I am not so sure that your idea that a trainer will withstand a beating is correct. Yes it will withstand a some rough landing with minor damage (so will most other planes) but once you get that thing 10 or more feet off of the ground and you turn one wing over and it nose dives into the ground there may not be much left of the plane (the radio and engine will probably survive). I would advise as the others did to find a club, even if you have to drive a few hours to get there. Several sessions with an instructor may save you several planes.

If you totally insist on learning without an instructor (which I do not recommend!!), then I would suggest two things, get a simulator and practice with that alot and second don't buy a trainer, learn how to build a spad plane. These can be built for less than $20 each (excluding radio, hardware and engine) and build very quickly. That way if you crash you have only waisted $20 and a few hours rather than $100+ and 20hours. There is a website with all of the SPAD info. Just do a search on this site on SPAD and you will find it.

As far at the video camera, etc, others have tried, some have succeeded to some extent at least and others have failed. Either way, you need to learn how to fly first and then there will be much more to learn as you move toward putting a camera on the plane.

Good luck