No, there is no focus setting. There is subject tracking, but not very useful for Mapillary I think.
There is also an option voor Image Tuning:
Sport: Action-optimized stabilization and stronger tone mapping.
Face: To make skin tone looks natural.
Underwater: adjusting for WB and contrast for color loss under water.
Balanced: The default (current setting, I want to test Sport to see if it makes a difference).
You’re right, the Mission 1 Pro is overkill, the Mission 1 is more than enough. The firmware is indeed the most important step.
Below the information in the top of the screen. The EV is still dynamic, I think the adjustment in the settings is just for the baseline.
In Japan, there is a price comparison website called kakaku.com. It is widely used because it allows users to compare prices across multiple stores. The product specifications listed on this site are reliable, and it is convenient for searching and narrowing down results.
A list of manual focus lenses compatible with the Micro Four Thirds mount can be found at the URL below. These lenses should be compatible with the GoPro Mission 1.
Olympus was founded in 1919 and has a long history as a camera manufacturer. Olympus is also the company that, in collaboration with Panasonic, launched the Micro Four Thirds project in 2009. They have consistently provided compact, high-quality optical products. Today, the camera business is operated by a company called OMDS.
The BCL-0980 is not classified as a Micro Four Thirds lens, but rather as an accessory. As the name “ボディキャップレンズ(Body Cap Lens)” suggests, it features a built-in f/8 lens within an extremely thin and lightweight body. The manually operated focus lever allows for adjustment from 0.2m to infinity, and when the lens is not in use, the cover can be closed to protect it.
It’s small and lightweight, yet produces sharp images. Although it has a maximum aperture of f/8, which is on the slow side, it should work fine for daytime outdoor use. Also, since it’s a fisheye lens, straight lines appear distorted in the images. If you’re looking for a lens to mount on your GoPro Mission, consider the BCL-0980.
Thank you for sharing your lens recommendation. Traditional Japanese camera and optics makers are among the best in the world. Korean camera and accessory makers are also notable. Despite this, it makes me sad that basically no Japanese or Korean camera maker has a product that would or could directly compete with GoPro cameras or other mostly Chinese top action cams. Maybe I am wrong or misinformed? Effectively, GoPro and DJI (or other Chinese no-name brands) is basically all we get here in Europe. The kakaku.com website looks nice but is a bit difficult for us westerners to read. @drivephotograph Can you recommend any Japanese or Korean action cams (or other camera types) for Mapillary mapping? I would really appreciate it. Thank you.
Nikon is a camera manufacturer with a long history. Its name comes from 日本(Nippon=Japan) 光学(Kogaku=optics). The company’s advanced precision engineering expertise is evident in its mechanical shutters and quick-return mirrors. They have developed a wide range of zoom lenses through their superior optical design capabilities. Optical manufacturers in Korea and China are struggling to build up their zoom lens lineups. Nikon’s anti-reflection technology is outstanding, even developing technology to shape microscopic irregularities on lens surfaces that are finer than the wavelength of light.
However, Nikon lacked experience in information technology. In 2016, they released an action camera called Key Mission. The product had trouble connecting via Bluetooth and received poor reviews from users. I’ve used Nikon’s ViewNX photo management app before. It has so many menu items that I couldn’t understand them. It seems they don’t intend to follow Microsoft’s Windows application guidelines. Perhaps Nikon’s software engineers aren’t familiar with the concept of a “wizard” that guides users through selecting multiple items in sequence.
The innovation dilemma lies here. The customers who want smartphones and action cameras don’t buy Nikon products. Companies can only make products that sell. The people who buy Nikon products prefer cameras equipped only with a shutter speed dial and an aperture ring.
Sony is probably the best camera manufacturer to work with IT. In 2016, they released an action camera called the FDR-X3000. It seems to have been highly praised, including for its image stabilization feature. However, this uses a mechanical image stabilization system that moves the entire camera unit. It seems that because they had such high-level mechanical image stabilization technology, they were unable to develop electronic image stabilization. The electronic image stabilization features offered by GoPro, the pioneer of action cameras, and DJI, a drone manufacturer, are outstanding. No Japanese camera manufacturer can compete with them.
According to kakaku.com, these are the best-selling action cameras in Japan. Since the brand names are written in the Latin alphabet, they should be easy for Europeans to read. DJI, Insta360, GoPro — that’s all.
I think for Nikon and any other Japanese camera maker with history it is rather a matter of entering the action cam market at all. They just have to do good market research what people want or need in the digital age. Digital video and photography differs a lot from legacy film photography. Then they just have to come up with a good enough competitively priced product. It is not like because smartphones have built-in cameras there is no longer a market for dedicated cameras. GoPro and DJI prove the exact opposite. It is just quite different to traditional film photography.
Yes, the Sony FDR-X3000 was outstanding for its time. There has been some considerable amount of imagery captured with the FDR-X3000 on Mapillary. Some contributors even used a multi-camera setup! Indeed, the camera is a unique piece of engineering to feature floating optics for its form factor and size. However, it is a bit dated by today’s standards. I am not sure why Sony has not continued to develop it further or went with a different, more traditional action cam design.
Ironically, basically all GoPros use Sony sensors. Even DJI used a Sony sensor in the original Osmo Action. For later Osmo Action generations DJI transitioned to OmniVision sensors.
I am not sure floating optics is actually the reason why Sony de facto seized development of action cams. Furthermore, if I am not mistaken Canon was the first camera maker to introduce digital image stabilization in a consumer grade digital camera. Canon even develops and manufactures their own sensors and imaging processors, despite them holding just 1% of the global CMOS image sensor market! So, it is not like Japanese camera makers have no expertise or experience in this field. I am sure they could compete in this market segment too. However, for some unknown reason to me they seem to have given up on this specific market segment and started to concentrate more on higher-end still image photography and video recording equipment.
Thank you for sharing!
The video quality is amazing. Such resolutions and low noise levels in cloudy conditions at this price range would have been unthinkable only a few years ago. The motion blur setting seems to work properly. Unfortunately, the slight windshield glare does not do the camera justice. It adds a grayish tint, decreases contrast, and adds blurriness to details. Anyhow, I am really happy that you had the patience and dexterity to answer all my individual questions. Thank you!
10 years ago, Olympus proposed the AIR A01 (link in French). Not really an action cam because it didn’t have any screen. All is controlled from smartphone, typically how I use the GoProMax for mapillary.
Thank you for sharing this. I was not aware of it. Though, I knew that there had been experiments with lenses attached to smartphones. This idea of (what Sony calls) “Smart Lenses” is neat and an impressive display of technical achievement. I also like this “build your own camera rig” concept.
However, these things are not a solution for the masses. In 2013 I would have said: “perhaps not yet” but since we are in 2026, none of these have gained enough traction or captivated the masses. An action cam is a complete solution for the masses because it is distinct enough from a built-in smartphone camera and one can safely and securely mount it to a vehicle or on a stick right away, like opposed to a (usually expensive) smartphone.
Traditional Japanese camera and optics makers are among the best in the world. Korean camera and accessory makers are also notable. Despite this, it makes me sad that basically no Japanese or Korean camera maker has a product that would or could directly compete with GoPro cameras or other mostly Chinese top action cams. Maybe I am wrong or misinformed? Effectively, GoPro and DJI (or other Chinese no-name brands) is basically all we get here in Europe. The 
Oh, wow! 44.2 MP video! I guess this is the mode to use for Mapillary when capturing in video mode. I am eager to see your captures. Thank you.
Thank you!