Filming a bobsleigh team and run...???

O

ondawan

Active member
I have been asked to film a bobsleigh race. Racers can take up to 5G's during the run.
Do you think a dvx can handle that kind of force if i sit in the bobsleigh?
Anybody done this before?
Further reading?
Any advice for camera settings? Up in the mountains, lots of light and fast moving objects.
Any advice is welcome!
Thanks in advance
 
What are you trying to capture? Do you want to record the team as they are going done the track, or do you want to record the sleigh as it runs the track?

Rob
 
ND, polarizer and hold your DVX really well. Might wanna use higher shutter speed too to cut some more light. But then it's gonna look seriously scary (not the same, but I shot 1st person off my scooter going down the river at ~100km/h with either 1/250 or 1/500 shutter speed and it looks 2x faster, really damn scary - can post it, if you want)
 
I would atleast put on that dinky shoulder strap that comes with the camera and wrap that around your neck. I agree with xl your obviously not going to get a steady shot. I would put a wideangle on the camera and turn the shutter speed up might as well use those shakes to your advantance. The widevangle would just help you get more space give it a nice POV
 
"What are you trying to capture? Do you want to record the team as they are going done the track, or do you want to record the sleigh as it runs the track?"
Both!
I'd like to see that damn scary film XL! Thanks
Do you think the dvx can handle the G force? (5 Gs)
Wide angle sounds like a plan, they're just damn expensive. Any recommendations?
Strap is good idea, dont want to kill any1 with my dvx! ;)
Hmmm... and i just thought of maybe using a helmet cam parachute jumpers use but my worry is can the camera handle the Gs!!!

Thank you all, anymore thoughts welcome.
 
http://www.xl70e3.com/river.mov - Right click, "Save as..."; about 16MB

The last 30 seconds or so is what I was really talking about, looks damn fast, almost sped up. Don't mind the music, this was edited for family and, well, you know. Besides, it's all better than just the sound of the wind hitting mic. And, as you can see, I messed up white balance that time, could only fix this much :undecided
 
Hey, vic, looks great, it does look fast but it really does seem like you were going fast. Was this shot in Russia somewhere? Do you make films professionally there or just a hobby?
You used some kind of water tight casing/bag? Maybe i should consider 1 for the bobsleigh action....? So much to do so little time.... ;)
Best and thanks,


Still wondering about the ammount of G's a dvx can take tho....????
 
Only about 100km/h (65mph) :) But it really looks much faster than it feels on the bike.
Yeah it was shot in russia, on a lake/river near my countryhouse. As a matter of fact, I actually didn't use water casing or any sort of protection aside from UV filter :lipsrseal Crazy, I know, but that wasn't planned... we were just riding/swimming/hanging out, shooting each other on the bike and then the idea came to get on it with a camera. If I were to do it again, I would use an underwater casing or at the very least a rain slicker.
You could use a slicker too, I guess. I just don't know how bad the bobsleigh is in terms of snow in your face :grin: Don't know about Gs... but it can't be that bad, can it? I mean, how fast is it, anyway?

P.S. It's just a hobby... yet
 
looks beautiful! Never been to russia....and the women.... ;P

Bobsleigh can reach 5Gs in a turn, to what i understand your face gets morphed, its a lot!
 
ondawan said:
looks beautiful! Never been to russia....and the women.... ;P

Bobsleigh can reach 5Gs in a turn, to what i understand your face gets morphed, its a lot!
Click to expand...

r u planning to hand hold this?
 
Well, lets say that i'm gathering info, but yes i was planning to. Otherwise i could use a parachuters helmet cam, but im still wondering about the g's and wether dv cameras can handle them. Espesh that i will be going with a national team... so they're prob not gonna go slowly.
 
Ok, so let's put this into reality. You mention that there can be 5Gs during a run. That's 5 times the normal pull of gravity. Well, the DVX weighs around 5 pounds. Imagine you have that camera in your hand, maybe even with the strap around your neck as someone suggested. Now the sled nails one of those 5G sections.

BAM!!! You instantly have a 25 pound camera tied around your neck. And do you think you would be able to keep holding onto it? If so then I think you are crazy.

Second reality check. It's not a smooth ride down that track. Unless you have the camera mounted and also some shock absorbation, you are going to get nothing but shake, wobble, and roll.

My recommendation? Get a bullet/lipstick lens and feed it into a small mini-dv tucked away safe and sound in the sled.
 
ondawan said:
http://www.samsung.com/Products/Camcorder/DigitalMemory/SC_X105LXAA.asp
Do you think if i were to use this camera, i could include the mp4 into my dv project without it being a too sloppy picture quality ?
Click to expand...
That's ok if your only output will be small screen (e.g. like web delivery).

What's the final target for your footage? Online? DVD?

There are several levels of quality for lipstick cameras. A good 3 chip one that can capture good quality may set you back $3000. A consumer end 1 chip model with auto only settings is around $150 to $300.

I have and have shot a lot of video with a consumer model. It works great for basic capture and display to a small screen. But it's all auto, you have no control over focus or exposure. So you can imagine the variations in the image from changing conditions.

Do a google search for "helmet camera" and you will find lots of sites selling them. I bought mine years ago from the helmetcamera.com site.
 
Thank you hans, the final product will be a dvd (mostly shot on dv).
So mp4 is no good, unless i make it a style thing but that's alittle cheap. Is the image of mp4 usually terribly pixelated? if included in a dv edit?
The helmet cam works with a dvx? i guess it uses a synch plug into the dvx's input?
 
ondawan said:
Is the image of mp4 usually terribly pixelated? if included in a dv edit?
Click to expand...
Yes, you will be working with already compressed (highly) compressed footage. So it's all downhill from there.
ondawan said:
The helmet cam works with a dvx? i guess it uses a synch plug into the dvx's input?
Click to expand...
Most have rca cables for sending out the video and sound. You just need a device to record the signals. I use a little Sony mini-dv for that. It's small and doesn't cost much. Using your DVX is overkill just to record the signal. Plus you risk breaking it.
 
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