Now, if you're still interested in filming your own hunts and want better quality it's time to look into a professional HD camcorder and camera arm.  Today's modern HD camcorders can capture amazing footage and in many cases won't break the bank.  One thing to consider when picking a camera to film yourself is size.  Many professional HD cameras are pretty big and can be a pain to carry around in addition to your hunting gear.  My personal recommendation for someone looking for a camera to film themself would be something like the Canon XA10, which is extremely clear, has plenty of options, and is very compact and light weight.

Once you get a camera you may want to pick up some accessories like microphones, lighting, lens filters and more.  For purposes of this article I won't get too much into those items.  Instead, I'll focus more on the camera arm.  Of course if you hope to film your own hunt you'll need both hands free for your bow, which means you'll need an arm to hold your camera.

Again, size is key here.  A small, compact arm that can be packed in and setup easily is the key.  There are quite a few great options on the market from companies like Pine Ridge Archery, Lone Wolf, 3rd Arm, Muddy outdoors and more.  In the pictures you see here I was using a 3rd Arm Bandit series, which was built specifically for smaller cameras.  The base of the camera arm straps onto the tree and then the arm itself slides onto the base.  This particular arm includes a very nice  video head that works great for filming yourself.

My personal preference is to setup the camera on my right side, just about waist high.  This allows me to hold my bow in my left hand and operate the camera with my right prior to the shot.  By having the camera at waist height this allows me to easily maneuver it while sitting down, which seems to happen quite a bit while self-filming.  However, if I do need to stand up the camera can still be easily moved either by hand, or by pushing it side to side with my leg.  This comes in handy when trying to line up that perfect shot.

Having the camera mounted just above seat level allows me to easily film and make adjustments while seated in my stand.

By simply adjusting the LCD screen I can still see what's going on, and get the camera lined up before the shot.

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