Video camera for recording tournament play?

[MrBearX1]

Hello everyone, not sure this is the best section to post this question, but, I hope there are some parent's who record their kids during tournaments and can pass along advice for a good video camera?

 

High resolution, good zoom, and ease of use, will be great places to start . . . 🙂

 

Anyway, many thanks for any advice/recommendations you may have.

 

Cheers.

[leezer99]

I just use my iPhone.

[jj9000]

 

 

[LukeDonaldsTiger]

Get a photo camera with manual/optical zoom, it’s way better than a wide angle lens and zooming digitally. 

Modern hybrid cameras do video really well, so I’d go with one that has great lens quality and is comfortable to handle. 

 

I‘m a Fuji homer, the XT-4 is fantastic, paired with the 55-200 XF lens, you will have a great starting point. 
I would avoid lenses with a wider range, the quality is much worse. 

Keep in mind 55 mm is pretty narrow already, but from „behind the ropes“, it should work fine and will get you the chance to zoom in on the landing spots. If you want wider angles, the stock 18-55 XF lens is by far the best stock lens of any system camera. Sorry Nikon and Sony. 
 

The all-in-one solution would be something like a Sony DSC RX100 Mk VII. Fantastic specs and super small, but limited zoom range. 
 

Good luck and looking forward to other input here!

[MrBearX1]

1 hour ago, LukeDonaldsTiger said:

Get a photo camera with manual/optical zoom, it’s way better than a wide angle lens and zooming digitally. 

Modern hybrid cameras do video really well, so I’d go with one that has great lens quality and is comfortable to handle. 

 

I‘m a Fuji homer, the XT-4 is fantastic, paired with the 55-200 XF lens, you will have a great starting point. 
I would avoid lenses with a wider range, the quality is much worse. 

Keep in mind 55 mm is pretty narrow already, but from „behind the ropes“, it should work fine and will get you the chance to zoom in on the landing spots. If you want wider angles, the stock 18-55 XF lens is by far the best stock lens of any system camera. Sorry Nikon and Sony. 
 

The all-in-one solution would be something like a Sony DSC RX100 Mk VII. Fantastic specs and super small, but limited zoom range. 
 

Good luck and looking forward to other input here!

Thanks for the great information, I appreciate the input.

Mostly the need for zoom will be used to record and review swings during the round, (outside the ropes, from afar).  Will be good for my boy to see the swings, rather than listen to me describe what I observed, after the round . . . 🙂

[Abh159]

1 minute ago, MrBearX1 said:

Thanks for the great information, I appreciate the input.

Mostly the need for zoom will be used to record and review swings during the round, (outside the ropes, from afar).  Will be good for my boy to see the swings, rather than listen to me describe what I observed, after the round . . . 🙂

 

A quick piece of advice on this... 

 

I grew up playing junior golf in the mid-2000s so even though video cameras (aka smartphones) weren't everywhere, there we're still some parents who would record their kid's rounds. Off those kids who had parents do that most were very, very good junior players (I'm talking top-50 top-100 ranked in the world). Unfortunately, I can't name a single one who made it past playing collegiately. There are even a few of them who burnt out and quit before they even graduated college. 

 

I'm not saying you can't record your kids, just maybe do it more so to have it to look back on later and reminisce. Sitting them down after a round and dissecting everything they did right or wrong isn't going to be a positive experience for either one of you.

[Medson]

1 hour ago, MrBearX1 said:

Thanks for the great information, I appreciate the input.

Mostly the need for zoom will be used to record and review swings during the round, (outside the ropes, from afar).  Will be good for my boy to see the swings, rather than listen to me describe what I observed, after the round . . . 🙂

Going off the tangent a bit. 
 

I’m a big fan of video recording swings during the practice. I guess my question is what additional information would you be able to get by video taking during the actual round? 

[mrshinsa]

I've seen few parents with handheld camcorders.  Those usually have 10x optical zoom, so it's much sharper than any smartphones. 

 

I've always tried recording on par3s.  Needless to say, lot of deleted clips. 

[tiger1873]

4 hours ago, Medson said:

Going off the tangent a bit. 
 

I’m a big fan of video recording swings during the practice. I guess my question is what additional information would you be able to get by video taking during the actual round? 

 

I agree video during tournaments is not good it is annoying and a distraction to the other parents and players.  In one case both the Dad and Mom was standing on the green opposite recording all the players. I had to tell them to put the phones away.

 

If you feel the need to record your kid just be far enough away that you are not a distraction.  At the end of the day you way better off just watching and paying attention then recording and hoping to see something later.

[leezer99]

If part of the parent's enjoyment is getting video of their kid playing then I'm all for it.  Who knows, maybe you get a sweet viral video of a hole in one.  #AceCam

 

 

[LukeDonaldsTiger]

16 hours ago, MrBearX1 said:

Thanks for the great information, I appreciate the input.

Mostly the need for zoom will be used to record and review swings during the round, (outside the ropes, from afar).  Will be good for my boy to see the swings, rather than listen to me describe what I observed, after the round . . . 🙂

One technical detail to add, a monopod is immensely helpful when zooming in. GoPro cameras have fantastic image stabilization, most system cameras do not. It’s way  easier to hold still when the camera is resting on a monopod. 

[Ty_Webb]

17 hours ago, Abh159 said:

 

A quick piece of advice on this... 

 

I grew up playing junior golf in the mid-2000s so even though video cameras (aka smartphones) weren't everywhere, there we're still some parents who would record their kid's rounds. Off those kids who had parents do that most were very, very good junior players (I'm talking top-50 top-100 ranked in the world). Unfortunately, I can't name a single one who made it past playing collegiately. There are even a few of them who burnt out and quit before they even graduated college. 

 

I'm not saying you can't record your kids, just maybe do it more so to have it to look back on later and reminisce. Sitting them down after a round and dissecting everything they did right or wrong isn't going to be a positive experience for either one of you.

This is a good point. I'd be inclined to take the video and let your child know that it's available if they want to watch it. Sometimes I could see hitting a bad shot and wanting to see if there was something that caused it. I wouldn't use it to dissect and analyze. Perhaps something to share with your coach if you want them to understand an issue that he's having. Something like "I occasionally have a tendency to hit a quick pull and I'm not sure why" and showing video to the coach of you hitting a quick pull could be very helpful. 

[TripleBogeysrbetter]

11 hours ago, leezer99 said:

If part of the parent's enjoyment is getting video of their kid playing then I'm all for it.  Who knows, maybe you get a sweet viral video of a hole in one.  #AceCam

 

 

We all know you would post that ACE on instagram for everyone to see. 😉

[j.b.newton]

The GoPro lineup has a lot of good selections...  keep a power bank however.

[mrshinsa]

17 hours ago, tiger1873 said:

 

I agree video during tournaments is not good it is annoying and a distraction to the other parents and players.  In one case both the Dad and Mom was standing on the green opposite recording all the players. I had to tell them to put the phones away.

 

If you feel the need to record your kid just be far enough away that you are not a distraction.  At the end of the day you way better off just watching and paying attention then recording and hoping to see something later.

 

I've never seen parents video record other kids.  Sounds a bit strange to me.  

On the flip side, I can't see why getting video recorded would be bothersome?

 

I mean isn't that the sole reason why some parents fight intensly over each other?  To get on TV? 🙄

https://espnpressroom.com/us/press-releases/2021/10/espn-espn-to-present-first-ever-live-coverage-of-national-rental-car-pga-jr-league-championship/

https://www.golfchannel.com/news/drive-chip-and-putt-national-finals

 

Edited May 19, 2022 by mrshinsa

[MrBearX1]

Thanks for the input.

Still looking for more camera suggestions, 😜

I anticipate shooting video from a long distance, so as to not adversely impact my player and/or any other people, (hence the need for a good zoom function).

My boy is a very good player, plus, he's very much a self taught natural swinger/player, so there are very few technical thoughts in his brain.  For his journey, I believe being able to review tournament golf swings/shots will be beneficial for his continued growth.  Also, the body and mind can wander during the pressure of tournament play, so reviewing video of those circumstances should be really good to learn from.

[tiger1873]

5 hours ago, mrshinsa said:

 

I've never seen parents video record other kids.  Sounds a bit strange to me.  

On the flip side, I can't see why getting video recorded would be bothersome?

 

I mean isn't that the sole reason why some parents fight intensly over each other?  To get on TV? 🙄

https://espnpressroom.com/us/press-releases/2021/10/espn-espn-to-present-first-ever-live-coverage-of-national-rental-car-pga-jr-league-championship/

https://www.golfchannel.com/news/drive-chip-and-putt-national-finals

 

 

I only seem once or twice in what had to be hundreds of tournaments so it isn’t normal or even a thing that much.

In the case i  seen parents film  everyone there intent is challenge rules and bring it up at the scoring table.    It just wrong on so many levels. Let the kids the play and work out everything.

Most tournaments we play don’t allow parents to talk at the scoring table and that is how it should be.

 

 

 

[killer21]

I video tape as many shots of my 13 year old daughter as possible on my Huwaie phone which has 30 x zoom but going to be obsolete soon, (it was cheap and the camera is great).  I just love to go home and re-watch shots and keep an eye on her swing.  I usually feel better after re-watching bad shots as it's never usually as bad as it seems in the moment.  These kids are talented!

 

However, play was bit slow during a practice round and the guys behind us pulled up to the tee waiting so I was embarassed to pull my camera out to film her and sure enough hole in one🙄.  115 yard PW. One bounce and in. No video other than her sprint, well more of a home run trot to get it out of the hole and indicate it was in to her delight and the cheers from the other groups around.

[MahalNeneng]

We have filmed a few tournaments (Matt Pawly Golf – Matt Pawly Golf) ........

 

We have been using a Panasonic HC-V180k 50x optical zoom for years. Couple years ago it died (lens motor failed) and we tried a 4k Sony but it was huge and video file sizes got silly. We bought the same Panasonic again. Gets used daily.