lewmonst

How often do you re-use tapes? Some tapes can be re-used many times, some crap out after reusing just once or twice. Safest bet is to not reuse tapes, use only sony high quality tapes, try the head-cleaner tape, and if all that doesn't work, you might have to send it off to Sony. Same problem recently discussed in this thread. I immidiately thought the heads were out of alignment, forgetting how some people abuse tapes... peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

I think they are both technically equally as loud, in max legal decibals. But the frequencies are different. Some people have had trouble hearing one or the other. peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

Yes, there was jumping in Perris today (Tuesday 1/11). and instead of the white trucks to pick you up, ferry boats. just kidding. it's wet out there though! peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

That would be a really good deal on a very hard to find, discontinued camera. Where did you find it? Before you buy, make sure it is a NTSC camera (for US which your profile says), check the seller's ratings: http://www.resellerratings.com/ be wary of some retailers selling you the camera without batteries and chargers and stuff like that. Make sure you call and ask them ?'s. If it's legit, I would buy it. peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

Arvel, That's called "dropout". It happens to all cameras, usually because the heads are out of alignment. It's an easy fix if sent to a Sony service center. If you purchased your camera less than a year ago, the warranty will cover it. All you need is a copy of the receipt. Go to the Sony Service & Repair website, and follow the instructions. I do not recommend the "Authorized Service Centers" after a bad experience with a couple. I recommend going straight to Sony. Although I'm sure there are good "Authorized" places out there, I have yet to find one. Good luck! lew http://www.exitshot.com

Agreed. If you don't mind the distortion from the 15, it's useable on the ground. However, If you're going to shoot anything on the ground, you'll want a zoom lense of some sort in your line-up. The kit lense it comes with is ok, good place to start, and adding one like JP's is even better, especially if you will be shooting anything from a significant distance. Here's a couple unedited ground shots with the 15, you can see the distortion especially in the building and steps... it's not as obvious in jp's face peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

The sony outlet center in Elsinore has a ton of refurbished PC120's. If you have the money, buying one as a back up wouldn't be a bad idea. peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

thanks, no, they were taken about 2 years ago with a nikon coolpix. old school. btw, deuce, i know what you're talking about. peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

Years ago, when the whole data tank thing was new, I got one for a trip to Australia. I didn't want to buy a lot of cards, didn't want to lug my laptop around the whole trip, but wanted to take tons of photos for two weeks... you get the idea. I got this: Mindstor which was top of the line at the time. No image viewing screen, so you just had to trust that when it said the files were saved they were saved, and reuse the card. It worked, despite a power supply problem. I eventually returned it, but glad I had it for the trip. I've been wanting another one, with a color viewer like the one Deucey has... Ed bought a openbox RCA one from BestBuy thinking it was a good deal but it literally took about 5 minutes per file to unloade the card, so very impractical. I've been waiting to buy another one until I really need it. In the meantime, taking my laptop everywhere hasn't been a problem. But I'm drooling over the one Deuce has... (telling myself I don't need it. I really don't need it. my birthday is in april, anyone? anyone? jk) (and not to mention still trying to work the digital into our school jumps...) peace lew ps, photo from australia & nz http://www.exitshot.com

No, no. There is a right way to sell footage and a wrong way. Producers of RealTV and any show for that matter will try to buy it from you for a few measly hundred dollars without any royalties or contract, whatsoever. If you don't know any better, they will make that sound like a generous offer. It's not. They make hundreds of thousands off the show. If you truly have footage that is worth something, don't undersell yourself. Last time I heard, the going rate was around $700 for a minute of footage, with a minute minimun, ie, if you only have 10 seconds of something worth showing, still value it at a minute. Rights and royalties are far more important than that $700. Rights being of course who owns the rights to the footage. NEVER sell the rights to the footage. What you sell to them is a license to use the footage, while you maintain the rights to it. And royalties are that whenever the clip is shown more than once, you get paid. So if they use it in a commercial or re-run the show several times, every time that clip hits the air, you get paid. Maybe it's just $100 each time, but that can add up if you're lucky. Make sure all of this is written in a contract. And when the producers try to tell you the show doesn't have that kind of money to buy footage, let the negotiating game begin. If your footage is really worth something, they will pay up for it. If not, well, then, negotiate. Keep in mind selling footage to shows like realTV usually puts a negative light on skydiving. If you don't want them to do a voiceover or sensationalize it, get that in a contract, otherwise be prepared for them to butcher the truth of the story and make it look like someone narrowly escaped death, yet again, in the dangerous world of skydiving. And that, is why we don't usually give footage to shows like RealTV. Our sport doesn't need any more bad press. good luck lew http://www.exitshot.com

I would trade it in for a digital. peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

What's up Chris?! I'd like to go, but I can't because of the vb team i'm coaching. Have fun for me and take good care of Opie and Sharky! peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

The reason we use a stand-alone MiniDV tape player is to edit and play back from to save wear and tear on individual cameras. We also usually have an editor that we drop our tapes of for, so we can take our cameras back up on a jump immidiately. And, why use a camera for playback when you can just have a stand alone playback machine. Also, the playback machines are designed to take a lot of abuse, a lot of stop, rewind, pause, slow, etc. This is hard on the heads. The deck is just as expensive as a camera, but should last longer. peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

nice try. And I don't break people. Unless they're mean. peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

This is very generous of you Kev. And everyone, keep up the effort to help, through whichever avenue you are comfortable with. CNN has a list of organizations gathering relief efforts. Take your pick... http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/asiapcf/12/28/tsunami.aidsites/index.html Kev, PM sent... peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

.3 if you're in it .5 if you're filming from outside buy both peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

maybe post in the skydivers with disabilities forum. Some of our deaf community might be able to help. http://www.exitshot.com

Don't you remember Oscar Meyer has a name, it's b-o-l-o-g-n-a? oh, and I agree. It's not a question of when we die, but how we live. peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

Yes, thanks. You know, i looked at that thingy and it didn't look right, and the thingy isn't listed as supposed to work with my 20, but i couldn't find any other thingys so i ordered one. it's an E vs. T vn N thing. i'll let you know if it works when it gets here. OK, hijacked my own thread, thanks deuce. now keep coming up with ideas for what the WFFC is... thanks peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

i'm making something for someone. (i know i totally owe you a necklace (along with jake) kick me. I'm bringing them to eloy) peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

nice... keep it coming guys http://www.exitshot.com

everyone has good replies... I'm still trying to come up with something short, sweet, catchy, and right to the point with a little punch... if you know what i mean... what else? peace lew http://www.exitshot.com

good. I'm looking for something timeless though... http://www.exitshot.com

how would you finish the sentence? "The WFFC is... http://www.exitshot.com

I'd suggest downsizing progressively (if you've done the "downsize" checkoff list) on the same canopy your on, a Sabre 2, then trying a different model of that size you have become proficient on. A friend of mine can swoop the shit out of a Sabre2 135 with about your same exit weight. It was his wife's rig, which he often used on back-to-backs. She flew conservatively and had soft easy landings while he 270'd the same canopy and could swoop quite well, consistently. Like everyone has said, downsizing and changing models at the same time is a very bad idea. peace lew http://www.exitshot.com