Video into water

[billvon 2,990]

Amy and I are going to the Belize boogie and we're planning to do the Blue Hole jump. This seems like too good an opportunity to pass up so I'm going to take my camera helmet on the jump. My plan consists of:

Spectre 170 (so I have lots of time under canopy)
High pull (ditto)
Drybag inside jumpsuit
Helmet goes into drybag at 3000 feet, drybag is attached to chest harness ring


How I handle it after landing will depend on boat proximity etc. If they're close I'll get the canopy into the water, hand the camera to them and then haul everything else out. If not I may actually use a flotation device for the first time ever. (Jumped with the thing probably a hundred times, never actually inflated it.)

Any suggestions?

[DBCOOPER 5]

I've done the Blue Hole jump twice and never saw anyone with a jump suit. Just shorts and bathing suits, and a few naked. Personally I think its a perfect GoPro application.

Replying to: Re: Stall On Jump Run Emergency Procedure? by billvon

If the plane is unrecoverable then exiting is a very very good idea.

[DSE 5]

Haven't jumped the Blue Hole, but with a lot of recent experience in water...I'd recommend ditching the camera helmet and just dealing with a GoPro. For 300.00, it's a lot of peace of mind, IMO.

[jtnesbitt 0]

There is also the GoPro 960 which REI is now selling for $180. (REI has a great replacement policy too. Paying for it with an AMEX gives additional security as if the mount brakes you can claim loss due to faulty equipment.)

It's a 4:3 aspect ratio instead of 16:9. It's also only 960 instead of 1080 but most people shooting in 1080 dumb down the quality to 720 anyway whether intentional or not.

After comparing the video side by side i couldnt bring myself to pay almost double for the full HD when you can really only determine a quality difference when comparing side by side. (Again, thats before editing and converting too.)

If you're looking for a good deal on a Full HD gopro let me know. A friend of mine bought a lot to get a discount and the jumpers that promised to take them off his hands backed out. As a consequence he is selling them new in box for much less than retail to try and get his money back.

I think a gopro sounds perfect for this jump. Plus, you'll get the best part of the video with a gopro...the splash!

"If this post needs to be moderated I would prefer it to be completly removed and not edited and butchered into a disney movie" - DorkZone Hero

[DSE 5]

if you need one to borrow, I've got one you can take.

[monkycndo 0]

Bill, Bruno has jumped his camera set up into the hole. So have a few others. They would dry bag it and they didn't have any problems. The retrieval boat is really fast at getting jumpers out of the water. I don't think anyone on our load popped their flotation belt. Being it is salt water and with the reserve, you stay very buoyant.

Also helps to land real close. My pilot chute almost landed in the boat.

But for pure comfort level, I'd say GoPro as well.

50 donations so far. Give it a try.

You know you want to spank it
Jump an Infinity

[velocityphoto 0]

Here's the best price out there so far..

http://www.easternperformance.com/products.php?product=GoPro-Hero-Motorsports1080-HD-Camera-

A friend will bail you out of jail , a REAL friend will be sitting next to you in the cell slapping your hand saying "DUDE THAT WAS AWSUM " ................

[billvon 2,990]

Thanks for the advice everyone. Talked to a few other video people, and apparently Bruno does something very similar, except he just puts a plastic bag over the helmet and treads water until they pick him up.

I do have a Gopro HD that I will probably stick on someone's chest strap. I'll probably just use the still camera (XSi) on the jump with the kit lens; I can afford to replace them if everything goes all pear-shaped. I'll be jumping with shorts and a wing jacket; the jacket has enough room "inside" to stash a drybag.

[skydiveturtle 0]

Link to Bruno's video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJkTOVyti8o

[dragon2 2]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJkTOVyti8o

Clicky, and how awesome is that

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[DougH 270]

Looked like he put a hotel shower cap on over the camera setup!

"The restraining order says you're only allowed to touch me in freefall"
=P

[keithbar 1]

it almost looks like he put one over the video. and one over the still set up.

i have on occasion been accused of pulling low . My response. Naw I wasn't low I'm just such a big guy I look closer than I really am .

[billvon 2,990]

As an update, I tried the drybag - and it didn't work. It took the boat ~20 minutes to pick me up, and during that time I had to put the bag down (i.e. let it float) to untangle my legs and inflate water gear. There was just enough water inside to destroy the XSi I was using.

If I do it again I'll build a more waterproof system (i.e. lots of duct tape and plastic sheeting) inflate the water gear _before_ I go in the water and just float. The splash is the biggest risk then and I can build at least a splash-proof system.

[velocityphoto 0]

Wash the camera in distilled water real good and then wash it out in isopropyl alcohol to disperse the water and put it in with some rice in a bag or a container of some sort. Maybe it can be saved? I know people who do this to video cameras.

A friend will bail you out of jail , a REAL friend will be sitting next to you in the cell slapping your hand saying "DUDE THAT WAS AWSUM " ................

[billvon 2,990]

> Wash the camera in distilled water real good and then wash it out in isopropyl alcohol
>to disperse the water and put it in with some rice in a bag or a container of some sort.

Tried that with isopropyl; no luck. I may just send it in to Canon and see what they can do with it.

[velocityphoto 0]

It has to be washed asap after it goes into the drink. Distilled water has no sediments in it, so it washes out the garbage and the alcohol disperses the water. Hope fully canon can fix it for you...

A friend will bail you out of jail , a REAL friend will be sitting next to you in the cell slapping your hand saying "DUDE THAT WAS AWSUM " ................

[PharmerPhil 0]

Quote

Hope fully canon can fix it for you...

I'd love to be at the tech bench when they get the job though:

"He did what?"

"He strapped it to a helmet on his head?"

"Then he jumped out of a plane?"

"Free-fell and then deployed a parachute?"

"Then he just splashed down somewhere in the Caribbean?"

"In salt water?"

"And then he and the camera,... what, just went swimming for 20 or so minutes?"

If there is any warranty left, I would just clean it up and send it in saying "I dunno, it just stopped working..."
Worked for me once on a 20D that fell from 4K. It came back fixed with a slip that said, "replaced light box." I promptly sold it on e-bay. caveat emptor...

[sinjin 0]

what kind of dry bag ?

dont let life pass you by

[billvon 2,990]

>what kind of dry bag ?

Big REI one, fold (not zip) closure.

[ltdiver 3]

Maybe next time use this camera? Water proof at the get-go.

http://www.chutingstar.com/newgear_en/drift-hd170-action-camera.html

Their web page with specs here: http://driftinnovation.com/

Don't tell me the sky's the limit when there are footprints on the moon

[DBCOOPER 5]

Did you at least get some pictures out of it? My gopro fogged up a little and I had to do a lot of holding into the sun so I didn't get as good a quality pictures as I was hoping for. The countour did pretty good for video.

Replying to: Re: Stall On Jump Run Emergency Procedure? by billvon

If the plane is unrecoverable then exiting is a very very good idea.