“Cinematic” is, I think, an overused term in the video realm. I hesitate to use it. Even so, the GoPro Hero8 Black camera comes with a preset named just that. Taking advantage of manual settings (and neutral density filters), I can produce footage that more closely resembles that from my full size hybrid cameras.

More and more feature films are being shot digitally — I just added a 4K copy of Alejandro Iñárritu’s The Revenant to the DVD collection. Cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki shot the film almost entirely in natural light, using the Arri Alexa 65 digital camera. The experience represented, he says, his “final divorce” from film. I might foresee a different kind of divorce, should I remortgage the house to buy the Arri camera (body only) for over $150,000.

Leonardo DiCaprio plays unlucky 1800s frontiersman Hugh Glass. In a recent interview, DiCaprio revealed that in the most harrowing scenes, many filmed in the Canadian Rockies, he wasn’t acting; he was hypothermic.

While our 55″ home screen can’t match the big screen (we went to opening night), the grizzly attack still had me on the edge of the couch. Call the result “cinematic” or whatever else you like, the visual experience is exquisite.

If you saw the blockbuster Message From Santa’s Camera Division, you’ll know “Mrs. Claus” bought me a new GoPro Hero8 Black camera for Christmas. It replaces the 8-year-old Hero2 used on our adventures when a light, compact camera is needed. Since then, I’ve been exploring the Hero8’s virtues and its limitations. Today, I debut the resulting review and “cinematic” preset configuration, complete with 4K, Ultra High Definition footage captured in the Canadian wilderness.