After viewing Tom Lowe’s site http://timescapes.org and his amazing work http://vimeo.com/timescapes.  I was inspired to do more then the normal time-lapse on a tripod.  So I went onto the TimeScapes forums an asked a few questions.  Within a week I had a plan for my large motorized dolly system.   This system is designed for cameras from 15-50 lbs.  And it is not just for motorized moves this dolly is great for well, dolly moves.  My next build will be my small travel system for my 5D.  I have a few ideas and will have to do this quickly, since I…

This short is my first try making a fun video with just the GoPro HD camera.  I took the camera on my head; front of boom, and backwards on my head windsurfing one day.  The camera is challenged in backlit situations but the rest of the time is does a nice job.  There are two slow motion clips and the rest are normal speed. The clips were shot in 720p 60p.  This give a wider field of view which I prefer and the option to change to 1/2 speed slow motion. Not the fastest I have been but still a…

While shooting the start of the Bermuda Race I noticed the Presto 30 sailing with ease around the spectator fleet, so I took a few clips. The Presto 30 is designed by Rodger Martin Yacht Design with input from Phil Garland of Hall Spars, and built by Ryder Boats. Nice to see free thinking produce a fun, easy to sail, fast, beach able boat. Enjoy, the clips they were taken with a long (4000mm) lens on a humid day so excuse the heat motion. VIDEO LINK

You might have noticed the new link on the home page of our two sites WhiteCap Video & PC Sailing.  This gives a convenient way to visit both sites.  With so many clients using services from both businesses we decided to start linking the sites.  Our blog will now have post from both businesses.  This should be entertaining for the sailing crowd, to read about the technical aspects of our production business, as well as the video production gang learning more about my real life long passion. So lets start off with a basic video I did last year for…

Summer, what a great time of year in New England offers lots of time to play in one of the best playgrounds, Narragansett Bay.  Having been in the sailing industry all my life Narragansett Bay is home.   It is perfect for water sports, which are my passion, along with mountain biking and of course filming all of it for clients who demand the best. Recently a client hired me to shoot the Bermuda Race start 18 June.  They did not want to pay for helicopter footage so I rented a very long lens for my Sony F800 from Rule/Boston Camera…

First a quick note on my experience with the XDCAM PDW-F800 after a month of using the camera. I am so impressed with this camera.  The image quality is much better then the PMW-350 and the optical disk is a huge time saver.  I have one client who I shoot for monthly and we shoot 5 hrs in the helicopter.  With the EX1 and 350 I used the Nano Flash which is a great recorder but very cumbersome when it comes to delivery and archive.  Still the best choice if you only have 4.2.0. color spacing and lower bit rates. …

Wow it has been a while since my last post.  I have been flat out editing and shooting which is great.  I have made  a few gear changes in the last month and the big one is moving up to a F800. First off I sold my Sony PMW-350.  Yes I know after raving about the camera and having such a great first impression I have moved on.  There is nothing wrong with the PMW-350 except it did not have the latitude I expected in a 2/3″ camera.   It is a nice nice step up from the EX1/3 but…

The Sony XDCAM PMW-350 is worked OK it had latitude problems on this shoot.  So after this shoot I realized I needed to move up to the Sony F800.  I was surprised how long the learning curve on the 350 from the EX1 has been which has mostly been scene files.  Last week my Fujinon ZA 17X7.6B lens arrived which is excellent.   I purchased the focus control which now gives me Focus, zoom, and VTR at my finger tips.  I will post  a full review on the lens options I tried and why I decided on the ZA 17x. …