If you have a GoPro and a child that plays soccer, you've probably thought about using your GoPro to create videos of their games. Whether your kid is hoping to play in college or you just want to share that amazing goal they scored, nothing captures the moment like video. Following are five tips to help you create awesome soccer videos using GoPro cameras.
#1: Go 5K!
When you record a soccer game using GoPro's wide angle lens setting, the first thing you'll notice is that the players and ball become absolutely tiny when they move to the far side of the field. It's almost impossible to follow the action with such a zoomed out view.
The good news is that the latest GoPros have incredibly high resolution, so you can zoom in on the action. If you plan to manually steer the camera, you can increase the camera's digital zoom or select a narrower digital lens. If your GoPro will have a fixed mount, you can use a video editor to zoom in on the action after the game. Depending on where the players are on the field, we recommend zooming in by 30-100%.
Whether you're using GoPro's digital zoom or lens settings, or editing the game footage after the fact, the image becomes increasingly distorted the more you zoom in. We've found that when recording in 4K resolution, you can follow the action but you often can't make out player faces, jersey numbers or clearly see the ball as the zoom level approaches 100%.
5k (left) delivers noticeably better quality vs. 4K (right) when zooming in to follow the action.
We recommend recording soccer games using a GoPro Hero 9 or later with 5K resolution
To minimize distortion due to digital zoom, we recommend recording in 5K resolution. Fortunately GoPro shines in this area, offering multiple cameras with 5K resolution or better (that's more than 5,000 pixels running horizontally across each frame!). The 5K+ resolution of Hero9/11/12 Black models delivers almost twice the pixels of 4K (>15 Megapixels vs. ~8 Megapixels). So when you zoom in you still get decent image quality.
#2: Use a tall tripod
Sports just look better from above. You can see the formations each side is using, the runs players are making and generally follow the flow of the game much better. We highly recommend filming soccer games with your GoPro mounted on a tall tripod. Even a height of 10 feet makes a big difference, but as your tripod approaches 20 feet your footage takes on a pro-style perspective that truly makes the action shine.
Balancing the benefits of a higher perspective with cost, weight and collapsed length considerations, we recommend a 15-20 foot tripod.
Tripods above 20 feet tall are typically quite expensive – you can expect to pay $500+ for a 24 ft aluminum tripod and over $700 for a carbon fiber mast. The aluminum tripods at this height are quite hefty (more than 20 lbs) and the length is over 6 feet when collapsed.
For tripods of 20 feet or less, there are much more cost-effective options ($350 or less) and the collapsed length is a very manageable 5 feet.
Given tripods above 20 ft have a much greater cost, weight and collapsed length while only gaining a few additional feet in elevation, we recommend a 15-20 foot tripod.
#3: Two cameras are better than one
Of course there's one challenge with putting your GoPro on top of tripod. How do you make sure it's pointed at the action? One simple solution to this problem is to use two cameras, one pointing at each side of the field.
By using two cameras, one pointing at each half of the field, you can give your full attention to the game and then create video highlights afterwards.
Because GoPros have a very wide angle lens, you can cover the entire field with just two cameras. That allows you to put your full attention on the game and then create video highlights afterwards using video editing software.
#4: You're gonna need a bigger battery
In 5k mode, you can record for up to 90 minutes with the GoPro's internal battery. As games sometimes go to overtime or shootouts, you need to be able to film for two hours or more. Bottom line, you should plan on replacing your GoPro's internal batteries at halftime to ensure you can record the entire match. That's doable but introduces the hassle of charging and swapping out multiple batteries. Even worse, on tournament weekends you'll need to have a small basket of batteries to record all your games!
A 15000 mAh external battery can power two GoPros recording in 5K for over 5 hours.
Fortunately GoPros have a USB-C port and can be powered by an external battery pack. GoPro also offers a handy USB pass-through door to make connecting the battery a cinch.
This works whether an internal battery is inserted or not. A 15000 mAh external battery will power two GoPros for over 5 hours – easily enough for two games. That eliminates the need to swap batteries at half time and makes charging much easier.
#5: Make GoPro soccer videos the easy way
You may have realized that the above tips require a reasonable level of expertise with cameras and video editing. Everything from mounting multiple cameras on a tripod to editing some pretty big video files. If that doesn't sound like fun, there is an easier way: SeeUsPlay.
At SeeUsPlay, our mission is to make it easy and affordable for youth teams to create amazing soccer videos. No video editing required. The SeeUsPlay system uses two GoPro cameras, a Rig with an integrated battery pack for mounting the cameras on a tripod, and an App that takes the hassle out of recording games.
Our system is built around Follow AI which automatically creates full game and highlight videos that follow the action on the field. Follow AI uses raw game footage captured in 5K resolution to create videos with stunning clarity. Best of all our system is half the price of comparable competitive options.
Oh, and if you're a GoPro fan like we are, SeeUsPlay gives you one more fun way to use your GoPro!
If you'd like to learn more, please reach out to us!
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