DSE

The Z1 is a 72mm lens assembly; the V1 is a 62mm assembly. But yeah, it very much looks like a souped up/hotrodded PD170. I like the zoom on the V1, and rarely use the rocker on the Z1, not just because of the ramping, but because I grew up with manual zooms anyway. But I'm well aware of the problem, and it's not the same with the V1. I do like that you can use the rocker in combination with the zoom ring on the V1 as well. Very cool for creating odd backfocus zooms.

It's actually nearly 3" taller than the HC1/A1, and a couple inches longer as well. Of course it could be used for tandems, just that it's a larger cam, and the trend seems to be going smaller, not bigger. But...It's sure a nice cam for tandems too.

The new Sony second preproduction model arrived last week for testing, got a few jumps on it this week. It's not a tandem vid cam, that's for sure, but for most anything else, it's great. You'll want to turn off all stabilization for best imaging, the LUT is great for getting really deep color. You'll also want to remove the mic holder. No audio on the V1 model, but the FX7 model does have a mic, no screwed in mic holder.

"don't know what they're talking about?" Or maybe didn't completely comprehend the question. "Filming" meant something else to the way I read it. Still captures during "filming" are 2MP. Still captures when not "filming" are 4MP, upsampled from a 2.1MP sensor. There is a significant difference in the quality of the two modes. However, even at 4MP, the images are only decent, good for small prints or web. You'll likely *never* see a video cam that can provide great stills, simply because of the differences in glass and sensor/imager size. Pretty hard for a 1/3" sensor to compete with a 1" sensor, and for a reasonably low end video glass to compete with a reasonably low end still cam glass. Somewhere in this forum are a couple of other threads that contain links to stills from both video/still mode and still-only mode.

So, had my first tunnel experience over the past couple days at Perris... I read this forum a lot, talked to friends, yadayada... Took aspirin with me, took warm clothes with me, was prepared to be hell-beaten after the first 10 mins. Ed Dickenson of Perris took me in for my hour block, no rotations, and at the end of the hour, I was in no physical discomfort, not cold, and not hurting at all. I was ready to bounce around and go for more, felt like a kid at the top of my game. Went for a few jumps out of the Otter, and had a message that there had been canceled tunnel time that I could take. YEAH!... So, headed over to the tunnel after a few skydives, got in, and this time had rotations with 3 others, doing 2.5 min sessions. After the first 3 sessions, I felt like the crap had been kicked out of me. My pecs and arms were so sore I could hardly stand it. Had to take it, because the time was limited. Is this normal? First time in, I had lots of energy, lots of stamina, but 12 hours later, I was nearly dead, and it showed in my sloppiness. Needless to say, I wish like hell I'd done this earlier on in my progression. What a great experience, one every skydiver should have at least an hour or so in their own logbook, IMO. Thanks Ed, thanks Perris, for a great time. 90 mins just wasn't enough!

Bigway, You're entitled to your opinion, of course. All I can say in response to it: 1. We're talking TSA, not Customs. Very, very different. Customs agents by and large, are not moronic idiots paid minimum wage that are given greater authority in specific than the average trained police officer that carries a firearm. 2. Your thought process seems to reflect a similar attitude about safety outside of skydiving, that is common in the UK and a few other parts of the world. In other words, you're not much different than a lot of folks in Great Britain and surrounding areas when it comes to treating every incident by reacting against the lowest common denominator. ie; French Moron carries C4 on airplane thinking he can detonate it with a match (He obviously didn't know that some military folks use C4 to heat with in an open flame). So, now everyone has to remove their shoes. I'm just glad I don't live there. There is a point where mitigated risk and intelligent thought counter prudence, freedom and what many here have fought for, or our ancestors have fought and died for. The TSA is a "lowest-common-denominator response" to virtually everything. Our rigs are our lifeline. It's unlikely that a bicyclist, MotoX racer, surfer could potentially die because a highschool dropout wearing a TSA badge fucked up his/her equipment. Divers can't carry bottles on aircraft as there is a demonstrably serious risk to all passengers with a compressed airtank on board. The most anyone could do with a rig is perhaps smother a flight attendant with ZP fabric. On the other hand, a dumbshit TSA agent (and most of them are) could do all sorts of things that could impact your skydive. Of course, only a person less intelligent than a TSA brat would jump a rig not fully/deeply inspected after TSA had been around it anyway. What if your checked bagage is lost so they open it to identify content and they mess with your rig? What if they can't figure out how to fix the closing pin after they've extracted it? you're not there, it's in another city with "strings n' things" all over the floor. What if they actually DO figure it out, but put your DBag in upside down and you fail to inspect it because you're excited to catch the first load after getting your gear back? What if....whatever? Maybe others feel differently, but the bottom line (IMO) is that America has a different cultural view than much of the rest of the world with regard to our freedoms and what we're willing to accept/compromise. We could lie down and whine about it all as many citizens of the world do, but we don't. We fight, argue, and go to the mats when it's necessary. USPA and others have fought hard for certain rights that skydivers should be able to enjoy. Are we special? Damn right we are! Because our organization has spent the money, manpower, and time on our behalf to explain why we're unique. The FAA and TSA themselves have acknowledged we're unique. All we're asking is that they follow their own rules and honor the agreements they've made with our representative organization. Now, it's up to our organization to assure that their members are also properly informed (Clearly, some folks here are not). I don't feel that's a wrong thing nor too much to ask.We've paid for those rights one way or another.

Someone this morning told me it was a Pioneer Tri-conical, yes. He was way out north west of the hangar area, but was able to steer it in to the east side of the runway. Never been under a round, but it sure looked like he had it under control.

This morning at Perris, there was an older man that had a mal, and chopped. His reserve was a round, something I've never seen before. It looked like pictures of a tri-round I've seen in some books. He landed reasonably well in the gravel at the north end of the landing area; tried to stick it instead of PLF, but he was wearing shorts...but fell to the ground. Either way, I guess I wasn't aware that folks are still using rounds. Is this common? Made for an interesting photo, anyway. Just wishing I'd had a longer focal length lens.

The Panny P2 cards are as similar to CF as Ford's are to bicycles. Very different design, very different cost. Figure just shy of 300.00 per GB of P2 storage. The card is a standard PCMCIA/Cardbus card, several people are jumping the HVX cam already. Personally, I don't care for them, but lotsa folks do. Very heavy in comparison to it's HDV cousins. We have two; I'm considering selling one of them, because it rarely rents. Further off-topic, Panasonic is moving away from DVCProHD to AVCHD, so maybe this will help bring the cost of the cards down, therefore making this a possibility in the near future.

No, you cannot adapt a CF card system to work with it. There is no CF system at this time made that can accept a 1394 or USB2 input, fast enough to handle a sample-accurate stream.

I had a Protrack prior to purchasing my Altitrack, and wanted to keep using my JT software, the software is the cake, and the Altitrack is the icing, IMO. These guys really planned this product out well. And when my cable to connect the Altitrack to the computer disappeared, L&B was willing to help me out so I didn't need to buy another copy of the software just to get another cable. GREAT customer service.

I do leave my gear/gear box at the DZ 24/7. Not so much worried about stuff walking away from staff, but from tandems...yes. I had a cable for my cam charger walk off, and my L&B cable for my Altitrack walked off. One other camera guy lost his charger too. Outside of that, theft is pretty minimal. Overall, my question went to issues of honor, and that doesn't necessarily equate with theft, it's more about honesty, trust, and integrity. Dishonest, untrustworthy, and disintegrous people don't necessarily steal.

Same here...which is what prompted me to ask the question. Socially, the DZ is my most-appreciated place, but observing the behavior of a couple people has had me wondering how most people view less than honorable situations, particularly when it's an employee of the DZ. Recent occurences have had my "bullshit" radar up significantly, and I've noticed it has affected my normal conversations with others. I believe the best conclusion was one offered earlier in this thread; "just because they're wearing a rig doesn't entitle them anything more or less regarding trust than they'd get anywhere else."

Spend a lifetime being a geek in production Get the ridiculous idea that you can be a scriptwriter, performer, producer, editor, and finishing master, and go do your own project. Sell it to the networks. If they're savvy (or dumb) enough to buy it, you'll be in hog heaven, until you realize what you've done. But it will be fun. After a while, the awards aren't quite as bright, the intensity wears off. You've had a lot of fun. You'll know a hell of a lot about the biz. Seriously, there are a lot of books out; for understanding video/audio/production/editing, I'll suggest that my book "HDV: What You Need to Know" is an industry standard for a reason; it's very well done. You can purchase it from NAB, Amazon, or most anywhere else online or in larger bookstores. Spend time on broadcast sites or editor sites like DVInfo.net or DMN.com. If you have a broadcast or post house near you, spend time there just lurking about. It's no different than learning the pro side of skydiving; you must absorb it. For me, as a teen I worked for Tom Stockham, father of digital audio (OK, I was just a janitor), but I learned a LOT being around it. I recorded a lot of big names in that studio. And then began my own recording and production career. About 10 years ago, I got very excited about being behind camera, and started shooting extreme sports, beginning with rodeo. I came up with the crazy idea of putting a camera on the riders. That grew into other things, and since I'd watched "Ripcord" and "The Gypsy Moths" one too many times, I'd always wanted to skydive. So, I got into skydiving with one express goal that accompanies the fun of it; camera work. Still have a lot to learn there. It's odd not having an eye piece and having absolutely nothing else to focus on besides flying the body. So, my twist is that I want to know everything YOU know. What I know is academic with experience tossed in. Skydiving with a camcorder is experience with academic tossed in. FWIW, I have written several books on the subject of audio/video editing and production; http:www.vasst.com will get you to it. If you like anything there, lemme know and I'll have our guys take care of you.

I mention Cypres off not because of pressurization issues, but if they re-screen your bag, they can see that it's on, allegedly. Which means they're concerned about you remotely triggering the device.

ZigZag, I've *always* respected your posts, but give me a f@#$! break. "Thousands Standing Around" and Bushland Insecurity "have a serious responsibility???" No, they don't. It's ludicrous at best to assume so. Loss of baggage, baggage theft, arrests, incidents, and general traveller difficulty has risen more than 2000% in the past 3 years. TSA currently has a backlog of more than 24 million dollars in stolen or lost items. There is nothing "responsible" about them. I don't think they can even think far enough ahead to consider the 11 o'clock news. Seriously. Most are inadequately trained, my wife is responsible for the first and second hiring tiers at the TSA, and there is nothing serious or intelligent about any part of the process for the lower ranks. Period. "Can you speak English? (sorta) "Can you see colors? (sometimes) "Are you capable of creative thought sequencing? (Yes...which means you're not hirable, seriously, they can test OUT of being hired for being too smart) "Do you have a criminal record? (If it's a misdemeanor, it can be waived) I've traveled with my rig on several occasions, and while it's not *always* a PITA, it usually is. Especially when you're dealing with exceptionally busy airports. Getting out of PHX for instance, is easy, probably due to Eloy. Getting out of Ontario is easy. Probably because of Perris/Elsinore. Getting out of LAX is a bitch. SLC is used to me, so it's not a big thing. One bit of advice, get a new Cypres card. Laminate it. Carry the TSA letter with you at all times, I pack one in the pack tray and my computer bag. I've also started sending it through checked baggage in a locked container. It's *much* easier. Just be absolutely sure your Cypres is off. Carry the letter from the USPA. Let them know that the FAA governs the repacking of the reserve.

Just got off the phone with the Sony rep in England, he tells me that the HC1E *does* have the DV downconvert. I also walked into a Best Buy this morning, they have an HC1E sitting on the display, it too, has the DV downconvert. Now I'm a bit confused, as I've heard from people that are very capable with these cams, that the DV downconvert doesn't exist. Sony says it does in the EU models, and the one at Best Buy also has it. Maybe there was a string of manufactured models that didn't? For me, it's just an issue of knowing what's up. I shoot A1's anyway.

One point that's understandably not mentioned here.. Sometimes students and instructors just don't "click." Maybe the instructor's method just isn't working for the student. Aside from demonstrated technical ability, an AFF I rating doesn't demonstrate personality skills, and it's quite possible the instructor is a tremendously skilled skydiver and a tremendously flawed person. Recent experiences have shown me that this can easily be the case, having had one instructor that liked to cuss, yell, and belittle, and another that was patient, calm, and methodical. Guess which one I learned more from? Guess which one is the more popular instructor, though? One is an exceptionally hot-shot sky god, and the other has roughly half the sky god's 3000 jump numbers. Both are very skilled, just that one has a personality that appeals to me and the other doesn't.

no, that's not what they mean. read either of those two links I embedded, both very specifically state you can record HDV and output as DV. The only thing I'm absolutely sure of is that you can't use the HC1 as a pass-thru device (analog in/firewire out) for purposes of copying DVDs. That's an EU issue, not a Sony issue.

You guys are there....so I'll take your word for it. For DV, they wouldn't allow Pass thru (analog to digital) in EU because of copyright laws. It could be related. I'm curious tho, as to why every review of the EU models mentions the downconvert on the HC1E as a feature? That means some reviewers aren't really testing the camcorder, which (IMO) is just plain BS.

I don't think this is worthy of a poll, but curious as to how skydivers approach other skydivers for the first or second time. Are they worthy of your trust? Would you give them the keys to your house? Allow an old skydiver to date your young skydiver daughter? Are skydivers more or less honest/honorable with each other than with "others" (non-skydiving public)? After reading about Tim's gear loss and people stepping up, I'd say they're more honorable and protective of their own. Other experiences point me in the other direction. BTW, does anyone have a spare L&B USB cable for an Altitrack? Mine went walking at our DZ.

A1U downconverts, HC1 downconverts, and the HC3 downconverts. I own several A1's and a couple HC3's, but only one HC1. I'd be very surprised if Sony pulled that advantage out of the HC1 Euro model. I know for certain the HC3E downconverts. It's accessed/set in the VCR mode, and you select output for DV. I have an HC3E sitting next to me right now. in the event you'd rather not accept my word on the HC3 downconverting...http://asia.cnet.com/reviews/videocams/printerfriendly.htm?AT=39116486p-3s-39000861c-39000440q-3r mentions it in their review, too. According to Sony's site, the HC1E also downconverts, and the SonyHDVInfo.net site mentions same. Iknow the HC1A downconverts, I reviewed it just over a year ago, and still have the DV tape used for output from HDV. http://www.pricegrabber.co.uk/pur_discussions.php/product_id=16847598/id_type=masterid/masterid=16847598/pur_id=267303// has a review on the HC1E, wherein they also refer to downconvert. All Sony HDV products output SD as well, whether SD or HDV in source.

Sparky, you've been my hero for a while now...still are....

Just PM me with your actual name, and email addy, and you'll have passes at WillCall at the Javits.

Vegas 7 gives full resolution, full framerate playback of HDV (native) on any reasonably fast PC. So does AvidExpress HD. So does Canopus Edius using NX codec. Or, if using Premiere Pro, use the Aspect HD or Connect HD from CineForm to give yourself a fast, efficient DI from which to work. I do this daily, 10-14 hours a day, with either native HDV, or with HDV converted to AJA codec using a Xena LH card from AJA. I also have BMD cards, but their drivers are a PITA. Bear in mind, if you're shooting with a Sony camcorder, you can transcode HDV to DV on the fly, and get a stunning image quality when you let the camcorder do the conversion for you. Just be sure to capture as widescreen DV in either PAL or NTSC format. Edit as you normally would.