Video Recording Rig for Kendo Long Footage
Long format recordings of full trainings, taikai, seminars, etc:
This is a long post describing my kendo video footage recording rig and the many things I've learned after recording hours of full trainings, taikai, and other events from start to finish.
I record every training at my dojo and every tournament or seminar I can. The recordings are multiple hours long clips and often over 20GBs per clip. These huge video files need to be compressed using Handbrake (a popular free video compression tool) before I upload them to YouTube as ‘unlisted’ links.
For these long format recordings, camcorders and big DSLR cameras are less effective. They’re too heavy, expensive, have short battery life, often can't charge while recording, and tend to have file size restrictions that can make uploading a single video file of your hours long training a painstaking process when the camera automatically cuts your footage into many small clips. I'll explain much more throughout this long post.
Below are photos of the iPhone 6s 164GB video rig I currently use. I find it the most effective, especially for it's relatively cheap price.
Approximate costs:
Phone camera tripod adapter (generic brand) - $25 Amazon
Clamp adapter (generic brand) - $30 Amazon
Wide angle and fisheye lens adapters - $20 per set on Amazon
Battery Power Bank (generic brand) - $11 Amazon
Rode VideoMicro shotgun microphone- $60
Using a phone:
My 'camera' is a standard iPhone 6s with an unusually large 164GB memory. I find that I this huge memory capacity is very important to make sure I can record all-day seminars. If I forget to delete unnecessary video, the phone will unfortunately stop the recording when the memory is full. Having large memory capacity helps reduce the chance I run out of memory and end up with footage cut short.
I bought this phone without a SIM card to be used only for video recordings. Ideally, my personal use phone would never tied up in a rig, because this personal use phone can get incoming calls which stop recordings. This rig phone can’t take or receive calls on purpose. I always put it on airplane mode when recording, because calls and certain notifications will interrupt and completely stop video recordings (which occurs all too often). This interruption is one reason why I upgraded to two separate recording rigs that record simultaneously in case one fails.
I bought this phone without a SIM card to be used only for video recordings. Ideally, my personal use phone would never tied up in a rig, because this personal use phone can get incoming calls which stop recordings. This rig phone can’t take or receive calls on purpose. I always put it on airplane mode when recording, because calls and certain notifications will interrupt and completely stop video recordings (which occurs all too often). This interruption is one reason why I upgraded to two separate recording rigs that record simultaneously in case one fails.
Phones are relatively cheap if bought used online or used somewhere else. Old phone models with large memory cards and 1080p 60fps cameras work well and are relatively cheap. They can always be charged while recording with an external power bank battery via USB. Older models of phones have mic inputs for external mics. Newer phones sometimes have adapters for mic input (with issues sometimes). There are many places to buy used phones that work well, but I needed to do some research and risk going through a complicated return policy if I got a bad phone.
I'm not a strict mac or windows person. I own both a PC and Mac and use both. I haven't done enough research to know if this specific iPhone I use is better or worse than the many other phones available. I assume androids can either be the same or even better than the iPhone, but are probably better for recording this kind of footage than other cameras (particularly when considering cost).
I'm not a strict mac or windows person. I own both a PC and Mac and use both. I haven't done enough research to know if this specific iPhone I use is better or worse than the many other phones available. I assume androids can either be the same or even better than the iPhone, but are probably better for recording this kind of footage than other cameras (particularly when considering cost).
1080p 60fps:
Anything below 1080p is hard to see, I think. The tiny details of shisei / dosa, the small differences in ways people tie their bogu, etc. all are so much clearer in 1080p than 720p. Any resolution above 1080p makes the file size far too large to regularly upload, even after compression with HandBrake (the popular compression tool). My internet provider has charged me many months for exceeding data caps when I uploaded too many large video files of kendo to YouTube as unlisted videos. For now, 2019 file transfer and internet restrictions aren’t good enough for 4K long format videos like these, I've experienced.
Frame rate is often more a priority than resolution for me. Especially when focusing on dosa. Having 60fps instead of 30fps also makes a file larger, but it's usually worth it I think. I constantly use the appropriate keys to watch techniques frame by frame, and it's always easier to do with 60fps. I would strongly recommend to anyone a quick Google or YouTube search on how to set your speific camera / phone to record at 60fps.
Clamp camera adapters:
I think these are the most underrated, cheap, and effective accessories to cameras and video recording devices in general.
Clamp camera adapter rigs are usually durable metal clamps that can secure to more surfaces than you'd expect. They very tightly clamp to solid rails, wood, bricks, etc.
I find that clamp rigs are simple but become fairly complicated when you're rushed to set it up before practice or an event. Tripods seem to be the same way. Some part is not clamped right, and the whole thing can fall down unexpectedly. I find that the clamp rigs require practice to set up quickly and securely so it doesn't fall out of place or shift during recording.
I explain in this post why I find it so important to record from a high place above everyone's head. This clamp is usually the only way I can do this.
These clamp rigs are usually $30 or less on Amazon.
I'm not sponsored. Multiple clamp brands I've used were good. I've given them as gifts to people looking for a similar solution to their phone or camera. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00P8A56PQ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_image?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I find that clamp rigs are simple but become fairly complicated when you're rushed to set it up before practice or an event. Tripods seem to be the same way. Some part is not clamped right, and the whole thing can fall down unexpectedly. I find that the clamp rigs require practice to set up quickly and securely so it doesn't fall out of place or shift during recording.
I explain in this post why I find it so important to record from a high place above everyone's head. This clamp is usually the only way I can do this.
These clamp rigs are usually $30 or less on Amazon.
I'm not sponsored. Multiple clamp brands I've used were good. I've given them as gifts to people looking for a similar solution to their phone or camera. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00P8A56PQ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_image?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Recording from high places:
I mount these clamp rigs on purposely high places. Basketball hoops, upstairs handrails on viewing balconies, protruding bricks on a wall, etc.
People walk in front of low cameras. Higher camera placement avoids people getting in the way of the training or match. People need to duck under a low recording tripod camera, and this awkwardness can be avoided using a higher placed rig. Even people in bogu training and competing get in the way of the person behind them hidden from the camera's view.
This below is an eye-level camera. Even the shinpan will get in the way of the competitors completely. Fumikomi will shake the camera. The camera could get bumped and hit the ground, damaging the camera. The competitors could move out of frame too quickly for the camera person to adjust the position.
This is a clamp mounted phone camera on the rail of an observation area (using a wide angle lens attachment of course, this is why the edges have odd colors and a blur). The shinpan will almost never be in the way of anything. A person will obviously never walk in front of a camera up high like this. The footage is "zoomed out" and the people appear very small. But, computers and phones usually have settings and applications that allow you to zoom into the video. I strongly recommend to anyone a quick Google or Youtube search on how to zoom videos.
People walk in front of low cameras. Higher camera placement avoids people getting in the way of the training or match. People need to duck under a low recording tripod camera, and this awkwardness can be avoided using a higher placed rig. Even people in bogu training and competing get in the way of the person behind them hidden from the camera's view.
This below is an eye-level camera. Even the shinpan will get in the way of the competitors completely. Fumikomi will shake the camera. The camera could get bumped and hit the ground, damaging the camera. The competitors could move out of frame too quickly for the camera person to adjust the position.
This is a clamp mounted phone camera on the rail of an observation area (using a wide angle lens attachment of course, this is why the edges have odd colors and a blur). The shinpan will almost never be in the way of anything. A person will obviously never walk in front of a camera up high like this. The footage is "zoomed out" and the people appear very small. But, computers and phones usually have settings and applications that allow you to zoom into the video. I strongly recommend to anyone a quick Google or Youtube search on how to zoom videos.
Wide angle clip-on lenses:
I use clip on wide-angle or fisheye lenses to make sure everything is being recorded. These lenses basically zoom out your view. Often these lenses are necessary for recording large gyms with only close clamp camera mounting points. I almost always need these lenses to record everything in the room.
Fisheye lenses are usually extreme in the "zoomed out" effect. Wide Angle lenses are usually less extreme in the effect. Most sets of clip on phone lenses on Amazon have both these kinds and more included. Since I often need two fish-eye or wide-angle lenses for my two camera rigs I use simultaneously, I bring two or more sets to every recorded event.
Fisheye lenses are usually extreme in the "zoomed out" effect. Wide Angle lenses are usually less extreme in the effect. Most sets of clip on phone lenses on Amazon have both these kinds and more included. Since I often need two fish-eye or wide-angle lenses for my two camera rigs I use simultaneously, I bring two or more sets to every recorded event.
They’re usually less than $20 online and the cheap ones I find work well enough. They tend to make some areas blurry and the general video quality gets worse however. It’s a bit of a trade off between crisp video and recording everything. I think the crispness of the video is usually not as important as making sure I've recorded everything in the room.
Again, I'm not sponsored. I've used many of these cheap off-brand lenses and most worked well. I would simply return ones with significant issues. I often order 5 and return 3.
https://www.amazon.com/120%C2%B0Wide-198%C2%B0Fisheye-Kaleidoscope-Compatible-Smartphone/dp/B07RQKFGH2/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=clip+lens+phone&qid=1564467465&s=gateway&sr=8-3
External mics:
Phone microphones are usually not single direction mics. Built-in mics are usually omnidirectional, so they pick up sound from all over the place. I use a shotgun mic to pick up sound only from what’s directly in front of the camera. This shotgun mic works in theory, but the video audio quality is generally poor regardless of the mic type, because the mic is always too far from the people I’m recording. Ideally, the mic should be on a long cord that extends to the center of the gym, but this is the best I can do without buying an expensive and convoluted wireless microphone setup with lapel mics on leading Sensei or omnidirectional mics hanging above the court.
Why two rigs?:
I set up two of these rigs every taikai I record. Two phones are always recording. If one fails (which happens often) the other will get the footage.
I have to admit that it takes lots of effort setting up rigs, preparing my camera bag before the event, compressing and uploading afterward. It's frustrating losing a whole day of a seminar recording after going through all that work. The monetary cost of a second rig isn't that much, and the time to set it up is also minimal. I'm already carrying a large camera / rig bag (or bags) anyway.
The second rig I currently use has no external mic and is a cheaper setup. I plan to use a special adapter in the future that allows two phones to be set on a single clamp. I'll update this blog after trying this double phone setup for a while.
File transfer issues:
I use Apple’s AirDrop to transfer these huge hours long videos to my Macbook Air. The transfers can take hours to complete. This is the best way I’ve found so far. Again, I'm not a strict Apple person. I'm sure a similar method would work using PC and android devices, possible better in many ways.
USB file transfer fails on Mac computers when files are too big. Airdrop has no such limit, but sometimes requires multiple restarts on both devices. Also, the AirDrop will cancel without explanation if you don’t have enough free memory on your Mac.
File transfer, conversion, and strorage are often the most complicated parts of the process of recording very large files. I strongly recommend doing many Google and YouTube searches when someone experiences file transfer issues.
File uploading issues:
YouTube miraculously allows uploading of almost unlimited video. I've never been unable to upload due to an upload limit on YouTube.
However, my internet service provider (or ISP) has charged me extra many times for exceeding their data upload limits. Many ISPs (like mine, Comcast) limit uploads after a certain limit like 500gb. So, I always compress my videos using Handbrake (a popular free video compression tool) before I upload them to YouTube as ‘unlisted’ links.
Uploads often take two days to finish. Internet speeds are about average where I live. I upload the videos on a desktop that's always at home. I purposely changed Windows settings so the computer never sleeps, shuts down, etc. Mac computers have similar settings I use on my Macbook, although I never use it for uploading huge videos.
Privacy issues:
Long footage videos I've always uploaded as unlisted YouTube videos only accessible with the special unlisted link. People almost never have an issue with this, at least I'm never directly told about an issue with this method.
I've heard the comment that some people feel uncomfortable being recorded in general, regardless of whether they will be uploaded at all. This is unfortunate if they feel discomfort, but I don't think this kind of recording is much different than taking copious written notes on all that goes on at an event or training. I'd like to respect their wishes, but I also would like have this important footage that's very valuable to my training (and hopefully valuable to certain others too).
There are certain laws prohibiting video recording. These are usually public events or private events where I get permission from the organizer to record, so I don't think I'm in any danger of being sued. The long format videos are never posted publicly or sold. Of course, I'm not a law professional or a lawyer and am not in the position to give any legal advice.
I always ask the head Sensei or organizer of an event if I record a seminar or other training event of the sort. I have to make sure they understand that the videos will not be uploaded to anywhere publicly viewable online. If it's a taikai, I don't ask. It's become too common for everyone to record matches at a taikai.
File transfer, conversion, and strorage are often the most complicated parts of the process of recording very large files. I strongly recommend doing many Google and YouTube searches when someone experiences file transfer issues.
File uploading issues:
YouTube miraculously allows uploading of almost unlimited video. I've never been unable to upload due to an upload limit on YouTube.
However, my internet service provider (or ISP) has charged me extra many times for exceeding their data upload limits. Many ISPs (like mine, Comcast) limit uploads after a certain limit like 500gb. So, I always compress my videos using Handbrake (a popular free video compression tool) before I upload them to YouTube as ‘unlisted’ links.
Uploads often take two days to finish. Internet speeds are about average where I live. I upload the videos on a desktop that's always at home. I purposely changed Windows settings so the computer never sleeps, shuts down, etc. Mac computers have similar settings I use on my Macbook, although I never use it for uploading huge videos.
Privacy issues:
Long footage videos I've always uploaded as unlisted YouTube videos only accessible with the special unlisted link. People almost never have an issue with this, at least I'm never directly told about an issue with this method.
I've heard the comment that some people feel uncomfortable being recorded in general, regardless of whether they will be uploaded at all. This is unfortunate if they feel discomfort, but I don't think this kind of recording is much different than taking copious written notes on all that goes on at an event or training. I'd like to respect their wishes, but I also would like have this important footage that's very valuable to my training (and hopefully valuable to certain others too).
There are certain laws prohibiting video recording. These are usually public events or private events where I get permission from the organizer to record, so I don't think I'm in any danger of being sued. The long format videos are never posted publicly or sold. Of course, I'm not a law professional or a lawyer and am not in the position to give any legal advice.
I always ask the head Sensei or organizer of an event if I record a seminar or other training event of the sort. I have to make sure they understand that the videos will not be uploaded to anywhere publicly viewable online. If it's a taikai, I don't ask. It's become too common for everyone to record matches at a taikai.
Big external battery power banks over 10,000 mah:
Phones run out of battery power quickly when recording. My iPhone 6s records only 1.5 hours recording before dying, even on a full battery. Other devices probably have better battery economy, but I'm certain everyone recording often will have days when they forget to charge the recording phone.
I carry two or more of these around (currently four battery packs total), because I'll forget to charge it the day you need it the most. Also, my friends can get a quick charge without leaving their phone on a wall unattended. Mine was $11 on Amazon, two ports and a flashlight. A cheap must-have and a great gift to give anyone.
https://www.amazon.com/Aibocn-External-Battery-Flashlight-Smartphones/dp/B00VWV8LD4/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=aibocn+battery&qid=1564468449&s=gateway&sr=8-1
https://www.amazon.com/Aibocn-External-Battery-Flashlight-Smartphones/dp/B00VWV8LD4/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=aibocn+battery&qid=1564468449&s=gateway&sr=8-1
Recording Interruption Issues:
I often hit the record button, train for hours, and come back to realize my phone stopped recording 20 mins into the recording. Often it stopped for no apparent reason, even while on airplane mode. So, I have to do many things to make sure my phone will actually record.
During the hours i'm training, the phone is left alone very high up. I can't see the tiny red square on the screen that indicates that it's properly recording. So, it's even more important that I can confidently start a recording, place the phone up in its clamp, and be assured that the phone will still be recording when I take it down.
During the hours i'm training, the phone is left alone very high up. I can't see the tiny red square on the screen that indicates that it's properly recording. So, it's even more important that I can confidently start a recording, place the phone up in its clamp, and be assured that the phone will still be recording when I take it down.
I clear my phone memory after transferring video to a computer and before every use; the phone will stop recording when it hits full memory. I always set my phone on airplane mode to ever get an incoming call. I change notification settings, because some notifications seem to stop recording. I constantly manually update the phone, because the update reminder can interrupt the recording. I restart the phone before recording. I check the phone's total free memory space even after deleting all the videos, because often the memory status doesn't properly update and the phone thinks it's still full (I usually restart multiple times when this happens).
Things that didn't work for long footage:
Over the years, I’ve tried many kinds of weird rigs. These things didn’t work for me.
- Tripods - Tripods get knocked over. People walk in front of them; they’re too low to the ground. People do the awkward dodge under them. I hate tripods for any long footage.
- GoPro (and cheap alternative action cameras) - Cost more than most good phones, old models can’t simultaneously charge and record, most models have no mic input, can’t clip on lenses, possible file size limits, have to buy external micro SD cards
- Surveillance cameras (hunting cams) - 1080p 60fps are expensive and have surprisingly low quality footage often, no micro SD card included often, people watching you set up a 'surveillance cam' feels awkward from a privacy standpoint
- Laptop webcams - 1080p 60fps ones are expensive, sort of cuts down the time of transferring footage from your phone to laptop, very problematic at taikai and seminars where your laptop is left in a public place, someone can easily bump your laptop
- DSLRs - expensive, risk getting stolen in public places, weird file size restrictions, can’t charge and record simultaneously (usually)
- Camcorders - 1080p 60fps ones cost more than phones, risk getting stolen in public places, weird file size restrictions (sometimes), can’t charge and record simultaneously (usually)
I’ve posted many vlogs, and other kinds of videos in the past. Many people I know generally dislike almost every kind of content I’ve posted for their various, often very valid, reasons. These people almost always appreciate (or are silent toward) this kind of footage, however.
Recording long footage is often a painstaking process, and I'm always happy to hear when someone is doing this at their dojo. I rely heavily on this footage to improve my kendo, teaching skills, dojo etiquette, etc. I hope others can appreciate this way of training through footage as well.
Recording long footage is often a painstaking process, and I'm always happy to hear when someone is doing this at their dojo. I rely heavily on this footage to improve my kendo, teaching skills, dojo etiquette, etc. I hope others can appreciate this way of training through footage as well.