GoPro Mission 1 Pro ILS

The ILS is GoPro's most interesting camera to date. It comes at a time when the company's future seems more precarious than ever. If the ILS came out 2-3 years ago, this might be a different conversation. Not because it will save the company, but because it shows GoPro is capable of trying new, risky things. The Hero line served GoPro well for over a decade, but today's creator wants and needs different tools. The ILS offers a lot of those, and with a few refinements, the ILS series could grow into something genuinely category-defining.For now, the ILS is a camera with great potential and a learning curve. It's asking GoPro fans to study up and for experienced filmmakers to make sacrifices. There's no doubt a group right in the middle can live with its peculiarities and even flourish with them. Whether that's enough to inspire a Mission 2 Pro ILS, or similar diverse products, we'll have to wait and see.

GoPro's first interchangeable-lens camera marries a Micro Four Thirds mount with the company's best ever sensor. For anyone patient enough to master manual focus, the results can be something special. Waterproofing, autofocus and subject tracking are all casualties of that flexibility, so this isn't a like-for-like upgrade on the standard Mission 1 Pro – it's a different tool for a different kind of shooter. If you can live with that shift in focus (no pun intended), there's a huge amount to like here.