Motorcycle Vlog

Drift Innovation: How long have you been an avid motorcyclist?

DarkFlight600: I have been a avid motorcyclist for 3 years now, but my passion was sparked about 5 years ago when I first sat on a friends Kawasaki Ninja 636. It was lust at first sight.

DI: When did you start to motovloging?

DarkFlight600: I started motovloging around September 6th 2010, and joined YouTube shortly after on September 12th 2010.

DI: What pov equipment have you used in the past? What did you like and what has changed?

DarkFlight600: Although I haven’t been around as long as some motovlogers I still consider myself from the “old school” – (you know the people who stuck digital cameras in their helmet and recorded their thoughts LOL). So really my only previous equipment has been digital cameras such as the Canon Powershot SD780IS. Although a great digital camera it just was not cut out for the rigorous environment of motorcycle video making.
Honestly there was not a lot of things to like about that camera for my personal needs, except maybe it’s small size. The biggest disappointments with such a camera had to be the “dropped” audio, the narrow field of view and the danger of having a camera in your field of vision. Thankfully a lot has changed in recent years and POV camera makers seem to be addressing more and more of our needs and are more readily available.

DI: Favorite POV camera and audio solution you use now? Why?

DarkFlight600: My personal choice favorite POV camera is the Drift Innovation HD170 Stealth and my audio solution has been their (optional) external microphone. The reason I honestly love this camera is because of it’s vast versatility, and how it addresses so many of my video making needs.
Most people think it takes my hours to record all my video footage but the truth is recording the footage is the easiest part. The Drift camera allows me to change mounting options in literally seconds, the rotatable lens and on board LCD screen allows me to line up my shots and then I just hit record and ride. Vloging is also a breeze as I have the external microphone mounted inside my helmet at all times, so I just plug the other end into the back of my camera and simply record my thoughts.

DI: How do you share your videos (YouTube, vimeo, websites, Facebook, other? Which one seems most effective?

DarkFlight600: I share all my videos through two separate YouTube channels DarkFlight600 and DarkFlightVlogs. One being for my musical riding videos, and the other obviously for all my vlogs (spoken thought) videos.
I also have a Facebook supporter page DarkFlight600, that I try to give regular insight on upcoming videos and ideas. I have not used any others sights (as of yet anyway), because most other motovlogers seem to use YouTube as their preferred site.
The world of motovloging has adapted somewhat of a “community” that we all take pride in being apart of, so I chose to stick with YouTube and my fellow Vlogers/video makers.

DI: What is the most number of views a single video you have posted received? Most # of comments?

DarkFlight600: Wow tough question as I don’t keep track but I know I have several in the 6000 (+/-) range. I have no idea which one would have the most comments either, but I would assume it would be a vloging video dealing with motorcycle maintenance as those seem to create a lot of correspondence.
I simply take great pride in being fortunate to have as many views or more per video as I do subscribers, as this makes me feel like they all “tune in”. I always seem to have great support and feedback and have made many friends through YouTube, some of which I have actually go on to meet in person.

DI: Your shot angles are unique and inspiring. What do you see as the best angle of all?

DarkFlight600: Another tough question…The fact that I currently own 2 Drift HD170 cameras has allowed me to create some unique perspectives, such as being able to see both sides of my motorcycle simultaneously. I can also achieve front and back perspectives with the two cameras which makes for some unique and interesting perspectives as well.
Once again I would like to draw attention to our on-line motorcycle community, as they have been a huge source of inspiration. There are a lot of talented motorcycle video makers that without a doubt have influenced me to think of things based on what they have created. It would be wrong if i didn’t credit others such as nickgnaime, vegasstreetriders, ROKKIT44 and 808statehawaii just to name a few for their inspiration and influence.
My best angle of all? ….well that is yet to come of course

DI: What’s in your bag of tricks? (camera bag)

DarkFlight600: My bag of tricks? …lol. Well it consists of:
- 2 Drift HD170 Stealth action cameras
- 1 regular and 1 extended life battery pack
- A Drift monopod
- A Drift suction cup mount
- A Drift external microphone w/silicone boot cover
- A Drift wireless remote
- 2 Drift handle bar mounts
- Several of the Drift curved, flat and helmet fixed mounts
- 2 tripods
- and a Partridge in a pear tree ….lol.

DI: What editing program do you use? How much post production time do you spend on each video?

DarkFlight600: I currently use Sony Vegas Pro 10 as I find it works hand in hand with the Drift cameras (.mov) file format.
The time involved with video editing varies for sure, but I have spent as much as 2-3 days or more especially early on when I was new to video editing. These days it usually takes between 4-8 hours by the time it’s all done and uploaded to YouTube.