Wild Tarantula crossing... up close and personal

So another day out looking for amazing video... Today's venture took me to the west side of Utah Lake. A long stretch of two lane highway with shooting ranges and beautiful views of the mountains all around.  I haven't been out there since I use to ride my bullet bike at speeds faster than I should have.  The weather was stormy, but not a bit of wind.  Perfect conditions to fly the DJI Phantom quadcopter.  I flew around for while, trying to capture some the beautiful light that was shooting through the clouds.  Got some footage.

It wasn't until the ride back that things got interesting.   It was about 7'oclock when I saw something on the road from quite a distance. As I came by and passed it, I realized that this thing was a big tarantula!  I flipped my car around and drove back to find this guy hanging out in the middle of the road.  I grabbed the camera and went to get up close and personal with him.  I realized that this guy was not going to move, despite the danger of staying in the road.  I grabbed a stick and helped him along to get out of harms way.  Luckily all the cars that passed stayed out of the lane and he safely made it to the other side.  I got back in my car and started driving home again.  I wasn't another mile later that I saw yet another one!  I decided that I wouldn't go back this time and kept going.  Another 1/2 mile, and another one and this one was even bigger than the last two.  I stopped and got the camera, and the tripod and got right up in this ones face.  Wow, what a face.  These creatures are amazing.  They are so tall when they stand up and get all defensive.  So I got some good video of that one and set off again.  I saw 3 more on the road.  I knew that we had tarantula's here in Utah, but I had no idea where they were, or how many there must be.  Scary!

So here is the video.  I added some of the flight video as to not scare you too badly.  Watch in 1080p if you aren't scared at all.


As always, this was shot with Canon 5D Mark III, Magic Lantern Video Raw (14bit), 24fps, DJI Phantom with GoPro Hero 3 attached to Zenmuse H3-2D, 1080P 48fps and color corrected in Adobe Premiere.

Ice Hockey at Seven Peaks Ice Arena

Hi all.  Yesterday I invited myself to a hockey game that my daughter's-boyfriend's-friend plays in. It is a C-league team called the Mudds.  As you can probably tell I am trying to learn about shooting video and want to try and get better at it.  I decided to once again shoot with the 5D Mark III, Magic Lantern Raw (of course) and the Canon 70-200 F2.8 L II lens.  I gotta say, this lens never ceases to amaze.  The stabilization that the lens has makes it really great for video.

So here is what I learned.  Following a puck and keeping everything in focus is hard to do... and I thought football was hard!  I started out really getting up-close and personal with the zoom, mostly keeping everything at F2.8 and ISO 100.  I ended up, near the end of the game, shooting at F8 and ISO 1600 and keeping the zoom to a minimum.  Oh, I also ended up mounting a GoPro Hero 3 above the goal to catch the action.  I shot it at 1080P, 48fps, Spot metering: Off, Protune On.  This is because when I merge the footage of GoPro and the Canon it looks much better to have matching frame rates.  I know that people will tell you that Adobe Premiere can handle different frame rates, and it can, it just ends up skipping frames.  For me, this ends up looking jerky and not good.  The 48fps makes it so I can slow the action down for those really cool instant replay action shots.

I also asked the people running the place if I might be able to fly the quadcopter above a game.  They said "maybe... let me get back to you", so at least it wan't an outright "no".  I think I would have to have FPV googles to pull it off though.  It would be fairly hard to follow the action without seeing what the camera is seeing.

Here is the video.



I also took some stills.  Stills are what this camera is really meant to be able to do.  And it truly does!

 Gooooooooaaaaaaaalllll

Pads, who needs pads. 

 You talking to me?

Nice save

Sundance ski resort... a little piece of heaven

Hi all.  One of the most amazing places here in Utah is Sundance ski resort.  It is about 15 minutes up Provo Canyon. My family try to make it at least a few times a year to see the sites and take in the fall colors. While the leaves haven't changed yet, I could definitely see signs of colors coming.  (photos of last year below)

While they don't have any cool amusement types of rides like Park City, they do have amazing scenery, food, drinks, biking, hiking, and just about anything outdoors that you could want.  They also do weddings, company parties, family get-togethers and everything in between.  They also keep the ski lift running to take people up on top of the mountains!  Some of the hikes that they recommend also start at the top of the mountain.  Even if you are just looking for a little refreshment while traveling in the area, Sundance is great place to stop in for a treat.

I gotta say, I have been kicked out of a lot of places trying to shoot some aerial shots with the quadcopter. Some really stupid places that had no real reason other than just "no".  I was approached by a security guard at Sundance and I thought for sure that this was going to be just another "no" type of place... To my utter surprise, he actually pointed me to a open area that I could use and film to my hearts desire.  He not only said "YES", but helped me out!  Awesome place, awesome staff.  Thank you for your hospitality Sundance!

click for high res version

GoPro firmware update (07/29/2013) lowers the bitrate (quality) on Sandisk microSD cards

So if you have had a GoPro Hero 3 Black edition camera, chances are that you have probably had some problems  with it.  Lockups, auto-turn-off-while-recording that were a pain to live with.  So every firmware becomes a fingers crossed experience.  Well, things have gotten better.  But this update, has a little fine print that may effect you in a very negative way, and you wouldn't even know it.  It is listed under feature enhancements..  Here is the exact text from GoPro.

Feature Enhancements:

• Optimizes compatibility with select microSD cards by reducing data stream rate to 35Mb/sec while recording in 4K, 2.7K and Protune™ modes (HERO3: Black Edition only)

Sounds like they are doing you a favor, optimizing and all.  Unfortunately, if you have a Sandisk microSD card (like me), you just got royally screwed (or helped?).  Sounds like they ran some tests and found out that Sandisk micro SD cards aren't up to the task of recording at the bitrates that are really required for 2.7K, 4K, and they fail to mention, 1080P 60fps!

So after installing the firmware update, my Sandisk card records at 29Mbps for 1080P 60fps and 32Mbps for 2.7K.  So, I took a look at video that I shot before the update and sure enough, it was recording at 45Mbps for 1080P 60fps and 50Mbps for 2.7K.  Wow, I mean wow that is drop in bitrate quality by 33%!  

So, if you are like me, you are going to want to upgrade your microSD card if you plan on continuing to shoot and get the quality level that you were expecting.  I upgraded to the SAMSUNG 64GB Pro version that is listed as a "supported" card on GoPro's website.  You can find the list of compatible cards here.  And I am now back in business with the fast bit rates at 50 Mbps.  Scary reports of GoPro frying cards though.  

On a side note, I didn't notice before upgrade so I am thinking that this is also new with this version.  RAW white balance?  Anyone out there know if that was already available in a previous update and I just missed it?  I tried it out and I gotta say that I like it a lot.  

HD Video of flying over Main Street Park City Utah...

Hi all. Over the weekend I headed up to Park City, a high class mountain town here in Utah.  Park City is mostly known for the Sundance Film festival,  It is where all the movies stars come to debut their indie film works or just party with those who do.  It's a beautiful place in winter and in summer.  Here is some of the video, shot with the DJI Phantom Quadcopter and the Canon 5D Mark III, Raw.  Enjoy.


Music by David Watson

This time out I was more nervous flying than I have every been thus far.  The reason I think is because I have been kicked out of many places (i.e. Temple grounds, Football fields, Shopping centers)  and there happen to be a cop just down the street that was blocking traffic while they cleaned up a street festival down the road.  But, to my amazement, no one kicked me out, in fact, there were really just lots of people oooing and awing over the spectacle of the quadcopter.

This thing is a young boys and old men magnet.  I kid you not, if anyone is near, they flock to it like nothing else.  Young boys always ask 2 questions; "Where did you get that?" and "Can I fly it?"  Old men ask; "What is that called?" and "Does it have a camera?"

I have made a lot of friends and contacts by just flying.  It is a lot of fun.  Send me a comment and tell me what you think.

Provo Temple at night - but in the air?

So I went out in search of good video and photos tonight here in Utah County.  It wasn't easy... Lots of wind and dark clouds.  I stopped off and one of the iconic temples here, the Provo LDS Temple.  There were two lovers sitting on the grass, as there always is above the temple.  I must have scared them away because they left as soon as I started flying above them.  I put the GoPro into timelapse mode in order to capture this photo.  It was one of the only photos that stayed still long enough (.3 sec) to look good.  Let me know what you think?

Shot with the DJI Phantom Quadcopter with Zenmuse H3-2D Gimbal
GoPro Hero 3 - Timelapse mode (every 1 sec)
F2.8 at .3 sec

Sunset in American Fork - from the air

Hi everyone, just thought I would share some great shots that I got flying over American Fork tonight at Sunset. I set the GoPro in time-lapse mode just to see what quality shots I could get from the stills from the DJI Phantom quadcopter. Out of the 400 shots it took, I was surprised to see that most were in focus and some were amazing.

Towards Lehi, Utah Aug 6, 2013

Back towards Mt. Timpanogos and American Fork Utah, Aug 6, 2013

Pioneer Day Raft and Run in Provo Canyon

I set out this morning to take some video and photos of the the first ever Pioneer Day Raft and Run in Provo Utah!  You can see all about the race here.  The race began at Canyon Glen Park (Provo Canyon) with buses taking participants in buses to the upper Provo river. Teams of eight to twelve ran the river with a raft guide to steer. I got to meet Dave, the organizer of the event and some of the volunteers, all great people who were very helpful and friendly.  I hope you enjoy the video Dave.  Make sure you watch the HD 1080 version.  

After the rafting race, each team had to run a 5k down the canyon from Vivian Park.  I was able to catch most of the competitors coming out of the water, and then starting down the canyon.  The race ended up at Canyon Glen park and I got to shoot the Quadcopter at the finish line at the end of the run.  It was a bit windy and the canyons always hinder the GPS signal so I didn't go very crazy with it.  

It was fun to see people having such a good time.  A couple of friends of ours came in first for best costume!  Congrats to Tina and the Rootin' Tootin' girls.

Bridal Veil falls flying high with the DJI Phantom Zenmuse H3-2D gimbal

Hi all.  Enjoy the flight around Bridal Veil Falls using the brand new Zenmuse H3-2D Gimbal attached to the DJI Phantom Quadcopter.  Thanks to my awesome daughter who let me follow her around for some great shots.

It was a bit windy and the canyon makes for some interesting flying in GPS mode.  I decided to shoot with the GoPro in 2.7K mode with Protune turned on.  Officially, this is my second flight with the gimbal attached... I did a test flight last night in my neighborhood at about 11:30, my new neighbors are probably going to regret moving in.  I didn't quite have the daring ability to go all the way up the falls.  It scares me a lot to be flying over water even though I have never had a single hiccup with this thing.

The cost of being on the bleeding edge of technology sometimes pays off.

If I can get enough practice in, and feel comfortable with it, I am hoping to make a trip to Yellowstone and southern Utah for some amazzzzing footage.  Cheers.

Practicing for the DJI Innovation Zenmuse

July 4th, time for everyone to take off work, spend time with family, and celebrate.  A few weeks back, I pre-ordered the DJI Innovations Zenmuse H3-2D gimbal for the Phantom.  I was hoping to be able to shoot some of the festivities on the 4th.  Well, to my dismay, I found out I am in the second or third shipment on Monday, so the fourth was definitely out.  Oh well, better luck next time.  I decided that I was going to shoot all the same and learn as much as I could, even though some of the shots may not be up to my own standards.

So I headed down to the Freedom Festival hot air balloon launch early morning on the fourth.  I took every bit of equipment that I could carry.  Alas, no launch today.  Turns out launching balloons in potentially wet, windy and lighting is probably not a good idea.  So I had 3 fully charged Phantom Batteries and no place to shoot.

So I decided to go and practice shooting some of the other shots that I have been waiting for the gimbal to shoot.  To the temple!!  It was almost midday by now, and the sun was getting pretty hot, not necessarily a bad time to shoot with the GoPro.  I have found that if you are angling the shot down and the sun is directly above, you can usually avoid the lens flare and reflections of light that get in the way. Wasn't quite directly above so I did catch quite a bit of light in the lens.

So the shot challenge that I was looking to accomplish is to fly toward the temple at ground level, and as I approach the building, fly up the building, and get up to Moroni (the guy at the top of most Mormon temples) and then circle around and back down.  Check out the video to see how I did.

Then, that night, we went down to the Freedom Festival fireworks. This time I tried out the new 5D Mark III Raw Video capabilities using Magic Lantern, (June 27 build).  Check out the video below.