GoPro 7 Hero Black: Best low light night settings for video capture of number plates while cycling

[Oldie]

Never worked out how to zoom on VLC - I must be missing something obvious.

Also, I'd like to run continuous footage instead of opening a new file every 3 minutes.

 

[guerney]

It's a bit clunky zooming in VLC, this works depending on the video mode being used.

Or you can use the Windows magnifier.

I'd like to run continuous footage instead of opening a new file every 3 minutes.

You can play a playlist, drag all files to the playlist and loop - the loop playback button can be added in "Customise interface".

 

[Oldie]

Thanks! I'll give it a go.

 

[sjpt]

We always used to use VLC, but have been using Media Player Classic for some time.
Mostly playback quality was the same, but under some situation (I forget the details) MPC played back with much better quality than VLC.

MPC can be set up for very convenient frame forward/back which is helpful for us. Not sure about zooming.

We installed MPC as part of K-Lite Codecs; installed via the extraordinarily helpful Ninite.

 

[guerney]

We always used to use VLC, but have been using Media Player Classic for some time.
Mostly playback quality was the same, but under some situation (I forget the details) MPC played back with much better quality than VLC.

Video quality can be very good, depending on the video mode used and the detected capabilities of your graphics card. For low resource use, I usually go with DirectX, unless I need a separate subtitle file for foreign movies.

MPC can be set up for very convenient frame forward/back which is helpful for us.

VLC skip forward and back can be assigned variable time hops, then it's forward and back arrow keypresses. There's also the frame advance button which can be added from "customise interface".

Installed 5K player the other day.

 

[guerney]

If anyone is wondering which codec to use in order to retain as much quality as possible after uploading their cycling/other video to Youtube (Youtube's compression can completely destroy all clarity of your video): After much experimentation I've determined it's VP9. Export from whatever program you're editing with, then use Handbrake (free) to export using VP9 - it's pretty similar to Youtube's own compression codec.





If you simply wanted to snip out a section of video without losing quality, that's easily done using LosslessCut (free). Then chuck it through Handbrake (free) to compress using VP9, then upload to Youtube.

 

[guerney]

The GoPro 7 Hero Black does the job for now, but here's a little update for anyone else using one to record passing number plates at night: I'm reducing max ISO from 1600 to 800, because with all the graininess at ISO1600, it's value for recording said night number plates when they're travelling fast and further away is questionable - if you can bring yourself to enduring looking closely at the heavily brightened and stupefyingly boring video below (don't do it! ), the camera switching from less grainy ISO 800 to grainer ISO 1600 and back again is clearly visible. I'm going to experiment with pointing one of the headlights acutely down and to the right, as I originally intended, to illuminate number plates as they speed by. Trouble is, I worry drivers might be attracted to a bright light to the right of my front wheel like moths. I'll see how it goes.

 

[AndyBike]

I got a hero 7(silver?) out of Evans cycles. But its lived in its box and i havent even set it up or done the initial update/download.
It was on special and got it for i think 90 quid new.

Evans, being staffed by imbeciles, couldn't get the display case open, and at one point I had the entire staff of 5 round it trying to work out how it opened.
My quip of 'How many Evans staff does it take to open a display case' didnt go down so well.
They eventually broke open the back of the case and i got my new toy.

 

[guerney]

Can you get it out of the box? Batteries could expire if you don't charge them. £90 is a good price, Cex would give you a £83 voucher for your "Mint" Grade A Hero 7 Silver to exchange for a GoPro Hero 7 Black, if you wanted, when they have them in stock at £125 B grade, £135 A grade.

https://uk.webuy.com/product-detail/?id=0818279022995a&categoryName=camcorders&superCatName=electronics&title=&queryID=9be243fcce9b3623894ea27d746c5c54&position=9

Your GoPro Hero 7 Silver has a different sensor, firmware and features to the Hero 7 Black:

...so I have no idea how well it will perform at night... and looking at the manual:

https://gopro.com/content/dam/help/hero7-silver/manuals/HERO7Silver_UM_ENG_REVA.pdf


...it appears there are no manual settings for frame rate, shutter speed, or ISO. Therefore you're stuck with whatever GoPro has decided is best for every situation.

 

[AndyBike]

Tell a lie, its the white one i have. Thrown off completely by the fact its grey in colour.

TBH even upgrading to black would be lost on me, hence the one I have is sitting new and unused for the last 6 months.
I'll probably gift it to one of the nephews or such.

 

[guerney]

Tell a lie, its the white one i have. Thrown off completely by the fact its grey in colour.

TBH even upgrading to black would be lost on me, hence the one I have is sitting new and unused for the last 6 months.
I'll probably gift it to one of the nephews or such.

You must have bought it for a reason. I reckon an action camera cyclist "flight" recorder is well worth using, especially when you've flown over the handlebars and some driver disputes what occurred after he/she/they/them/it bumps you off because he/she/they/them/it failed to see you. Trade it in for a GoPro Hero 7 Black - there are three in stock at the moment. Two year guarantee.

https://uk.webuy.com/product-detail?id=0818279023077b&categoryName=camcorders&superCatName=electronics&title=&queryID=75df79ac9259f3a5536aa3902ded2246&position=1


You could get £83 trade-in for your A grade Hero 7 White. 125 - 83 = 42 the answer to life, the universe and everything.

https://uk.webuy.com/product-detail?id=0818279022995a&categoryName=camcorders&superCatName=electronics&title=&queryID=862b1ad6273eb3f9d91e4f238e92b683&position=6


I bought three new genuine batteries from this dude - they're always shagged out on secondhand GoPros.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/313578217774

I'll probably gift it to one of the nephews or such.

Give him a lump of coal and tell him to be grateful.

 

[AndyBike]

You must have bought it for a reason.

I dont think there was any specific reason other than i visited the shop by chance, spotted it on special offer. and thought 'hey thats one of them gopro things'.

I think the thought process at the time was to use it on bike adventures that never actually came about. But most of the time i seem to have a habit of buying things i dont really need- See my Festool collection... ahem

Give him a lump of coal and tell him to be grateful.

That will never work. One is a solicitor, the other's about to enter the office of national statistics as an economist. A lump of coal just isnt going to cut it.

 

[guerney]

I think the thought process at the time was to use it on bike adventures that never actually came about.

Isn't every bike ride a death-defying adventure these days? Traffic is way more ferocious than it was in the 80's. Yank tanks and ram raiders all over the shop.

That will never work. One is a solicitor, the other's about to enter the office of national statistics as an economist. A lump of coal just isnt going to cut it.

They'll Google it and regift the thing, or it'll end up in a charity shop - you may as well take the £7 hit in reduction of value, and exchange it for a Hero 7 Black. I don't like 8... and 10, 11 and 12 are too expensive, also larger and heavier. The Osmo Action 3 looks promising with it's large sensor, but I don't like the mount and @FastFreddy2 hasn't yet reported back with night cycling footage tests using his - that could be because he doesn't cycle at night. I hate the online activation requirement before an Osmo will function as anything other than a paperweight... GoPros work without that. There isn't a single test of the Osmo action 3 on Youtube which was recorded using high shutter speed on a bicycle at night - every test I've seen shows blurry number plates, on some auto mode.