Home Tournaments Calendar Weather Merchandise Sponsors

Go Back   Spearboard.com - The World's Largest Spearfishing Diving Boating Social Media Forum > United States Geographical Locations > California Spearfishing

California Spearfishing Talk here about spearfishing on California's Pacific Coast, and post those reports and photos!

Reply
 
Thread Tools Rate Thread Display Modes
Old 04-13-2016, 12:46 PM   #1
CDMdeepbreather
Registered User
 
CDMdeepbreather's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Corona Del Mar
Posts: 261
Why does GoPro always make the viz look better?

With all of the junk conditions we've had over the past month(s) or so here in So Cal, I've been reminded of this a couple times recently when reviewing footage from dives.

Why does visibility always look better on the GoPro footage than it actually was during the dive?

I know there's a ton of differnt factors that play into our perception of the visibility, for example; Ive noticed that in certain conditions (i.e. when alot of plankton or particulate is present in the water), having sunlight can actually make it harder to see, because the light reflects off of the particulate matter. It seems that in these conditions in particular, the GoPro footage makes the viz look better than it was.

Can anyone shed some light on the subject (pun intended ); what is the GoPro doing, from a technical standpoint, that cuts out the light reflection off of the particulate matter, resulting in the "cleaner" looking viz as depicted by the footage?

Maybe I should spend more time diving and less time thinking about this kind of stuff???

Thanks,
Matt

Last edited by CDMdeepbreather; 04-13-2016 at 12:47 PM. Reason: spelling
CDMdeepbreather is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2016, 12:54 PM   #2
growingupninja
Lance
 
growingupninja's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 1,432
Re: Why does GoPro always make the viz look better?

Depends on how the gopro is set, but the default in camera color correction increases the contrast in the video which makes the viz appear better.

In real life, poor viz looks milky (reduced image latitude) but with the color correction the dark grays become true black and the highlights become true white (dynamic range is increased). If you have ever played with the levels tool in Photoshop, that is what the camera is doing in real time.
__________________

For PFI Freediving classes in the Los Angeles area: http://www.socalspearit.com/freedving-classes
YouTube channel: SoCal Spear-It https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCme...kaUpPMG4NX1rKg
growingupninja is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2016, 12:55 PM   #3
FWFishSlayer
Registered User
 
FWFishSlayer's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: Utah
Posts: 216
Re: Why does GoPro always make the viz look better?

Ive had the opposite experience. I'll shoot a fish and see it perfectly clear and think i had got great footage but then on the video the fish is just a shape in the murk. Im in fresh water though. As you said it must be something with those particular conditions.
FWFishSlayer is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2016, 12:55 PM   #4
Trimbandit
discord and rhyme
 
Trimbandit's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2007
Location: San Mateo
Posts: 2,879
Re: Why does GoPro always make the viz look better?

That's interesting. I always think the gopro makes the conditions look worse haha. Maybe that is my poor filming skills. Some days I think the vis looks nice but then when I see the footage it looks pretty hazy.
__________________
Timid men prefer the calm of despotism to the tempestuous sea of liberty.
Trimbandit is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2016, 12:58 PM   #5
pbguy420
Registered User
 
Join Date: Mar 2016
Posts: 46
Re: Why does GoPro always make the viz look better?

I'm no expert but based off your explanation, I think it could be that most small cameras let less light in to their sensor than your eyes are capable of... So the video quality may be a touch less illuminated than what your eyes were capable of perceiving, thus showing less of the light refraction off the plankton and particulates. Especially when that small sensor is not as efficient as your eyes are

In addition to that even though your mask may not seem distorted, the slight uneven layer of saliva on the inside of the lends could distort it just a tiny bit that you don't really notice!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
pbguy420 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2016, 01:51 PM   #6
arice
Registered User
 
arice's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Santa Monica, CA
Posts: 1,357
Re: Why does GoPro always make the viz look better?

Short answer: http://www.cambridgeincolour.com/tut...-human-eye.htm
arice is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2016, 03:29 PM   #7
Zenon
Registered User
 
Zenon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Leucadia
Posts: 1,268
Re: Why does GoPro always make the viz look better?

So where can I get a mask that gives me better vis?
Zenon is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2016, 03:32 PM   #8
beachbumkc
Registered User
 
beachbumkc's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Posts: 30
Re: Why does GoPro always make the viz look better?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Zenon View Post
So where can I get a mask that gives me better vis?


I was thinking the same thing!
beachbumkc is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2016, 03:48 PM   #9
arice
Registered User
 
arice's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Santa Monica, CA
Posts: 1,357
Re: Why does GoPro always make the viz look better?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Zenon View Post
So where can I get a mask that gives me better vis?
I have a mask that gives me better vis. Amber lenses really help filter out the backscatter and improve the contrast.
arice is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2016, 03:56 PM   #10
growingupninja
Lance
 
growingupninja's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 1,432
Re: Why does GoPro always make the viz look better?

The particular gopro model and the settings make a big difference because some get better lowlight than others... Hero 4 Black at 4k is pretty close to as sensitive as human eye in my tests, older models were not as good so the footage was never as good as what you saw. The 4 black doesn't use the full sensor in the lower rez modes so the lowlight is worse. But bigger sensor almost always equals better lowlight.
__________________

For PFI Freediving classes in the Los Angeles area: http://www.socalspearit.com/freedving-classes
YouTube channel: SoCal Spear-It https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCme...kaUpPMG4NX1rKg
growingupninja is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2016, 04:03 PM   #11
FreediveCA
Registered User
 
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 610
Re: Why does GoPro always make the viz look better?

Quote:
Originally Posted by arice View Post
I have a mask that gives me better vis. Amber lenses really help filter out the backscatter and improve the contrast.
Amber lenses all the way.
FreediveCA is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2016, 05:26 PM   #12
jfjf
.
 
jfjf's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Palm Bch County
Posts: 11,256
Re: Why does GoPro always make the viz look better?

I think it has a lot to do with the wide angle features of the camera. UW photographers have known for a long time that wide angle makes the water look clearer.

With a wide angle, objects appear farther away than they are.. This illusion is what makes the water appear clearer. A diver can be 5 feet away, but it looks like 10 ft maybe..so it is easy to understand the effect.

However, i often shoot in clear water - over 60 ft visibility and you can clearly see a diver, a shark or a fish with our eye, but the video doesn't really show it.
jfjf is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2016, 05:26 PM   #13
Apneaddict
Registered User
 
Apneaddict's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Posts: 550
Re: Why does GoPro always make the viz look better?

I find the sporasub mystic glass seems really clear and sharp compared to other masks and others have said the same thing!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
__________________
Home of the Lunocet Pro Monofin:
http://www.ultimateswimfin.com/

A unique take on Freediving and Apnea:
http://apneaddict.blogspot.com/
Apneaddict is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2016, 09:31 PM   #14
Trimbandit
discord and rhyme
 
Trimbandit's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2007
Location: San Mateo
Posts: 2,879
Re: Why does GoPro always make the viz look better?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Apneaddict View Post
I find the sporasub mystic glass seems really clear and sharp compared to other masks and others have said the same thing!
There are some pieces of gear I don't care too much about and some that I would replace in a second if lost. The mystic mask falls into the latter category. Great view, comfortable skirt, low profile. I have had mine for about 7 years and I love it.
__________________
Timid men prefer the calm of despotism to the tempestuous sea of liberty.
Trimbandit is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2016, 10:11 PM   #15
CDMdeepbreather
Registered User
 
CDMdeepbreather's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Corona Del Mar
Posts: 261
Re: Why does GoPro always make the viz look better?

Arice - that article was very helpful... the section on lighting makes alot of sense.

I too have used amber lenses, and liked them. I currently own a mask with tinted/polarized lenses, and like it; however, also feel like it cuts out some light, which likely contributes to the fact that the GoPro footage looks better than what im seeing.
CDMdeepbreather is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks

Tags
dive camera, gopro

Thread Tools
Display Modes Rate This Thread
Rate This Thread:

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 02:02 AM.


The World's Largest Spearfishing Diving Social Media Forum Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2002 - 2014 Spearboard.com