GoPro Cameras?

What are the advantages and disadvantages of GoPro cameras?

Reasons for the questions is I am looking into a second camera behind my Canon 60D DSLR to give me footage the DSLR cannot for more shooting flexibility.
 
They're the best action camera on the market.

The biggest disadvantage (which might be an advantage to you) is the inability to have a shallow depth of field. In fact, any depth of field. It might be good for you so you can focus on blocking and telling the story.

If you can live without the depth of field, couple the GoPro 5 Black with their new Karma Grip and your production value options cheaply expand without the need to add extra people to your team or adding a lot of production time to your schedule.
 
We used a GoPro to shoot a section of DETOURS (my new feature). It worked great but it's important to note that it did look different from other shots (the mentioned wide & shallow depth of field). That was fine in this case as it was supposed to look different.
 
Be aware that the footage will look very different. At it's widest it can have a fisheye like perspective.
Also the colors will be different.

It will really look like gopro shots.
Even Peter Jackson had a hard time to match the grading of the gopros with the rest in The Hobbit 2.
 
So, GoPros are good for shooting action scenes?

It's the action camera category.

Believe it or not, despite the name action camera, no, they aren't. An action camera isn't designed for shooting action scenes, in fact, they can be a hindrance if not combined with other cameras. They're designed more for point of view sports footage (hence, action camera category), so keep that in mind.

When shooting action scenes, you change the focal length to help sell particular staple shots (punches, hits, swings, falls) found within action scenes. This is needed to be able to do many camera tricks and safely sell particular actions and stunts. This makes the usefulness of these action cameras limited when shooting action scenes. Combined with the Karma grip and the speed/ease of fluid movement shots, they're a great addition to the no budget action toolkit. It's not impossible to shoot an action scene with a GoPro, you just need to be aware of the options no longer available to you.

That is a good function for a secondary camera and used the DSLR for close-ups and control of depth of field shots?

Be careful. If I'm understanding you right, your plan is to shoot wide with the GoPro and CU with the DSLR. You may have difficulty matching the footage if you have a large focal length difference, not to mention you'll give your soundie a heart attack. Test before you go down this path.

Talk with your DOP. They'll be able to better explain all this to you than I can.
 
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Another application I can think of for my new GoPro now being shipped to me is robo vision effects. I've talked about this in past posts and with my DoPs. I settled for cross hair effects with data streaming most recently. RayW suggested a fish eye effect. The GoPro may serve as a great camera for robot POV footage.
 
Another application I can think of for my new GoPro now being shipped to me is robo vision effects. I've talked about this in past posts and with my DoPs. I settled for cross hair effects with data streaming most recently. RayW suggested a fish eye effect. The GoPro may serve as a great camera for robot POV footage.

Indeed!
That would work pretty well I guess.
 
Another application I can think of for my new GoPro now being shipped to me is robo vision effects. I've talked about this in past posts and with my DoPs. I settled for cross hair effects with data streaming most recently. RayW suggested a fish eye effect. The GoPro may serve as a great camera for robot POV footage.

It could. but:

If these packages are able to remove the fisheye effect, it also means that they can also do the opposite. You don't need to use a special camera to make that effect. It's a relatively simple effect/preset.

These days, there's even drop and drag overlays that may also help you with these robot pov shots.

I suggest picking the right tool for the right job rather than forcing a tool to be used incorrectly just because you've recently purchased it. Learn the ways different tools can be used in different situations. This is why in the other thread I suggested learning what you'll use more often/get the most benefit from rather than worrying about maximizing the specialized tools you've bought.
 
Well, I now have the camera and discovered it doesn't have a built-in monitor like a DSLR.

There is a mini HDMI port on the camera. Can I get a mini HDMI to mini HDMI cable to hook it up to my Windows 8.1 Tablet and use the tablet as a monitor for the camera?
 
Which one did you buy? A friend of mine has a GoPro3 Hero. It also has no monitor. We've used it once on a production that used 4 of them at the same time. This one now lives in a cupboard, mostly unused. I'd sell it off if I were you. It's a pain in the rear to use for filmmaking with certain exceptions - Mount it on the windscreen of a car etc. You can hook them up to a wireless device to control and monitor but there's some serious lag.

If you're getting a GoPro, you need to ensure you get a version with a monitor. GoPro 5 Black is the one you want.
 
Well, I now have the camera and discovered it doesn't have a built-in monitor like a DSLR.

There is a mini HDMI port on the camera. Can I get a mini HDMI to mini HDMI cable to hook it up to my Windows 8.1 Tablet and use the tablet as a monitor for the camera?

If your tablet has HDMI in that should be possible. Check those specs.
But I think your tablet and camera both have hdmi out.
 
I don't like them as much cause the view is too wide, and there are no shutter speed controls, but I haven't used the latest models so maybe they have improved, since a couple of years ago?
 
If your tablet has HDMI in that should be possible. Check those specs.
But I think your tablet and camera both have hdmi out.

That turned out to be correct. I plugged the camera into an HDTV / monitor with a 19" display and HDMI input. And, that worked great. Only problem is, it takes away the poratbility. And, a monitor is needed to see what is being shot. I picked up a micro HDMI to HDMI cable to connect the two and it worked. Guess I will be looking on the Internet for a portable HDMI monitor that is battery operated to carry around as a monitor. I will also see about a bag to put everything in.
 
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