Kit Setup
What's in the box, what it looks like...
It is also important that the camera time matches the local time. Go to the settings menu to modify camera time.
The GoPro Fusion will timestamp each photo with two times, 1) the time set on the camera, and 2) the time reported by GPS. It is not a critical problem if the timestamps differ, however, differences in timestamps can cause avoidable issues later on for other pieces of software.
Turning on "Beeps"
You can turn on sound (beep) to indicate key actions on the camera (when a capture is started or stopped, the camera is turned on or off, etc.).
This is a particularly useful setting with the camera mounted on your pack (especially when the battery runs out) -- so you don’t continue trekking, to realise the camera has stopped shooting.
GPS
In order to map your images, they must be geotagged. The GoPro Fusion will automatically add latitude, longitude and altitude data to your images if this setting is enabled (and the camera can lock on to a GPS signal).
By default, this is enabled. You can toggle (and double check this) under the settings under the Settings menu.
Before shooting, check the marker icon is block coloured (not just an outline). This confirms the camera has locked on to a GPS signal.
GPS A word of warning
Sometimes the GoPro Fusion will lock onto a GPS signal immediately after being turned on. In many cases, we have found this is a bug and will cause all the photos to be tagged with the same coordinates.
We have observed this happening when the camera is warm (e.g has been restarted after already shooting).
If your camera locks onto a GPS signal immediately, we recommend you turn off the GPS setting under the Setting menu, select save, and then toggle it on, and select save. We have found this prevents any corruption of GPS tagging.
You can play around with the ProTune settings -- they’re particularly useful in low light settings.
Usually the default settings will suffice for most environments.
Beware of over stylising photos if you plan to upload the images to online services. For example, the Google Street View policy states:
Stylistic adjustments (such as applied filters) are acceptable, provided that these stylistic changes are minimal and are not appended elements such as borders, text, collaged images, etc.
Waterproofing (rain)
Whilst the GoPro Fusion is waterproof, rain poses a problem. It won’t damage the camera, however, even in light rain showers droplets will form on the lens. Not only are these visible in the photos, raindrops also cause issues with the camera's ability to focus correctly leading to blurred photos.
Storage
The 128GB memory card should hold around 50,000 photos / 5 hours of video. You shouldn’t need to worry about space running out if you’re shooting photos alone (the battery will be more of an issue).
If you are using a smaller memory card, beware, it can quickly fill up in video mode.
A word of warning; just deleting photos from the SD cards will not delete them entirely. The SD cards have a hidden .trashes folder which stores a copy of the deleted photos (useful for recovery).
To permanently delete the .trashes folder and free up the space, you can insert the SD cards into your computer (using the USB adaptor supplied) and selecting “Empty trash” on your computer (the same “Empty trash” function you would use to delete files locally).
Protip; The cards are formatted to each slot, and must always be replaced in the corresponding slot otherwise the camera will show an error when turned on. It's therefore worth marking the SD Cards with 1 and 2, so you can easily identify them.
Setting up the Pack
You’ll notice on the left side of the backpack (if looking from the non-strap side) there are two elasticated hooks.
Release both of these.
Place the monopod into the elasticated side pouch the with the flat side facing inwards toward the pack. Place some padding material (a pair of sports socks are perfect) to fill out the elasticated pouch and keep the monopod from moving around when moving around whilst shooting.
Now secure both of the straps around the monopod, ensuring that the top two release clasps on the monopod are above the top strap (so both can be extended).
Now tighten both straps.
Check the Shooting Angle
Now, extend the monopod to it’s full extension.
Attach the camera to the monopod, ensuring the ps close to vertical (in line with the pole) as possible. It doesn’t need to be perfect, you can always adjust when processing the images.
For reference, the back of the camera is the side with the LCD screen (this should be facing backwards).
Tighten the camera into position. Just twist until it feels secure. Don’t be tempted to overtighten as doing so will eventually break the nut securing the screw.
You’ll notice an adjustable wheel that loosens the screw that attaches the GoPro mount to the monopod. Loosen this slightly so you can rotate the GoPro Fusion to line up parallel to the back of the pack. That is, the camera should face straight ahead of the pack.
Don’t worry too much about making either the pitch (up / down) or yaw (left / right) of the camera perfect as you can compensate for directional changes during processing.
Last modified 1yr ago