If you watched my first test with the GoPro HD Hero, I placed it in my fishtank. You might have noticed however, that the quality was fair before going into the tank, but terrible once underwater (the quality of the whole thing was a little sub-par because of the low lighting). After surfing the internet a little, I found that everyone was having this issue. The common assumption was that it was the domed glass lens on the waterproof housing that was messing with the light entering the GoPro itself. The idea was to make a barrier of air between the domed lens, and the water to prevent this diffraction of light.
I did this very very (did I stress it enough?) quickly, and just wanted to get an idea of whether or not the theory would hold true…If you compare the two below, I think you might agree with me that it did make a pretty significant difference.
GoPro HD Hero test #1 in fishtank
GoPro HD Hero test #2 in fishtank w/modification
Here are some quick low-res pictures of what I did.
Again, it was a really thrown-together design, but it was only meant to be a test to see if the idea would work. Basically I just found the thickest see-through plastic I could…that ended up being one of those clear CD’s they put at the top when you buy a stack of CD-R/RW’s for protection. I just cut out a rectangle a little larger than the waterproof lens, and melted the corners up a little so I could wrap the rubber bands around it. I then put some spacers underneath that (which you can see from the video, I didn’t cut big enough…I actually cut the corners off of my yoga mat for this…again…thrown together fast) and strapped the whole thing down with rubber bands. The fishing line was just what I used to drop it in the tank with.
Obviously it goes without saying, this would NOT hold up well for long underwater, especially at any great depths, but it’s a concept I hope to build from, and improve. It will probably be a while before I go further with this project, but if anyone has any ideas, please feel free to leave comments. I should mention, I owe the GoPro forums for a good amount of the information I got to do this.
cheers,
Justin
Edit: I wanted to mention, that all of the tests I have done were shot in the r3 mode which is 720p at 60fps
Hi I had the same problem and knowing a bit about optics did a similar test. I used the clear plastic case the HDPro comes packed in. If you put the camera in the case with the case upside down in the water but not submerged you can use it as a seascope similar to what they use to view underwater from a boat. When filming with the camera inside this housing underwater the images and video are clear. This proves that the problem is the curved optics on the housing/lens that will not focus the light rays when there is a water/glass lens contact. Solution is simple make a glass lens with a different optical quality that will focus the light rays. This could be used when underweater.
So nice improving the Gopro camera! great job…
Have the manufactorer of gopro any idea themeself of this problem? I wonder why they self havent issued this improvement that you have figured out??
I want too use the camera for kitesurfing and underwwater freediving… And especiially the underwater filming is exciting, i think.
Best from
Peter
Thanks for the comments guys…Peter, it still is pretty clear under water to be honest, and for kite surfing would be ideal (I don’t think you could do anything better even close to that price range). I heard the domed lens is part of the cameras optics, so replacing the dome itself with a flat plate would probably change it’s focus. I think the blurry picture is coming from the light refracting at different angles between the water, and air in the casing. The best fix might be slapping a polarizing filter on there somehow maybe. I’m still playing with it though…if anyone hears of a better fix, let me know.
cheers