Or am I the only one swimming this time?

I got out with the camera for a couple of hours last week, but when I looked at the footage it was all blurred. I think I must have had the ND filter off and got a small aperture - that's what usually causes it.

I thought I might get another chance on Friday afternoon, but constant drizzle and occasional hard rain put me off - the rain would have been blowing into the camera lens, so it wasn't just a case of covering everything up.

My hopes of getting my life back in October didn't last long - I seem to be working all hours under the sun (and moon) and the end of the tunnel doesn't seem to be getting any closer! Ah well, a new month cometh . . . . . .

Poor Annie - a latter day geek tragedy! Maybe we'll see you in UWOL #16.

I know the feeling. I really struggled to get anything done - my day job consumes so much of my time, plus family commitments, I don't get a lot of time left over.

Plus the weather was dreadful this time, at least over the Irish Sea here, and I found the lighting very hard to work with - all grey and dull and miserable, everything looked so flat. I, too, stuffed up the ND filter - I forgot to take the screw-in one off and the exposure was all over the shop at times.

My Sock-Loupe was an interesting experience, but at times my focusing was actually worse with it! I think I need to practice.

I did manage to pull some usable sequences, as the video, but it wasn't easy and isn't my best every wildlife footage. I also neglected the sound capturing, and struffled to pull enough usable audio from to make it worthwhile.

But... I did have some rule #11 in the process!

Annie, I found it here in UWOL Challenge 10:

http://www.uwolchallenge.com/challengex/38_UCX_sphucpsa.mov

Ah yes, Chris flushed into temporary oblivion!!

Now I'm trying to work out how to schedule a video session into what has already become a four-day week (I'm off to a meeting on the other side of the country next Saturday - it will take all Friday to get there, and all Sunday to get back) but there is likely to be the funeral of a friend who died on Saturday gettng in the way somewhere.

It's 9am here, so I'd better get on with some work.

Annie,


It never seems to end does it!!! Remember however, it only bigins anew!! so I hope to see you in the UWOL 16. I really do like your entries and missed yours this go around.

I came really close to diving in for the first time this round, perhaps I should have as aposed to put up what I did!!!

Hi Dale

Thanks for the encouragement. Right now, though, things seem to be going downhill. I've just got back from my weekend meeting. I took the XH-A1 with me, as there was a chance of a couple of hours out in the field somewhere. Well, I got to that somewhere, and set up the camera in a public hide. I realised I had left the Lanc control at home, the hide may have given good views of birds, but it had a wooden floor and every time someone moved, or came up the ramp outside, there was too much vibration for filming. Then I thought the picture on the LCD screen looked washed out, so I checked the preset, and it was off, but I couldn't turn it back on because I had "borrowed" the SD card for something else, and hadn't returned it to the camera! There were a few other minor problems too.

Now, I have got the book I was editing out of the way last week. My friend's funeral is tomorrow, I have three work contracts to finish this week (not a chance . . . .) plus a visit to the dentist. After that, just maybe I can get out with the camera, or start looking at UWOL 15 entries . . . . . . . . .

I know I seriously have to develop a check list. I have several camera bags for different needs as well as different setups. I don't know how many times I've taken off before sunrise to try and get some great footage only to find that I left something in the other bag or took something out and forgot to put it in.

Usually I'm pretty well organised, but I've had too much work and not enough time for personal projects this year especially, so things have slipped badly. I had intended swapping the small card in the Edirol 09 for the larger one in the XH-A1, as I rarely use the A1 for stills. Now I just have to remember where I put the larger card! And I fear I am in danger of forgetting how to use the cameras!

"...And I fear I am in danger of forgetting how to use the cameras! "

You know if you are using several cameras, (and some DSLR's for stills) and also varying your picture profiles etc etc... that is a VERY real concern.

I find that I need to go back and re-read the manual from time to time just to not forget how to do things I don't often do... and that is when I AM using the camera!!

We missed your entry this time Annie. Hope to see you back in 16.

Chris S.

ps. And I am thinking I like Kevin's idea of checklists.