ffejdraga

There is one dude at our dz using Avid to edit and produce videos. He runs it out to a transcoder to make VHS or if it is a dvd, he make a dvd straight outta Avid. The only downside is that there are no menus for the dvd. The time it takes is about the same, it is just managed differntly. Import the video, add edit points, render (only the effects in avid), then output. Once he is at the output stage, he is free to go, and ususally has the student watching, and tells them when the screen goes black (video is over) take the tape out, or remove the dvd which has ejected. By that point he is already on the plane again, ready to do it all over again. jeff D-16906

*** I have always about doing this, because it would definitely seem easier to accomplish, plus if you screw it up, you have only killed the remote, not the camera. The one question that I would have is if IR would cause a lag, or is it a quick fire? jeff D-16906

Just dont choke on it man.... I guess if it does the trick... creative. jeff D-16906

here is the press release from harbortronics website: http://www.harbortronics.com/news.htm and attached is a pic of the mod. works for me. jeff D-16906

The next time you guys see him, tell him to log in here, and point him to this three page thread that says in a nutshell "Dude, there is a very high likelyhood you are going to DIE" and see if that maybe would drive the point home to him. jeff D-16906

yup this is true.. but ian... did you meet his wife? im assuming she was his wife.... she had a little kid with her... girl, boy/.... i dont remember..... i think if they come out again we can get to her......... if we get to her she will most definatly get to him.... how tragic this could become, oh so easily.... jeff D-16906

The key for this dude's survival is going to be that he slows down, or else he could very easily DIE. The statement above is the most damning of all... it is great that he is trying to learn to use rears, but goddamn man, digging out with them. Like I said before, this dude is begging for death. It is a good call for you to help him as much as you can, but how you gonna feel when he dies before you can teach him everything? (not that I am saying you should feel any guilt...just saying that even with any swooping instruction you may give him he is still making a WRONG choice at this moment in time.) This is a dude that would definitely fall into the "SCARY" category in the Canopy risk quotient section of the March parachutist. The concept of this still blows me away. Unreal! This guy could be one more or one less canopy fatality for 2004, he chooses which. jeff D-16906

Man that is crazy. It doesnt sound like this story will have a good outcome unless that dude does some serious changing or serious learning. unfortunately, he may never get the chance. As an instructor, that is so far out of line as far as safety goes, that I would make every effort I could to not see that dude jumping that canopy where I jump, and also give him the best persuading arguement why he needs to upsize, and fly a different model canopy. My strongly worded opinion is that NO ONE with 400 jumps should be jumping a sub 100 canopy, regardless of wing loading, and most certainly not a cross-braced elliptical 27 cell. That is just BEGGING for death. Damn, did anyone else besides you notice this? That is nuts man, do what you can to see that dude doesnt continue on until his luck runs out. I know you arent an instructor, but someone around there is...make the dude see the light before he ends up a statistic. INSANE!! jeff D-16906

I think that slider locks are the simplest and cheapest means of keeping your slider down. A rigger can put these on your front risers in about 2 minutes, plus it takes about 1/4 of a second to use them. You pull the slider down, and you are free to do other stuff (like avoid traffic, fly to the dz, etc...) Attached is a pic of the slider locks that are on my rigs. So simple, and yet so functional. does anyone have a downside to these, because they work totally fine for me. jeff D-16906

Deuce, Highly impressive man, nicely done. I really like the birdman shot. It is always good to see differnet stuff in the air. I am also impressed that the auto-focus worked so well. nice, jeff D-16906

yeah Sharon!! all good man. nice video! jefff D-16906

yeah, he will be at Jumptown, Orange MA this weekend doing the same thing. I can't wait. always a good time, and so much knowledge gets passed around. Brian Germaine, one of the original 'Jonathans' jeff D-16906

I received our D70 yesterday, and have already dissasembled, engineered a remote connector, and reassembled it! It is a camera body modification, to add a new connector between the DC power and video jacks, under the cover on the left side of the camera. The modification does not involve any of the camera optics, nor will this modification interfere with any camera feature. The connector will be a 2.5mm jack, identical to what is used on the Canon Rebel cameras, so it will be compatible with existing bite and tongue switches. The price is going to be $195 per camera to modify. I suspect this will void the camera's warrenty, but maybe not... Be careful up there! Mark Roberts Chief Engineer Harbortronics LLC That is a piece of mixed news, good and bad. I think that Nikon will not look favorably on that at all, and the warranty will be void...IMHO only... plus $195 is really steep, but the good news is that it can be taken up in freefall. Puts me one step closer to buying it. jeff d-16906

from the dp preview website: Sensitivity • ISO 200 - 1600 • 1/3, 1/2 or 1.0 EV steps • ISO 1600 can be boosted by one or two stops I have been keeping my eye on Nikon digital cameras for a while, just waiting for the right one for freefall. My question for all of you qwho know, is why is the ISO limited to 200? So far I ahve only shot film while in freefall, and I will nearly exclusively shoot 50 ISO Velvia, because I love the color saturation, and also the fine grain for reproductions. With digital, the fineness can be compensated for with the high megapixel, but does the color get compensated somehow? or, to put it another way, what is the way to achieve the equivalent of 50 ISO film with shooting a digital that only goes as slow as 200? I have also been looking at the D70, same deal 200 ISO. thnaks, jeff agard D-16906

tape it in place. simple, effective, and cheap. jeff D-16906

I would disagree with that, but that is me with a $2.40 tongue switch. I buy a "sub-mini lever switch". that is how they know the name of it at Radio Shack. I solder it all up, then put some hot glue around the wires, form the hot glue to my teeth and I am all set. the nice thing about the submini switch, is that it has a real positive "click" when you push it with your tongue. This way you know you are taking a picture. maybe sometime i will take a pic of my switch and setup so you can see, if need be. jeff D-16906

reply] Actually, it is Dr. Kallend jeff D-16906

my experience: I use the pop-up flash on my Nikon N70 all the time...freefly RW, whatever. The most precaution I have ever taken is i roll up a small piece of gaffer's tape, and lightly wedge it into the part where the flash pops up. then I put a piece of tape over the whole thing to hold in in place. but that is a nikon, strong and sturdy! jeff D-16906

yeah John, thanks for helping me end my search.! heh, I love the little still camera hiding underneath it all. thanks again, jeff D-16906

that is the pic I am talking about! any idea of what issue it was? jeff

I am trying to find an old issue of Parachutist with a certain picture in it, and it would help m if I knew the year it was published: It was a picture of possibly BJ Worth geared up on the ground, wearing a camera platform on his helmet that was about 4' square, loaded up with some heavy duty cameras, iMax style. it was a Photo Finish, and I think it ws in an April issue. I started jumping in 1993, and I remembe it coming out sometime after that, maybe 94, 95...not sure. If anyone has old Parachutists from then, and finds tthat pic, could you attach it here, or email it to me at jeff_agard@hotmail.com or let me know what issue it was.... thanks, jeff D-16906

Fuji Velvia 50 is so sweet. I have just tried a couple rolls of Velvia 100, and that was good too. I too have entered the digital realm, and as long as can get the same color saturation from a Nikon Coolpix 5000 as i can with Velvia 50, then I will be happy. jeff D-16906

Alright, that would be appreciated. thanks a bunch. no experience with explosives! jeff D-16906

O i c. So my question then becomes, would it work as I have drawn it in this attached diagram? thanks, jeff D-16906

"With that said, there is more to gaining experience than strictly jump numbers. If you were to do a poll of when some highly experienced camera flyers started jumping cameras you may be quite surprised as to the result. I started jumping a camera at 74 jumps and Mini-DV did not exist back then. The cameras were HUGE and very heavy for the most part and the gear was very different. " These statements above are key. I started jumping camera when I had 150 jumps, with an old 8mm camera that was big and heavy. I was jumping a PD230 loaded under .9 (not a Triathalon 135 loaded at 1.11, which IMHO is aggressive for someone with 42 jumps...but that is another story) In addition to the recommendations of USPA, and after talking with experienced camera flyers, one should be extremely comfortable with their level of flying. One should be able to fly to, and fly away from anything, quickly and without thinking. If you have to think about flying, don't strap on a camera. jeff D-16906