As with all the previous GoPros, the HERO5 Black is set up with automatic settings that work well in many situations right out of the box. It’s one of the core features of GoPros: that you should be able to take it out of the box, head out, and start shooting and get great results.
But like the flagship Black editions before it (and since), there are also advanced, or expert, settings that you can use to fine-tune your shooting with video and photo.
GoPro calls this category of settings Protune. They give you more direct control over things like shutter speed and white balance. GoPros don’t have completely manual shooting, but through combinations of Protune settings, you can get the equivalent of a partial manual mode.
With the HERO5 Black, you’ll have to enable the Protune option before you can access these settings. You do this by going into the Photo Settings or Video settings when you’re setting the shooting mode. If you toggle the Protune option to ON, you’ll see a bunch of new settings appear. You can also enable Protune through the GoPro mobile app.
GoPro has tended to keep the Protune options quite consistent with each generation of Black edition. But there are nevertheless changes from time to time, and some of those variations might be relevant to some shooters. So here are master lists of the Protune options available when shooting video and photos with the HERO5 Black and how they compare with the models before and after. (I also have more detailed comparisons of the HERO5 Black and HERO6 Black and HERO5 Black and HERO4 Black.)
Video Protune Options: HERO5 Black
| Protune Option | HERO11 Black | HERO10 Black | HERO9 Black | HERO8 Black | HERO7 Black | HERO6 Black | HERO5 Black | HERO4 Black | HERO4 Silver | HERO Session |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10-Bit | On Off (default) | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Bitrate | Standard (default) High | Low (default) High | Low (default) High | Low (default) High | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Color | Vibrant Natural (default) Flat | Vibrant (default) Natural Flat | GoPro Color Flat | GoPro Color Flat | GoPro Color Flat | GoPro Color Flat | GoPro Color Flat | GoPro Color Flat | GoPro Color Flat | GoPro Color Flat |
| White Balance | Auto (default) 2300K 2800K 3200K 4000K 4500K 5500K 6000K 6500K Native | Auto 2300K 2800K 3200K 4000K 4500K 5500K 6000K 6500K Native | Auto 2300K 2800K 3200K 4000K 4500K 5500K 6000K 6500K Native | Auto 2300K 2800K 3200K 4000K 4500K 5500K 6000K 6500K Native | Auto 2300K 2800K 3200K 4000K 4500K 5500K 6000K 6500K Native | Auto 2300K 2800K 3200K 4000K 4500K 5500K 6000K 6500K Native | Auto 3000K 4000K 4800K 5500K 6000K 6500K Native | Auto 3000K 4000K 4800K 5500K 6000K 6500K Native | Auto 3000K 4000K 4800K 5500K 6000K 6500K Native | Auto 3000K 5500K 6500K Native |
| Manual Exposure / Shutter* | Auto (default) 1/fps 1/(2xfps) 1/(4xfps) 1/(8xfps) 1/(16xfps) | Auto 1/fps 1/(2xfps) 1/(4xfps) 1/(8xfps) 1/(16xfps) | Auto 1/fps 1/(2xfps) 1/(4xfps) 1/(8xfps) 1/(16xfps) | Auto 1/fps 1/(2xfps) 1/(4xfps) 1/(8xfps) 1/(16xfps) | Auto 1/24 1/25 1/30 1/48 1/50 1/60 1/96 1/100 1/120 1/192 1/200 1/240 1/384 1/400 1/480 1/960 1/1920 1/3840 | Auto 1/24 1/25 1/30 1/48 1/50 1/60 1/96 1/100 1/120 1/192 1/200 1/240 1/400 1/480 1/960 1/1920 | Auto 1/24 1/25 1/30 1/48 1/50 1/60 1/80 1/96 1/100 1/120 1/160 1/192 1/200 1/240 1/320 1/400 1/480 1/960 | Auto 1/60 1/120 1/240 | Auto 1/60 1/120 1/240 | - |
| ISO Limit | 6400 3200 1600 800 400 200 100 | 6400 3200 1600 800 400 200 100 | 6400 3200 1600 800 400 200 100 | 6400 3200 1600 800 400 200 100 | 6400 3200 1600 800 400 200 100 | 6400 3200 1600 800 400 200 100 | 6400 3200 1600 1200 800 400 | 6400 3200 1600 1200 800 400 | 6400 3200 1600 1200 800 400 | 1600 400 |
| Sharpness | High Medium (default) Low | High Medium (default) Low | High Medium (default) Low | High Medium (default) Low | High Medium (default) Low | High Medium (default) Low | High Medium (default) Low | High Medium Low | High Medium Low | OFF ON |
| Exposure Compensation | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 |
| Raw Audio Track | Off (default) Low Mid High | Off (default) Low Mid High | Off Low Mid High | Off Low Mid High | Off Low Mid High | Off Low Mid High | Off Low Mid High | - | - | - |
| Wind | Auto (default) On Off | Auto (default) On Off | Auto On Off | Auto On Off | - | - | - | |||
| Auto Audio Mode Group | - | Auto On Off | Auto On Off | Auto On Off | Auto Wind Only Stereo Only | - | - | - | - | - |
Photo Protune Options: HERO5 Black
| Protune Option | HERO11 Black | HERO10 Black | HERO9 Black | HERO8 Black | HERO7 Black | HERO6 Black | HERO5 Black | HERO5 Session | HERO4 Black | HERO4 Silver |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Color | Vibrant Natural (default) Flat | Vibrant (default) Natural Flat | GoPro Color Flat | GoPro Color Flat | GoPro Color Flat | GoPro Color Flat | GoPro Color Flat | GoPro Color Flat | GoPro Color Flat | GoPro Color Flat |
| White Balance | Auto (default) 2300K 2800K 3200K 4000K 4500K 5000K 5500K 6000K 6500K Native | Auto 2300K 2800K 3200K 4000K 4500K 5000K 5500K 6000K 6500K Native | Auto 2300K 2800K 3200K 4000K 4500K 5000K 5500K 6000K 6500K Native | Auto 2300K 2800K 3200K 4000K 4500K 5000K 5500K 6000K 6500K Native | Auto 2300K 2800K 3200K 4000K 4500K 5000K 5500K 6000K 6500K Native | Auto 2300K 2800K 3200K 4000K 4500K 5500K 6000K 6500K Native | Auto 3000K 4000K 4800K 5500K 6000K 6500K Native | Auto 3000K 5500K 6500K Native | Auto 3000K 5500K 6500K Native | Auto 3000K 5500K 6500K Native |
| Shutter Speed | Auto 1/125 1/250 1/500 1/1000 1/2000 | Auto 1/125 1/250 1/500 1/1000 1/2000 | Auto 1/125 1/250 1/500 1/1000 1/2000 | Auto 1/125 1/250 1/500 1/1000 1/2000 | Auto 1/125 1/250 1/500 1/1000 1/2000 | Auto 1/125 1/250 1/500 1/1000 1/2000 | - | - | - | - |
| ISO Limit | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 800 400 200 100 | 800 400 200 100 | 800 400 200 100 |
| ISO Min | 3200 1600 800 400 200 100 (default) | 3200 1600 800 400 200 100 (default) | 3200 1600 800 400 200 100 | 3200 1600 800 400 200 100 | 3200 1600 800 400 200 100 | 3200 1600 800 400 200 100 | 1600 800 400 200 100 | - | - | - |
| ISO Max | 3200 (default) 1600 800 400 200 100 | 3200 (default) 1600 800 400 200 100 | 3200 1600 800 400 200 100 | 3200 1600 800 400 200 100 | 3200 1600 800 400 200 100 | 3200 1600 800 400 200 100 | 100 200 400 800 1600 | - | - | - |
| Sharpness | High Medium (default) Low | High Medium Low | High Medium Low | High Medium Low | High Medium Low | High Medium Low | High Medium Low | High Medium Low | High Medium Low | High Medium Low |
| Exposure Compensation | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 | -2 to +2 |
