Tips for great shots while swimming

Tips for great shots while swimming

Taking pictures and videos in and out of the water – this is how it works!

by Philipp | Restube

published on August 23, 2023

Shooting in or out of the water is something very special because of the unusual perspective. To achieve this, you can either have a friend come with you into the water, or someone on land flying a drone and maneuvering the aircraft accordingly above water to choose different viewpoints.

Thanks to the swim buoy by RESTUBE, a third option has recently become available. Its extremely clever interface called RESTUBE READY allows you to easily attach your action cam with the help of a connector, and take your own pictures and videos from the water. Taking shots of yourself swimming, the landscape around you, and even the underwater world when you flip the buoy and camera over, has never been easier – a little practice and fiddling with settings may be needed to get the perfect shots.

Our teammate Philipp, a swimmer and technology enthusiast, has already tried out a few things and found a solid basic setting for good shots. Here he shares with you his tips and tricks for filming and photographing in the water with the swim buoy by RESTUBE and an action cam.

Philipp is an online marketing specialist at Restube. For the recordings with the Swim Buoy by RESTUBE he uses the GoPro HERO11 Black.

Which action camera is suitable?

Any action camera that has a GoPro 3-way mount is suitable. I use the GoPro HERO11 Black. Other popular models like the DJI Osmo Action or the Insta360 One also work. It is important to have good image stabilisation to compensate for camera sway. The GoPro Family has the HyerSmooth function for this. Another advantage of the GoPro is the Linear + Horizontal Lock, as this setting allows the horizon to be "fixed on a line”. Other camera models have the same or similar functions.

How can you attach the action camera to the swim buoy?

It only takes 2 simple steps to attach the camera to the swim buoy!

1. Connect the action cam to the RESTUBE READY cam connector and attach it by tightening the screw well.

2. Then slide the RESTUBE READY cam connector together with the action cam onto the RESTUBE READY interface provided on the swim buoy.

Tip!

To stabilise the swim buoy in the water, I recommend putting some weight in the dry bag. Depending on how heavy the camera is, you can vary this. Often a towel is enough and will do the job.

Which camera settings work well?

The right camera settings for the GoPro are quickly selected! The first step is to connect your smartphone to the GoPro and select the settings for your camera in the menu.

If you have any other action cam, you will find a similar menu and be able to make the same or similar settings.

Selecting the Right Resolution

I use the standard resolution of the GoPro Hero11: 5.3K resolution and 30 FPS. Of course, you can vary this: for slow-motion shots, for example, the Ultra Slo-Mo mode is suitable.

Linear Horizontal
Lock

Important for my shots is the linear horizontal lock as a lens setting. This fixes the horizontal axis so that a smooth look is maintained even if there are fluctuations in the water.

Image Stabilisation with Hypersmooth

For the best possible image stabilisation, I activate the HyperSmooth function. In addition to the horizontal lock, it ensures that the recordings are smooth and jerk-free when swimming with the swim buoy.

Go to the Settings in your app (1)

Choose the Resolution (2)
Select Linear Horizontal Lock (3)
Activate Hypersmooth for stabilization (4)

Follow these three setting tips and your first shots with the swim buoy and action cam will surely turn out great! In Pro mode you will find many more setting options to work on your "perfect shot!"

Tip!

For optimal aka jerk-free recordings, it is adviced – no surprise here – to swim as smoothly as possible. The image stabilisation of the GoPro nicely compensates for most of my movements ;) so as soon as you press "Record", you can enjoy the swim completely!