Many who have ever used action cameras are annoyed by the strong distortion in the video. These are the consequences of distortion or the so-called effect “ fish eye". Today we will find out if an action camera can shoot without a fisheye and how to achieve this.
There are two ways to get this video:
- Optic. This method implies that the camera has a lens of no more than 90 degrees, which allows you to shoot video without distortion.
- Program. This method involves correcting distortion programmatically. Many modern action cameras have this feature.
Action cameras with 90 degree lens, no fisheye effect
GitUp Git2P 90 - cost around $100.
This camera has Novatek96660 processor, wi-fi module, F2.5 aperture, 950mAh battery. There is electronic stabilization. Ability to connect an external microphone and remote control. The pro version has an aquabox and various accessories included. Menu in Russian.
Firefly 8s 90 - cost around $150.
Unlike the previous model, Firefly 8s can shoot full 4K video. There is electronic video stabilization. The camera is equipped with an ambarella-A12S75 processor, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, a 1200mAh battery. It has a rich package with an underwater case and various mounts. It is possible to connect a remote control and an external microphone.
Firefly 8se 90 - cost around $150.
This is a slightly modified and improved version of Firefly 8s. The new camera has a touch screen. Comes with a wide range of accessories, including external microphone. To date – This best camera capable of capturing video without distortion.
To date, fisheye correction cameras have appeared on the market quite a lot. Here the choice will depend on your tastes and preferences. Here are just a few examples of such cameras in different price ranges.
- Cameras under $100: Xiaomi Mijia.
- Cameras under $200: Yi 4K, Firefly 8s 170, .
- Over $200: Yi 4K+, Sony FDR-X1000, GoPro 4/5/6.
Action cameras have long ceased to be only the lot of athletes and extreme sportsmen. Due to the compact dimensions, High Quality shooting, a large fleet of accessories and lower cost compared to professional cameras, they have become truly massive. YouTube videos, family videos, travel reports, work moments and even feature films. Everything is fine except for the fisheye effect, which has become an integral part of any action camera. In some models, such distortions are combated by software reduction of the viewing angle, sacrificing part of the image. The same can be done in popular video editors. All of this takes time, a fast enough PC to process, and often results in loss of quality.
Unlike DSLRs and mirrorless cameras, there is no standard lens change in action cameras. Nevertheless, the presence of a tacit standardization of the tripod screw mount and dimensions allows it to be dismantled and replaced with third-party solutions. The network has a large number of instructions for such manipulations, even a choice of lenses with different characteristics is available. But you should immediately understand for yourself that such an upgrade is not provided for and not approved by the manufacturers, any manipulations lead to a loss of warranty and can lead to fatal consequences.
Risks can be minimized with a solution from Russian company pixaero. They offer not only a well-designed lens, but also tools for accurate installation, as well as detailed instructions. Before the start of the review, we want to announce a competition among readers and viewers in which we will play one PixAero lens, three 15% discount coupons and a 5% coupon for everyone. As well as three monopods for an action camera with a retractable handle. To participate you need:
- 1. Fill out the participant's questionnaire (the data will be used to contact the winner).
- 2. Write your opinion on the pixAero lens or shooting with action cameras in the comments below, indicating the serial number in front of the text (1, 2, 3, 4 ... relative to the previous comment).
PixAero lens for action cameras overview
Equipment
The pixAero lens is supplied in a compact tube made of black thick cardboard. Inside are two separate compartments filled with sponge.
The lens is hidden in one, the key for disassembling the camera is in the second. The kit also includes a set of stickers for the lens, they will be useful for mounting and subsequently for changing the shooting mode.
Appearance
At the time of the release of our review, lenses for GoPRO, YI, SJCAM are available. We have all of them in our arsenal, we will check using the YI 4K+ camera as an example. action camera. The same will be true for the YI 4K Action Camera, it will solve the issue of the lack of “fish” correction when shooting in 4K.
For GoPro, replacement is possible for Hero 4 and Hero 3+. IN GoPro Hero 5 replacement is not supported due to the structure of the case.
Appearance PixAero
Unlike lenses from Aliexpress, the solution from pixAero is clearly sized for the size of the seat for the declared list of action cameras.
The thread length moment is taken into account, you don’t have to worry, it will not damage the matrix during installation. And no less important: the lens does not deteriorate after replacement appearance cameras.
The lens body is made of metal. Focal length 3.77 mm, aperture F/2.8. The outer lens is slightly recessed relative to the rim, which prevents scratches during transportation and additionally protects the lens.
Outer perimeter with fine notches and notches. In the future, this will simplify the change of shooting mode and the editing process itself.
The complete key deserves no less attention. Most of the instructions on the net are carried out by improvised means, as a result, notches and chips remain.
pixAero comes with a handy key that removes the lens with just a little effort and without leaving marks on the external unit.
Installation process
The installation process is described in detail and clearly in the official video. It took us about 5-10 leisurely minutes to replace. The first step is to remove the protective cover on the lens, after which it will be possible to install the complete dismantling key and unscrew the lens.Installing PixAero
We fasten the pixAero lens in its place. You will need to adjust the sharpness. At first, it is adjusted approximately, evaluating the picture on the display, then the complete sticker with labels will help. 9 labels are useful for choosing a picture with maximum sharpness. Subsequently, this position will become the starting position, will correspond to sharpness to infinity. The sticker is removed and a graduated scale is installed instead.
After all the manipulations, YI 4K + Action Camera gets the ability to change focal length and among other things gets support for macro photography.
Tests
In this video, we will compare the operation in several modes. For the most informative comparison, a YI 4K+ Action Camera with a pixAero lens and a YI 4K Action Camera with a native lens are used.4K handheld
4K selfie shooting
The picture with the lens looks more saturated, geometric distortions have disappeared both at the edges and in the center of the frame.
4K visual focus change
Full HD
IN this example YI 4K Action Camera correction is enabled, it can also be noted that software processing is inferior to the image originally obtained from the pixAero lens.
Macro
From a distance where the stock lens blurs, the YI 4K+ Action Camera delivers a clear image.
YI 4K+ Action Camera Summary
Tuning the YI 4K+ Action Camera by replacing the lens with pixAero optics really makes practical sense. The camera is transformed in terms of shooting capabilities. Here and shooting with the correct geometry of objects, and changing the focusing range, and macro support. On the side of the pixAero solution: neat installation and a complete key, verified dimensions, additional tools for fine tuning and installation. YI 4K+ Action Camera receives a well-deserved "Gold" award. You can order a lens and find out the technical details on the official website - http://pixaero.pro.
Interferes with the exact perception of the recorded.
It is true that such cameras distort the image, because their coverage rarely exceeds 90 degrees, and the camera needs to cover as much space as possible. But what prevents you from using any program to remove this effect?
In fact, one of the advantages of a fisheye is the following shooting parameter: it is not at all necessary to accurately point the camera lens at the object, it is enough that it just gets into the frame. In any case, it will be in the video sequence. This is useful when there is no time to focus on the subject, such as when you shoot schools of fish underwater, which instantly elude the camera's pupil.
The new action camera GitUp Git2P differs little from the previous camera without the “P” prefix, after the “two”. Practically, the digital shooting indicators, the location of the control buttons on the body have not changed either. But there are still changes, so the camera deserves a new, separate review without comparison with its predecessor. The camera can shoot in 2160P resolution at 24 fps - that's 2K quality. Although most users will be fine with 1080 at 60fps. The fact is that not all devices that will later be used for viewing will be able to show video in 2K quality (except for expensive, modern laptops / computers / smart TVs). Although a regular $40 TV box will show the recording in 4K quality.
For still images, GitUp Git2P has a 16MP camera resolution. It is difficult to judge the "honesty" of the camera, how these same 16MP are achieved - by interpolation, or by the quality of the sensor. In any case, even if there are 8-12 megapixels, then this is quite enough for high-quality pictures.
The camera can be controlled from a special remote control bracelet (not included). True, it has only 4 functions, but the most important ones are:
- turning the camera on/off;
- on/off video recording;
- camera on/off;
- transfer of footage via fi-wi to third-party equipment.
Yes, for the convenience of saving files, the user can immediately send them to his smartphone, or to the "cloud" storage. The GitUp Git2P camera supports micro sd memory cards up to 64Gb. I suspect that the 128Gb camera will “pull”, the only thing is that you will need a card of the high class. But for now real tests not carried out, I will not say. 
The camera has the ability to mount on a quadrocopter, can connect to a microphone for better sound recording. Of course, he can take a selfie with a stick. If the user has a desire to use the GitUp Git2P camera as a DVR, then the G-sensor will be able to save the desired file in case of an accident.
The screen resolution is 920x240 pixels, and its diagonal is 1.5 inches. So to speak, a widescreen screen, which is enough to view the footage in good quality.
A 1000 mAh battery will allow you to shoot continuously for an hour and a half - very good indicator for action cameras. Battery charging time, approximately 2.5 hours. Based on the experience of operating such cameras, I dare to advise you to purchase an additional pair of batteries with more power - then you will have enough energy to shoot all daylight hours, and at night, all batteries will be fully charged.
Unfortunately, the delivery set is very poor: a camera, a battery and a cable for connecting via usb. Everything else (remote control, mounts, aqua-box, etc.) will have to be purchased separately. Perhaps this is the only negative that is worth noting in this camera, which costs 6,452 rubles (as of February 2017). Right now, you can pre-order
The company launched the highly successful Yi Action Camera last year. The device, of course, did not push the giant in the face of GoPro, but it found its consumer - this is a fact. This spring, the continuation of the line came out - Yi 4K Action Camera. This time, Yi Technology was involved in its development, and this is what came of it.
Review Yi 4K Action Camera Let's start with an important clarification. Xiaomi, the Chinese manufacturer of smartphones, and indeed everything in the world, has nothing to do with the novelty. 4K Action Camera is a standalone development product, not affiliated with Xiaomi in any way. More precisely, it is only a distributor in China. Only and everything. However, in many Chinese stores The device is referred to with the prefix "Xiaomi". Know it's wrong. Perhaps this was done to make it easier for the consumer to navigate, according to the old memory, so to speak, and no one canceled the search keywords.
Before we start reviewing the camera's capabilities, it will be useful to familiarize yourself with complete list functions. So, here are all the features of the action camera currently available:
- photographing
- timer photo shooting
- Burst mode (many, many frames per second)
- video recording
- time lapse video
- slow motion
- Time Lapse photo
- Loop or DVR mode
- Photo and video
Of course, there are a whole bunch of different settings, options, and other options to make using Action Camera as convenient as possible. However, first things first.
Equipment
The camera also has Bluetooth 4.0 Low Energy. It is needed to connect to the control panel. The device did not want to connect to my Bluetooth monopod. Give him a branded remote control, apparently. But I don’t have it, so I didn’t check the work of the “blue tooth”.
Read about:
— Video filming
— photography
- Proprietary application
- Battery life
- Accessories
- Outcome
