Here is a competition I couldn’t ignore. A $10,000 pot from Scottevest for one lucky person to take the trip of their lifetime and document as they go. I never enter competitions and could easily talk my way out of winning this one by saying I feel I’ve been to most of the countries I’ve ever wanted to visit. I spent 10 years doing just that.
That said. I love adventure.
And I also love travel. Be it by train, by bike, by foot or by boat. It’s the people I meet along the way. The people and their stories.
So what would I do with $10,000. Well I wouldn’t blow it all on one trip. I’d pick out a few of the worlds festivals I’ve always wanted to go to and visit them. I may have been to most of the places I ever dreamed of.. but i’ve not travelled to a fraction of the amazing events and festivals that go on around the world.
I’d pick a selection.. music, art, food, literature, there are so many out there. I’d probably ask for recommendations form my online places and then report my findings back using audio, video, geo and photos to share the stories I find.
Obviously.. without a sack of cash sat on my desk this is just a pipe dream. Still. It’s nice to dream.
What kind of trip(s) would you do with $10,000 to spend?
A friend in Kenya emailed me today and told me of a plane crash.
Writing about the death of a pilot I’ve flown with once is bad enough. But now to write about another so soon. Well, I don’t know what to think.
Statistically flying is meant to be pretty safe. The chance of an average American dying in a plane crash is 1 in 11 million. Compared to one in 5000 being killed in a car accident.
These people I knew who died were far from average. Mike Neranzic was an Airship pilot. One of very few. I only spent a little time with him but his passion and skill were obvious.
Captain Moses Lelesit flew a Husky up to three hours a day for the Kenyan Wildlife Service and I was lucky enough to hitch a ride from a dirt airstrip at the Manyani Training School in Tsavo, over to Wilson Airport in Nairobi.
Moses Lelesit was Maasai and proud. Above the game reserves the usual aviation rules don’t apply. Using every inch of airspace he flew surveillance missions on the look out for ivory poachers, as well as watching the migration patterns of the animals.
Sometimes he would have to fly a few feet above the ground. I got to experience this myself. Incredibly exciting yet I always had total confidence in Moses’ skills.
On the trip across Tsavo we were airborne at a thousand feet when Moses called back to me asking what I loved about Africa. I told him the people. Everyone I had met had been amazing. He then asked me if I had any regrets. I thought this a strange question but replied that I would have like to have seen Rhino’s in the wild. We had seen so many animals but the ever elusive, and ever more endangered Rhino had evaded me on every trip I’ve taken into Africa.
He was shocked I’d not seen any. Then he turned to me, smiled, and threw the plane wildly to the left. We banked losing a few hundred feet instantly and he headed in the direction he thought Rhinos might be.
His trained eyes could see animals long before I could even distinguish a tree in the vast expanse below. In no time he was pointing to a large lone Rhino grazing in a clearing. He gained a little height then either cut the engines or dropped to revs to nothing. We were silent. Gliding over the wilds of Africa. Our shadow getting larger, our faces pressed against the cockpit. I followed his gaze and under a tree I saw a family of Rhino, minding their own business oblivious to our presence as we swooped past like a giant bird of prey. Then, I’m sure they heard us as Moses let the engine roar once more and we regained hight before adjusting our course for civilisation.
This was his domain. His playground and I could tell how happy he was to be sharing it.
I will never forget that moment. That day. There are only a few of these moments in my life where I’m conscious that this time may be the only time of it’s kind. That I need to absorb all sensation in order to recall this moment to my children.. grandchildren.. whoever will listen.
I grabbed Moses by the shoulder and shouted thank you.
The email I got today was short. It said:
“mailin to let you in on the unfortunate demise of our pilot cpt lelesit, the one you held an interview with during our combat first aid course in manyani…he died doing what he loved best…”
This short video was snatched as I was leaving the studio of Steve Lockwood (Harmonica master).
The camera was set to manual focus and I tapped the AF/AE button on Steve’s face in the bright doorway which will explain why it’s a little overexposed. I’m not too fussed with the lighting as I was more interested in testing the audio on the Fujifilm X100‘s two small in camera mics. I thought a quick harmonica riff from Steve to be the perfect test.
I think it copes quite well considering I was up pretty close and the dynamics of the harmonica can be quite varied. Especially when in the hands of someone like Steve.
I had a great lesson with Steve who showed me so many ways I can improve my playing. All I have to do now is practice.
I discovered that Steve is also on twitter as @HarpTuition and hope he is re-enthused into using it as he has so much musical goodness to share.
He is also a top bloke. While in my lesson, I had left the lights on my bike and flattened the battery. Steve kindly nipped out and borrowed a battery booster to help me on my way.
On April the 22nd I traveled to Damyns Hall Aerodrome to fly in the GoodYear blimp. It was also my first day out with the Fujifilm X100 camera so I grabbed some images & added them to audio recorded on the Zoom H1 & iPhone 4.
It was a great day. I really enjoyed the flight and learned alot. I have an interview with the Engineer here:
..And if you are interested in my first impression of the Fujifilm X100.. I recorded some thoughts here:
In late November 2010 I was challenged by Vodafone to travel from Lands End to John o’Groats with no money or food. I was given five £10 pay-as-you-go FreeBees SIM cards to use as currency and I bartered my way for 900 miles using social media.
I took only my iPhone 4 for photos, video and audio and a macbook air 11″ to edit on the move.
I visited Warwick University with Paul Hadley and talked with Professor Alan Chalmers about developments in High Dynamic Range (HDR) video capture. We got to see some incredible footage, as it should be seen, on HDR monitors.
We considered dropping some of the footage into the interview above but it would have really sold the experience short. If you google around you can find some pretty impressive footage not even shot with the 20 f-stops of latitude we got to experience.
I am quite looking forward to seeing how quickly HDR video monitors become affordable and who will make the first off the shelf HDRV camera available to the average video blogger.
And dont worry about being awash with hyper-real over saturated video footage as today, in a room somewhere in Europe, a group of people are sat around deciding on a HDRV standard for all. Let us hope it emulates what the ‘normal’ eye sees and not one on hallucinogens.
I have had a personal wifi hotspot of sorts for a while now. A 3 mobile 3G router and dongle have been taking up a large space in my tech bag whenever I am out and about. If I am near a socket it runs from the mains. If I am mobile or in the middle of nowhere I use a Power Gorilla. It has given me internet access on trains, in cars, at festivals and when in my top box, even on my motorbike.
Although not that compact, it has been an affordable solution as regards to getting a 3G internet connection shared across all my devices, no matter where I may be. With an ever increasing bag of gadgets to lug about though, I’m always looking for ways to minimize my tech burden.
The moment the Novatel MiFi 2352 personal wireless hotspot came through the door I knew things had just got simpler, easier and much more compact.
The Website lists these features:
• Connects up to five Wi-Fi enabled devices simultaneously
• Computers, PDA’s, cameras, music players, personal and game players and more
• Rechargeable Lithium Ion Battery
• GPS- enabled
• Advanced internal antenna system
• NovaSpeed® capable
• Auto-install and auto-connectivity
• 10M (30 ft) range of network coverage
So far I love it. Whether I’m using it with my iPhone, laptop, camera enabled with an Eye-Fi card or all of them together! It takes up little to no space, weighs next to nothing and makes it really easy to give the gift of a wifi connection to those around you, no matter where you may be.
I look forward to the possibility of a future device that can take multiple sims and auto select the carrier with the fastest connection or perhaps even allow streaming across more than one network.
For more information on the MiFi 2352 and other Personal WiFi Hotspot devices by Novatel Wireless, check out their website at http://www.NovatelWireless.com
Advertising revenue is down, newspapers are struggling and as the economy takes a downturn production costs are up, at the same time online readership and revenue continue to rise. So what’s the answer? Go where the eyes are. Whether you are writing, taking pictures, shooting video or recording audio you can build communities with your content. But only if you take it online.
Three years ago online video was something I mostly only viewed. I’d played around with recording and uploading video but this was a long winded haphazard affair involving hand coded xml files every time I wanted to add a video to my podcast. Then if I wanted to share it further afield I’d upload it to YouTube giving me the option to embed on a website or link to it in an email or forum.
Now it’s just as easy as sending an email. Many of the sites I visit today are either video conversational platforms or at the very least places where video is being shared and commented on. Video is now a medium of conversation.
Recently I have been asked more and more by companies “Do we really need to get involved in video?”
The short answer is “Yes.”
For me, engaging with online video is a no brainer.
The easiest way for me to explain why this shift from old analogue methods of communication to online ones is so important is to compare online video with TV. The buzzword for a while now has been Social Media, Social Media does exactly what it says on the tin, it allows people to have conversations on a new level of engagement, be it from an entertainment or marketing perspective. TV could not be further away from this world. The most interactive thing TV can offer us is the red button. Nowadays people expect a conversation with their content.
TV advertising is also fleeting and expensive. After the cost of creating your media, you pay for your slot and when it’s gone it’s gone. Online video on the other hand, can be made at a fraction of the cost, and if you spread it intelligently it’s viewable forever. Not only that but the viewer can comment on, respond to, and share it for you. This conversation around your content keeps it alive, relevant, and in the public eye way beyond other forms of old analogue media.
Online video is also instantly global, searchable, on demand and with viewing stats that are easily measured.
It really is a no brainer.
Whether you want content for your website, to launch a brand or product, produce video news releases, or just show the human side of your organisation, you need to have a presence in the digital world, you need to be using online video. I can show you how to do produce content cheaply and effectively. I cover the kit, how-to shooting tips, file compression, uploading and aggregation, how to make your video visible, and loads more. Whether you wish to use some of the free solutions out there like Twitvid, Tokbox or Qik, or shoot HD on a hand held device, I can be there to guide you through selecting suitable equipment to shoot, edit and distribute your video effectively.
For a little while now I’ve offered one to one consultation and informal training sessions on all aspects of social media and video making for the web. Now, for the first time, in conjunction with Econsultancy, I’m going to be able to offer a formal workshop (snappily titled) ‘Video For The Web‘.
4.7 billion videos are watched online in the UK every year. Make one of them yours.
So here is what the fuss is all about. Finally a low cost hand held HD video camera with a microphone input. I’m yet to get my hands on a Kodak Zi8 for a proper test but I had a quick fondle for a couple of minutes behind the Kodak stand with Jenny Cisney at NYC 140 Conference.
In the dark shadowy corner I shot this very quick video in 720p as the SD card I had to hand was not high speed and couldn’t cope with the fat data rate of the 1080p setting. The camera feels good in the hand. Well made and similar in form to the Zi6.
Already I can see the low light ability is better than that of the previous two models but more importantly I am looking forward to plugging in an external mic and seeing what kind of audio quality is possible.
The specs are as follows:
• Full HD 1080p video
• Built-in image stabilization
• 2.5” color LCD
• Swing out the USB arm to upload, share, and charge
• 5 MP 16:9 widescreen HD still pictures
• Built-in software for editing and uploading
• Compatible with PC and Mac
• Record up to 10 hrs of HD video (20 min per 1 GB at 720p HD at 30 fps) with SD/SDHC card up to 32 GB
• Face tracking technology
• External stereo microphone
• HDMI cable included
I’m thinking that finally camera producers are beginning to understand the importance of decent audio.. more important than picture quality in my opinion. It’s too soon for me to express anything other than relief at the mic input with the Kodak Zi8, but I feel with devices like the Zoom Q3 on the horizon (which is effectively a high quality audio recorder with a camera on it), I feel the goal posts have been moved and video blogging devices are entering a whole new era.
While I was over in New York at the 140 Characters Conference I got the chance to have a sneak peak at a new Kodak device that I can’t talk about. (They made me sign some seriously legal scary stuff). That said.. It doesn’t mean you can’t speculate as to what it might be in the comments below. Anyone that knows me, or has seen me speak about what I do will probably have a idea about the kind of Kodak device that excites me. But for now, like i said. I can’t talk about it.
The original Kodak blog post where this video and another from Steve Garfield is linked HERE
[DISCLAIMER: Kodak did not pay me any money to do this video. I would not turn my nose up at a sneak peek preview of the new model though.. ]
