How and what to buy to mount a camera to the windshield?

[US 41]

I have a Nikon Coolpix L30 camera and I am wanting to start making driving videos. Since last July I have drove through 19 states, 2 provinces, and 1 estado; and I have many more trips planned. Since many of you have been making videos for a long time, how exactly do I mount a camera to the windshield, what do I need to buy, how much will it cost, etc? Thanks.

[kphoger]

I've experimented with good results, using a foam block (packing dunnage, a car wash sponge, or whatever) and an exact-o knife. Cut out an indention in the foam, same shape as the bottom of your camera. Our camera has a place on the bottom you can screw something into, so I run a bolt through a hole drilled in the foam block to a large washer countersunk in the bottom of the foam.

From top to bottom, then: camera nested in a foam tray, bolt screwed into the camera going down through a foam block (possibly with a nut), large washer on the bottom of the foam block.

The foam acts as a stand, which I set in a little notch in my dashboard. I first lay out a black tee shirt on the dashboard, then also wrap the shirt around the foam once it's in place. The shirt helps reduce both slippage and glare.

If your dashboard has no notch (which is likely), then you can opt for a larger piece of foam (car wash sponge would be good) and then cut away the bottom to match the contour of your dashboard.

I'm all for cheap.

[hbelkins]

You need to check out the Freewayjim Facebook group. There are all sorts of videographers in that group who will be more than happy to tell you about, or show pictures of, their mounting setups.

I use a Sunpak ClampPod which is clamped to the overhang on the instrument panel of my vehicle. About the sturdiest windshield suction cup mount I've seen is the Panavise, which many others use.

[US 41]

I've experimented with good results, using a foam block (packing dunnage, a car wash sponge, or whatever) and an exact-o knife. Cut out an indention in the foam, same shape as the bottom of your camera. Our camera has a place on the bottom you can screw something into, so I run a bolt through a hole drilled in the foam block to a large washer countersunk in the bottom of the foam.

From top to bottom, then: camera nested in a foam tray, bolt screwed into the camera going down through a foam block (possibly with a nut), large washer on the bottom of the foam block.

The foam acts as a stand, which I set in a little notch in my dashboard. I first lay out a black tee shirt on the dashboard, then also wrap the shirt around the foam once it's in place. The shirt helps reduce both slippage and glare.

If your dashboard has no notch (which is likely), then you can opt for a larger piece of foam (car wash sponge would be good) and then cut away the bottom to match the contour of your dashboard.

I'm all for cheap.

I like it! I'll have to try that out. I'm all for cheap as well. I'm more or less just wanting the videos for myself anyways.

You need to check out the Freewayjim Facebook group. There are all sorts of videographers in that group who will be more than happy to tell you about, or show pictures of, their mounting setups.

I use a Sunpak ClampPod which is clamped to the overhang on the instrument panel of my vehicle. About the sturdiest windshield suction cup mount I've seen is the Panavise, which many others use.

I'll have to check out the FreewayJim page on Facebook too.