knows that something isn’t quite right. The jerky style of footage is often used in action sequences to add drama.
At the other end of the scale, we can reduce the shutter speed to 1/30, holding the shutter open for this length of time will increase the amount of blur for anything moving in the frame.
This additional blur can be used to create a romantic or dreamy effect. An effect that can work well for filming carol concerts where you want to create a soft cosey and calming effect.
Let’s take a look at how to access these advanced GoPro Shutter Speed settings.
01 Set to video
Startup the GoPro and make sure that you’re in video mode. Then tap the settings bar at the bottom of the screen, select a Custom preset and tap the pencil to access the settings.
02 Take a look at ProTune
Swipe up, and you’ll see the ProTune settings, including shutter speed which should be set to auto. Tap to adjust the settings set resolution to 1080p at 30fps.
03 Shoot fast action effect
using the slider moves the shutter speed to 1/480, and then exit the screen. In this mode, you’ll need quite a bit of light to get the right exposure. Film some action and check out the effect.
04 Shoot dreamy video effect
Again access the shutter speed options and select 1/30, exit the screen and film some action. This time you should see increased blur between each frame.
Christmas GoPro Stills
GoPro video is instantly recognisable due to the wide-angle perspective. However, as well as video the GoPro Hero 9 Black is pretty good at taking stills.
It’s quick and easy to use the photo mode, and with that wide-angle lens, it’s perfect for capturing a picture of the entire family around the table this Christmas.
Let’s take a look at how to take a picture with the GoPro Hero 9 Black.
01 Swipe left for photos
To access the photo mode swipe right on the screen and you’ll see the camera icon. This means that you’re now ready to start taking pictures.
02 How to use the camera mode
As with shooting video tap the shutter button on top of the GoPro to take a picture, it’s as simple as that! But there is more.
03 Zoom in with GoPro
Using the standard wide-angled field of view, you can touch zoom in and out of your subjects. Just tap the magnifying glass on the bottom right of the screen and zoom up to 2x.
04 Shoot RAW and HDR on your GoPro
Christmas photos are memories to keep to ensure the best possible quality tap the output option; this is just above the magnifying glass. Here you can select from SuperPhoto, HDR, Standard and RAW.