What’s better than taking footage of your surfing skills and creating an awesome video? Today I want to show you the essential GoPro surf accessories that you need to catch amazing footage from different angles while you’re surfing big waves.

If you haven’t got a GoPro yet then I invite you to check my GoPro camera comparison chart where I compare between the three Hero4 models using my personal experience with these cameras.You might also like to see my #1 ultimate GoPro guide that aims to help you get the most out of your GoPro.

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I Make Sure to Properly Set up My GoPro

I did this mistake many more times than I can remember! I would go out with a 4K settings at 30fps which I don’t need at all when shooting surfing videos, it creates huge files and eats both my battery life and memory card. I now make sure all is set up before going out to the beach.

From my personal experience, I would usually pick the 1080p at 60fps, I think it’s enough for me during my surf sessions as I’m not a pro surfer yet, maybe one day! but again it’s up to you, also depends on the GoPro model you’re using, but as I said, keep in mind the battery and the memory card. I also check that the housing is clean and not foggy, battery is full and memory card has enough space. You don’t want to go out there to have an amazing session to discover later that your footage sucks or the camera is dead after 10 minutes, yeah I know how it feels 🙁

 

Let me Show you My Essential GoPro Surfing Accessories

If you want to create an awesome video later on then the important thing here is to be able to catch footage from different angles hence the need to have different GoPro mounts that has to be attached to you or your board. I usually use the below 4 accessories when surfing:

 

1- GoPro Surfboard Mount

GoPro Surf Accessories

Every surfer needs this mount, if you don’t have it already then you’re missing a lot. Sometimes if I don’t want to over-complicate things I only use this surfboard mount. It gives the best video angle you can have while surfing. I fix it at the front of my board using the adhesive 3M anchors (which is really strong by the way) then I attach the GoPro facing me. I also make sure to use the camera tether for extra safety in case the camera adhesive mount detaches while in the water (just to be on the safe side). This mount plus the GoPro wide lens gives me awesome shooting angle, it’s my best surfing accessory that I absolutely use every time I’m surfing or kiteboarding.

You can get your GoPro Surf Mount from HERE.

 

2- GoPro Floaty Backdoor

GoPro Floaty Backdoor

Even though my GoPro is properly fixed with the adhesive anchors and attached with with a tether, I always use the floaty backdoor and I advise you to do the same. You never know what can happen in the water,you can lose your GoPro in seconds if it detaches from the surfboard which happened a lot to my friends, you don’t want to risk it and lose the camera and the footage you took. This floaty backdoor will keep your GoPro afloat plus it only takes a few seconds to replace the GoPro backdoor so why not use it.

You can get your GoPro Floaty Backdoor from HERE.

 

3- Chest Harness/Head Strap

GoPro Chest strap surfing accessories

Another favorite accessory I use for almost all my activities is the chesty (Chest Harness), the beautiful thing about it is the shooting angle, it’s attached to your chest so it moves with your body and shoots what you see in front of you. As I said earlier, I use this strap everywhere whether I’m surfing, hiking or cycling, I think it’s suitable for all types of outdoor activities.

Another good accessory I use from time to time is the head strap, I also like it but not as much as the chesty because it’s not as comfortable as the other one and the shooting angle is higher and moves as you move your head(obviously), it looks the same as a headlamp and it capture a headlamp-like perspective which is higher than the chest strap, I don’t see it a lot suitable for surfing honestly because you can barely capt the board and your knees but for each person their own opinion, some people may prefer this one over the chest strap.

You can get your GoPro Chest Harness from HERE.

 

4- GoPro Handler

GoPro Handler

A good way to capture different angles is with the GoPro handler, another favorite accessory from GoPro that offers great flexibility when shooting videos, it gives me total control of the camera, I can turn the camera to any angle I want, I can take selfies or turn the camera and shoot from the front, back or side, high angle or low angle, I can practically shoot from different perspectives and this is what I like about this handler.

Although it can be difficult sometimes, because you need to use your grip but if you’re comfortable enough when surfing then you can handle it without any problem. Another advantage is that this handler floats, so I don’t need to worry about using it in the deep waters, it can also support the additional weight of a BacPac Battery OR BacPac LCD.

You can get your GoPro Handler from HERE.

My Advice

Now that you have an idea of the different GoPro surf accessories, you can check what suits you the best and get it. I personally have these four accessories, because I can use them for different activities as well and not only surfing (well except the surfboard mount of course). Each accessory gives you a unique shooting angle/perspective, I would normally use two accessories at a time, like the surfboard and the chest strap to capture two angles then combine them when editing my video, believe me it’s really great when you’re shooting simultaneously from two angles. So if you own two GoPro cameras then I advise you to go ahead and experiment with two angles, I’m sure you’ll love it!

There you have it ladies and gentlemen!

What do you think of my four GoPro surfing accessories? Let me know by leaving a comment in the comments section below 🙂