On 12/19/2024 at 12:54 PM, Nando Diver said:

For macro play with settings to remove that distortion and use 4K 

Its really difficult to get good stabilisation and focus without tripod in any action camera 

In my opinion, you need tripod for macro videos with any camera

On 12/20/2024 at 8:02 PM, DreiFish said:

One question -- is the general unshaprness/blurriness of the background (area 2+ meters in front of the camera) here caused by water clarity, or is it the AOI lens limiting the focus range of the Action 5 to a narrower area right in front of the camera with infinity out of focus?

I also observed with GoPro+AOI that the infinity and even subjects 3m away are out focus, which is actually not that bad.

GoPro 11, INON UFL-GR140 ZD, Labs firmware, 8:7 5.3k 30fps, 10-bit colour, GoPro LOG profile (WIDE + LOGB=400), NR01=0, Stabilised, colour graded + noise reduction in DVR

I think the sharpness still falls away in the corners, but it does let you get closer. Can provide RAW video files if anyone wants.

Edited May 14, 2025May 14 by shokwaav

Another 8:7 video with the Inon lens, placed in a 16:9 timeline so the corners can be seen. Some of the warping could be due to the stabilization applied in DVR.

A bit disappointed with the corners when using the 8:7 aspect ratio. However, the labs firmware makes editing Gopro videos significantly more pliable.

Edited May 14, 2025May 14 by shokwaav

Yes, the edges are worse than I expected.

In the video of the turtle, on the right you have the blue and it's not noticeable. You have the reef on the left and I was about to write to you that maybe it was too close and therefore out of focus. Actually, with these lenses you have a very reduced MFD (Minimum Focus Distance).

In the jack video, however, you can see that the problem is the lens. or a combination of sensor size/aspect ratio and lens.

I have the impression that the lens manages to cover the entire 8:7 GoPro sensor but that it is not designed for this mode.

Did you say the GoPro is in wide? Did you use the GoPro stabilization? It can also introduce artifacts.

I don't know if these defects are also present in photo mode.

I don't remember which part of the sensor the GoPro uses for photos. @Maria Munn , who is a photographer, surely knows more about it.

P.S.

I have lots of clips shot during a recent trip to the Maldives with the GoPro 11 and the AOI lens, but with original firmware and in 16:9. If only I could at least find the time to download the clips... 😇

Very interesting, thanks.
the Inon lens is a little different from the AOI/Backscatter models, if I'm not mistaken?

I recently shot something with the GoPro7 and AOI lens and really happy with the corners. I'd say the background starts losing focus about 5m in rather murky conditions in Okinawa: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cXdJGjeMKw
But if I compare this to an vid without the lens, there's not much difference in this regard: https://youtu.be/OMFi4DTTuCA

(this is also in one of Palau's murkier sites, Grassland/Sandy Paradise)

However, corners/sharpness are really night and day with the lens.

Issue is this is not not a true comparison - despite being on the same camera with the same settings, the Palau clip was shot in 2.7K linear and the more recent one with the AOI lens is in 4K Wide (my old laptop cannot handle GoPro 4K's HEVC codecs, so I need to work in proxies in FCPX to edit - time consuming, so when I was working in diving I just shot in 2.7K to avoid the issue).

Regarding the fov, without the lens, I prefered linear to wide - the wide lens changed thant of course, as it both corrects the corners and improves the general forground sharpness, with a low MFD.

Anyway, this is really interesting. I really look forward to seeing some more GoPro11 + AOI footage, as well as other combinations, especially the DJI models.

p.s. that's the resident school of jacks at Blue Corner, right?

Edited May 15, 2025May 15 by bghazzal

5 hours ago, bghazzal said:

p.s. that's the resident school of jacks at Blue Corner, right?

You're correct!

5 hours ago, bghazzal said:

the Inon lens is a little different from the AOI/Backscatter models, if I'm not mistaken?

Yes they're different lenses... I might have to try the AOI lens now.

14 hours ago, Davide DB said:

In the jack video, however, you can see that the problem is the lens. or a combination of sensor size/aspect ratio and lens.

I have the impression that the lens manages to cover the entire 8:7 GoPro sensor but that it is not designed for this mode.

Did you say the GoPro is in wide? Did you use the GoPro stabilization? It can also introduce artifacts.

I don't know if these defects are also present in photo mode.

I don't remember which part of the sensor the GoPro uses for photos. @Maria Munn , who is a photographer, surely knows more about it.

Don't have my Gopro with my at the moment, I believe the 8:7 setting is the entire sensor, so its the widest available aspect ratio. I believe I had Hypersmooth on.

The GoPro should be taking 8:7 RAW photos too, I didn't take any photos with the GoPro this trip though.

11 minutes ago, shokwaav said:

Don't have my Gopro with my at the moment, I believe the 8:7 setting is the entire sensor, so its the widest available aspect ratio. I believe I had Hypersmooth on.

The GoPro should be taking 8:7 RAW photos too, I didn't take any photos with the GoPro this trip though.

Yes, correct.

And the INON UFL-GR140 ZD you have is the updated lens to work with the new GoPros and it's made to work with the 8:7 aspect ratio 😒

From INON UFL-GR140 ZD user manual (note the R) :

Supports wide-angle shooting modes of action cameras and quality larger sensors. GoPro's 8:7 frame/aspect ratio shooting mode (available from HERO11 and newer), and Insta360 Ace Pro's widest FOV, [ActionView], can be used without vignetting.

From INON UFL-G140 ZD user manual:

Shoot in 4:3 or 16:9 frame/aspect ratio (HERO11/12/13) Vignetting will occur in 8:7 or [HyperViewTM] mode which compresses clip in 16:9 aspect ratio by using the full 8:7 sensor. Note that the lens hood may be appeared in a clip if camera is moved aggressively even shooting in 4:3 or 16:9 frame/aspect ratio.

I noticed that ZD is the new Inon mount for these lens and they sell a converter for the previous SD mount. Maybe they changed it to differentiate from other Brands that use the same mount 😈

On a lighter note, as I've already written, I believe that whoever names products in the tech industry is a sadist, and I imagine there's a circle of hell dedicated to them. It always brings to mind that hilarious bit from Woody Allen's "Deconstructing Harry" when he takes a little trip downstairs. The description of the circles of hell is delightful, as is the joke with the first damned soul.

2 hours ago, Davide DB said:

From INON UFL-GR140 ZD user manual (note the R) :

  Quote

Supports wide-angle shooting modes of action cameras and quality larger sensors. GoPro's 8:7 frame/aspect ratio shooting mode (available from HERO11 and newer), and Insta360 Ace Pro's widest FOV, [ActionView], can be used without vignetting.

From INON UFL-G140 ZD user manual:

  Quote

Shoot in 4:3 or 16:9 frame/aspect ratio (HERO11/12/13) Vignetting will occur in 8:7 or [HyperViewTM] mode which compresses clip in 16:9 aspect ratio by using the full 8:7 sensor. Note that the lens hood may be appeared in a clip if camera is moved aggressively even shooting in 4:3 or 16:9 frame/aspect ratio.

I suppose the lens is working in terms of it not vignetting... I just hoped the sharpness would be better.

@David DB So by using Inon ZD mount you could change the AOI UWL-03PRO mount and now it would fit on a it would fit the INON’s ZD adapter .

8 hours ago, Anthony DeGazon said:

@David DB So by using Inon ZD mount you could change the AOI UWL-03PRO mount and now it would fit on a it would fit the INON’s ZD adapter .

Hummm, do you mean the mount on rhe lens?

I don't think AOI and Inon mount have the same way to attach to the lens. IIRC, on my AOI UWL-03 the mount is attached to the lens via 6 small screw.

ZD Mount kit to convert SD Mount lens to ZD Mount lens

A precision Phillips-head screwdriver (No. 0) is required for replacement. A customer can conduct the replacement by themselves.

ZD Male Bayonet for SD Lens
-- Release date: November 17, 2024
 
Compatible lens
UFL-G140 SD
UCL-G165II SD / UCL-G165 SD
UCL-G100 SD
UCL-G55 SD

 

This is the adapter you were taking about and it comes with six screws.

Yes but I don‘t if screws and holes are compatible with the AOI lens. Impossibleto judge from the photos. I believe it's unlikely and it would be a great stroke of luck 😁

I used the Inon on my previous GoPro setup and really liked the wide angle of view—it helped me capture some great footage. However, the lens scratched quite easily, even though I handled it with care, which was quite disappointing.

Hi, does anyone know the differences between AOI GR140 ZD PRO version vs the non pro one?

Thank you

Hello, I would your opinion between a wet lens with glass esternal dome versus the related acrylic version - same INON GR140 ZD - where glass is much more expensive.

Someone told me that optical glass is (of course) much better, others that acrylic dome is easier to remove small scratches ( a friend of mine told me the opposite)...

The truth is in the middle?

Ciao

Edited January 20Jan 20 by Gmsalterego

Most Acrylics have the same refractive index as water and are practically invisible. However they scratch more easily than glas. Small scratches become invisible as soon as water enters. Bigger scratches can be polished but the optical surface will degrade.

Optical Glas is much more sturdy and will last longer. However anti reflective coating and other optimizations need to be applied for making it good glas! If you manage to scratch the glas by hitting a rock the glas is cactus. But it is very unlikely that you will ever have scratches on the hardened surface.

Bottom line: glas lasts longer

All the above also applies to underwater domeports of large cameras rigs.

Hello, one more question about INON GR140 ZD lens. I read that allows to take footage using the whole sensor in 8x7.

Its better a video taken in 8x7 snd then cropped in 16:9 or a native 16:9 video despite the reduced sensor capability?

Thank you in advance

4 hours ago, Gmsalterego said:

Hello, one more question about INON GR140 ZD lens. I read that allows to take footage using the whole sensor in 8x7.

Its better a video taken in 8x7 snd then cropped in 16:9 or a native 16:9 video despite the reduced sensor capability?

Thank you in advance

8:7 gives you more flexibility to crop to 16:9 or 9:16 without quality loss

Edited January 26Jan 26 by Nando Diver

I agree with you but sam elliott says the opposte... strange things

2 hours ago, Gmsalterego said:

I agree with you but sam elliott says the opposte... strange things

It's not a strange thing. It's math.

I'm splitting hairs here but saying there is "no quality loss" just because the bitrate is the same is a common misconception. Here is the math:

4K (16:9) = about 8.3 Million pixels per frame.

5.3K (8:7) = about 24.7 Million pixels per frame.

While the bitrate is capped at 120Mbps (*) for both, the 5.3K 8:7 mode has to manage nearly 3x more pixels than 4K.

Think of bitrate as your "data budget." In 4K, each pixel gets a larger slice of that 120Mbps pie. In 5.3K 8:7, you are spreading that same amount of data much thinner across a much larger canvas.

Does this mean 5.3K 8:7 is "bad"? Not at all. Its strength isn't pure image fidelity, but versatility:

• You can crop a 9:16 vertical for TikTok and a 16:9 for YouTube from the same clip without losing vertical resolution.

• Stabilization: It gives HyperSmooth more sensor "real estate" to work with, resulting in better stabilization with less aggressive cropping.

(*) Even using the 190Mbps ludicrous speed of Gopro labs FW, the math doesn't change

Thank you @Davide DB

I was comparing 8:7 cropped to 16:9 Vs 16:9 native, both at the same 5.3K resolution and bitrate. No quality loss as mathematical issue: however, 8:7 gives more flexibility.

I don't understand what you mean with 190 Mbps as ludicrous, I thought higher speed, better results

Ciao, Giacomo

6 hours ago, Gmsalterego said:

Thank you @Davide DB

I was comparing 8:7 cropped to 16:9 Vs 16:9 native, both at the same 5.3K resolution and bitrate. No quality loss as mathematical issue: however, 8:7 gives more flexibility.

I don't understand what you mean with 190 Mbps as ludicrous, I thought higher speed, better results

Ciao, Giacomo

Hi Giacomo,

I see your point about the horizontal resolution being 5.3K in both cases, but mathematically, the 'No quality loss' claim doesn't hold up once you look at the total pixel count the encoder has to process within the same 120 Mbps limit.

Here is why 16:9 Native is technically superior to 8:7 cropped to 16:9.

The Math of the Canvas:

• 5.3K 16:9 Native: about 15.8 Million pixels (5312 x 2988).

• 5.3K 8:7 Full Sensor: about 24.7 Million pixels (5312 x 4648).

When you record in 8:7, the camera is dedicating a huge chunk of those 120 Mbps to the top and bottom areas of the senso. That are areas you are going to crop away anyway.

In 16:9 Native, the encoder doesn't 'see' those extra pixels, so it can spend the entire 120Mbps budget only on the 16:9 frame

Finally, in the 16:9 Native file, each pixel in your final frame has roughly 56% more data allocated to it compared to the same area inside an 8:7 file. You aren't wasting bitrate on pixels you're just going to delete in post!

On a lighter note: It's like buying a pizza for 3 people (8:7) instead of 2 (16:9), while using the exact same amount of dough. The slices will inevitably be thinner! 🍕

P.S.

My reference to 'Ludicrous Speed' was just a quote from Spaceballs movie (Velocità smodata - Balle Spaziali) 😁