Selchie
Registered
I've read and benefited from ScubaBoard forums for years but rarely posted. So I thought I would share my recent experience with the Intova Sport HDII video camera. Having taken photos with a dSLR camera for years I decided to travel lighter and give video a try. Searching the internet, I found only a little information on what settings to use. Below are the camera settings, dive conditions and results of my first UW video.
I checked my 1 bag (always required 2 with dSLR) from Newark to St Maarten and then St Eustatius (Statia) and a week of diving. Wanting to keep things simple, I used default settings except as noted.
Mount: Sport HD base tray (single handle)
microSD Card: Sandisk Ultra 32 GB
Resolution: 1080p 30fps (default)
AF Mode: Average instead of default Center
Mute: Yes (no audio) - no one wants to listed to me breathe
Scene Mode: Auto (default), except first dive I used "Diving" mode - after reviewing video from first dive I thought they were too red with both in-camera and external red filters. See first 2 UW clips of angelfish and stingray.
Red Filter: Used all but part of 1 dive. I did try some close up shots with a light (no red filter), but in most cases the red filter worked as well or better (close, but not macro).
Dive Conditions: mostly sunny, mostly 60 ft. Last few video clips (spotted file fish and barracuda) about 40 ft.
Post Processing: iMovie - I made no edits except clipping videos. As this was also my first time using iMovie, I didn't attempt modifying transitions or add music.
I hope this info is useful for others and also hope others will share their experience with various settings. Video link below.
Statia Diving - May 2014 on Vimeo
I checked my 1 bag (always required 2 with dSLR) from Newark to St Maarten and then St Eustatius (Statia) and a week of diving. Wanting to keep things simple, I used default settings except as noted.
Mount: Sport HD base tray (single handle)
microSD Card: Sandisk Ultra 32 GB
Resolution: 1080p 30fps (default)
AF Mode: Average instead of default Center
Mute: Yes (no audio) - no one wants to listed to me breathe
Scene Mode: Auto (default), except first dive I used "Diving" mode - after reviewing video from first dive I thought they were too red with both in-camera and external red filters. See first 2 UW clips of angelfish and stingray.
Red Filter: Used all but part of 1 dive. I did try some close up shots with a light (no red filter), but in most cases the red filter worked as well or better (close, but not macro).
Dive Conditions: mostly sunny, mostly 60 ft. Last few video clips (spotted file fish and barracuda) about 40 ft.
Post Processing: iMovie - I made no edits except clipping videos. As this was also my first time using iMovie, I didn't attempt modifying transitions or add music.
I hope this info is useful for others and also hope others will share their experience with various settings. Video link below.
Statia Diving - May 2014 on Vimeo