Recording Games: The Ultimate Guide

You want to get the best highlights.  To get there, you have to start with the best raw materials.  And, that means investing in getting setup with the right equipment to record full games and upload them into the SportVisio cloud seamlessly.

In this guide we'll cover selecting the right equipment, getting setup on game day, recording games, and how to upload your games so that we can get those stats and highlights back to you quickly. This guide assumes that you don’t have access to a camera mounted on the wall of the gym.

Equipment Choices

Camera: SportsVisio was setup with the premise that any phone in your pocket has a camera capable of recording games of a high enough quality that our AI can analyze and process stats and highlights for basketball and other sports.  There are many options on the market if you are looking for something that you can dedicate to recording for your team or league or family.  Here are a few:

• Basic -  Android Phone:  The Samsung Galaxy S20
• ‍Premium - Advanced digital camera: Sony ZV-1 or Sony AX43A

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Tripod: We’ve tested all kinds of tripods and find this is an area you don’t want to skimp.

• Basic - Aureday 74” Camera Tripod
• Premium - K&F Concept 94” Tripod

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Tripod Phone Mounts: There’s only one great option here. Buy 2 if you want to you use 2 phones and these mount together:

• Syncwire Tripod Phone Mount

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Extras and Accessories: Cables and chargers ensure that you won’t miss any of the action.

1. Battery Pack
2. Charging Cables

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Getting Setup on Gameday

Arrive early to make sure you get your setup ready and tested before the games begin.  You can record with either one phone/camera or two phones.

When you are using one phone/camera, you’ll want to get your tripod setup as close to half court as possible with enough distance from the court that you are capturing the near sideline. You’ll be panning the camera back and forth following the action, so make sure that you are ready to focus - these games move fast! If possible record so that the scoreboard is in view.

When you are recording with two cameras, you’ll be able to set it up and walk away.  This option is best for leagues who are running many games or coaches who have a job to do during the game.  Setup your tripod near the half way line and far enough removed from the sideline that you can seen that near sideline in view.  Point one phone to the capture the left side of the court, with the center line and basket in view.  Point the other phone to capture the left side of the court, again with the center line and basket in view. This setup enables you to record at a higher angle as you can raise your tripod and not have to worry about changing camera views during the game.

Don’t miss the start - hit the record button before the game starts so that we don’t miss any of action. If the video is missing events then the stats will be off. The AI can only watch the video.

Recording Best Practices

• Fully charge device before each game
• Have an external battery ready
• Ensure sufficient storage
• Set device resolution at 1080p and FPS at 30
• Start recording a couple of minutes before the game starts to identify players
• Keep the sound on to capture game-related sounds
• Record continuously, including halftime
• Keep referee in frame to validate fouls and violations
• Capture the scoreboard at the end of the game to validate the final scores for each team
• Announce into the microphone at the start of the game: “Team X is wearing this color and Team Y is wearing that color:”

Uploading your Game

We have two options for customers to upload their games into our cloud so that our AI can get to work reviewing the film and creating stats and highlights:

1. Preferred:  Our SportsVisio Manager has recently been upgraded and refreshed, and is currently available for Andoid phones in the Google Play store: SportsVisio Manager.  This app ensures that your games are uploaded against your schedule and ensures the fastest turnaround time.
2. Secondary option: we can also accept files via dropbox.  For trial games, please submit your games here: SportsVisio Trial.  For customers with accounts setup, you’ll have received a unique Dropbox link in your onboarding pack. After your games, and once you are on reliable wi-fi you can get started:
   1. Open the Dropbox folder link and click the "Upload" button within the Dropbox folder.
   2. Name each game file with the following convention: Team 1 (color) v Team 2 (color)
   3. Select the game video file from your devic and wait for the upload process to complete - you may need to keep your phone on for this to complete.  You can update your phone setting to keep the screen on while this processes.

Game Notifications

Once your game has been analyzed and processed, which usually takes about 24 hours after the game has been uploaded, you will receive an email notification that your game is ready to be viewed. At that point, you will have access to game statistics, player trophies, highlights, and the full game directly on the SportsVisio app. Make sure that you are following your league, team, and favorite players. This allows you to share your most memorable moments with the world!

Any questions, we’re here to help,  please reach out to customersuccess@sportsvisio.com

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