New board, ready to start filming

After a five day long wait, my new deck has finally arrived. I simple replaced the deck on my Landtyachtz Peacemaker with the new Sector 9 Peru 44" Bamboo deck and it rides unbelievably smoother than the previous deck! My feet don't get cramped anymore after ten minutes of riding. I also upgraded to 76 mm 80a wheels from 63 mm 82a wheels and that helps me roll a lot further and also much faster. This is mainly going to be my commuting, cruising, carving, mild downhilling and also my only setup for a while.

With only a couple warm days left in the season I am ready to start filming. It should be done by the end of this week which leaves just the editing, but it doesn't have to bright sunny and warm for that!
Stay tuned for more updates on the video!

Longboarding video coming soon!

Hello everyone! I know I haven't posted anything in a while but I promise there is some really cool content coming soon! I have recently gotten into longboarding as you can probably tell from my last post and I am working on filming some of my longboarding. The video will feature some cruising, carving, commuting and hill bombing. It should be posted in the next couple weeks because I am waiting for a new deck to be shipped to my place. Stay tuned!

$0 DIY Gopro Longboard/Skateboard mount

So I recently got a longboard and immediately I began thinking of ways to record my longboarding cruises. I researched the internet for a GoPro longboard mount but couldn't find one that I liked so I came up with my own. This is what it looks like -

GoPro mounted on a longboard with the DIY mount

The best part is that you can build this in under an hour if you have the right tools and skills. Here's how to make it -

Materials required -
1. An old binder or a sheet of Plexiglas
2. GoPro flat adhesive mount (comes with the camera)

Materials needed

Tools required -
1. Screwdriver
2. Drill
3. Sharp knife or mini saw
4. Ruler
5. Marker

Step 1: Remove the front truck (or the rear truck depending on where you want to mount the camera) from your longboard. Now use the holes on the truck to mark 4 holes on the binder or the Plexiglas about 1.5 - 2 centimeters away from the edge as shown in the picture. These will be drilled out later.

Step 2: Draw a rectangle around the holes, 1.5 - 2 centimeters away from them. In this step, we are outlining the base of the mount. We will be cutting out this rectangle next.

Step 3: Using the sharp knife or the mini saw, cut out the rectangle. It does not have to be perfect as long as it does the job. As you can see mine is nowhere near perfect. Make sure you don't snap your binder or your Plexiglas in the process.

 
Step 4: This is the part where we drill out the holes. Unfortunately I forgot to take a picture of this step but its not that hard to imagine. Make sure that the bolts that are used to attach the truck onto the deck fit through the holes snugly.

Step 5: Now put the bolts through the holes and then through the longboard deck and re-assemble it.

Step 6: For the final step, just stick the adhesive mount onto the rectangle and you are good to go!

Finished product

Some people simply cut a square out of the grip tape and put the adhesive mount on but that method leaves no room for adjustments not to mention it wrecks your grip tape and you can never ever remove the mount from the deck.

Some longboards and most skateboards have a curved deck and this technique may not work perfectly with those however you can explore more flexible alternatives for binder cover and Plexiglas which will provide a more suited mount for curved decks.

Blog update

Today, The name and address of the blog will changed to "The Extreme lifestyle" and hopefully this will bring more relevant traffic to the site. The banner and the will also be changed soon when I make a logo. Currently I'm working on a tutorial on another GoPro mount. I haven't seen the idea anywhere else on the internet so stay tuned!

Urban Exploration: Abandoned steel mill [Video]

You may call the city of Edmonton "Deadmonton" but that is exactly what I as an urban explorer want. Today, I set out on my journey to an abandoned BMX park when I took a wrong (or a right) left turn and came across this piece of land with heaps of rusted metal. It did not look like the facility had been used in the last ten years or so. Immediately, I postponed my plan to go the BMX park and locked my bike to the fence that was surrounding the steel mill. As I scouted the area and began to plan my way in, I discovered that the back door was unlocked which made sneaking in a lot easier. I pulled out my camera and took a few shots. I realized that I didn't remember to bring my SD card along with my camera. I now have a reason to go back. I did however remember to bring my video camera and recorded a couple videos. My favorite one is a tour of the place.

GoPro Hero 3+

GoPro Hero 3+ Silver edition

If you haven't already heard yet, GoPro has launched their newest line of cameras - GoPro Hero 3+. The camera is 20% smaller than the previous model and has a 30% longer battery life which is something that will attract the LCD BacPac users like myself. The camera housing looks cleaner, sleeker and more minimalistic compared the previous model though I'm not sure if you will be able to attach the LCD BacPac or the Battery BacPac to the camera. GoPro has not yet released a newer version of either BacPacs.

GoPro Hero 3+ compared to its predecessor

The Hero 3+ Black Edition features a 4X faster Wi-Fi for a faster playback of photos and the new ability to playback videos in your iOS or Android device using the GoPro App. The Black edition also introduces the "Superview" mode which "captures the world's most immersive wide angle perspective". Another new feature is the Auto Low Light mode which intelligently changes frame rate based on lighting conditions for enhanced low light performance.

The Hero 3+ Silver edition claims to be 2X more powerful than its predecessor. Although it does not have the Superview mode, it still has the Auto Low light mode for your nighttime shooting needs.

GoPro Hero 3 White edition does not have a successor in the Hero 3+ line and it only has a 15% smaller body than the last GoPro Hero 3 White. Personally, I think GoPro did not focus on the White edition as much as they should have and that it should have at least gotten the Auto Low light mode.

With the new camera model, GoPro has also released some new mounts and accessories and has updated some of the existing ones. Some of my personal favorites are -

Quick Clip attached to a baseball cap

An improved Head Strap mount that comes with a "Quick Clip" that you can use to attack your GoPro camera to a backwards baseball cap. In my opinion, they should also make the Quick Clip available for sale separately for users who already own a Head Strap mount. The Quick Clip is definitely a very clever invention.

Junior Chesty Harness

A Junior Chesty Harness that is aimed towards kids of ages 3+. Personally, I don't see the need for it. I'm sure the original Chesty Harness can be adjusted to fit a child. If not, there are mods that can enable you to do so.

Jaws: Flex Clamp Mount

My favorite out of the bunch - the "Jaws: Flex clamp" mount which opens doors to endless shooting angles. The Flex Clamp is probably the most versatile mount so far and a must have for anyone who is serious about their adventure. Some others include a tripod mount with a thicker base than its predecessor, a new Floaty backdoor, protective lens and covers and a new version of the suction cup mount.

In conclusion, GoPro's new Hero 3+ series has not only made the camera more compact and more wearable but has also improved upon some of its features and has introduces some new ones. The Emmy award winning camera continues to provide us with stunning video quality for our shooting needs.

All images have belong to and have been taken from GoPro.com

Photography: Anthony Henday Drive

The Anthony Henday  as seen from 91 street Edmonton AB. This picture was taken from my Pentax *iST DS using a Pentax 28-90 mm lens. Then I post processed the RAW file in Adobe Photoshop.

EA's Mirror's Edge trailer brought to life [VIDEO]

UK based traceur Neil Cointet turns EA games' "Mirror’s Edge" trailer into reality using his parkour skills and a POV camera. 

Duct Tape Surfing [VIDEO]

Australian woman Pascale Honore who was paralyzed in a car accident duct taped herself onto a family friend and finally lived her dream after 18 years since the car accident.

DIY GoPro tripod mount

So when I first bought my GoPro camera, I was surprised  to find that it didn't have a tripod mounting screw. Now I didn't want to spend $10 on a tripod mount for it so I decided to make my own.

Let me introduce you to my homemade  GoPro tripod mount. All I did was superglue a 1/4-20 nut superglued onto the plastic base of the camera which comes with the packaging. 1/4-20 is the standard size of nuts for all tripods and it is so common that I guarantee you will find one lying around in your garage.
And there you have it! A $0 GoPro tripod mount!

Photography: Electrical tower along 91 street

Electrical tower by 91 street, Edmonton AB