Digital video cameras are becoming lighter, smaller and more versatile with each new generation, making it easy to capture life's important moments in rich detail and full sound.

Because of the compact camera design, you can easily mount an action camera on a camera head strap, camera chest harness or any number of camera mounts. Attaching your camera to your body or to a vehicle, like an eBike, will free up your hands to steer, swim, climb and so much more.

Once you’re back from the adventure, it’s also simple to edit your footage with user-friendly video editing software. Cut together the best moments, speed up or slow down your shots to create drama and variety, add titles or effects and mix in background music. Whether you’re a social media influencer or just putting together a family video, you can make something that looks and feels professional.

Choosing an action camera is all about identifying the features you want. For kayaking, swimming, sailing and water-based adventures, look at waterproof action cameras. These can also be a good choice for activities that may involve rain or snow. You may also benefit from specialized capabilities, such as action cameras for low light or action cameras that capture audio.

How you plan to showcase your footage may impact your choice of camera. In particular, if you want to create footage to watch on a VR headset, use a 360 action camera to record in every direction. For 4K TV and movie viewing, pick a 4K action camera.

Finally, before recording in the great outdoors, make sure to pack spare camera batteries and extra memory cards so that you don’t run out of power or storage.