Action camera vs iPhone for travel?

[pjsalty]

Hello.

We are doing a family mediterranean cruise in June. We will have our iPhones and will also bring our GoPro13 for some underwater shots. My question is about using the GoPro instead of my iPhone for all my other shots; street, beaches, landscapes etc. What are the pros and cons? How will it compare for still shots? I did not consider the DJI Action 5 when I bought the GoPro at Christmas, but I have been reading about it, and I wonder if it would be a better travel camera; I am certainly willing to swap the GoPro for the Action 5 if it is better for still shots. Thanks, PK.

 

[larsbc]

Hello.

We are doing a family mediterranean cruise in June. We will have our iPhones and will also bring our GoPro13 for some underwater shots. My question is about using the GoPro instead of my iPhone for all my other shots; street, beaches, landscapes etc. What are the pros and cons? How will it compare for still shots? I did not consider the DJI Action 5 when I bought the GoPro at Christmas, but I have been reading about it, and I wonder if it would be a better travel camera; I am certainly willing to swap the GoPro for the Action 5 if it is better for still shots. Thanks, PK.

Assuming your phone was new within the last 5 yrs, I'm sure its still photo quality will be good enough and probably better than the action cams. I always bring an action cam traveling but the only time I use it for stills is when we're snorkeling or at the beach where I don't want my phone or camera to get sand or water on it.

IMO the Action 5 is a better travel camera than the Hero 15 simply because of its significantly better low light performance (which is, for me, quite important).

 

[isvana]

Just back from a Japan vacation, with a DJI Osmo Action 4, 512Gb microSD and DJI Action charging handle. Used only for video including hyperlapse. Easier handling IMHO than a phone unless you use a rig. Delighted with the footage including very low light in the Modern Art Museum in Tokyo.

[FWIW I also used an iPhone (13 Pro) for casual shots and for stills used an A7Riv+28-200 and A6600+10-18...]

 

[Sean Nelson]

I love using my GoPro for travel video because I just find it way more convenient than my phone. I can keep it in my pocket, whip it out instantly and hit the "record" button by feel to start capturing. I keep my mine in "horizon leveling" mode so I don't even have to worry about holding it exactly right, the field of view is large enough that I don't have to be overly worried about aiming it, and the amazing stabilization means that I can be walking or on a bus or whatever and I still get fantastic shots.

The quality doesn't match my RX100, which I also take with me, but I end up taking way more shots with the GoPro and any shot that you managed to capture is infinitely better than one you missed because you were fumbling with your equipment.

 

[larsbc]

I love using my GoPro for travel video because I just find it way more convenient than my phone. I can keep it in my pocket, whip it out instantly and hit the "record" button by feel to start capturing. I keep my mine in "horizon leveling" mode so I don't even have to worry about holding it exactly right, the field of view is large enough that I don't have to be overly worried about aiming it, and the amazing stabilization means that I can be walking or on a bus or whatever and I still get fantastic shots.

Exactly! I used to use a short, telescoping handle (about 6" long) with my Hero 10. But on my last trip (all in big cities) a couple of weeks ago, to save space one night I removed the handle and just handheld the camera (an Ace Pro 2). The resulting footage looked fine and I found it comfortable to hold just the camera by itself. Sometimes I would flip out the rear screen and hold it that way as well. It was so much more convenient carrying the action cam in my pants or jacket pocket and it was fantastic for walking video clips. It was faster and less obvious than using my phone and even the night time video looked terrific.

 

[Paultimate]

The original iPhone will take very bad pictures compared to the gopro13.

I hope this answers your question.

 

[Sean Nelson]

I used to use a short, telescoping handle (about 6" long) with my Hero 10. But on my last trip (all in big cities) a couple of weeks ago, to save space one night I removed the handle and just handheld the camera (an Ace Pro 2). The resulting footage looked fine and I found it comfortable to hold just the camera by itself.

Most of my stuff is shot just holding the camera in my hand, but I try to have my selfie stick with me when I can. It telescopes from around 8" long to around 3 feet long, and I find it really handy to get some footage from a different point of view to add a little variety to my shots. It's terrific when trying to shoot over fences or crowds. It can even shoot selfies! ;-)

 

[larsbc]

I used to use a short, telescoping handle (about 6" long) with my Hero 10. But on my last trip (all in big cities) a couple of weeks ago, to save space one night I removed the handle and just handheld the camera (an Ace Pro 2). The resulting footage looked fine and I found it comfortable to hold just the camera by itself.

Most of my stuff is shot just holding the camera in my hand, but I try to have my selfie stick with me when I can. It telescopes from around 8" long to around 3 feet long, and I find it really handy to get some footage from a different point of view to add a little variety to my shots. It's terrific when trying to shoot over fences or crowds. It can even shoot selfies! ;-)

Yes, that's what I use mine for as well. They're useful little things.

 

[iluvphoto]

I love using my GoPro for travel video because I just find it way more convenient than my phone. I can keep it in my pocket, whip it out instantly and hit the "record" button by feel to start capturing. I keep my mine in "horizon leveling" mode so I don't even have to worry about holding it exactly right, the field of view is large enough that I don't have to be overly worried about aiming it, and the amazing stabilization means that I can be walking or on a bus or whatever and I still get fantastic shots.

The quality doesn't match my RX100, which I also take with me, but I end up taking way more shots with the GoPro and any shot that you managed to capture is infinitely better than one you missed because you were fumbling with your equipment.

What is this horizon leveling feature and how does it work? It seems like other brands have a similar feature. How useful and effective it is?

 

[Sean Nelson]

I love using my GoPro for travel video because I just find it way more convenient than my phone. I can keep it in my pocket, whip it out instantly and hit the "record" button by feel to start capturing. I keep my mine in "horizon leveling" mode so I don't even have to worry about holding it exactly right, the field of view is large enough that I don't have to be overly worried about aiming it, and the amazing stabilization means that I can be walking or on a bus or whatever and I still get fantastic shots.

What is this horizon leveling feature and how does it work? It seems like other brands have a similar feature. How useful and effective it is?

It keeps the horizon level in the video no matter how you hold the camera. You can literally turn the camera 360 degrees around its roll axis (as opposed to pitch or yaw) while keeping it pointing forward at the subject and the captured video will remain stable and upright. It's a bit magical.

I find it super useful because I can shoot video at the spur of the moment without having to take time or care about holding the camera properly. All I have to do is aim it more or less at what I'm trying to capture and it does the rest.

In an age of tools like this, I just don't see why anyone would want to deal with a gimbal any more.

 

[iluvphoto]

I love using my GoPro for travel video because I just find it way more convenient than my phone. I can keep it in my pocket, whip it out instantly and hit the "record" button by feel to start capturing. I keep my mine in "horizon leveling" mode so I don't even have to worry about holding it exactly right, the field of view is large enough that I don't have to be overly worried about aiming it, and the amazing stabilization means that I can be walking or on a bus or whatever and I still get fantastic shots.

What is this horizon leveling feature and how does it work? It seems like other brands have a similar feature. How useful and effective it is?

It keeps the horizon level in the video no matter how you hold the camera. You can literally turn the camera 360 degrees around its roll axis (as opposed to pitch or yaw) while keeping it pointing forward at the subject and the captured video will remain stable and upright. It's a bit magical.

I find it super useful because I can shoot video at the spur of the moment without having to take time or care about holding the camera properly. All I have to do is aim it more or less at what I'm trying to capture and it does the rest.

In an age of tools like this, I just don't see why anyone would want to deal with a gimbal any more.

That's awesome! I'm surprised iOS and Android don't have this? How does it work? Cropping pixels like with image stabilization?

 

[Sean Nelson]

What is this horizon leveling feature and how does it work? It seems like other brands have a similar feature. How useful and effective it is?

It keeps the horizon level in the video no matter how you hold the camera...

That's awesome! I'm surprised iOS and Android don't have this? How does it work? Cropping pixels like with image stabilization?

Basically, yes. The GoPro cameras have a sensor with an 8:9 aspect ratio and a very wide field of view. The camera lets you choose from a few different fields of view which it achieves by cropping the raw image from the sensor. At the narrowest field of view, which is similar to what you get with something like a 24-28mm lens on a 35mm full frame camera, the crop area is small enough that it allows for the camera to be held in any orientation with enough margin around the edges so that it can perform image stabilization using feedback from its internal gyro sensors.

The downside is that with such a heavy crop you don't really get true 4K footage. I only shoot in 1080p mode, for which works very well, but if you really need 4K resolution then you'd have to make do without the horizon leveling feature and use a wider field of view that involves less cropping.