I need all the help I can get, but after miraculously catching my first connection, my SOLOSHOT has not worked for a plethora of issues. And the customer service is the worst I have ever experienced. Are there any other options?
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It’s not the same thing, but I’ve been having reasonable success filming myself using my regular digital camera. By filming at 4k with a wide lens I am able to zoom in on the edit to 1080 and the image stays crisp even though I am zoomed way in.
The caveat is you need a good camera that can shoot 4k continuous with no time limit or overheating or battery issues. I have a Lumix GH5 and it’s been working pretty well but still only films about an hour before it stops for some reason.
I was thinking of buying a Soloshot but after doing this for a few sessions I think it’s a reasonable compromise. I occasionally foil off the screen since it can’t pan, but honestly the field of view is pretty wide and zoom capabilities in post are considerable so I could probably even be using a wider lens.
So first off I want to say that its a bummer that its not working. Because when they do work they are fantastic. I have had 3 since 2020. First one worked great and then bought a back up just in case. Then the 3+ came out and I grabbed that. Please don’t take this the wrong way. But a lot of the issues with them is user error. There is a science to calibration and the number one thing is patience. But don’t get me wrong. Mine does malfunction at times. I have had really good success with their customer service too. They have even sent me a brand new one when I complained about a weird gimbal situation. There are YouTube videos on how to calibrate correctly. I don’t think they were ever really originally designed to be for water activity. I think the original concept was to help coaches with soccer and such. But obviously they do work for water. Though when it’s glassy, sunny, or overcast the lens has a hard time focusing. One thing that I did learn from the solo shot is that it runs on GPS. So if there are a lot of commercial fishing boats or an inlet with a bridge it sometimes has issues. Trust me. I would love to say there is another option out there. But I don’t think there is.
I found this video for ya and hopefully it helps.
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This is spot on.
I have one and it works, as long as you take time to calibrate correctly.
That being said, I never use it anymore. Decided I like foiling better than I like watching myself foil.
To be fair mine was refurbished, maybe that’s why they take about two weeks on average to reply to my emails. Once the gimble broke when I picked it up, then the tag stopped working. Both of those took months to resolve. The tag I just got for a replacement doesn’t get recognized by the camera, and right before I posted I noticed the battery level was lower than it was when I plugged it in. Never was calibration, found that to be straightforward on the 3 which I have.
I don’t relish the idea of studying myself and I’m not on the gram really, just want to see why I can’t pump for shit. Besides the 6.5/5 wetsuit that is.
Possible alternative?
I just looked into that obsbot and almost pulled the trigger but… 12x zoom if you are pumping out you’re probably going to get lost with the AI tracking? Soloshot is 65x zoom which still has pretty good clarity. I had two sessions not captured by soloshot today. It’s a bummer. But it might still be the best camera for what we do as foilers.
Just saw an add for this, no idea how well it might work.
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