Verizon GoPro Hero 5 Session Ensures Long Lasting Memories

Verizon GoPro Hero 5 Session Ensures Long Lasting Memories
By: Amy

A few months ago, our family had the opportunity to check out Verizon GoPro Hero 5 Session in time for Back to School. We had some amazing adventures and fun with the camera and you can read our review here.  More recently we had a chance again to take a GoPro Hero 5 Session with us on a parent only vacation in exchange for sharing what we thought about it. It was an amazing opportunity to record memories from vacation to share later with friends and family!

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This time we were supposed to check out the GoPro Hero 5 Black, which has a screen in order to be able to see what you are recording versus the Session.  Unfortunately there was a little confusion during the shipping process and we were sent the Session again. Verizon had the Black sent overnight to us and it arrived the night before we left however the camera was missing one of the waterproof plugs for the cord connection to the computer so we could not use it in the water. Verizon did everything they could to ensure our positive experience with the camera. But as we know as parents, sometimes things just happen and we roll with it! 

 Having used the Session before I knew how to secure it and use it, making me a pro this time. It’s so easy with one button operation and voice control and perfect for snorkeling adventures which is our favorite thing to do on vacation. Our most recent vacation we finally took our honeymoon sans children thanks to the grandparents! We traveled down to the beautiful country of Grenada, which is the furthest south we have ever been. One of the reasons we picked Grenada was due to the country’s beauty and underwater snorkeling. There is an underwater sculpture park which is a concept that combines art and coral protection with 68 different attractions dispersed along the shallow waters off Moliniere Point. It’s a great place to go snorkeling. It was created by the British sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor.  The aim of the project was to build an artificial barrier where the coral and other marine life could migrate to and find a new home in an area that was highly devastated by the Hurricane Ivan in 2004.  This has helped ocean life return to the area as well as helped stimulate the economy for the region.  Due to the very active hurricane season, our trip kept getting pushed back all week and almost didn't happen due to water visibility issues. Lucky for us by the day before we left, they took us out and off we went with our GoPro in hand!

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​This excursion was the perfect way to get full use of the Session. The camera takes 4K video and 10 MP photos. It has the ability (again only 1 button!) to take single photos or a burst of photos depending on your setting. The session really does a lot despite being tiny in size it even has the ability to stabilize your videos. The pilot your own boat trip out to the snorkeling was so much fun!  I love zipping across the water with the wind in my hair! I easily secured the GoPro to the front of our boat and recorded the sights as we traveled. When we arrived the underwater park took my breath away, it truly is amazing. Each set of sculptures has a story behind it representing the local culture and we learned so much about the Grenadians.  I set the GoPro on record and just took video the whole time knowing I could edit upon our return home and the results were spectacular as you can see from the photos and video.  

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​​We were also given a rare chance to see a baby turtle release which as you can see from my video below I was able to catch up close with the GoPro. This was pretty amazing to see close up and the GoPro was super easy to get set up near them as they raced to the ocean! There were lots of other people with a GoPro at the resort however 99% of them had special cases for their cameras. Many of them were fascinated with the fact that the Verizon GoPro Hero 5 Session  did not need one as it is waterproof up 33 feet!

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Overall I think the Verizon GoPro Hero 5 Session is a great camera and perfect for families especially with the holidays quickly approaching. It is small, easy to use and gets fantastic video.  My only negative was that I couldn’t see any of the pictures or videos on the camera that I was taking until we arrived home. As a result there were a few photos that I wish I could have retaken and would have had I known.  There is an app to use with it however being a frugal mom I did not purchase an international plan before the trip so the app would not work for me out of the country.  The session does have the ability to automatically upload your content directly to the cloud for viewing, editing and sharing or can make videos quickly via the app.   Personally for me I like being able to quickly see what photos I am taking as I do them, but for convenience and all the features this camera really is great and an affordable option for families.   I am so glad we had this opportunity from Verizon to capture these memories of a beautiful place and our first vacation without the kids!