Hands Free Point Of View Camera

handsfree

Here’s an odd little footnote we found while perusing the Comic Tools blog. [Matt Bernier]’s blog is dedicated to drawing and inking tutorials for comic artists. He uses a lot of example photographs that involve both hands. This week, at the bottom of his post on cleaning brushes, he included a photo to illustrate how he takes all of these point of view shots. The camera is strapped securely to his head using an old lanyard. He can see the display and access the controls on the back. After composing his shot, he just sets the timer, and you get a picture of what the process looks like from his perspective. Sure, it looks silly from this angle, but it really helps out the posts.

31 thoughts on “Hands Free Point Of View Camera

  1. Nifty solution, but calling it a hack is a stretch, don’t you think? It’s not like he invented camera straps…

    Another already-invented miracle is called the “tripod”. This device allows one to screw the camera onto LEGS, so you don’t have to hold the camera. BAM, TWO HANDS FREE! :-P

    Or you could take it a step farther and get a gorillapod

  2. And on a serious note, I’ve noticed that they sell scuba masks with digital cameras in them for “kids” to take pictures underwater.

    Hacking one of those to have a higher resolution camera and a HUD on the faceplate might be an interesting project.

  3. I approve this excellent hack. In no way shape or form is hack a day becoming stagnant or lame. This has to be the best hack I have ever seen. To think a lanyard and a scuba mask? I mean I know I don’t have the technical skills to create this, maybe hack could put together a write up on constructing it…lol good god this site sucks

  4. Interesting. I could have used this quite a bit on one of my old jobs, and I think it would be damn handy doing electromechanical teardowns, crafting tutorials, anything that uses two hands (or more) and you want a visual record of. I’d be willing to bet that NONE of the critical pricks here ever really MADE anything. They can think about stuff all day long, but until they actually implement something, they should keep their heckling to themselves.

  5. im completely confused. i read in the address bar “HACKADAY”, but my eyes are telling me “INSTRUCTABLES mkII”. whats going on? where did the lock picking and free coke from drinks machines go?? why are we now looking at something my grandad would do for the equivolent hands free mobile phone kit?
    sort it out hackaday. this is getting pathetic.

  6. Guys, come on, it may not be a hack, but it is indeed an excellent idea:

    1) The instructor can use two hands to hold stuff and take a pics at the same time, … I know tripod can do it too … but ..

    2) The point-of-view (POV) is very important for some jobs. Unless you know what exactly the instructor is seeing, its hard to understand what he is pointing or referring to.

  7. Ok, to be fair, it looks incredibly stupid, but the pictures it produces are great.

    I would imagine it saves time over endlessly adjusting a tripod. Also, being a cartoonist myself, I can imagine that this solution is within even my meager budget.

    All in all, as a POV camera rig I give it an 8 out of 10, as evening wear…considerably less.

  8. rivetgeek…this angers you? really?

    tj…I’m sure you’re the handsomest boy in Mom’s basement.

    dan…Indeed. Finding solutions for problems is retarded.

    roosta…I guess if it’s not illegal, it isn’t useful?

    gosh…you sir, are a word smith!

    acedotcom…you and gosh should write a sitcom.

  9. it may not be a “hack” and it may not be elegant… but damn i could use something like this right now! a head mounted pov shot on the fly, sans tripod.

    perhaps one of these nay sayers can improve upon this idea and share it. i think it’s a very useful idea (which many of these diy hacks could use!)

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