Can I mount my GoPro on my mirrorless camera housing?

This is a question we get all the time. And, it makes a lot of sense!

For photographers with a mirrorless or DSLR underwater rig shooting primarily stills, video is often an afterthought. It’s cumbersome to switch back and forth between video and photo modes, and the settings can be quite different for any given scenario.

So, some photographers opt to mount a second camera onto their housing, often a GoPro in a housing. In this way, photographers can just hit record on the GoPro, and continue to shoot stills with no interruption.

Let’s say, for example, that you’re photographing hammerhead sharks in the Galapagos. You’re desperate for that perfect wide angle shot – you know it’s going to be a prize winner. But, the mesmerizing motion of the hammerhead school also deserves to be caught on tape…enter the GoPro housing mount. 2 for 1!

There are a few ways to achieve this, but the one we recommend in most situations is a cold shoe mount. 

What’s a cold shoe?

A cold shoe is just like the hot shoe on your camera, where the flash connects to the body. But, unlike the hot shoe, the cold shoe has no electronic contacts – it’s “cold”, not “hot”. On underwater camera housings, the cold shoe acts as a mounting point for accessories, in this case, the GoPro.

In order to attach the GoPro to the cold shoe, you’ll need a cold shoe mount, with either a direct connection to the GoPro all in one mount (like this one from BTS), or with a cold shoe ball mount, a clamp, and GoPro mount. The second option is more complicated, but if your rig has accessories like an external monitor, sometimes the added length of the GoPro mount can be beneficial for positioning. We offer the cold shoe ball, clamp, and GoPro mount as a package, here. 

Hope this helps! Reach out to us at housingcamera.com for more.

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Morgan Bennett-Smith

Morgan Bennett-Smith is a field research scientist and photographer. He completed his B.A. in marine science at Occidental College in Southern California, and his Master’s Degree in marine science at the Red Sea Research Center in Thuwal, Saudi Arabia, where he studied coral reef symbiosis. Along the way, his photographs have won numerous international competitions and been featured by organizations such as Smithsonian, the Guardian, and Nature, and been commercially licensed over 3,000 times.

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