44 replies to this topic

[Capn Jack]

Hey Mark...sounds like you and Peter had a blast...LITERALLY!

While Peter claims not to have killed anything, he certainly wounded my ego.

He did warn me he was some kind of champion while serving in her Majesty's Army - but other than being somewhat stunned on his first shot by the recoil from 230 grains of .45 going downrange at 1000 fps - he totally destroyed the X ring while I made attractive but random patterns around the edges...

Good news though - Texas has concealed carry, and Belize doesn't, so unlike us, he's probably unarmed when you see him.

Edited by Capn Jack, 25 February 2011 - 03:44 PM.

[lynnlchan]

Good news though - Texas has concealed carry, and Belize doesn't, so unlike us, he's probably unarmed when you see him.

Not totally unarmed, he still has his wit.

Edited by lynnlchan, 26 February 2011 - 07:33 AM.

[WreckWench]

Craig - you can't receive PMs and I can't remember your last name so can't look you up.....

While I understand the restriction on ordinary members sending PMs, it seems wrong headed to prohibit a Premier Member from contacting an ordinary member.

PM's are restricted by the software we license. They can be sent from premier member to premier member (or above such as charter, admins etc.) but not to basic members. The decision to limit personal information in forum posts is our restriction. This protects our members from any malicious harm as well as prevents circumvention of our system and most importantly limits the spam that IS rec'd by any email listed on a website such as this one from spambots and spamcrawlers.

Thank you for stopping by at the Texas Dive Show and we are very appreciative of you helping Peter out with local transport while he has been here visiting!

[WreckWench]

Good news though - Texas has concealed carry, and Belize doesn't, so unlike us, he's probably unarmed when you see him.

Not totally unarmed, he still has his wit.

YUP! Definately in tact when I saw him at the Dallas HH at the Keg! And so was Mark aka Capt Jack's!

[peterbj7]

Thank you for stopping by at the Texas Dive Show and we are very appreciative of you helping Peter out with local transport while he has been here visiting!

I am also extremely appreciative!! Good luck up in the frozen north, Craig, and don't forget to keep me posted on your daughter's movements once she gets to Leicester.

[TexasDiver]

I've ordered the flat lens offered by Mako (who make spearguns) for the GoPro camera. At $23 with shipping it is far less expensive than the Eye of Mine solution. I'll try it on my Cozumel dive trip coming up later this month.

[peterbj7]

Please keep me posted. It could be ideal for me.

[TexasDiver]

Another example of GoPro camera with Eye of Mine flat lens case (Galapagos, 9 minutes):

[scubaski]

Your getting some GREAT footage w/ GoPro

[TexasDiver]

Your getting some GREAT footage w/ GoPro

The flat lens makes all the difference! After I ordered the Mako flat lens I checked out the instructions ... I have to have tools to remove the old lens and replace it. I tried that once with the lens replacement kit provided by GoPro ... I couldn't get the screws to loosen with the screwdriver provided in the kit and I gave up. I'll have to buy a better tool and that increases the cost! Not to mention that the only way to truly test it is to take it on a dive ... unlike the Eye of Mine that is tested to 200 feet before shipping.

[TexasDiver]

Self explanatory email I sent to Mako today regarding their flat lens for GoPro: I've been on the road and was delighted to find my GoPro flat lens order waiting for me last night in the accumulated mail. I am a little confused, however. The lens you sent is translucent, not transparent. When I hold it up to my eye I cannot see through it. It is sort of like looking through the frosted glass of a bathroom window. I don't understand how I can get good video/photos (or any at all) through such a piece of plastic. Please advise.

[scubaski]

I found the MAKO site. online instructions for flat lens installations shows a protective film to be removed. Run your finger nails along edge of lens and see if you can peel back anything.

[TexasDiver]

I found the MAKO site. online instructions for flat lens installations shows a protective film to be removed. Run your finger nails along edge of lens and see if you can peel back anything.

Egg on my face. You are correct, there was a thin film on the lens, precisely the diameter of the lens, invisible, and difficult to remove; thanks for your help!

[TexasDiver]

Another example of GoPro camera with Eye of Mine flat lens case (Galapagos, 9 minutes):
http://www.youtube.c...h?v=0-j0AWPHLks

--was this all shot handheld?
--did you do any color enhancement, or is that naturally what the GoPro saw in the water?
PPM

Yes, handheld, literally. Point in the direction of the action and hope it is centered! (At the end of the video I added a still photo taken by a dive buddy and if you look closely you can see me holding the camera in my outstretched right hand.) Difficulty in aiming is one of the reasons I shoot in 4:3 format (960p) and not the narrow 16:9 letterbox format even though 16:9 is higher resolution at 1080p. (Note: when posted to YouTube the resolution is reduced to 480p max.)

Using downlevel iLife iMovie on my MacBook laptop I try to reduce the blue hue by as much as 50% and add back red, up to 200%. Sometimes I reduce the color saturation by as much as 5% in an effort to make the color match what one actually sees. Sometimes my edits work well, sometimes not so well. I try to use the color of my wetsuit, fins, etc. as a guide to color correction. The GoPro has no user controls so all exposure, color, tint, etc. must be adjusted in editing, not an easy task because all the video is shot with ambient light only. It is especially difficult when there is great contrast between light and dark areas. I get many comments from non-divers who don't understand why the color isn't vibrant, like they see on TV. I explain that is not what divers see because those TV videos are shot using high intensity artificial light.

Edited by TexasDiver, 17 March 2011 - 09:17 PM.