They probably figured that WW would use that pointy stick thing on em if they got too close or it was a rouse to try and lasso somebody else........just saying........
Just so you know, I carry that pointy stick thing myself! Keeps me from accidentally touching anything underwater (keeps the body oils off), helps keep me still during uw photography in current, and I can poke at divers who are trying to touch things uw that they shouldn't!
Hey I wanna get me one of them poin-ted sticks!
Great choice, Tee! They are particularly effective when swatting pesky papparazzi...
...but I would discourage poking those great whites away from the chum bucket. Just sayin'.
Brad, the FledglingJourneymanMaster Hedonist Finally broken to the plow and harnessed to the traces. How may I help you today? Questions welcomed to charlies@singledivers.com
"My secret to maintaining this goofy façade? It ain't no façade." - Brad, the FledglingJourneymanMaster Hedonist "I don't make up jokes; I just observe Congress and report the facts." - Will Rogers
actually we were calling it a pinata and were corrected and i could not remember the name the partygoers and patojo gave it which is why i called it a thing....perhaps peter can provide the name if not now then he could ask patojo
It was indeed a "pinata", or more correctly a "piñata" (see http://en.wikipedia....g/wiki/Piñata). That is the Spanish name for what is essentially a latin-American tradition, noted especially in Mexico. I am told the English translation is "papoule", though I've been unable to find any confirmation of that.
That is why I was not clear as "papoule" was the word described to me.
That is what I heard Pato call it. An internet and dictionary search in English, Spanish, and French discloses only that "papoule" is a proper name in French (drop the "o" and it is a skin disease). I wonder if it is a local creole term?
Did you know that "ambergris" is whale puke? It is a solid, waxy, flammable substance of a dull gray or blackish color produced in the digestive system of sperm whales.
Did you know that "ambergris" is whale puke? It is a solid, waxy, flammable substance of a dull gray or blackish color produced in the digestive system of sperm whales.
Not to mention, it's a key ingredient in the making of PERFUME. Think about it, ladies!
Did you know that "ambergris" is whale puke? It is a solid, waxy, flammable substance of a dull gray or blackish color produced in the digestive system of sperm whales.
Not to mention, it's a key ingredient in the making of PERFUME. Think about it, ladies!
Thanks. The next time I smell my girlfriends perfume, I will have to try not to laugh hysterically.
Texas Diver - you'll love this. I wrote to GoPro about your video camera, and related your experiences (which I know you'd already conveyed to them). I've just received this reply:-
We have never hear of shortened record times while under water. We have a large number of professional and amateur underwater photographers, spear-fishermen, etc who use out cameras all of the time.
Was the battery dieing or was it just stopping the video? Did the camera still function? What brand SD card was being used?
Please let us know.
Please note that there is another issue with the camera underwater though:
Due to the curved lens of the waterproof housing for the HD HERO camera and standard def Wide HERO cameras, you do get a slight loss of sharpness/focus to underwater images. In video mode with the standard def camera this hasn't been very noticeable due to the lower resolution. With the HD HERO camera this becomes more evident at the higher resolution. Our developers are looking into whether we can possibly offer a different housing or housing lens in the future to correct this issue. Here is a sample videos to better illustrate the video quality underwater:
There seems to be an element of BS here. I haven't replied yet.
We have never hear of shortened record times while under water. We have a large number of professional and amateur underwater photographers, spear-fishermen, etc who use out cameras all of the time. Was the battery dieing or was it just stopping the video? Did the camera still function? What brand SD card was being used?
Please note that there is another issue with the camera underwater though: Due to the curved lens of the waterproof housing ... you do get a slight loss of sharpness/focus to underwater images. ... this becomes more evident at the higher resolution. Our developers are looking into whether we can ... correct this issue. Here is a sample videos to better illustrate the video quality underwater:
There seems to be an element of BS here. I haven't replied yet.
Can you post the link to the sample underwater video they reference?
You can judge for yourself the quality of the video, taking into account (1) the water we were in is not crystal clear, (2) the video was shot without a lens filter of any sort, (3) without any artificial light, (4) water affects and distorts light transmission, and (5) that on Youtube no video will be as clear and sharp as original source footage viewed on a computer or HD TV. In my opinion, the video quality is high in absolute terms and given the size and price of the camera very, very good indeed! I find no problem at all with the "curved lens of the waterproof housing." As for the claim "never heard of shortened record times under water" I can only say their internal communications must be completely absent because, as you know, I have become "best friends" with their technical support people regarding the serious intermittent recording problem that seems to occur under water.
Using information from the California Secretary of State and exhaustive Internet search, I have tracked down an email address for the owner of the company and forwarded to him my (long) string of email exchanges with tech support and suggested that the company's comments to you might be misleading.
Texas Diver - you'll love this. I wrote to GoPro about your video camera, and related your experiences (which I know you'd already conveyed to them). I've just received this reply:-
We have never hear of shortened record times while under water. We have a large number of professional and amateur underwater photographers, spear-fishermen, etc who use out cameras all of the time.
Was the battery dieing or was it just stopping the video? Did the camera still function? What brand SD card was being used?
Please let us know.
Please note that there is another issue with the camera underwater though:
Due to the curved lens of the waterproof housing for the HD HERO camera and standard def Wide HERO cameras, you do get a slight loss of sharpness/focus to underwater images. In video mode with the standard def camera this hasn't been very noticeable due to the lower resolution. With the HD HERO camera this becomes more evident at the higher resolution. Our developers are looking into whether we can possibly offer a different housing or housing lens in the future to correct this issue. Here is a sample videos to better illustrate the video quality underwater:
There seems to be an element of BS here. I haven't replied yet.
There also appears to be a lack of proper grammar and spelling in their reply.
Did you know that "ambergris" is whale puke? It is a solid, waxy, flammable substance of a dull gray or blackish color produced in the digestive system of sperm whales.
Their three examples do not support their assertions. Most telling, none of the videos involves SCUBA diving. Two are free diving and one is SNUBA or similar surface supplied air.
In the first free diving video the entire elapsed time underwater is only 110 seconds, in the second I can't tell, but necessarily a relatively short time. I'm impressed by the feats depicted, but in both cases, based on the color and brightness levels, it doesn't appear that the divers reached great depth. In the case of the shark cage, the underwater video is a mere 105 seconds long, I can't estimate the depth. On these factors alone, GoPro has neither proved their own assertions nor disproved my actual experience - both the SD and HD cameras randomly quit recording while SCUBA diving.
I can say that when the camera works, it works well. For instance, I've recorded three dives starting while in the boat and not stopping until about 50 minutes later back on the boat after diving to 75 - 94 feet. In my experience, both the SD and HD cameras will record as much as 9 to 12 minutes at depth below 25 feet before failing (although sometimes they fail sooner, including a couple of times I could not get recording started before entering the water!).
Just so you know, I carry that pointy stick thing myself!
Keeps me from accidentally touching anything underwater (keeps the body oils off), helps keep me still during uw photography in current, and I can poke at divers who are trying to touch things uw that they shouldn't!
