Shooting the Creek

 Went looking to video an algae bloom for the Lake pitch deck and found this surprise instead.

Still image from GoPro 8 video. I hate that camera.

11 - 1

Gosh, I love the GoPros. 

Well, mostly, kinda, yeah well, maybe like an old boyfriend you'll still visit.

I was one of the last people who won when GoPro was giving away one of everything they made in a daily drawing. 

Whoa! 

I even made one of those goofy watch-me-open-all-this-GoPro-stuff videos which was me in front of a very large box going -- "ooooo look at this ooooo." 

Goofy. Yes. Dork alert. Absolutely.

Hero 4 Black et al. Way cool, and by the way, the ONLY GoPro that never failed me (knockwood.)

So, GoPro had my heart and I followed along with a 5, then 7 and finally 8. The Five was good. Seven froze too often. I sold it. Eight seems to still have that freeze problem but I haven't used it that much.

Seems to me, they've added too much computer in too tiny an package attempting to corral their market share instead of making and continuing to support a good product. But that's just me.

So, the teeny, tiny camera I always carry (in addition, of course to the one I call the fukin' phone) is DJI's Osmo Action which never does anything surprising, except take very nice pictures, moving and otherwise.

I still have the GoPros. I still love them. 

Mostly, kinda, yeah well, you know. 

And sometimes I think the GoPro is embarassed to be seen with me. We've never jumped out of an airplane, skied off a cliff or swum with whales. When he gets together with the other GoPros down at the local, he must hang his lens in shame. "Today she rode the mountain bike up and down the street in front of her house." Of course, there was a wedding video that one time ... 

Anyway, a match made in heaven. Albeit a slower-moving, down to earth one.

-- NOVEMBER in the One a Day for a Year -- 

Who can believe it's November already? What a suck-fest 2020 turned out to be. Next week will it turn the corner or continue on unabated? I'm afraid to look.

Anyway, I'm closing in on an entire year posting and shooting a picture every day. I've played with the cameras more than I had in a long time. I'm glad I stayed with it.

--  --

 

Invention is a Mother

Last week, I received notice my play was going to be featured this summer at a conference. 

Yes, DRIVER’S ED, on her feet once again, but that’s not what I’m here to talk about today.

The theater sent a contract and request – a bio, play description and a head shot.

Oh, I hate to write those. You’d think I grow accustomed to the process and every script, you’d be wrong.

But, wait, and a what?

A picture. 

oy.

I have enough camera equipment to shoot, film and record the end of the World, so one measly self portrait should be  e a s y.

Then I got a good idea.

I could put the little Oly on the tripod with the view screen deployed and watch myself while I posed for the picture.

Except –

With the Oly on a tripod the view screen can not be deployed.

I have 1597 pieces of GoPro connections, I could probably jury rig something.

 Almost, but not quite. Gave it the old college try though.

Put on makeup. Set up the Nikon. Went back and forth until I made a picture that didn’t make me cringe.

Sent everything off to the theater.

But wait. Good ideas don't have expiration dates. If I could get the Oly on a tripod on its side, the next time I want to take a picture while I stare at the camera, it would be easy.

Searched the Net. There are such devices costing $125 to $180 and all still block the screen.

Looking at those, I realized if I could attach an L brace to the camera, I'd be set.

All that’s needed is an L brace, brass screw, gaffer’s tape, a screwdriver and a husband handy with tools.

Husband not shown.

Made this.

Attaches like this.

Eureka.

Now, should the need ever arise again, I am set.

Goldilocks and the Travel Journal

My original travel journal setup was a pocket-size Moleskine with a couple of pens and a pencil, glue stick and folding scissors in a canvas case sold by an entrepreneur who has since gone out of business.

Then I stumbled onto the Midori Traveler’s Notebook universe and well … this happened.

Two! Passport and Regular in black.

 So, when a trip came up, I thought, let’s switch to a better travel journal – Moleskine paper not being what it used to be.

The regular Traveler’s Notebook was out of the question.

TOO BIG.

Especially when I’m already carrying ten pounds of camera equipment.

So this arrived. 

Passport size, in camel. Cool. Tucked right in the old canvas case.

Away we went.

It lasted one and a half trips before I realized it was TOO SMALL.

Since the addition of the polaroid printer – business card size photos were taking up lots of space. 

I hunted down a stationary store on the road and returned to the pocket Moleskine of yesteryear.  

Which was – JUST RIGHT.

And goes to show, that old adage is correct.

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

Wild Audio

I never agreed that the on-board GoPro mic was all that bad – even muted by the cases – waterproof and otherwise, but there were a lot who complained that the camera produced crap audio.

Sennheiser has come up with a solution. The Action Mic for GoPro Hero 4.

Wind screen

It’s not cheap – $200. For that you get the mic, connections, waterproof back door for Hero 4, two spacers, and an innovative windshield

Unlike a dead cat or standard foam wind screen – this one is immersible in water – no problem.

 

Cute as a box of puppies

Take your waterproof Hero 4 case, remove the backdoor, snap on the Action Mic’s backdoor, plug the connection into the usb mic slot on the camera, if you’re not using the battery backpack, add the blue spacer, carefully close up the back door – mind the wire and make sure the seal is good and even all the way round. *

I live next to a creek, so I fitted up my Hero 4 Black, and took the whole thing for a trial run. Nothing exciting, like boating over a cliff, just a dip and dunk in the creek.

First, I tested the audio around all sides of the camera – clear, distinct with no fall off when the mic was on the far side. Then down into the creek we went.

Wow. It was loud. The little tink-tink-tink sounds are debris hitting the mic. This creek moves pretty fast.

Afterwards, disassembled and allowed (as advised) to air dry. Pretty cool. 

I plan to mount the rig on the front of my kayak, control it with the remote and I’ll probably get excellent audio of fish jumping, birds chirping and me swearing at the power boat people. Once Montana decides to give us some summer.

The only down side I see is, rigged with the mic, the GoPro is a sizable chunk of wind resistant object. Although the mic handles the wind well, some people might object to the size with regards to weight and balance. 

Although, I am nobody’s audio expert, I have been experimenting with adding a mic to the GoPro for a quite a while. Here is what I’ve tried.

Olympus, Rode, iGo and a Takstar. The Rode’s the best by far. The Olympus is okay. The iGo is convenient but average (especially when the other camera is mic'd with the Rode. And the Takstar was when I was shooting video with a DSLR and let’s just say, I don’t do that anymore. And of course, none of these are waterproof.

Sennheiser’s Action Mic is an expensive but excellent solution for great audio in all weather video.

* I’m a worrier.

It Came from Above

Run for your lives.

Mooned

Every year on my birthday, the Universe throws me a meteor shower.

This year, due to a moon so bright it cast shadows and clouds over Montana, the Perseids were a no show.

Did get a nice time lapse of cloud cover on the GoPro.

Guess there's always next year.

Still No Fish

Trust Issues

Spy Fishing

Super Moon

After dragging a Nikon D300 all over the place, and it felt like carrying a weight tied to an anchor, I've changed to an Oly Micro 4/3rds and oh my, this light as a feather camera has some nice features.

And the GoPro did a night time lapse which even after I've read all the articles and watched a batch of videos, still don't know how I did this, but I like it.

Don't Get Any On You

I have a horror script about a nasty green entity that crawls out of a high mountain lake and proceeds to consume everything and everyone in its path.

It was great fun to write and is running about 50/50 in the contests -- either out early on or finishing with some recognition. I think this is because in the middle of the story there is a big fat scrumptious screenwriting joke and the reader must --

1. Have a sense of humor.

2. Not be a format Nazi.

As I said, it's running about 50/50.

But, I digress.

The local lake is currently having an algae bloom, and let me just say, ick.

I thought it would be fun to film some of that for -- well, who knows what I might get up to with film of real live icky green gunk.

Plus, hasn't that GoPro been whispering to me all this long time -- let's go in the water, sweetheart.

Why yes, it has.

So we did.




If later they find my bones extruded by some moveable green beast, you'll have heard it here first.