The Kite CamRig is a camera mount that can be attached with a strap system to the central strut of an inflatable kite.
With this setup, your photos and video will have the professional look of helicopter shots:
Which Camera ?
The CamRig mount is water-resistant, and cushioned to protect the digital camera, but it is not a waterproof housing.
Therefore you need a waterproof camera for kitesurfing.
The following compact digital waterproof cameras fit inside the Kite CamRig mount:
The Pentax W10, W20, W30, W60, W80, W90 Great for photos!
Pentax waterproof cameras come with Interval Photo Shooting : you can set them to take 1 photo every 10 seconds,
up to 1000 photos (2h46') at its highest resolution (12 mega pixels for the W80).
The Panasonic Lumix DMC TS2 / FT2 Great for HD Video!
Uses AVCHD, HD video format created by Panasonic and Sony for Blu-ray DVDs.
Good image quality, and no duration limitation, other than the size of your SDHC card and your battery.
Now, AVCHD is a quite recent video format and not every video editing programs can support it easily.
Olympus SW's
Olympus has made compact digital waterproof cameras for several years. They also fit inside the CamRig mount.
Casio
Casio Exlim EX-G1
Like the Pentax, this Casion waterproof digital camera comes with interval shooting mode. It can take 1 photo every 10 seconds.
Canon
Canon Powershot D10
Canon's first waterproof digital camera is bulkier than others, and it helps to remove the foam pad out of the CamRig mount to fit the D10 inside.
More details and reviews in the camera section of the CamRig forum.
SD Card / SDHC Card
Now up to 32Gb are available and pretty affordable.
You can use a USB/SD card adapter to download your files on your computer, it usually goes faster than using the camera and its USB cable.
You can use this system for your kite only if the central strut is not completely stitched to the canopy near the leading edge, below the valve.
Otherwise, you might be ok with a special brace around the strut.
Either way, check the compatibility list by kites brands and models below.
To fit the Kite Cam Rig, the circumference of the central strut should be
between 25 and 40 cm (~10 and 16 inches),
or the diameter of the strut should be between 8 and 13 cm (~3 and 5 inches).
Note
For kites with no central strut (Griffin, North Rhino 2008, Ocean Rodeo 2010, Best Kahoona), you can use one of the 2 most centered strut to attach the Kite-CamRig mount. The kite should not be too dis-balanced, specially the bigger kites.
Griffin kites were the first designed with this centre-less strut system. Still, that did not prevent Christian van der Plaat to make great aerial photos with the CamRig mount.
Compatibility with kites by brands, models and years.
So far, the Kite Cam Rig has been tested with the following kites :
[All*] means that so far most models from this brand have been tested over the years for compatibility with the Kite-CamRig and all tests were successful.
Disclaimer
There are so many brands, models are changing every year, so keeping this list up-to-date is difficult. It is accurate to the best of my knowledge. Still, I recommend you to double check how far the central strut of your kite is stitched to the canopy before ordering a Kite Cam Rig.
Please notify me if you see any mistake or want to add your kite to the list. Thanks!
Different kites (brand, size) need different adjustment of the camera angle.
You adjust this angle by increasing or reducing the length of the legs held Velcro cuffs of the back strap.
Most likely, you will have to go through some trial and error until you get the framing right.
At first, the kitesurfer will be too far ahead or too far behind and out of frame, so you will need to adjust the angle between the Kite Cam Rig and the strut.
Here is how the angle of the camera mount affects the framing:
Once the camera mount is attach to the kite and you are ready to go kitesurfing,
turn the camera on (photo mode or video mode) and start shooting,
slide it inside of the mount, close it and go kitesurfing.
