Best Setup to Shoot Game Footage of Pitchers

[steve1244]

Hi all,

I figure some OG bucket dads/moms will have some good input on this subject. The recruiting director for the org my daughter's team plays in suggests that pitchers shoot dedicated footage of them pitching in games, and upload onto a YouTube channel which can be made available to schools as part of the recruiting process. This footage would be separate and independent of the clips one can generate and save via GameChanger. I have a GoPro Hero 9 and a LynkSpyder setup that should work fine for this purpose. My questions:

1. What is the best angle from which to shoot video, and how should the frame be composed?
2. What types of videos/clips would you suggest? Per AB? By pitch, which would be a lot of work?
3. When shooting footage, is it best to simply hit "record" at the beginning of a half inning, and let it run continuously for three outs, or is it easier to cut videos up per AB?

I don't know what I don't know on this subject, so any and all input is appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Nuwin]

I can't speak to angles for pitchers since my DD doesn't play the position. Nor is she anywhere old enough for me to even think of college. But I am curious to hear others speak on that anyway. I would assume you want to be able to see the full arm motion and not be blocked by their body at any moment. I wouldn't be surprised to hear the answer is multiple. Behind the plate is the most common one, but perhaps straight across from the pitcher may be helpful as well...? Maybe tag team with your catching parents and get an outfield cam looking back in?

As far as recording, I personally recommend just hitting record and walking away. Record the whole game. I feel like I'm not present when I'm worrying about cameras and remembering to record. Almost guaranteed that the super awesome thing that happens will be the inning you forgot to record.

A higher frame rate allows for better slow motion video. Just be ready to deal with overheating of the GoPro.

For editing, I've become a fan of DaVinci Resolve. It is probably overkill, but the price is right as there is a free version. It seems to be extremely popular as you can find a variety of tutorials on YouTube. You can easily find ways to do all sorts of stuff with the free version and after a couple long sessions of learning, you can have a workflow dialed in that you can repeat quickly and easily. I don't think we're tying to win awards, but a little polish can keep the recruiter focused on the player and not distracted by poor quality, erratic transitions, etc.

 

[Shawn]

Actually directly behind the catcher is the best. The side view is important as well. Directly behind the catcher let’s you see body rotation, legs/arms reading the spirals.

 

[Kraedad]

Our pitching coach has encouraged us to start taking video from the TV angle in left center field. (RH pitcher. I imagine for a lefty you could go to RCF) I purchased an inexpensive monocular and tri-pod. The package came with a cell phone mount for the monocular and a blue tooth remote.
Not including my cell phone I am about $70 into this. I have played around with this set up, but haven't used it for game footage yet.