Cycling Trip in Hokkaido

Currently I am on a 22-day cycling trip in Hokkaido.  So far my group and I have rode well over a thousand kilometers in rain and shine through valleys, fields, mountains, forests, and along the beautiful coastline.  Our bikes weigh over 70 pounds with our tents and cooking pots and camping and lack of sleep have made this trip a challenge in addition to its pleasures.  

The Sony As100v has thus far proven to be a lifesaver for me on this trip.  It's light, convenient, rainproof, and has excellent video and picture quality.  Despite the fact that I brought my Cannon 50D and Nikon 1 V1, I find myself using the As100v almost exclusively simply because it is more than good enough for most of the shots and video I need and is just so incredibly convenient.  I am also just too tired to pull my other cameras out of my bag and keep my 100V in my pocket where I can pull it out in a flash.

I'll be making a video for this trip that I'll share later, but for now here are some pictures.  

Screenshots from a video I took when a fox suddenly crossed the road while we were resting.

The fox came up to us and then ran away about 10 seconds from when it appeared.  The as100v was mounted on my helmet and was shooting HD video the second I saw the fox come out of the bushes and got me a very nice video clip to put in my movie.

Time lapse shot of the sunset.

A beautiful road shot of Hokkaido's northern coast.  I was too tired to pull out my other cameras and settled with the As100v for this shot which actually turned out fantastic.

As100v with a monopod and controlled via iPhone.  This combination gives me the ability to document my trip in ways that are impossible with conventional cameras.

I'll post more updates later, but so far I can say I absolutely love the As100v and highly recommend it for any travel trip you may have.  

Here is a video I shot with the As100v of Pepper, a new robot by Japanese Telecommunications giant SoftBank.  It can understand speech and respond to over 570 Japanese words.  It will be on sale for 1,900$ next year.  

While I was in Asakusa, I also spotted a couple walking their dogs, one of which had an As100v mounted to its back!  (Photo taken with a Cannon 50D with a 24-105 F4L lens)

She was using the wrist watch to control the video and was actually getting some pretty cool footage with her setup!  

I struck up conversation by pulling out my Sony and talked to her about her uses for this camera.  It turns out she really loves her dogs and uses it mostly to "see from her dog's perspective." Glancing at her watch I saw that it really did look like "doggy vision." 

So far she also really loves the camera as well.  So I guess this camera is also good if you have a dog  and really want to get some of that doggy vision.

Maybe Ill try this on my cat sometime.  

Time Lapse Test

Here is a time lapse test video I made with the as100v.  The camera is very easy to set up for time lapse and can record images in 1, 2, 5, 10, 30, or 60 second intervals.  It also adjusts automatically to changing light conditions very well and thanks to its wide-angle view, doest suffer from distortion due to the focus changing.  

In my past videos, I used time lapses while I was riding to add a super fast forward effect to my movies too.  Overall, the time lapse function on this camera is great and a lot of fun to use.  I am sure many of you will find your own creative ways to put it to use.  

Also, please feel free to ask any questions you have by commenting on this blog, or by posting on my youtube videos.  Maybe I could make a Frequently Asked Questions post or something for people.  Ill also take video/test requests as long as they are not too crazy.  

Mt. Fuji Climb with the Subaru Cycling Team (Test)

Ahh finally, a real chance to test out the as100v in a situation where I really needed it.

Last weekend I went on a cycling trip with the Subaru Cycling Team where we climbed to the 5th station of Mt. Fuji.  This was an all day trip with roughly 5,000 feet of climbing over a 25 kilometer course.  During this trip I cycled one of the most beautiful routes I have ever seen, made some great friends, and had the time of my life.  So how well did the Sony as100v capture these memories?

Both on and off the bike, this little camera was always a few seconds away from "off" to recording silky smooth 1080p 60fps wide angle video.  As I had experienced during my previous rides with this camera, the lightweight and aerodynamic design of the camera made it hard for me to even tell that the camera was mounted on my head.  It was a pleasure to ride with and I had the camera mounted on my head for the majority of the ride.  (I only took it off to use it with my monopod)  The aerodynamic design also came in handy when I was descending at 40mph.  

When I used a Gopro White Edition, using the camera was a pain and detracted from my overall riding experience.  It caught the headwinds and dragged my head back (which just felt miserable) and was heavy to the point where my helmet could not ventilate and I got drenched in sweat.  This as100v is a VAST improvement in every regard.

Its official, I love this camera.  You can be sure that it will be with me on every notable ride and trip I take from here on out.

Side Notes:  Another cyclist in the group also had an as100v and like me preferred to use it without the waterproof housing.  BUT he warned me that I should buy the front lens cover to protect the precious Carl Zeiss lens on the camera.   In hindsight I have to admit I am taking a huge risk riding without any protection on this lens.  (The cover is 20$ and depicted in the video)  Damage the lens, and your camera is heavily compromised.

Also, when you record with GPS with the intent to put GPS overlay on your video, you need to import it via Sony Playmemories Home.  I imported my descent videos in IMovie and deleted the video data, but it did not keep the GPS data.  

Sushi with the As100v

I suppose this will be the "shooting with the as100v in everyday life" video at a sushi restaurant in Shibuya.

The small size and lightweight design of the as100v allows it to fit easily into any pocket, making it a camera that I can have with me at all times.  Its fun and easy to shoot with and can be used in many creative ways.  This camera is just as much fun to use in everyday life as it is to shoot with on my bike.

Video note:  1080p, 30fps

(The 1080p 30 frames per second is noticeably less fluid and sharp than the 60fps video mode, so Id recommend sticking to 60fps for the best video quality if you are not using the XAVC mode.)

Sony as100v Hacks

Having a tripod mount on the As100v's waterproof case and on the body of the camera itself is absolutely awesome.  Because of this, the camera can be used with a wide variety of camera and video equipment.  Here are some cool accessories that you can buy that will make your shooting experience with the As100v even cooler.

A Joby Gorilla Pod.  Mount your As100v in anyway you can imagine anywhere.  

Its cheaper than the mounts that Sony offers and is much more flexible in its application.  I use this to mount my As100v on my bike handlebars, on my seat post, on the frame of my bike, and just to set it up on the street for some interesting ride by shots.  I also use this to hold the camera when I film walking around. 

Gopro Mount Adapter.  Switching from a Gopro like me? Prefer the Gopro mounts over the ones Sony offers?

Get this little adapter that exploits the tripod mounts on the As100v.  Problem solved.  

10$ on Amazon Japan.  

Not the As100v, but same concept.  On another note, Im so glad that Sony slimmed down the waterproof case from this behemoth.  

A Cycling Promotion Video

Here is a video I recently made to promote my school's cycling club here in Tokyo.  The wide-angle video footage in this video was with the as100v.   

(The other video and photo segments were taken with a Nikon 1 V1)  

Also... I purchased a 16gb Sandisk MicroSDHC Pro a few weeks ago to use the high quality 50mbs video mode on the camera.

However, I was very shocked to find that the Sony as100v cannot use this card for the 50mbs mode despite the fact that this card is capable of 90mbs write speed.  Only a MicroSDXC card will work for this mode, not the MicroSDHC one that I bought.   I am not very knowledgable about memory card formats and should have read the manual where it specifically mentioned that I needed a SDXC card for this video mode.  What a shame.