Video Camera for Documenting Work

[Fix Until Broke]

I'm looking for a video camera that I can wear while I disassemble a project car so I can take verbal notes and document during the disassembly what all needs to be done during the reassembly process.

It does not need to be GoPro quality, but image stabilization would be nice.

It does need to do audio and video

I would like it to last a 12 hour day - put it on, turn it on, work all day, upload to my computer, recharge, repeat the next day.

Having something small that maybe I could put on the bridge of my glasses or maybe forehead would be perfect and then run a wire to a battery/memory unit that I could wear on my belt or something? This way it's pretty much guaranteed to see what I'm seeing.

Maybe something like this? https://watchguardvideo.com/body-cameras/vista-xlt

Maybe a body camera like the law enforcement are using these days? I'd be concerned about a chest or shoulder mount not "seeing" what I see. Maybe if it was really high on the chest (light right under my chin?) it might work?

Just looking for what others have done, what options are out there, etc.

 

[Black TT]

As someone who has completed a ton of restoration vehicles, I like where you’re going with this, great idea! Right now, I take still photos of intricate assemblies.

I think the unit you’ve linked to would be great but, I would bet the cost would be exuberant. I’m following this closely as I am interested what ideas others may have as well.


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[kbs2244]

I have seen the police style on the local city surplus auction site.
Check around you.

 

[Fueler]

I would suggest something that accept a good clip on mic.
To many cameras depend on you speaking directly at them.
YouTube is full of disasters in that respect.

 

[zoepop]

My 10 yr old wanted a go pro for riding his snowmobile. He's not Chris Burandt, so I bought a rig at Wal-Mart. Can't remember the name of it (We call it a faux-pro) but it works amazingly well for under 100.00. Has an easily accessible pause button for when you aren't doing anything worth recording.

 

[sweet victory]

What is your budget?

You can always bug the previous generation GoPro for a large discount.

 

[Richard Cranium]

check the pawn shops, they always have go pro's

 

[Stuart in MN]

I think you need to come up with a method of documenting the video so you can go back and find the disassembly of each part or asssembly easily. When you're putting the car back together, you don't want to have to fast forward through hours and hours of video just to find where a particular nut or bolt goes.

 

[Lelandwelds]

This is actually a better than decent idea. Storage and data compression are finally good and cheap enough to keep all the footage until the project is finished. Batteries are good enough to record one or two days without recharging. This is just a youtube video with a smaller audience and definite purpose.

If this was common and people learn to edit, I would sit through hours of the interesting ones when you're done.

 

[Lelandwelds]

I think you need to come up with a method of documenting the video so you can go back and find the disassembly of each part or asssembly easily. When you're putting the car back together, you don't want to have to fast forward through hours and hours of video just to find where a particular nut or bolt goes.

I have seen a youtuber cover this very topic. He was editing stock footage and B roll.

 

[Fix Until Broke]

Thanks for all the feedback everyone - Keep it coming along with any other suggestions if you would please! As said above, something like this along with some relatively simple video editing could be very useful!

The more I think about this the more I think that the camera has to be head mounted somehow so it sees more or less exactly what I see so I think that leaves many of the GoPro's out due to the size/bulkiness.

http://www.flywirecameras.com/ has an interesting product, but it looks kind of like a cheap and cobbled together "system", takes 3) AAA batteries/4 hours, has a DC adapter but then that's another thing to carry, besides the camera and microphone etc. No mention of durability, waterpoof, etc. Looks to be in the $200-$300 range

http://www.pivothead.com/ has a fancy pair of glasses with a camera in the bridge, SD card in the bow, batteries/wifi in the over the ear part. Looks to be in the $300-$600 range if you have prescription glasses (I do) or ~$150 less if you don't

http://firecam.com/fire-helmet-cameras/ has a nice camera, but short battery life (1-2 hours) and in the $200-$300 range

I had a nice chat with the people at WatchGuard who make the camera I linked in the first post (Vista XLT). This seems like a really high quality product, rugged, flexible, has the ability to easily segregate video's while you're using it (push a button, select what category you want to put the video in, done). 12+ hours of recording time on a single charge. It also comes at a really high quality price of $1200!

What else is out there that you know about?

 

[southalabama]

With video cameras like a body cam you may not get usually video. Just because you are wearing one doesn't mean it will capture the event. I've seen plenty of police videos where the camera was slightly out of direction and rendered the video portion useless.

 

[Trey T]

An iphone or android phone with electronic gimbal would be a good alternative. The gimbal will provide professional result with image stabilization and allow you to dock it at where ever you need.

Probably the best way I can think of. If you already have the phone, it's just a few hundred bucks for the gimbal.

 

[gunguy]

These are thoughts only and without regard to time or budget...

I would suggest a multi-tiered approach; a body camera as you said with a clip-on mic, a stationary video camera with a wireless clip-on mic, and a still camera for when you want detailed close-ups. Add to all that a notepad and pencil for those just in case times...Body cams don't catch everything and if you miss something or if one portion happens to get corrupted, you have a back-up. A couple of extra batteries is also a good thing.

I wouldn't worry about a 12 hour recording session. Maybe get memory chips, cards, or sticks that will allow for 2,3,4 hour recording sessions. You have to take a break every couple of hours anyway.

You probably break your work down into sub units. Break your recordings down the same way. For example, removal of the heads on one memory stick, disassembly and cleaning on another. I would also record reassembly and reinstallation just in case something goes south and you have to troubleshoot. Memory is cheap so breaking it down makes it easier and quicker to find what you're looking for.

Make sure you can prevent recording over your previous work. A 60-minute stick will record only 60 minutes. If you go 70 minutes, the first ten minutes will be wiped by the last 10 minutes. Also make sure there is some sort of notification or alarm when you are getting close to running out of recording time. You don't want the camera to shut down in the middle of your transmission tear down and you're not aware of it.

Make sure you have good lighting. Doesn't have to be studio quality, but you want to eliminate shadows. What the human eye is capable of seeing and what the camera can see can often times be two different things.

Review your recordings often with the thought that if a procedure or picture isn't as clear as you think it should be, it's fresh enough in your mind that you can make notes that you can refer to later.

Hope this adds to the conversation.

Jim

 

[niget2002]

I have a knock off GoPro I bought for $60 on amazon. It came with a TON of adapters/fittings

It has a removable battery, so even though it only goes for 2 hours, you can just replace it. Downside is, it forgets what time it is when you swap batteries.

You can get a head strap for it, so it sits right on your forehead and points at whatever your head does. I've even wore it over a backwards baseball cap and it still worked well. If you don't use the waterproof cover, the mic picks up pretty good.

I also bought a windshield mount and use the same camera as my dashcam.

I have the camera set to auto-rollover in 5 minute increments, so you end up with a bunch of 5 minute files that are time-stamped.

I've started using it when I do my woodworking projects.

It has Wifi, so you can start/stop the video recording with your phone. You can also use the phone to sync the date/time to the camera. I use it to make sure the camera is pointing at what I want it to before I start recording. WiFi drains the battery a little quicker.

I also bought a dedicated charger that holds two extra batteries. The SD Card is big enough to hold almost an entire day's worth of video depending on how often you start/stop it.

If you put the camera on a tripod so that it points at what you're working on, you can plug the camera into AC so the battery would never die.

Here's some video I shot with it on a tripod

 

[V12]

Mabey some thing like that

Unles its to expensive

 

[Fix Until Broke]

Thanks again for all the comments - good stuff here.

V12 - I like the iVUE product, need to dig into it more but seems to have a good balance of features, performance, cost, etc. Of course you either need good vision or contacts to be able to use something like this (neither of which I have at the moment).

https://ivuecamera.com/

I think a phone gimbal or gopro sized device will be way too big/bulky. The goal is to record the work as it's being done, not for the recording to be the work.

I like the suggestion of a 2nd camera/backup in case of file corruption as well as having it automatically save the files in 5 minute (or whatever) increments just to keep them manageable and to some degree searchable.

 

[gunguy]

You probably thought of this but...Do a couple of dry runs. What I mean by that is do some simple routine maintenance projects such as oil and filter changes, a brake job, a coolant flush & fill, wiper blades, etc. Practice using the equipment before going for record.

Is it easy to don and doff? Does it get in the way? Are the settings correct? Are the images stable and clear enough to be usable, or am I going to have a headache after 3 minutes of viewing? Am I capturing what I intended to capture? These are just a few of the questions you'll be able to answer after a few practice sessions. You'll be learning technique as well as equipment set-up.

Respectfully,

Jim

 

[Fix Until Broke]

Thanks Jim - Good advice.

I wish I could "test drive" a few of these options before I buy.

 

[gunguy]

Thanks Jim - Good advice.

I wish I could "test drive" a few of these options before I buy.

That would be the ideal of course. Many times I think faster than I type. I meant to preface the above with, "Once you assemble your recording equipment..."

Jim

 

[gtr1999]

Curious on what car you're going to rebuild?

 

[Lelandwelds]

Search "Google Glass alternatives"? Lots of opinions out there.

I would want something more security camera or camcorder based. Lots of recording time with H.264 or H.265 and cheaper camera. Plan on two cameras. Look at Studio camera stands and maybe cameras booms.

 

[CN Spots]

Something like this wouldn't work? (I have no experience with these, just curious)

https://www.ebay.com/i/263200793161?chn=ps

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

Did you ever decide on a video camera package? And how does it work if so.

 

[Fix Until Broke]

Sorry, I'd completely forgotten about this thread.

I ended up not getting anything. The project, which I thought would take multiple days to disassemble and document, actually came apart in about 8 hours and went back together surprisingly easily (though much longer than 8 hours ). I'm sure that in 5 years I'll wish I remembered how something in particular looked or went together, but for most of this stuff, it only goes together one way so it's not as valuable as I might have originally thought. My documentation on the wiring is solid and the mechanical stuff is pretty obvious. Biggest documentation shortcoming is remembering what vehicles all the unique/modified components came from so if I need to replace something, I know what to get!

I also never answered gtr1999's question of what vehicle I'm working on. It's a 1996 Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon that has a 2012 Duramax and 6L90E transmission swapped into it. Needless to say, there are a few modifications required .

 

[Kaizen]

daannnggggg boy. surprised you got that frame solid enough for that torque.

Anyone looking at these cams i have a warning. Well at least for the new gopro. It lasts 30 min before the battery has to be changed so you need to buy an aftermarket charger and 3 batteries. Also it eats through gigabytes like a dog on steak. If you don't have several terabytes on your pc you're gonna need it. I am running a 128 gig memory on my gopro. It lasts for about an hour or so depending on video. oh also you need a usb dongle thing to take the memory out of the camera and put in the dongle thing to get into computer. wifi or factory connection takes all night.

 

[Fix Until Broke]

The Roadmasters and any commercial chassis (Limo's, Hearse's, etc) have a fully boxed frame from the factory unlike the other B bodies (caprice, fleetwood, custom cruiser, etc) which just have a C channel frame so that's a good start.

Good to know on the new GoPro's. Are you recording in 4k/60 or 5.2k/30 to get that kind of battery life/data size? I'd think that 1080 would be sufficient for most automotive work as it's not typically "high speed" action stuff like riding a skateboard.

 

[snm805619]

I think a phone gimbal or gopro sized device will be way too big/bulky. The goal is to record the work as it's being done, not for the recording to be the work.

Have you looked at the GoPro Hero Session? I have one, and if you're wearing it, its so small/light you don't notice it. Good video quality and image stabilization. Takes memory cards, and could probably hook up a USB battery pack to it for longer sessions.

 

[bochnak]

I have a youtube channel on motorcylce repair, so here is my 2 cents:

I think any camera would work pretty good honestly.

Put the camera on a tripod, and just move it as needed. It will make you less dizzy viewing the footage.

Break it up into clips. Talk about what the clip is in the first few seconds. Name the file accordingly.

Use a lot of light to capture detail in video.

 

[Fix Until Broke]

snm805619 - I hadn't seen the Session model, it's not on the GoPro website, Seems that they've discontinued it and replaced it with the Hero7, but looks like it's still available on Amazon.

I like the size/simplicity of it (think dirty fingers), voice controls, etc. I wasn't able to download/view any of the documentation as far as it's size, weight, battery life, recording modes, etc. GoPro has done a good job of minimizing the available info on their site....

The new Hero7 models are surprisingly small, but the Session is still quite a bit smaller. I'll have to see if any of the local stores have one I can look at. I'd have to mount it to the top of the bill of my hat probably or maybe a head band off to one side.

Thanks for the recommendation!

 

[Fix Until Broke]

I have a youtube channel on motorcylce repair, so here is my 2 cents:

I think any camera would work pretty good honestly.

Put the camera on a tripod, and just move it as needed. It will make you less dizzy viewing the footage.

Break it up into clips. Talk about what the clip is in the first few seconds. Name the file accordingly.

Use a lot of light to capture detail in video.

Thanks for the suggestions. My intent is primarily for my own documentation, so while I agree that a tripod will create a much easier to watch video (not sure how much image stabilization will help here...), it will likely be in the way and become too much of a hassle with having to take the camera off the tripod to show what's going on close up, etc. There's lots of over/under the car transitions. This was why I was thinking of just strapping it to my head. Same with breaking it up into individual files. I can appreciate the time/effort that some put into making great YouTube videos, but I'm just not at that point.

I was thinking that I could record the day's work, then annotate/log the file at a later time with what happened where/when. So if I wanted to see "AC Condenser Installation" I would go to Tuesday 30 April 2019 between 9:30 and 10:00 AM to find it (and anything else in that visual area that I may want to see). It's probably a case of doing the same amount of work in either scenario, but just deciding if you want to do it as it's happening or "offline" after the fact.

Thanks for the suggestions and discussion - if others have ideas/opinions/experiences to share, please chime in!

 

[Kaizen]

The Roadmasters and any commercial chassis (Limo's, Hearse's, etc) have a fully boxed frame from the factory unlike the other B bodies (caprice, fleetwood, custom cruiser, etc) which just have a C channel frame so that's a good start.

Good to know on the new GoPro's. Are you recording in 4k/60 or 5.2k/30 to get that kind of battery life/data size? I'd think that 1080 would be sufficient for most automotive work as it's not typically "high speed" action stuff like riding a skateboard.

I’ve used all of the setting depending on what I’m doing. Time lapse obviously last a long time. All of the 4k down to 1080 have different things available at different frame rates. So I was filming my honeybees using to 240 fps at 1080p to get slow mo in flight shots. Using mostly 1080 at 30 FPS for garage build videos.
For you it does have a listen thing that you can tell it to start and stop recording. Microphone on it is decent. Does have a way to plug into power but it has to be out of its case.
Lots of other gripes but the length is the major one. Works but really for water sports or action stuff. I’m shopping dslr cams now as I’d like better picture quality and ability to set up on a tripod for extended recording.



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[jayoldschool]

Get something that will link to your phone. Like a Canon SLR, Go Pro, etc. Put it on a tripod or a mount. You will simply tap your phone to take a pic, or start/stop video recording.

 

[bushmechanic]

GoPro. You'll probably have to swap batteries, but there are mounts for many places on the body, and they do audio. It's also sort of a fish-eye lens, which will show more of the area you're working on.

You can get chest straps, as well; and they're not too expensive. Durable as hell, too. They're literally designed to be fire and forget until the battery dies, and it's easy and fast to swap out.

If that's too big, glasses are made with little cameras between the lenses that are cheap enough to have several pairs on hand for when the batteries die.

This was filmed on a pair of those glasses:

He's been using them for years, now. I'm not sure if those record audio, but some might. Check Amazon and AliExpress. If not, a Zoom H1 clipped to a pocket will do the job.

 

[wasfuzz]

Like this?
www.galls.com/search/body cams

 

[DetachedGarage]

I'm running a Cannon M50 for YouTube and short gimbal footage. However for what you are describing your usage to be, I would recommend a web cam hooked to a computer.

 

[Fix Until Broke]

I have not thought of a web cam - would save a few steps in the process for sure and I typically have the laptop out for schematics and notes anyway.

Any good wireless webcams out there?

 

[A**holes Garage]

https://www.afiduscam.com/

 

[raffaelli]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074319MZZ/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Have a couple. Perfect.

 

[Fix Until Broke]

raffaelli - that Crosstour looks nice and at a very nice price point! In you experience, how long does the battery last?