[aaron_oxenrider]

I literally do kayak off waterfalls and while some in the group will have a GoPro or similar generic camera, they just aren't that good for documenting a trip. Someone bringing their phone in a dry box and getting setup on the side of the river usually provides better footage and a better angle than having the camera on my helmet. I just don't see them that often except for the professionals who post on Instagram all the time.

[matwood]

People told me I was crazy when I said GoPro was going to be killed by cell phones. "No one would risk their iPhone". Except prior gen iPhones are pretty cheap now, cases have become very good, and the abilities far surpass the GoPro. Plus, someone can shoot, edit, and upload all from the same device.

[Godel_unicode]

If you scuba dive, there's no option even close to GoPro for the combination of accessories, price, stabilization (the iPhone is still not quite there, and the old ones are totally useless), video quality, and access to the controls under water. It shoots in a flat color profile, which the iPhone still doesn't, so grading color is super easy.

Editing and uploading from a phone is nice, but it stays on the boat when you drop in.

[zackbloom]

I totally disagree. The Kraken diving case is exceptional. I did 20+ dives with it in Micronesia this year and the photos are about as good as anyone is going to get without a DSLR. In fact, I was more limited by my lighting than by the camera.

It's also huge to have a screen as big as the phone's, and being able to slip the whole rig into my thigh pocket meant I took it on every dive, not just camera specific ones. I can't imagine a better setup for me.

Edit: You mentioned video. The Paralenz is a much better diving camera than a GoPro. It has a tubular form factor, making it easy to attach to a mask strap. It also is natively pressure resistant and can add depth numbers to your video, GoPros require a case. Here's a dive filmed with my Paralenz: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=C1MEynCKlhk

[Godel_unicode]

The kraken case costs as much as a GoPro, iPhone stabilization isn't as good as GoPro stabilization, if you want GoPro-like wide angle shots you need to pair that case with a $1000+ phone. You're also limited to the capacity of your phone since essentially no phone has removable storage. Ditto battery, although with USB PD that's less of a problem. iPhones also don't shoot log color profile, so color correction is painful for video.

The paralenz can't shoot high frame rate, so slo-mo looks choppy and requires serious post processing. It's stabilization is a joke compared to the GoPro, it doesn't shoot flat color so color grading is painful, it has no screen for checking your framing, and it costs roughly twice as much.

Edit: the quality of the glass in the paralenz is also pretty painful, the vignetting in that video and dynamic range are pretty unfortunate.

[Ididntdothis]

Agreed. The GoPro is great for diving and snorkeling. There are better options out there but they cost a lot more usually.

[kube-system]

Yes, there are people who do point-and-shoot photography with all kinds of equipment that they don't actually need. The iPhone also ̶c̶a̶n̶n̶i̶b̶a̶l̶i̶z̶e̶d̶ absorbed some of the DSLR market from point-and-shoot photographers who don't actually need DLSRs.

That doesn't mean that niche markets aren't real. It it not going to make any sense to mount an iPhone to my helmet any time soon.

[ghaff]

There was a period when there were a lot of people buying DSLRs with the kit zoom lens, putting it on automatic, and snapping away. Maybe there was a period when this made some sense because of sensor size but it really doesn't today.

I've been doing photography semi-seriously for a long time and have a couple different camera systems (DSLR and mirrorless) and, to be honest, if I'm on a trip where I know I'm mostly just shooting casually I'll often just bring my phone.

[xapata]

> cannibalized

Apple doesn't sell DSLR, I think. Not cannibalism.

[ghaff]

And if it's your own older iPhone, it's essentially free. Slip a waterproof case on it and you have a pretty rugged camera/GPS/etc.

[meheleventyone]

I think the main thing people underestimate in general is the amount of setup you need to capture something interesting and the amount of editing afterwards you need to turn it into something that actually holds peoples attention.

I enjoyed doing it for a bit with backcountry skiing but kids meant reduced trips and no real energy to sit down and edit.

[Doctor_Fegg]

To be fair, GoPro absolutely recognises that - that's what their Quik client is for.

[trianglesphere]

As another ww kayker, I like the helmet cam view for reviewing my technique/seeing rapids from first person. The video usually isn't sexy, and you need to remember that everything is way bigge irl, buy I've found some videos helpful.

Carnage videos of people swimming can also be fun/terrifying to watch from their pov.