For me, there’s only 2 action camera brands to really consider: GoPro and DJI

You all know the GoPro. You’ve seen them at the ski mountain strapped to the helmets of 10 year olds, you’ve seen them at Disney World and you probably have even used one yourself at one point in time. I’ve learned a lot about action cameras over the past 4 years of owning one - here’s some things I’ve learned

Buy GoPro

GoPro is king of the action camera world. While DJI is new on the scene, i’m not at a point to purchase their action camera yet, but for now I am watching with a close eye. Their DJI Osmo Action Cam intrigues me, especially with the front facing screen, rock steady stabilization and image quality. BUT, I don’t trust them yet. There have already been some issues coming out about the DJI Osmo Action Cam like audio sync issues and dropping frames in between clips. For me, GoPro has had 15 years to perfect their action camera and for the time being are getting my business.

My Big GoPro Mistake

I think a lot of people make this mistake… I was getting ready for my first vacation in 2 years. Kaylee and I were going to Costa Rica and I wanted to make a video. So what did I do? I bought a GoPro. This is a big mistake. The GoPro is so 1 dimensional - you can’t zoom, it’s nearly impossible to see what you’re actually filming, the microphone is bad and depth of field is non existent. GoPros are great for action - swimming, running, strapping it to your motorcycle helmet, taping it to your shoe, etc. It’s not great for making travel vlogs.

Cheap travel vlog cameras I recommend:

And in case you’re interested, here’s the video I made with that GoPro over 3 years ago:


Action Camera Filming Tips

  • Think of creative places to put the camera (tape it to your shoe, strap it to your chest, tape it to tools your using, etc.)

  • The GoPro 7 made a huge step forward from the 6 with image stabilization. I wouldn’t buy anything newer than the GoPro 7

  • Film in “linear” mode most of the time. Unless you’re trying to use the fisheye for a creative shot, liner just looks so much better for everyday filming

  • I like filming in 4k so I can crop in on something if it is too far away

  • If the camera gets wet, the audio will be unusable until the microphone dries out (wait 30 min or so after taking it underwater)