Family Kayak Trip

A group of cousins and grandson spent July 4th on the water near Mercer, Wisconsin -- good times had by all.

Building Your Own Video Platform Riser

GOOG-411 LOOKUP

Google has a lookup system for cellphones (I suppose any phone) ... for business lookups. Just call 1 800 466-4411 -- So, when you get connected, say to the prompt for WHICH CITY, " -- ie Shoreview, Minnesota. Then for the WHICH BUSINESS prompt: ie Radford Video Creations." It will then connect you, or you can say "Text Message" and it will send the details of the address and phone to your SMS messaging system on your cellphone as a permanent written copy. This is good stuff ... FREE and FAST. Too bad it's not for residential too. You can find this all on the web at www.google.com/mobile/goog411/index.html

Camera Shoulder Rig

Here's my 'fat-and-poor-man's solution for "hand-holding" a 6-pound+ Canon High Def Camera ... frankly, it didn't work well. Camera is way too front-end heavy. Our bigger bones and muscles in the shoulder and back absorb and balance the weight of large cameras MUCH easier than lighter hand-held units. And of course ... the rigs for steady-ness are another story -- addressed by SteadiCam, Steady Tracker and Glidecam units .... I'd just like to hold the damn thing without cramps or a tripod in mobile situations.

I considered several commercial options -- from $69 to $600, and more. Then I bought this one for $69 and modified it. ... a simple PVC pipe arrangement in a Y shape (see photos) -- called a SpiderBrace at http://www.spiderbrace.com/. Frankly, it's totally useless for my purposes, since it had no counter-balance, and the camera is front-heavy. I added the 2.5 lb weight at the back (right), and the stick which clipped to the belt for added support.

Ultimately, I trashed the whole thing, and went to steadytracker.com --- and bought their 'extreme' version for $350. So far so good ... great shots in motion while walking, running, spinning and dutch angles. Only problem is the weight on my weaking wrists.

Electronic Prep for Travel

We're on the road again ... the count-down has begun for final prep to go 'down under' ... 18 hours of flight, plus transfer times ... whew. The leg from LA to Auckland, NZ is 12 hrs .. then to Sydney. So, I needed some serious in-flight distractions. Enter -- the electronic toy chest. Have plenty of mags and books in the backpack. But we decided AGAINST our laptops (that's a first), since we scored free use of computer time on the cruise ship ... a major bennie at 50 cents a minute! Whew. (And anyway -- I didn't want to risk damage to the laptop, considering a client road assignment in February, where I'll convert news videos to the web.) So ... not only are we disconnected in long-flight, but I can't even spin disks. So, what's a poor travel geek to do -- assuming the inflight movies don't keep me amused?

1) MUSIC: Thumb-size iRiver MP3 player ... loaded with about 200+ songs (mostly golden oldies), selections from NPR classical concerts, and a few talk shows. Good for starters and down-time.... especially exercise workouts aboard ship. But I need more.

2) MOVIES & MANUALS: An 8-inch wide portable DVD player, which plays movies, but unfortunately not computer DVD Roms with teaching manuals. (I considered movies on my PDA, but that's too small ... and a pain to dub and load.) I really need to use this trip to study about 12+ hours of software lessons for the new Adobe CS3 Suite of authoring tools, which are on DVD-ROM. This is a formal tech course by Total Training and Adobe. THE Problem: playing a computer disk DVD-Rom, on a portable DVD movie player. Not an easy conversion, and it's allot of content -- time is critical now. Well, it so happens that I have a so-called "scan-converter" ... which takes the signal from the RGB plug going to the computer monitor, passes it thru the black-box, and back to the monitor -- diverting a 2nd signal to an S-video connection or an RCA output. So, I just hook that to a stand-alone DVD recorder, with the audio output .... and dub the courses (in real time) ... all the 12 hours of lessons from DVD-Rom disks, to common DVD movie disks, in full resolution, bypassing all the (uh, encryuption)... oops, gave away a dubbing secret. Fortunately, there isn't much interactivity. I had to be sure to neutralize the screen saver and monitor power timers... then just let it tape on LP for four hours per disk of lesson content. Yes, it's minimal quality, but small screen.

3) iPAQ PDA ... well, I need some games, Yahtzee, Sudoku, Monopoly, Casino games, etc etc.... and in a pinch, it is wireless Internet receiver, for airports, etc., and collects all the news and mail from home. Pocket-size. I shouldn't need it on the ship if I use their machines. Very small screen.

4) CAMERAS: another compromise to travel light, but must bring back 'usable' memories. For sure, the Aiptek HD camera goes with me, for videos. Granted, the audio sucks ... so the MP3 player might save the day there, with it's mic recorder for on-site narratives, if needed. I could also use the Aiptek for stills, considering it's high 8MP resolution, especially when I need a pocket camera ... like a river raft ride. BUT ... it has no zoom lens or wide angle. So ... I'm also bringing my trusted high-quality Sony F828 digital still camera, for the keepsake photos, when I have the luxury of a camera hanging around my neck... or both. It's allso 8Mp... but far superior glass and zoom, etc. Cost 10X more. I'll be leaving all the other pro video gear at home. Just not right for a cruise ... travel light.

5) CELLPHONE: decided against international expense for calls. Will send email. But I have it along anyway -- just in case, it will work most anywhere, and also connects to the web and email. Ultra-small screen. Yuuch.

So ... a few small electronic devices to save my hide on travel -- all smaller than a laptop, AND it all goes in the backpack with snacks and mags. Only hurdle is power ... batteries. All are rechargeable. And I bring spares. Yes, I'm covered for music, movies, and manuals ... to get thru long flights, news and email. When I'm not sleeping, reading, eating and of course -- being a tourist. Stay tuned for further news ... from 'down-under' on the RadBlog at: http://radfordvideo.blogspot.com/

Merry Christmas

A greeting from Donna and Jim who wish you joy, health and happiness. After years of writing and reading these archival notes ... we still enjoy exchanging holiday messages with our friends and family, BUT now we're using email, and we try to keep it brief ... and still heart-felt. A few efficiencies to start the new year.

Our family has been blessed with seven beautiful grandchildren who are the focus of our attention, with hockey games, birthdays, grandpa's game room, sleepovers and trips. It seems that grandparents acquire a different perspective as we age ... we live in awe of the kids energy, their learning capacity and their many interests. Looking back as parents, maybe we took a lot for granted, and hoped our kids would turn out okay. Well, they sure did! We are proud of what our daughters have done with their lives, and their own families. It's one more gift to consider this Christmas from Aimee, Heather and Megan, Craig, Jeff and Tom. (See the holiday photo below).

We also travel (some might say "too much"). It's been our keen interest to see new places, meet people and experience life in places far from home. In a few weeks we'll head south, to Australia and New Zealand to see great mountains and fjords, the world famous Opera House, and go kayaking, river rafting, and to the bush. In the past year we visited Hawaii, Europe, and the Caribbean -- and our own North Shore, Arizona & Texas. But, it's always good to be home, and to enjoy the seasons here in Minnesota. It's really our favorite place.

Our business ventures continue to grow -- Donna is a consultant for Carrousel Travel/American Express, and Jim is producing video for corporate clients. He also finished a documentary for cable TV about Shoreview's history and won a national cable TV award for a screen play. (See them on the website below.) We wish you all the best .... Good health. Enjoy the moment. Pray for peace. Stay in touch.

iRiver MP3 Recorders

I just took delivery on my two iRiver MP3 players ... one T30 model (1+ gig) for my business -- somewhat unique among mini-MP3 players ... due to a mini-plug input for external mic. The second unit is similar, a model T60 (2 or 4 gigs) mostly for my personal pleasure, but this has a built-in voice mic, PLUS an FM radio, which records as well. Neither has video or photo viewing -- only a small screen to ID the content. These are great little storage units ... about the size of your thumb, with plenty of digital features ... ie sound equalizer, etc.

I then shopped around for a decent set of ear buds with 'retractable' cord and noise supression. Got a really nice set from Brookstone at an airport. So, both pieces fit in my shirt pocket. The purpose of both is ultra-portability -- The T60 is mostly for trips (rather than using the PDA or cellphone) -- I have stored plenty of my favorite music for exercise workouts, and just sitting around on planes, etc. -- including recorded talk shows .... all recorded from the FM radio. The T30 unit uses a mini-plug for a mic, and is a common trick used by videographers ... just drop the unit anywhere near a speaker, podium or music, and pick up a wild sound track, while still using a camera mic or wireless in other areas. It's a great way to get background, or a safety track for sound from 2nd sources, like weddings, receptions, etc. Normally, I use wireless mics to the camera, but sometimes I run into surprise issues -- so dropping a small mic anywhere is great insurance and sometimes better video (ie -- a piano player at a reception is nice background). I also use a Marantz portable digital audio recorder with XLR stereo inputs and a flash card -- it has better controls and quality, but is also larger (apx. 8 x 5 x 2). The iRiver units are small, fast, and cheap. Just synch up the audio with the video in post. The units plug in to the PC like an external drive .. so just move the file over to the PC editing suite.

"The Brain" is for thinking

I have been looking at mind-management software for years. I used the Mind-Jet "Mind Manager" mapping tool in my former corporate job, organizing ideas and project details in free-form -- by myself and with teams. It was perfect for think-tanks, but not animated. I was aware of 'The Brain' but it somehow seemed too simplified, basic and rigid in it's early versions. But who would not like animated thought boxes and expandable tags, search, calendaring and HTML export? Now, a decade or so later, The Brain Technologies, has come out with a more robust version that appears to be a good reason to drop $100+ on cool software. And of course they have a free version for testing. This product is classic "dynamic mind-mapping" software that lets you link your ideas, files and web pages "the way you think." (I'm not sure what that means ... it's their term.) Better that you visit their website at http://thebrain.com -- in fact, take 'The Tour' movie while you're there to see and hear it in motion ... and attend any of their online seminars. Yes, this has more than text and images, it has motion and interaction ... which makes it cool and useful for my purposes of scripting, video planning, project management -- even travel journalism.

Aiptek Camera Sound Test

The attached link is a simple sound test of the Aiptek video / still camera ... comparing a few seconds of the on-camera mic, to a professional mic cabled to a separate digital recorder, and synch'd to the image in post production. Also see the clip below. Both clips were made with this pocket camera. Amazing technology. Go to: http://jcradford.bizland.com/audiotest.html

Aiptek Pocket Camera Review

Here's a review of a nifty pocket camera, with decent consumer quality, and incredible price... two key benefits. The review is about 3 minutes, and worth your time to watch. Click start TWICE below. View the 26-page manual by clicking here.

Celtx Overview - Video & Film Scripting

  For those of you into producing video and film, here is a FREE tool that might advance your productivity and efficiency.  Celtx is the world's first fully integrated software for Pre-Production and collaboration of film, theatre, radio and AV. It has all the tools media creators need to bring their stories to life – combining intelligent writing and planning tools, storyboarding, and scheduling with internet-friendly technologies. Open source and free to download, Celtx is the most complete media pre-production software program available anywhere, at any cost. Over 100,000 independent media creators in 160 countries create with Celtx.   Check out the tutorial first ... Go to:  celtx - Overview - It's The Story That Counts.

Party Tent Discount Canopy, Tents, Awnings, Camping, Wedding, Awning, Manufacturers

This site has it all -- in the world of party tents. If you need any size go to this site and check his pricing. Can't be beat -- he ships same day and stands behind his product. It's a big site, so call the owner Brian Nelson ... he's got a 7 min. video about the tents. Good to view this first (below)

Party Tent City .... click here for website.