If ever there was a day for a 360 camera...

 

Today was that day.  Too bad I didn't bring it along.

We planned to go out in the boat today.  Joan made us a picnic lunch; I took the cover off the boat and got it ready to go.  Breezy, but a beautiful day.  We shoved off with a thought in mind: this will be our last boat outing this season.  In the next day or two, we'll go out to the storage unit to get the trailer.  Pull the boat out probably Wednesday, get it cleaned up and fuel drained, then take it out to storage.  We are ready to switch gears and get focused on hauling the scoots north.

But today, it was all about enjoying the boat.  "What's that about the 360 camera thing in the title, Jim?"  Thanks for asking.  Rather than mess with the editing that goes along with the 360 cameras, I suggested we just take a still camera along... in case we see any dolphins.

It was Dolphin-Palooza... it has been a long time since we've seen this many in one trip.  At one time, there were literally dozens of them, any direction we looked.  Yes, a 360 camera attached to the front of the boat would have shown that.  But, I'm getting ahead of myself.

We shoved off from the dock, heading down our canal...

Yeah, we passed some birds posing along the way, but neither of us wanted to mess with the camera.  "Let's just go enjoy some time on the water."  With plans to pull the boat soon, I was looking to burn some fuel.  The breeze kept things sporting, but this small pontoon is quite comfortable.  Even when Border Patrol blew by us with two boats.  Cruising east in the ship channel, we saw dorsal fins ahead.  Before long, it was lots of dorsal fins.

I couldn't take it any longer, and grabbed the Nikon to get a couple photos...

After a while, other boats started heading towards us.  First, a couple excursion boats, then other pontoon boats and flats boats...

We just did our own thing, giving the dolphins plenty of space for what must have been some really good fishing.  Then, this was unusual...

Danny B is a head boat that takes people out for bay fishing... not a fishing pole in sight.  From the looks of it, a family must have chartered the boat, and they wanted to get in on this dolphin watching.  In over 20 years of seeing this boat on the water, we have never seen them do anything but fishing.  Plenty of other boats on the water, both excursion boats and private boats; I am guessing the commercial boats were having a good holiday weekend.

But for now, it was all about the dolphins all around us...

When a shrimper went by on his way to the Gulf, we watched this excited dolphin bow surfing...

We decided to call it a day, and headed for home.  This big fella went by us, also heading for the Gulf...

IF we had brought along the 360 cameras, I would have had hours of work editing all that video.  As it was, we spent far more time just enjoying the views rather than getting photos.  We saw all kinds of fun dolphin behavior today, most of it captured in our "mental bank cameras."  

Back at home, Joan brought Rufus down to the boat while I was cleaning it.  No, we didn't take him out today - he got a nice nap in while we were out.

Another holiday weekend...

 

... another Golf Cart Parade.  Because nothing says honoring our deceased soldiers like driving around in golf carts honking the horn and blasting the stereo.  Good participation, though - lots of people and carts...

A lovely day for it.  We stayed home today - I grilled chicken, Joan made BBQ ribs.  Kinda like a picnic, except in the air conditioned comfort of our home.

Rufus...

 

Yes, it's been a while since Rufus was featured in a post.  Fear not, Rufus is always the center of attention around the house.  We've been fewer outdoor walks, mostly due to the time of year: it has been hot and windy frequently... the big furry boy is not a fan of the wind.  When we do go outside, it is sandburr season, so I have to steer him away from those... and, they're kinda everywhere.  So, we've been taking him out on the deck, where a gate separates him from the grassy areas.

A change of the seasons, that isn't weather related, as well - the winter visitors (and many of them bring dogs) are long gone.  When we do walk, Rufus goes to the street and looks up and down; his dog friends are mostly gone.  The summer visitors bring kids and people on golf carts with blaring music... he is not a fan.

That said, he is a happy boy, even though his facial expression may not always show it...

 He has plenty of comfortable places for cat naps; he has welcoming laps to sit on; he gets regular brushing, good meals, and musical entertainment.  He is a loyal companion and likes to be where we are.

He is family.  Oh, and he's a good boy.  :-)

A Whimsical Ride...

 

 

Out for a ride on the Vespa first thing this morning.  That wasn't the whimsical part - I was trying out the Instamic in two different helmets.  After repeated e-mail exchanges, Instamic is sending me another mic... they agreed that there is something wrong with this one.  With some effort, I can get it to turn on, so I thought I'd make some changes in the mic gain to see if this has any hope of being used in our scooter videos.  Not promising at speeds over about 40 mph.

When I got back from that, I went to check on the latest e-mail from Instamic, and my MacBook Pro was... updating.  Seemed to take forever, and I don't have the dexterity to compose a lengthy e-mail on my phone.

Joan made me a fruit smoothie - refreshing after being out in the heat this morning.  Then, out on the e-bike for my morning exercise.  At the last second, I grabbed the Insta360 One X2 camera, with the idea of getting a few 360 still shots...

I just couldn't resist getting a few 360 videos.  Something about the technology fascinates me; kinda like using a Hasselblad Super-Wide back in the day.  So, here's a whimsical short video, after a bit of editing...

Another Stayin' at Home video...

 

My testing with the new Instamic has me thinking I have a defective unit.  Not easy to have an e-mail conversation with a business that is on the other side of the world... we'll see what they come back with for a solution to the issues I'm having with them.  The main problem seems to be the only control on this mic is one button, right on the front: it turns it on, turns it off, starts and stops recording.  Except that one and only button on mine isn't working right.  The company asked me to send them a video of the problem... so, I videoed me pressing the button repeatedly until it turned on.  Yes, that is stupid.  "It's the damn button!"

Once on, it is relatively controllable with the app on my iPhone.  I did set it up alongside the Shure MV88+ that I've used on many Stayin' at Home videos to see how it would compare.  Even after properly setting the gain on that Instamic, it was incredibly weak.

All that aside, it was a good reason to make another Stayin' at Home video; this one is a cover of a Dave Mason song, Please Come to Boston...

 

Testing, 1, 2...

 

I was up early enough to see the lunar eclipse, but the cloud cover had other ideas.  Rufus was OK with getting breakfast early, though.

Warm, windy, and humid - I decided to get out on the scoot in the morning to do more testing with the Instamic.  The good news: I got it to sync up with both 360 cameras (not at the same time)... it definitely likes the One R better than the One X2... which is unfortunate, because I prefer the form factor of the X2.  The bad news: while the sound is great below about 40mph, there is a lot of clipping at highway speeds - the cracking noise makes it miserable to listen to.  I'm thinking it may be user error - I will try further testing with a lower gain setting.

I was able to get it to sync up and stay connected while shooting multiple 360 clips - that really cuts down on the massive file size I ran into yesterday while letting the camera and the mic just run, then syncing them up later with iMovie.  When I edit what I shot today, the video and audio are already together.

So, a learning curve... and I'm still doing what I can to climb it.  With really long breaks in between while I download and edit the 360 video to get the views I was seeing in my head.  For now, I am just tossing the video after I have edited it.

Well, here's a short clip...

 

That clip will be "unlisted," so not out to the public.

If you're up early...

 

A lunar eclipse tomorrow morning.  Here, it will be happening between 4:40 and 6:30 am, with the full eclipse around 6:00.  Full moon tonight, as well - here's how it looks right now...

 Thin clouds this evening, so I had to time it to get a whole view of the moon.  I kinda like the look with a sheer veil around it.

I may not be up early enough to see the eclipse, or it may be too cloudy or just over the horizon; so, nice to get a view of the full moon right now.

For those keeping track, it is a Super Moon this month, making this the largest (by about 7%) and brightest (by about 15%) full moon this year.  And, the lunar eclipse happening during the full moon makes it a bit of an event, as well.  This is known as the Flower Full Moon, with the descriptor being pretty obvious.

Get out there and howl at the moon!

So, it arrived...

 

The package I was waiting for showed up today - it made good time getting here from Memphis, TN, arriving at our house at 10:40 am.  I was in the middle of some other stuff, so it was a bit before I could get to it.  The package is from Instamic, a miniscule microphone/recording device that is supposed to sync up with my 360 cameras.

It didn't.  I checked the firmware - it is up to date.  I finally gave up messing with it and using one of the mounts (Velcro®), put the mic inside my helmet so I could see how it does at rejecting wind noise; using it as a recorder.

 Did I mention: it's small?  How small?

Yeah, that small.  I didn't have time to run it up to highway speeds, but at 40mph, the wind noise was negligible.  So, once I get the whole syncing thing figured out, I think it will be a nice addition to capturing scooter videos.

Tracking...

 

I used to think that was the way Tonto helped the Long Ranger find the bad guys.  If you ever used a printing press ("Wow, how old are you, Jim?"  My buddy Guttenberg and I went to grade school together.), you may know that tracking is the standard spacing between adjacent letters when setting type.  In my flying days, it meant following the routing with Loran C (prior to GPS).  ("I suppose Orville and Wilbur were classmates, too?"  Kinda snarky there.)

These days, tracking means following your package delivery.  I have another one coming from Hong Kong.  It arrived in Anchorage, Alaska, late Friday.  FedEx said, "Expected delivery by 10:30 am Monday, May 24."  I couldn't imagine it would get from Alaska to south Texas in two days... Joan said, "It'll be here."  I could doubt FedEx, but I don't doubt Joan.

My package apparently enjoyed the cool Alaskan climate until 1:15 pm Sunday.  Then, it arrived in Ft Worth at 10:16 pm.  Making good time after that rest.  FedEx still proudly stated: "Expected delivery by 10:30 am Monday, May 24."  No departure info since that time.  The tracking page went from "delivery by 10:30 am" to "May 24, by the end of day."  So, they missed the original "expected delivery" time, but they are still holding out hope that it will get here in the same calendar day.  We'll see.

All that said, I am impressed that a small package is better traveled than I am.  And that someone thinks they know where it is all the time.  Key word in that last sentence is "thinks."

If you ask people what is the major time waster in their life, it would be: waiting for the cable guy; Netflix (lots of content, most of which you wouldn't want to watch); video games; sitting in the waiting room for a doctor; YouTube (even more content than Netflix, even less that you want to watch); looking for your keys (I keep mine in the same pocket all the time); waiting for an open check-out aisle at Walmart (we use self check-out); waiting for your cat to sniff every blade of grass when out for a walk; waiting at the bridge to get off the island when a barge is going through (that pretty much only applies to people living on this island)... and the number one time waster: checking tracking on a package.  Apparently, checking it every two minutes does not, in fact, get the package here any sooner.

Admit it - you do it, too, don't you?  ;-)

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Update: the package didn't get here, but FedEx was hopeful, keeping that "May 24 before end of day" up well into the night.  Checking this morning (May 25th), the package is now in Memphis, TN.  Great Circle routing.  

Is that even possible??

 

We took the boat out this afternoon.  Another beautiful day: sunny, 81º, wind around 14mph, and reasonable humidity.  That's not the "even possible??" part... we left cameras behind.  No DSLR, no action camera, no 360 camera; didn't even take the point and shoot.  Well, we did take our phones.

I fully well expected to see dolphins lined up like the Rockettes, standing on their tails, smiling and waving, and jumping over the boat.  Didn't happen.  Oh, we did see dolphins here and there, but today was all about just taking it all in... without concentrating on getting photos and video.  Nice.

OK, I did get a shot with my phone while Joan was up front, checking out the dolphins...

I couldn't help myself.  And this whole "no cameras" thing was my idea.  :-)

High Key...

 

Back in the day, when we were in the studio, we had a high key infinity sweep in the camera room.  For those not familiar with the concept, it was frequently used back then for product shots and fashion looks: the background is all white, with shadows minimized with lighting.  Some people thought that would be best with a dark subject, but it looks great for a subject wearing light clothing... the skintone becomes the darkest part of the image, making it look rich.

Thanks for the trip down memory lane and the photography lesson.  You're welcome.  But, the real question is: how does it do with a furry subject?  Thanks for asking; you're questions and comments help the flow here.  You hear those voices, too, don't you?

Rufus has his own high key area.  Well, he and I share it, but for different purposes: I use it for a shower, he uses it as a quiet place for reflection...

 And, in case I didn't mention this before: he's a good boy!

Another Premier...

 

I wouldn't call it a "World Premier," but this is the first viewing.  Yesterday, we had a nice time out on the water.  When we got home, I had a lot of work to do, editing the 360 video, working up the still photos, and the views from the drone.  Not really "work," but it does take some time.

This morning, after my bicycle ride, I added a background music track with some acoustic guitar, then did a voice over, narrating the video.  The result...

 And, the completed video, blending it all...

Never done that before...

 

How often do you get to say that when you get to be this age?

Another delightful day in the Tropical Tip; unusual with light wind again today... wooohooo - two in a row!  With the new Insta 360 One X2 that arrived yesterday, I was wanting to give that a try on the boat.  With light wind, I thought I might take the drone (Mavic Mini) out on the boat.  Yep, never done that before.

I shot a LOT of 360 video.  Given my background, I can blast through still photos like a machine... 360 video takes longer.  Way longer.  You have to "look all around within the video" before deciding what view to upload as regular video.  I have done all that, but now I have to go to work assembling and editing all that into something watchable.  Well, I say "have to" like it's a job, but it is something I enjoy.  In small doses.  That is going to take some time.

In the meantime, I'll post a few still photos here to show you a bit of our day...

That's the new X2 attached to the rail above, and a Great Blue Heron in the canal below...

A ship from the dredging operation in our local port...

First dolphin view above, the birds on the island at the Y below...

That small island is known as Dead Pecker Island locally.  Back in the day when shrimping was the main industry here, the shrimpboats would come in when the weather was nasty, but instead of going into the port, they'd put the bow against this island and wait out the weather... if they went into port, they'd lose their crew - home to get some lovin'.  With the boats beached on this island, it would be a less than fun swim to get back home.  Thus: Dead Pecker Island.

But, I digress.   Double Sunshine, one of the local excursion boats...

More dolphin viewing...

A stop to launch the drone...

I was about as nervous as my first solo long cross-country, back when I was a student pilot.  Here's a still from that flight today...

Pretty peaceful looking, huh?

And, more dolphin viewing...

Nice day.

A test...

 

In an actual alert... yeah, you know.

The day was quite different from yesterday: a calm, dry, and cool start to the morning; I put on a long sleeve shirt to ride my bike.  When I got back, Joan said, "Do you have time for your smoothie before you go out on your scoot?"

"I'm going out on my scoot?"

"Well, it is a beautiful morning."

When she's right, she's right.  I took the Vespa out.  I shot a bit of 360 video, but the Insta 360 One R was acting up: wouldn't turn on when I wanted it to, wouldn't turn off after I got it to turn on.  So, that's fun.  I'm guessing it knew something was up - last Saturday, I ordered another 360 camera; same maker, different style of camera.  It is coming from Hong Kong, with an "expected delivery of next Monday."  Surprise, surprise... it was delivered by FedEx while I was out on the Vespa.  Good timing.

I charged up the new camera while messing with the footage from the previous camera; got in a shower and took my lovely wife out for lunch.  Joan suggested we take a stroll by the beach after lunch so I could test out the new camera.  Always thinking.

Lunch was tasty, then off to the beach.  And, a test of the X2...

There will be a learning curve, but it is similar enough to the way the One R operates that I just went for it.  Should be good for some riding this summer... we made our second reservation for Hart Ranch for this summer.  I'm letting myself get excited... I just can't hide it... you know the rest.  ;-)

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On that ride today...

Here it comes...

 

The weather weasels have been telling us that Tuesday night through Thursday afternoon have the potential for severe weather.  As of right now, all our local TV stations have cut in on the network programming to report the weather situation.  We are east of the worst of it right now, with the expectations it will reach us shortly after 11:00.

West of us has been rain as heavy as 7" per hour, strong gusty winds, lightning, hail, and now a tornado warning to the north...

 I got my bicycle ride in, guessing we'll be staying inside the rest of the day.  Now,  just watching the weather march this direction at about 25 to 30 mph.  Impressive that they are predicting it to reach us at 11:17 - that's pretty specific.

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12:30 pm - Yep, an hour of real nasty.  I'm guessing well over 60mph winds (SpaceX reported 63mph), horizontal rain as heavy as I've ever seen.  When I got out of the shower, Joan showed me a photo from our dock security camera - the NNE wind and rain has driven the water in our canal up well over a foot from when I got back from my bike ride.  At that time, I checked a tide chart and set the lines for some slack, anticipating a surge.  It was more than I anticipated... I put on  flip-flops and a rain jacket and went out in that fugly stuff to check lines.  When I slacked the forward breast line, the boat popped up nearly a foot!  Yep, the boat was being held down into the water by that line.  To the aft breast line, that I can't normally reach from the dock - yep, it was holding the boat into the water, as well.  If we weren't here to keep a watch on this, there would have likely been damage to the boat and the dock.  It is less than a foot before the water in the canal comes over the seawall.  High tide is about 40 minutes away.  We are on the highest street on the island; I have no doubt some parts of the village have water over the seawall.

From the security cam...

 

All the local TV channels have interrupted network programming, for over 4 hours now, with non-stop weather updates.  Power went out briefly when there was a nearby crack of lightning/thunder.  It takes about 15 minutes for the cable to come back on... and, of course, during the worst of it.  Checking weather on-line, there are now 15 "weather warnings" for our area - most of them are for flood warnings, several severe thunderstorm warnings, wind warnings, coastal flooding due to storm surge, and a rip tide warning.  But, other than that...  ;-)

Looks like we will be in this for the next 3 to 5 hours.  The temperature dropped from 82º (when I got back from my bike ride) to 66º.  Once things settle downb, we'll go out and do a "once around" on the house to check things out.

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Just saw that we have had 6.9" of rain so far today; that seems suspect.  The rain has let up some, but the wind is still blowing like stink.  Been out on the dock three times now to adjust lines on the boat.  The high water in the canal is receding.  Rufus has been "soothing me" by sitting on my lap when the thunder rumbles.  Because he's a good boy.