What fixed wing hd camera do you use ?

[jerryn]

I am attempting to record decent hd video from my RMRC recruit and Volantec Ranger 1600. Are there any flight cameras out there that have anti-shake ?

 

[PsyBorg]

A lot of them have stabilization features but when mounting to moving objects vibration becomes the issue. A softer foam type base can solve a bunch of issues. The hard part is finding the foam that is soft enough yet supports the camera. I found that those sandpaper foam blocks used for drywall sanding work perfect on aircraft as a vibration buffer and can be cut with razor blades to fit any style of camera.

The rest for steady fixed wing flight is more to do with sloppy push rod action and the flutter induced shaking that occurs.

Check out how smooth this flight is with just an FPV camera set up. This is mainly from a good set up with little to no control surface slop. (This is NOT in anyway my endorsement for DJI digital FPV system) just a great mounting set up and pilot skills.

 

[jerryn]

The airplane I am trying to use to video is my RMRC Recruit. I had a GoPro 3 in it, now I am using a RunCAM2. I do fly in a location there's variable winds, wing gusts over 20mph, and strong thermals. There's doesn't appear to be any slop with the servos and the pushrod action appears great, no slop. When flying FOV the wing does not appear to be bouncing around, it looks locked in and stable. I tried to use camera gel in the mount, that didn't work. Here's the best I was able to record:

Would a camera with anti shake work ? Is there a post process program I can use to reduce shake ?

 

[PsyBorg]

You have to remember with cameras ANY movement will cause issues. What I see in that video is a combination of control rod slop, wind buffeting (top of camera moving fore and aft) and the need for just a touch more expo to smooth out reactions to the wind moving the craft. If you watch closely the shaking is less when the pushrods are under tension like in banking turns but as soon as pressure is let off the up and down bobble comes right back.

It seems your mounting solution is OK for vibration as there is not much if any jello.

Digital antishake will actually enhance the video issues as it sacrifices frame rate with skip frames and such to remove some of the motion. There is some post effects to use these days but if you dont start with decent footage to begin with it wont help much

 

[Aireal Anarchist]

I agree with PsyBorg

RMRC Recruit is kinda small and very light wing to expect quality video.

the bigger the air frame the less it will be tossed around by the wind, my best video with NO stabilization enhanced cams comes from my 60" wing spans

 

[jerryn]

Ahhh.. no wonder my Parrot Disco recorded video well. There was a lot of "Washout" in the wing design, that reduced buffeting.
I'm going to need to read up on how to reduce buffering on a Recruit/Armodel 900mm wing. Maybe the FPV antennae (strix with two discs up top) is contributing to the buffeting ? I will replace it with a small wire dipole antennae

I agree with PsyBorg

RMRC Recruit is kinda small and very light wing to expect quality video.

the bigger the air frame the less it will be tossed around by the wind, my best video with NO stabilization enhanced cams comes from my 60" wing spans

I agree with PsyBorg

RMRC Recruit is kinda small and very light wing to expect quality video.

the bigger the air frame the less it will be tossed around by the wind, my best video with NO stabilization enhanced cams comes from my 60" wing spans

 

[jerryn]

I agree with PsyBorg

RMRC Recruit is kinda small and very light wing to expect quality video.

the bigger the air frame the less it will be tossed around by the wind, my best video with NO stabilization enhanced cams comes from my 60" wing spans

Maybe my new build will record video better and I will stick with performing loops and rolls with the Recruit.
My new video recording build is a Volantex Ranger 1600

 

[Aireal Anarchist]

Maybe my new build will record video better and I will stick with performing loops and rolls with the Recruit.
My new video recording build is a Volantex Ranger 1600

you will see a marked improvement without even changing your fpv gear!