DSE

There is no aspect of driving a vehicle that would equate to shifting ocular focus while inhibiting peripheral vision. Perhaps if you equated it to trying to inspect a piece of dirt in your eye in the rearview mirror while driving.... Rearview mirror doesn't occlude a large part of the windshield, doesn't affect peripheral vision, and doesn't require the eye to refocus. All that, without managing the data acquisition/processing.

Only two weeks ago we had a wingsuiter arguing that his Recon's didn't affect his awareness nor vision in a flock. I guess that means skydivers have much better cognitive skills than skiers do.

Agreed, yet if the rigger does work that was unauthorized, then the responsibility was taken away from you when you weren't looking. The prevalent theme in this thread (from my perspective) is know your rigger. However, even when you think you know the rigger, still be very clear (on both sides of the conversation) about what is expected. Just like any other walk of life, there are dishonest riggers just as there are dishonest mechanics. I've experienced one master rigger that 'made shit up' to pay his rent, and that was enough of a learning experience to influence future conversations with riggers, even the ones I know well.

I don't know why anyone would bring up an issue with foam earplugs; they're in regular use by skydiving professionals all over the world. Pressure is not an issue with the foam-type. The fitted silicon plugs are sometimes problematic.

The A9 chip is impressive, but there is a _whole_ lot more to the conversation than just the processor. Imager, glass. I'm not a fan of 'betting on the come." Buy what you need when you need it. A lot of people waited on the GP Black, and look what it bought them?

DSE is that an update to the A7L in GP or a move to the A9 for a future black replacement? My understanding is that future GFB will have A7L's in them. The A9 is next gen. They won't be available to manufacturers for several months (given that GoPro owns so much of Ambarella, they _might_ have a leg up, but I don't think so.

If you (or he) were my customer, you would always get a call before additional work. Mark Great to see you say this. However, this isn't the same position you have previously expressed.

FWIW, we don't allow Recons for flocking. It blows that we have to have a rule about what _should_ be common sense.

Hey gang, a few DZ's are now restricting the use of cameras to only helmets that have a cutaway system (including full-face helmets). I've rec'd a few PM's asking about cutaway systems, and there are indeed a few aftermarket cutaway systems available. If you manufacture a cutaway system, know of a person/company who does, or have a self-developed system worth sharing, this is the thread in which to do it. Posts debating the value of a cutaway system will be deleted. Posts about who should/shouldn't be flying with small format/POV cameras will be deleted. This thread is intended as a research resource for those searching for cutaway information.

Mine came with the deflector; I think they all have for quite a while now? BH does have the extra wide top; I have one. It extends another 1" over the sides of the helmet, offering greater protection against strikes, and a larger overall mounting surface.

The extra weight on the front actually helps, rather than harms. It keeps the balance, and provides room for other things. The Mantle is very cool, but I'm a big fan of the FTP. Mine is rigged for the RRS mount on top, and a lesser 1/4 mount on the front/L-bracket.

https://vimeo.com/43255386

Riggers are like any other group of people, there are good ones and bad ones, honest ones and dishonest ones. Recently had a rigger demanding that my BOC be replaced because "it's gonna kill someone." Other riggers scratched their heads at that comment (rig had around 500 jumps on it). Manufacturer looks a the BOC and says "what's he talking about , this BOC is fine for several hundred more jumps?" Rigger insisted the designer/manufacturer of the rig (who was PIA Tech Chair) 'didn't know what he was talking about." A rigger should not be doing work beyond the requested work without first communicating with the owner of the rig, regardless of whether the work is required to make it airworthy or not. The rigger can ground the rig if it's not airworthy.

Having delivered well over 2000 videos/stills on thumbdrives in the past year, and knowing other DZ's have delivered more than that without a single complaint nor request for a DVD...I challenge this way of thinking. It's a _shit ton_ more work/effort to strip video from the TS folder from a DVD to put the video online. It's also highly debatable that 'soccer mom' knows how to locate the transport folder, copy/strip the video, and then re-encode for YouTube or whatever. Yet it would be difficult to argue that soccer mom doesn't know how to insert a thumbdrive. Most TV displays made in the past 5 years have USB ports and AVC decoders as well. There are arguments against thumbdrives (mainly cost), but that it will 'limit viewers' has proved to not be one of them. The same argument was made when DVD overtook VHS, and it too, proved to be a non-issue. Next point; Offering a 'menu' of choices generally has just confused the issue. We've done this in the past, and while I agree with offering choices, practicality and speed make it a poor situation for a dropzone that is pounding out videos. If the conversation is a 182 DZ that has a lot of time to edit/render/deliver videos...sure. Offer them everything as side dishes. For a busy operation pounding out 100 tandems on a Saturday, it drastically reduces efficiency.

Good to hear from some of you; the comp is forming up nicely. If you haven't yet called manifest to register, please do so in order to assure a Tshirt in your size. A couple of teams bear watching. For those not receiving the emails, we are using only the Intermediate pool, four compulsory rounds and a fifth free round. We're also looking for one more camera flyer in the WS pool.

Thumbs aren't that much more than the cost of a DVD+CD. Factor in the significantly faster 'burn' time, they actually save money in the long run. If you keep your eyes open, you can find thumbs for a coupla bucks, but those deals don't stick around long.

In a few years, HD will be dead. File sizes won't shift by much. 4K h.265 isn't much larger than 1080p h.264. The speed of output is likely the reason for the faster cards, and by requesting class 10 cards, it also reduces the fairly high risk of faulty/counterfeit cards/failed jumps. Are you sure about that? Last weekend I made some jumps with my Black, and the ~5 min videos was the same size as my ~12-13 min files I get from my old Contour 1080. The Contur shoots 1080 @30 and the black @60, I know thats a big difference. But the rules say "minumum of 25 fps" so the cameraman can use 60, or 120 when that's avalible. Sure about what? That HD is dying? Yes. I'm sure about that. That file sizes will change by 20%? Yes, sure about that, too. H.265 holds some great promise, but ATM, quality match is approx 15% greater size at similar bitrate. Sure that it takes greater speed to write? Yes, that's also a given, even with today's cameras. If you're referencing the Black's 4k, that's 35% of framerate, and the 4K will soon be gone from the Black because of speed/heat issues.

I could only test it in the show environment, not outside. On paper, specs are great. Then again, so is the spec for 8bit on the DSLR, and they're effectively useless except for reference.

It's a great untested camera. BMD doesn't have samples enough to make em' available for skydiving. I played with it at NAB, it holds interest for certain types of jumps. It's definitely not 'your average tandem camera"

I like the idea of both renting out my rig AND a written agreement. Would that written agreement really hold up in court or is that written agreement bulletproof in an event such as (see scenario below): Some dude : Hey mang, i'd like to rent out your rig for the day. Meh : hmmm, you weigh 190lbs, my wing is a 150, and the harness looks like it'll fit you...yeah man go for it, but here's a written agreement that releases me of ANY liability and you cannot sue me if anything goes wrong. Some dude : hmmmm, is your rig air worthy, when's the last time the reserve has been packed. Meh : yeah it's airworthy and that last reserve pack was yesterday. There is no "bulletproof" but a written agreement goes a long way. I've been bitten once; let a newbie student 'rent' a rig. After some nasty ass-slides, the rig was returned to me filthy, not even a "thank you." Having things in writing assures that at the least, you each know what is expected from each party, and it demonstrates that you care for your gear, and expect the same from them.

you'll be fine with VMS. The only reason to use Pro is to access the automation that Sony Production Assistant brings to the table (the application that skydivers swyped from the dev team that created the automated workflow). One cool thing about VMS-it too, can be mostly automated using the Sony plugs. VMS has all the Pro engine, minus a very few high end professional features (such as RED decode, XML, XDCam, RAW processing, multicam).

It's about what I'd expect. Been a couple years since I've compared modes. But...whether using pre-stabilization or post-stabilization, the concept is similar, and the part of the process is to be zoomed in to allow tracking of edges. Nice comparison, thanks for the update!

https://vimeo.com/64251059

Boss in steady mode works well.

Very nicely done. Interviews are crisp, content is well-edited. Congrats!