First POV Recorded Flight

I finally bought a camera. After looking at every possible video sample I could I settle on the VholdR Contour HD. I got a sweet deal and am pretty happy so far.

The main competition was the GoPro and the VholdR 1080. The Go Prop roughly the same price as the Contour but I wasn’t all that impressed with the quality video I was seeing online. That and the basic shape of it made it less appealing. I was having a hard time envisioning how I would mount the camera to my headset for POV video. The 1080 is basically a beefed up version of the Contour with a higher resolution and higher pricetag. I’m running a 5 or 6 year old PowerMac which is just about an antique at this point. There is no way it could handle 1080 video and I don’t want to drop $1000 on a new comp…at least not yet.

I picked up the VholdR through REI of all places. They have a big promotion going on right now for members (which I am) that features 20% off any one item. The camera retails for $250. After the 20% discount and my dividends reward money I just got in from REI I ended up spending less than $200 on the camera including shipping. (Keep in mind that any money I spend on anything comes directly out of my flying budget. Cost was a huge factor here.)

The next test was figuring out how to mount the camera to my headset. As you can see in the photo, I used a highly scientific method of applying several rubber bands in strategic locations. That thing wasn’t moving. The last thing I wanted was the camera flying falling off my head in a heavy G pull.

I hit record before engine start and let the camera roll for the duration of the flight. I wasn’t trying for acro brilliance here, just going out and having fun. I had lots of fuel so I limited myself mostly to rolls. It was also a crazy busy day in the air so my head is in constant scan mode. I did try an 8 point ballistic roll at some point and it turned alright for a first attempt. I edited down the hour to a quick little snippet.